Sarpir-maṇḍa facts for kids

Sarpir-maṇḍa (pronounced Sar-peer-man-da) was a special kind of dairy product. It came from ancient India and is mentioned in old religious texts from Hinduism and Buddhism. These texts describe five steps of making milk into different products. Sarpir-maṇḍa was considered the very best and purest form.

The Five Stages of Milk

Ancient Buddhist writings, like the Nirvana Sutra, talk about five stages of milk. They use these stages as a way to explain how a person's spirit can become purer over time.

Here are the five stages:

The Best of the Best

An old saying from the Long Āgama Sūtra explains this idea:

乳變為酪，酪為生酥，生酥為熟酥，熟酥為醍醐，醍醐為第一。

– 『長阿含經』

This means: "Milk turns into curd; curd turns into butter; butter turns into sarpis; sarpis turns into sarpir-maṇḍa; sarpir-maṇḍa is the best."

Many people believe that Sarpir-maṇḍa was an early version of ghee. Ghee is a type of clarified butter often used in Indian cooking and religious ceremonies.

Sarpir-maṇḍa in East Asia

In Chinese Buddhist writings, sarpir-maṇḍa was translated to tíhú (醍醐). This word has a long history in East Asia.

The Compendium of Materia Medica

The Compendium of Materia Medica is a very old and famous Chinese book from 1578. It lists many different plants, animals, and minerals used in traditional medicine. This book mentions tíhú and refers to even older texts from the 5th century. This shows how important tíhú was for a very long time.

Daigo in Japan

The Chinese word 醍醐 is pronounced daigo in Japan. This word has been used in several important ways:

• Daigo Temple: This is a famous Buddhist temple in Japan.
• Emperor Daigo: A Japanese emperor from the 10th century was named after the temple.
• Daigo-mi: This Japanese word means a "superb flavor" or the "best taste." It shows that daigo was seen as something excellent.

The Japanese Dairy Association says that Emperor Daigo encouraged people to make dairy products. These included so (another cheese-like product) and daigo during his rule in the 10th century.