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asaṁvutassa

asaṁvuta

masculine singular genitive of asaṁvuta (adjective): 'of one who is unrestrained'

1. unrestrained, without control
2. unguarded (of senses)
3. intemperate

Built from

• a — prefix · not, without
  Plain negation. Cognates: English un-, Greek a(n)-.
• saṁ — prefix · together, completely
  Brings things into one; works like Latin con-. Here means the gathering of control inward.
• vut — root · cover, protect, restrain
  Past participle stem of √vṛ. Related to English 'ward', suggesting protection or guardedness.
• a — ending · masculine singular nominative
  The inflected nominative singular; the genitive -ssa that appears on the surface form asaṁvutassa derives from this base.

Analysis. a + saṁvuta: a- (not, without) + saṁvuta (restrained, guarded). Saṁvuta itself is the past participle of saṁvarati (to cover, restrain), formed from sam- (together, completely) + √vṛ (to cover, protect).

Etymology. The prefix a- is the Pali negative; saṁ- carries the sense of 'together' or 'completely', here meaning control brought together into one; √vṛ (cover, protect) connects to English 'ward' and German 'Wehr'. The compound thus means absence of the inward gathering needed for self-restraint.

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

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