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akkhikahārako

akkhikahāraka

masc nom sg of akkhikahāraka (noun)

1. who removes the eyes; who removes vision
2. who collects seeds

Built from

• akkhi — root · eye
  From √akṣ 'to see'; cognate with Latin oculus and English eye. The concrete sense of the visual organ extends to 'vision' and metaphorically to 'seed' (a thing that bears or contains potential).
• ka — ending · diminutive, relativizer
  Nominalizing or relativizing suffix, sometimes diminutive. Here it likely modifies akkhi to form the first part of the compound.
• hāra — stem · taking, carrying
  From √hṛ 'to take, carry away'; cognate with Latin ferre and English bear. Carries the concrete sense of physical removal or collection.
• ka — ending · agent, one who
  Agent suffix forming akkhikahāraka, 'one who takes/removes the eye-related thing'. Agrees with masculine nominative singular.

Analysis. akkhika (relating to eyes, or seeds) + hāraka (one who takes, remover). The compound is ambiguous: akkhi (eye) + ka (diminutive or relativizer) + hāraka (remover), or akkhika (seeded, bearing seeds) + hāraka (collector). In the first sense, 'eye-remover', a figure of danger or blindness; in the second, 'seed-gatherer', one who collects seeds for sowing.

Etymology. akkhi derives from √akṣ (to see, eye), cognate with Latin oculus and English eye through Indo-European *h₃okʰ-. Hāraka is formed from √hṛ (to take, carry away), cognate with Latin ferre, English fare and bear. The suffix -ka forms agents or instruments. Together the word fuses concrete acts of removal (plucking out eyes, carrying off seeds) into a single role.

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

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