anilāśin

 

"Anilāśin" in Sanskrit primarily means 'feeding on the wind' 

or fasting, and it is also used to denote a snake, reflecting

both literal and symbolic significance in Hindu 

thought

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Etymology and Literal Meaning

The word Anilāśin (अनिलाशिन्) is a compound of two Sanskrit terms:

anila (अनिल), meaning wind, and āśin (आशिन्), meaning one who 

consumes or feeds on. Literally, it describes someone who feeds

on air or wind, which in practice refers to fasting or subsisting

without food, relying on spiritual or minimal sustenance 

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Alternate Usage: Snake Symbolism

In addition to its meaning related to fasting, Anilāśin is also used 

to denote a snake in classical Sanskrit literature, including the 

Mahābhārata. Some lexicons relate this usage to vāyu-bhakṣa,

implying a creature that consumes or is associated with air or 

wind 

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. The symbolic association of snakes

in Hindu texts often represents vital energy, transformation, and

subtle forces, aligning metaphorically with the idea of consuming

subtle, non-material sustenance like wind.

Usage in Scriptures

• In the Mahābhārata (12.36.5), the term anilāśin appears in a 
• context illustrating both its literal and emphatic meanings — 
• highlighting fasting, spiritual austerity, or a mystical reference to 
• beings that subsist on air 

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• Lexicographers like Amarasimha, Halāyudha, and Hemacandra 
• mention this term as either a fasting individual or a serpent, 
• emphasizing its dual layers of meaning in Sanskrit literary
• tradition 

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Philosophical and Symbolic Significance

The concept of feeding on the wind or practicing Anilāśin austerity 

signifies:

• Renunciation and self-discipline: fasting as a spiritual practice 
• to master desires.
• Minimalist subsistence and detachment: teachings on the ability 
• to live on subtle energies rather than material offerings.
• Connection to elemental forces: like the wind (vāyu), it symbolizes 
• subtle life energies in yogic and tantric traditions.
• The snake symbolism reflects kundalini energy or hidden potential, 
• emphasizing transformation and spiritual awakening.

In essence, Anilāśin blends literal, physical, and metaphorical

meanings, highlighting both the practice of austerity and symbolic

representations in Hindu philosophical thought and Sanskrit

literature 

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