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ākāsasamena

ākāsasama

masc instr sg of ākāsasama (adj); nt instr sg of ākāsasama (adj)

1. like empty space; like open air

Built from

• ā — prefix · toward, up to
  Reverses or directs motion toward the speaker. Here it shapes kāsa into ākāsa, 'space opened up toward perception'.
• kāsa — root · yawn, gape, open
  The concrete image of opening and gaping; ākāsa is space that gapes open endlessly.
• sama — root · equal, same, like
  Related to sameness and equality; used as an adjective suffix meaning 'resembling' or 'like'.
• ena — ending · instrumental singular
  The instrumental case (third case) here indicates the means or manner, or the agent's attribute; in compounds like ākāsasamena it marks the adjectival qualifier in instrumental agreement.

Analysis. ākāsa (neuter noun, 'space, sky') + sama (adjective, 'equal, like, similar') in instrumental form; the compound is bahuvrīhi, qualifying an implied agent or object as resembling open space.

Etymology. ākāsa is from ā- (toward the speaker) + kāsa, connected to √kas (yawn, gape, open); sama is from Sanskrit sama, related to the root √sam meaning 'to be same or equal'. The image is of something boundless and open like the sky.

Meanings from the Digital Pāḷi Dictionary; morphology and etymology by Claude.

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