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khīṇāsavo

khīṇāsava

masc nom sg of khīṇāsava (adj)

1. who has destroyed the effluents; awakened; epithet of an arahant

Built from

• khīṇa — stem · destroyed, exhausted
  past participle of khaṇati (to dig, dig away, exhaust). Imagery of excavation or wearing down.
• āsava — stem · effluent, corruption
  ā- (toward) + √su (to flow): literally "flowing toward." The four āsavas—sensuality, existence, ignorance, views—are the inflowing taints that corrupt the mind.

Analysis. khīṇa (pp of khaṇati, destroyed) + āsava (effluent, corruption): one in whom the āsavas (taints of sensuality, existence, ignorance, and views) have been burned away or exhausted, leaving only the cool lucidity of arahatship.

Etymology. khīṇa derives from √khaṇ (to dig, dig away), cognate with Sanskrit kṣaṇ- and ultimately Indo-European √sken- (to cut, scrape); āsava from √su (to flow) with prefix ā- (toward), literally "that which flows toward" — the inflowing contaminants. The compound epitomizes the destructive path of the Dhamma: one must dig out (khīṇa) the root defilements that have flowed in (āsava).

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

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