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karaṇīyena

karaṇīya

nt instr sg of karaṇīya (noun); masc instr sg of karaṇīya (ptp); nt instr sg of karaṇīya (ptp)

1. duty; obligation; business; something to be done; lit. to be done
2. should be done; must be done; ought to be made; to be observed; lit. to be done
3. should be; must be; should be had; lit. to be done
4. need (of); use (for); lit. to be done

Built from

• kar — root · do, make
  Sanskrit √kṛ; Latin creō, English create. The root expresses action and causation.
• aṇ — ending · suffix formant
  Connects root to gerundive; part of the -anīya complex.
• īya — ending · gerundive marker
  Marks obligation or natural fitness: 'that which ought to be done'. Derived ultimately from √i 'to go'.
• ena — ending · instrumental singular
  Marks the noun as a means or manner; answers 'by what?' or 'how?'. Transforms abstract duty into concrete practice.

Analysis. karaṇīya is formed from the root √kṛ (to do, make) with the gerundive suffix -anīya (that which ought to be done); -ena is the instrumental singular ending, giving the sense 'by way of duty' or 'in the manner of what ought to be done'. In the Mettā Suttaʼs opening, karaṇīyena (attha-cariyena) means 'in the way of (dutiful) work', marking the virtuous conduct as instrumental to liberation.

Etymology. From √kṛ (Sanskrit √kṛ, Latin creo 'to make', English create, Greek krainō), via the gerundive suffix -anīya (cf. Sanskrit -anīya, 'that which should be done'). The suffix is derived from √i 'to go, move', giving the sense of obligation or natural consequence: what one naturally does or should do. The instrumental -ena transforms the abstract duty into a concrete means or manner.

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

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