The ancient anatomists had a clear distinction in mind, as regards the difference between the conducting and the respiratory portions of the bronchial tree. Oft-repeated statements such as "Indra never sends rain upon the inhabitants of Kimpurusa, etc." very clearly suggest that these "lands" were viewed as belonging to the conducting (non respiratory) section of the bronchial tree. It is only in the acinus or the respiratory portion of the tree that "rainfall," the showering of the alveoli in conjunction with the pouring of the "waters" (deoxygenated blood in the capillaries on the arterial side), occurs. This is a very sophisticated metaphorical scenario crafted by the poet-anatomists of the Puranas.
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