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apassaṁ

apassati

absolutive (gerundive) of apassati; not seeing, without seeing

1. not seeing
2. failing to see
3. blindly

Built from

• a- — prefix · not, without
  Plain negation; the speaker does not negate. Cognates: English un-, Greek a(n)-.
• passaṁ — stem · seeing
  Absolutive (gerundive) of passati; marks a concurrent or prior action, here the failure or refusal to see.

Analysis. a- (not) + passati (sees); the absolutive form apassaṁ marks an action concurrent with or prior to the main verb, often implying negligence or blindness to reality.

Etymology. a- (negation) + passati from √pas (see, perceive). Sanskrit paśyati; cognate with English "spy" and Greek opsís (vision). The negated form idiomatically expresses heedlessness, especially in doctrinal contexts where apassaṁ describes the ignorant person's failure to perceive the Three Marks.

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

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