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bhayabheravasaho

bhayabheravasaha

masc nom sg of bhayabheravasaha (adj)

1. who overcomes fear and terror

Built from

• bhaya — root · fear
  From √bhī 'to be afraid'; the concrete image is recoil or flinching. Cognate with English be-fall and the Germanic root of 'bide'.
• bhera — root · terror, panic
  Likely onomatopoetic or from √bhar 'to shake, carry'; denotes the trembling sensation of fright.
• vasaha — stem · bearing, enduring, overcoming
  Verbal adjective from √sah 'to bear, endure, overcome'. The agent noun sense (one who bears/masters) applies here. Cognate with Sanskrit sahati and the root underlying Latin sacra (where endurance of ritual duty is sacred).

Analysis. bhaya (fear) + bhera (terror, panic) + vasaha (enduring, from √sah 'to bear, overcome'). A compound of two near-synonymous nouns denoting dread, joined with an agent noun meaning 'one who bears/masters'.

Etymology. bhaya < √bhī 'to fear' (cognate with English be-fall, German Be-); bhera is onomatopoetic or from √bhar 'to carry, shake' (whence tremor); vasaha from √sah 'to bear, endure, overcome' (cognate with Sanskrit sahati, Latin sacra 'sacred rite', where the root sense 'to endure' underlay ritual duty). The compound represents mastery of dread through inner fortitude.

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

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