anu karṣa

 “Anu-karṣa” (अनुकर्ष) in Sanskrit broadly refers to ‘dragging after’ or ‘attaching or drawing along,’ and can also denote the bottom or axle of a carriage, invocation by incantation, grammatical attraction, or deferred performance of a duty.

Etymology and Composition

The term Anu-karṣa is a tatpurusha compound in Sanskrit:

• anu (अनु) – meaning “after,” “alongside,” or “following” 

  1
• kṛṣa (कर्ष) – a verbal root meaning “to drag” or “to draw” 

  1
• 

  

  2 Sources
• 
  

Together, anu-karṣa literally signifies “dragging along” or “drawing after.”

Definitions and Uses

Physical / Mechanical Usage: In texts such as the Śivapurāṇa, 

anu-karṣa denotes the bottom or axle of a carriage, metaphorically

“dragged along” by the wheels 

1

.

Magical / Ritual Context: It can mean invoking or summoning,

especially by spells or mantras, representing the act of attraction 

through ritual means 

1

.

Grammatical Term: In Sanskrit grammar, anu-karṣa refers to attraction, 

where a prior rule or word applies to a subsequent rule, i.e., a kind of 

syntactic or phonetic drawing forward 

1

.

General Concept of Attraction: The general sense of the word also

involves pulling, drawing, or attracting something along 

2

.

Deferred Duty: In Marathi, derived from Sanskrit usage, anu-karṣa 

can mean delayed performance of a prescribed duty, in opposition 

to apakarṣa, which connotes anticipation 

1

1. 

   

   2 Sources
2. 
   

Related Terms

• Anu (अनु) on its own represents a prefix meaning “after,” “following,” 
• or “alongside” 

  1

  .
• Karṣa (कर्ष) refers to pulling, dragging, or (in other contexts) a
• measure of weight 

  2

  .
• 

  

  3 Sources
• 
  

Summary

Anukarṣa / Anu-karṣa thus has multiple layers of meaning:

• Mechanical: bottom or axle of a vehicle
• Ritual: summoning or invoking
• Linguistic: grammatical attraction
• General: drawing or dragging along
• Cultural/Linguistic: delayed performance of duty

Its exact interpretation depends on the textual or practical context

in which it is used, including Puranic stories, Mahabharata passages,

and Sanskrit grammar works 

Wisdom Library+2

.