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pāṇe

pāṇa

masc acc pl of pāṇa (noun); masc loc sg of pāṇa (noun); reflx pr 1st sg of pāṇati (verb); reflx imp 1st sg of pāṇati (verb); …

1. pāṇa (masc): breath
2. pāṇa (masc): life; lit. breath
3. pāṇa (masc): being; living being; lit. breath
4. pāṇati (pr): breathes
5. pāṇi (masc): hand; palm

Built from

• pā — root · protect, guard
  The root √pā encodes protection and life-force. In pāṇa, the concrete image of breath-as-protector evolved into 'life' and 'living being'—the breath that sustains and guards the body.
• ṇa — ending · agent/abstract noun
  This suffix forms abstract nouns and agents from verb roots, here creating the noun 'breath' or 'life-force' from the root √pā.

Etymology. From root √pā (to protect, guard). The sense 'breath' and 'life' reflects the vital breath as the guardian of life itself. Cognate with Sanskrit prāṇa (breath, life force), from Indo-European *per- (to carry forward, lead). The semantic drift from 'breath' to 'being' or 'living creature' parallels Sanskrit prāṇa, where breath was understood as the animating principle.

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

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