accusative singular masculine (or nominative plural neuter) of moḷiyaphagguna, a hapax legomenon; likely a scribal error or variant for mokkhapagguna or similar
Analysis. Compound: moḷiya- (variant or corruption of mokka- or mokkha-, 'liberation') + phagguna ('peak, summit'). The word appears only in this form in the canon and may represent a scribal corruption of a more standard compound.
Etymology. mokkha- derives from the root √muc 'to free, release' (cognates: Latin mutus 'free, exempt', though the semantic bridge is distant); phagguna 'peak' is akin to Sanskrit bhagana and ultimately relates to the notion of breaking or dividing (a ridge that breaks the skyline). The intended meaning is 'the peak or summit of liberation', a doctrinal metaphor for the highest attainment.
Meanings from the Digital Pāḷi Dictionary; morphology and etymology by Claude.
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