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The Organisation of the Human Body
191
The Skeleton (Atthiya),51
The first and most obvious function of the skeleton is to give support and shape to the body. In order that an animal may rise off the ground, some hard, durable substance is needed to maintain the soft tissues against the pull of gravity and act as a firm base for the attachment of muscles. These requirements are met by the bones.52 • The skeleton also protects53 the delicate underlying organs, such as, the brain (matthu ), lungs ( phopphasaphephasa ),54 etc. from injury. The marrow tissue (atthimimjā )55 within the cavity of the bones "performs”, according to modern Biology, the special tasks of manufacturing all red corpuscles and same kinds of white ones.56
The Skeleton (Atthiya ).57
According to Jaina Biology, the human skeleton system consists of three hundred pieces of bones 58 and one hundred and sixty joints.59 It is not composed solely of bones; but its connective tissue fibers ( māṁsapeśīs 160 and tendons ( māṁsarajju 161 are important in helping to maintain body form by holding the organs together. Two specialized kinds of connective tissue fibers, ligaments62 and tendons63 (Kamdarā) (mamsarajju ) attach bones to bones and muscles to bones, respectively, thereby playing an indispensable role in locomotion.
I ypes of Skeletones :
The skeleton of an animal may be located on the outside of the body (an exoskeleton) or inside the body (an endoskeleton). The hard 5.. TandulaVeyaliya p. 41. "Atthiyakadhina" 52. "Atthiyanthiņādarie, paeņharubandhaņņibaddhe / tayamamsavasāchannammi,
india / ārakkhaguttamı" Samvegaramgasālā, Sūtra. 1860, p. 146. "Atthiyakadhine siranhārubamdhime mamsacammalevammi /"
Tandula Veyaliya, p. 41, 53. Samvegaramgāsālā, Sūtra 1860 p. 146 54. Tandula Veyaliya 1', p. 38 55. Ibid 6, p. 10 56. Biology, p. :39. 57. Tandula Veyāliya, p. 41.
Atthiyakadbiņe". "Atthiya is a term for both a single bone and a frame work
of bones. See, Visuddhimagga VI. 10. 58. "Tinni atthidāmasayāim" Tandula Veyaliya, 16, p. 36. 59. Sathi samdhis, yarn", Ibid. ; Kalyāṇakāraka mention 300 Joints, 3.2. 60. Tandula Veyaliya, 2, p. 6., 16, p. 36. 61. Kalyāṇakäraka, 1.4, p. 31. 62. “Kandarā (?," Kalyāņakāraka, 3.3. 63. Mumsarajjam, Ibid. 3.4
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