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lokavidū

masc nom sg of lokavidū (noun); masc nom pl of lokavidū (noun); masc acc pl of lokavidū (noun); masc voc sg of lokavidū (noun); …

1. who knows the world; who understands the universe; epithet of the Buddha

Built from

• loka — root · world, realm
  From PIE *leuk- 'to see, look'; what is seen or illuminated. Cognate with English 'look' and Latin 'lux' (light).
• vidū — stem · one who knows
  Agent noun from √vid 'to know' (Sanskrit vettr, cognate with English 'wit', Latin 'vidēre'). The -ū suffix marks the masculine agent noun; 'knowing' here carries the sense of direct penetrating knowledge (paññā).

Analysis. loka (world) + vidū (one who knows), a compound epithet: 'one who knows the world.' In Buddhist usage, applied to the Buddha as the one who penetrates the nature of the world-system and all conditioned existence.

Etymology. loka from PIE *leuk- 'to see, look' (English look, light; Latin lux), cognate with Sanskrit loka; vidū from the root √vid 'to know' (English wit, wise; Latin vidēre, Greek ἰδεῖν), cognate with Sanskrit vettr. The compound reflects the Buddha's transcendent knowledge of the three worlds and all beings.

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

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