# malakṣaya (मलक्षय) > Canonical version of this page: https://nighantu.ageayurveda.com/lexicon/mala-kshaya/ An Ayurvedic technical term, rendered into English in 9 different ways. The renderings do not agree, and the difference between them changes what the term is taken to mean. ## Identification | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Transliteration | malakṣaya | | Devanagari | मलक्षय | | Also written | mala-kṣaya, malasaṅkṣaya (Charaka Su 17/72 'malasaṅkṣayē'), purīṣakṣaya, mūtrakṣaya, svedakṣaya, mala kshaya, depletion of malas | | Category, as gathered | mala | | Grouped under | Body: tissues, wastes and channels | | Classical citations | 6 | | Citations checked | 2026-10-07 | ## How it is translated, and whether the translation holds Each rendering is given with the source that uses it. The assessment is ours. ### Diminution of faeces WHO International Standard Terminologies on Ayurveda (2022) · ITA-5.4.6 purīṣakṣayaḥ; 'A disorder characterized by some or all the following signs and symptoms: gripping type of pain; pain in precordial region/angina pectoris; pain in flanks; upward movement of vata with sounds/upward oblique movement of vata with sounds in abdomen; movement of vata in the abdomen; reduced quantity of faeces.' · standard WHO has NO generic malakṣaya entry; depletion is coded per mala only, under 'Morbidity and diagnostic terms (disorders)'. Reproduced unaltered and attributed from the WHO International Standard Terminologies on Ayurveda, which is what that licence permits, and deliberately absent from the downloadable dataset, which is CC BY 4.0. ### Diminution of urine WHO International Standard Terminologies on Ayurveda (2022) · ITA-5.4.3 mūtrakṣayaḥ; also coded a second time as ITA-5.39.16 'Oliguria, anuria' (mūtrakṣayaḥ) with an almost identical description · standard The same Sanskrit term is coded twice in WHO: once as a mala-disorder (5.4.3) and once as a urinary disease (5.39.16). The English differs ('Diminution of urine' vs 'Oliguria, anuria'). Reproduced unaltered and attributed from the WHO International Standard Terminologies on Ayurveda, which is what that licence permits, and deliberately absent from the downloadable dataset, which is CC BY 4.0. ### Diminution of sweat WHO International Standard Terminologies on Ayurveda (2022) · ITA-5.4.10 svedakṣayaḥ · standard Reproduced unaltered and attributed from the WHO International Standard Terminologies on Ayurveda, which is what that licence permits, and deliberately absent from the downloadable dataset, which is CC BY 4.0. ### depletion of feces NAMASTE National Ayurveda Morbidity Codes · NAMC CB-1 purīṣakṣayaḥ; references given: Ca.Su.17/70; Su.Su.15/11; As. Su.19/6; Ah.Su.11/21 · classification NAMC's own reference list matches the loci verified below (Ca.Su.17/70, Su.Su.15/11, Ah.Su.11/21). Reproduced unaltered and attributed from the Government of India NAMASTE terminology, which is what that licence permits, and deliberately absent from the downloadable dataset, which is CC BY 4.0. ### oliguria/anuria/anuresis NAMASTE National Ayurveda Morbidity Codes · NAMC CA-1 mūtrakṣayaḥ; refs Ca.Su.17/71; Su.U.58/17; As.Su.19/6; Ah.Su.11/22. A different mūtrakṣayaḥ/mūtrasaṃkṣayaḥ is coded EJ-3.4 'oligouria/anuria' as a mūtrāghāta type (refs Ca.Si.9/34 etc.) · classification NAMC, like WHO, codes mūtrakṣaya twice: as a mala-depletion (CA-1) and as a urinary disease (EJ-3.4). ICD-11-style English ('oliguria/anuria') is used where WHO ISTA says 'Diminution of urine'. Reproduced unaltered and attributed from the Government of India NAMASTE terminology, which is what that licence permits, and deliberately absent from the downloadable dataset, which is CC BY 4.0. ### hypohidrosis/anhidrosis NAMASTE National Ayurveda Morbidity Codes · NAMC CC-1 svedakṣayaḥ; refs Su.Su.15/11; As. Sa.19/6; Ah.Su.11/22 · classification Biomedical nosological term substituted for the Ayurvedic one. Reproduced unaltered and attributed from the Government of India NAMASTE terminology, which is what that licence permits, and deliberately absent from the downloadable dataset, which is CC BY 4.0. ### diminution of urine quantity NAMASTE Portal, Standardised Ayurveda Terminologies · SAT-D.6232 mūtrakṣayaḥ (signs and symptoms list) · standard Reproduced unaltered and attributed from the Government of India NAMASTE terminology, which is what that licence permits, and deliberately absent from the downloadable dataset, which is CC BY 4.0. ### loss, absence, suppression or scanty formation (of fecal matter / of urine); waste, absence or scanty formation (of perspiration) Sushruta Samhita, tr. Kaviraj Kunja Lal Bhishagratna (1907) · Sutrasthana XV · translation Bhishagratna unpacks kṣaya into a cluster of English nouns and never uses one fixed equivalent. ### decrease below the quantity that is normal / below the normal quantity / below the normal measure Charaka Samhita, tr. Avinash Chandra Kaviratna (1896-1913) · Sutrasthana Lesson XVII, his 70-72 · translation Kaviratna uses 'attenuation' for kṣaya of doṣa/dhātu/ojas but 'decrease' for the malas. ## The classical passages ### Charaka Samhita Sutrasthana 17:70-72 (standard, as printed on carakasamhitaonline: 70 purīṣa, 71 mūtra, 72 other malāyana). Kaviratna prints 70, 71, 72 for the same units (aligned here, though he is one behind at 64-65 in the same chapter), checked against the source > क्षीणे शकृति चान्त्राणि पीडयन्निव मारुतः| रूक्षस्योन्नमयन् कुक्षिं तिर्यगूर्ध्वं च गच्छति||७०|| मूत्रक्षये मूत्रकृच्छ्रं मूत्रवैवर्ण्यमेव च| पिपासा बाधते चास्य मुखं च परिशुष्यति||७१|| मलायनानि चान्यानि शून्यानि च लघूनि च| विशुष्काणि च लक्ष्यन्ते यथास्वं मलसङ्क्षये||७२|| / kṣīṇē śakr̥ti cāntrāṇi pīḍayanniva mārutaḥ| rūkṣasyōnnamayan kukṣiṁ tiryagūrdhvaṁ ca gacchati||70|| mūtrakṣayē mūtrakr̥cchraṁ mūtravaivarṇyamēva ca| pipāsā bādhatē cāsya mukhaṁ ca pariśuṣyati||71|| malāyanāni cānyāni śūnyāni ca laghūni ca| viśuṣkāṇi ca lakṣyantē yathāsvaṁ malasaṅkṣayē||72|| tr. none quoted (Sanskrit mula only) · https://www.carakasamhitaonline.com/index.php/Kiyanta_Shiraseeya_Adhyaya Charaka's mala-kṣaya signs: faeces depleted → vāta presses the intestines and moves obliquely/upward in a dry patient; urine depleted → dysuria, discoloured urine, thirst, dry mouth; the OTHER mala-seats (malāyana) → empty, light, dried. The compound used is malasaṅkṣaya. Charaka gives NO sveda-kṣaya verse here (verified by searching the page for स्वेदक्षय). ### Charaka Samhita Sutrasthana 17:Kaviratna's printed 70, 71, 72 (= standard 70-72), checked against the source > When the stools decrease below the quantity that is normal, the wind in the constitution of the patient who has become dry, becomes provoked or aggravated and afflicting his entrails forces them upwards and penetrates the abdomen in transverse and upward directions. [70] When the urine decreases below the normal quantity, the symptoms that appear are strangury, and loss of color of the urine itself. Besides this, the patient suffers from thirst, and his mouth becomes dry. [71] As regards the other organs or outlets of the body, when their secretions decrease below the normal measure, all of them seem to be empty, light, and dry. [72] tr. Avinash Chandra Kaviratna · https://archive.org/download/BIUSante_47357/BIUSante_47357_djvu.txt Lawfully quotable English of Su 17/70-72 (OCR shows his 70 as '-]*701' and his 71, 72 clearly; OCR spacing normalised). 'Strangury' = mūtrakṛcchra. ### Sushruta Samhita Sutrasthana 15:11 (Sanskrit verse number from siva.sh; Bhishagratna prints no verse numbers), checked against the source > पुरीषक्षये हृदयपार्श्वपीडा सशब्दस्य च वायोरूर्ध्वगमनं कुक्षौ सञ्चरणं च, मूत्रक्षये बस्तितोदोऽल्पमूत्रता च; अत्रापि स्वयोनिवर्धनद्रव्योपयोगः । स्वेदक्षये स्तब्धरोमकूपता त्वक्शोषः स्पर्शवैगुण्यं स्वेदनाशश्च; तत्राभ्यङ्गः स्वेदोपयोगश्च ॥११॥ — Bhishagratna: 'The loss absence, suppression or scanty formation of fecal matter is attended with a sensation of pain at the sides and the region of the heart, and the upward coursing of (the incarcerated) wind or flatus, accompanied with a rumbling sound about the region of the liver and the intestines. Similarly, the loss, (absence or scanty formation) of urine is marked by an aching pain in the bladder, causing it dribble or to come out in thin and scanty jets. Here, as in the foregoing instances, the remedial agents should consist of drugs which directly contribute to the formation of urine. Similarly the waste, absence or scanty formation of perspiration is followed by such symptoms as numbness about the pores of the hair, and dryness of the epidermis (skin). The sense of touch is perceptibly affected, and perspiration is entirely stopped. The medical treatment in such a case consists in the application of medicated unguents, lubrications, diaphoretics, and adoption of measures (that tend to produce a copious perspiration).' tr. Kaviraj Kunja Lal Bhishagratna (English); Sanskrit from siva.sh · https://www.wisdomlib.org/hinduism/book/sushruta-samhita-volume-1-sutrasthana/d/doc122907.html ; https://www.siva.sh/sushruta-samhita/sutra-sthana/15/11-15 Sushruta gives all three mala-kṣaya pictures in one sūtra, INCLUDING sveda-kṣaya (which Charaka Su 17 lacks), with the treatment principle 'svayoni-vardhana' (supply what builds that mala) and, for sweat, abhyaṅga and svedana. Bhishagratna's 'liver and the intestines' and 'dribble ... thin and scanty jets' are expansions beyond the Sanskrit (basti-toda, alpa-mūtratā). ### Sushruta Samhita Sutrasthana 15:29 (siva.sh numbering); Bhishagratna 'Metrical texts', checked against the source > दोषधातुमलक्षीणो बलक्षीणोऽपि वा नरः । स्वयोनिवर्धनं यत्तदन्नपानं प्रकाङ्क्षति ॥२९॥ — Bhishagratna: 'A person suffering from a wasting of any of the constituent humours or fundamental principles or excrements of the body, as well as one suffering from loss of Ojah (albumen) naturally craves for drink and food that tend to contribute directly to the formation of the matter (or bodily principle) so lost or wasted.' tr. Kaviraj Kunja Lal Bhishagratna (English); Sanskrit from siva.sh · https://www.wisdomlib.org/hinduism/book/sushruta-samhita-volume-1-sutrasthana/d/doc122907.html ; https://www.siva.sh/sushruta-samhita/sutra-sthana/15/26-30 The general kṣaya rule (craving for what rebuilds the depleted item) is stated for mala as much as for doṣa and dhātu. Bhishagratna's 'Ojah (albumen)' is his own biomedical gloss; the Sanskrit says bala. ### Ashtanga Hridaya Sutrasthana 11:21-23 (GRETIL numbering), checked against the source > purīṣe vāyur antrāṇi sa-śabdo veṣṭayann iva | kukṣau bhramati yāty ūrdhvaṃ hṛt-pārśve pīḍayan bhṛśam || 21 || mūtre 'lpaṃ mūtrayet kṛcchrād vi-varṇaṃ sāsram eva vā | svede roma-cyutiḥ stabdha-roma-tā sphuṭanaṃ tvacaḥ || 22 || malānām ati-sūkṣmāṇāṃ dur-lakṣyaṃ lakṣayet kṣayam | sva-malāyana-saṃśoṣa-toda-śūnya-tva-lāghavaiḥ || 23 || tr. none (no public-domain English exists) · http://gretil.sub.uni-goettingen.de/gretil/1_sanskr/6_sastra/7_ayur/vagaah_u.htm Vāgbhaṭa's consolidated mala-kṣaya list (faeces, urine, sweat, and the subtle malas recognised by dryness, pricking, emptiness and lightness of their seats). Matches NAMC's references Ah.Su.11/21-22. ### Ashtanga Hridaya Sutrasthana 11:25 (GRETIL numbering), checked against the source > vṛddhiṃ malānāṃ saṅgāc ca kṣayaṃ cāti-visargataḥ | malocita-tvād dehasya kṣayo vṛddhes tu pīḍanaḥ || 25 || tr. none (no public-domain English exists) · http://gretil.sub.uni-goettingen.de/gretil/1_sanskr/6_sastra/7_ayur/vagaah_u.htm Aetiology and prognosis: mala-vṛddhi arises from retention (saṅga), mala-kṣaya from excessive discharge (ati-visarga); because the body is accustomed to its malas, kṣaya is more distressing than vṛddhi. This is the clearest classical statement that mala depletion is clinically worse than mala excess. ## Not to be confused with - **dhātukṣaya.** Both are among Charaka's eighteen kṣayas (Su 17/63) but have different sign-lists; mala-kṣaya is recognised by emptiness/dryness of the mala's seat (malāyana), dhātukṣaya by loss of the dhātu's function. - **mala-vṛddhi.** AH Su 11/25: vṛddhi comes from retention, kṣaya from over-discharge; kṣaya is the more painful. Not mirror images in prognosis. - **mūtrāghāta / mūtrakṣaya as urinary disease.** WHO codes mūtrakṣayaḥ both as a mala-disorder (ITA-5.4.3) and as a urinary disease (ITA-5.39.16); NAMC likewise CA-1 vs EJ-3.4. A lexicon entry must say which coding it means. - **mala-apravṛtti / vibandha (retention of stool).** Non-passage of stool is retention (saṅga), which AH 11/25 makes a cause of mala-VṚDDHI, not kṣaya. 'Scanty stool' in English covers both and must be disambiguated. - **svedakṣaya in Charaka vs Sushruta.** Charaka Su 17 has no sveda-kṣaya verse; Sushruta Su 15/11 and AH Su 11/22 do. 'Charaka's three mala-kṣayas' would be a misstatement. ## Renderings that do not hold - anuria/oliguria, anhidrosis/hypohidrosis (NAMC CA-1, CC-1). These are biomedical sign-terms and are only part of the classical picture; mūtrakṣaya in Ca.Su.17/71 also includes discoloration, thirst and dry mouth, and svedakṣaya in Su.Su.15/11 includes skin dryness and altered touch. Substituting the biomedical term loses the syndrome. - constipation (for purīṣakṣaya). Constipation is retention/difficulty of passage; purīṣakṣaya is reduced formation of faeces with vāta signs. AH 11/25 assigns retention to vṛddhi. - loss of waste = detoxification / a good thing. Popular inversion. Every classical source retrieved treats mala-kṣaya as a disorder requiring the mala to be rebuilt (svayoni-vardhana), and AH 11/25 calls it more distressing than mala excess. ## Open questions Recorded rather than resolved. - Standalone compound: Charaka Su 17/72 uses malasaṅkṣaya; WHO and NAMASTE have no generic malakṣaya headword, only per-mala codes. Whether a generic 'malakṣaya' appears as a headword in any standard was not established. - Whether Chakrapāṇi reads the 'malāyanāni cānyāni' of Su 17/72 as the five sense-orifice malas (as Kaviratna's footnote at 17/63 implies) was not checked. - Bhishagratna's section numbering within chapter XV was not captured from wisdomlib; a human citing him by page should use the archive.org Vol. I scan (b24758619_0001), which did not download. ## Citation Age Ayurveda Nighantu, "malakṣaya", https://nighantu.ageayurveda.com/lexicon/mala-kshaya/, CC BY 4.0. Whole lexicon: https://nighantu.ageayurveda.com/lexicon.json and https://nighantu.ageayurveda.com/lexicon.csv. Educational reference only. A term entry explains what a word means and how it has been translated. Nothing here is advice.