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micchāvāyāmo

micchāvāyāma

masc nom sg of micchāvāyāma (adj); masc nom sg of micchāvāyāma (noun)

1. with wrong effort; having incorrect endeavour
2. wrong effort; incorrect endeavour

Built from

• micchā — stem · wrongly, falsely
  Root √mich- (to deceive, go astray); the abstract noun micchā means
• vāyāma — stem · effort, exertion
  From √vay- (to exert, strain); related to Sanskrit vyayati. Used in both secular (physical effort) and soteriological (striving on the Path) senses.

Analysis. micchā (wrongly, falsely) + vāyāma (effort, exertion); a compound noun denoting effort directed wrongly, contrasted with sammāvāyāma (right effort) as the sixth factor of the Noble Eightfold Path.

Etymology. micchā from √mich- (to delude, go wrong); vāyāma from √vay- (to weave, bind, hence to exert oneself) — cognate with Sanskrit vyayati and Indo-European roots for binding and force. The compound is canonical in the Dhamma, marking effort directed by ignorance rather than wisdom.

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

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