bhavataṇhā

fem nom sg of bhavataṇhā (noun); fem nom pl of bhavataṇhā (noun); fem acc pl of bhavataṇhā (noun); fem instr sg of bhavataṇhā (noun); …

craving for becoming; craving for existence; (or) craving (for something) to be

Built from

bhava — root · becoming, existence
From √bhū (be, become). The state or process of coming into being, central to Buddhist cosmology.
taṇhā — stem · craving, thirst
From √tṛṣ (thirst). In Pali psychology, taṇhā is the emotional drive underlying all suffering and rebirth.

Analysis. bhava (becoming, existence) + taṇhā (craving, thirst). In the Four Noble Truths and dependent origination (paṭiccasamuppāda), bhavataṇhā is one of three forms of craving (taṇhā) that drives rebirth: the thirst to be, to come into being, or to persist in being.

Etymology. bhava from √bhū (to be, become; cognate with English be, German bin, Latin fui; Sanskrit bhavati). taṇhā from √tṛṣ (to thirst; cognate with Sanskrit tṛṣṇā, English thirsty, Latin torreo to parch; Greek tarsos parched). The compound expresses the psychological root of cyclic existence: the craving for ontological presence.

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

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