སྲང་། | Glossary of Terms

Though its precise units varied, one dharaṇa was generally equivalent to ten palas or forty karṣa, and roughly equivalent to 350 grams, or near to a pound. The Tibetan translates both pala and dharaṇa as srang in this sūtra. Pala is said to be srang in the Mahāvyutpatti, but that dictionary has no equivalent for dharaṇa.

Approximately ten ounces. One dharaṇa could be equivalent to between 3 and 5 grams, which could be from 50 to 70 grains, but that seems too small in relation to its usage in this sūtra. In one example of measurement used specifically for gold, a dharaṇa is equivalent to ten pala, or 40 suverna, or 640 māśa, or 3200 kṛṣṇala (black gañja seed), in which case the dharaṇa would be even smaller, equivalent to 1.5 grains. As there was no equivalent to dharaṇa in Tibetan, it was translated as srang, which in the Mahāvyutpatti is said to equal one pala, both being close to an ounce when used generally.