pabbajiṁ

pabbajati

1st person singular aorist active indicative of pabbajati (or 2nd person singular imperative pabbaji + ṁ as enclitic)

go forth (renounce lay life)
ordain as a monk
leave home for the religious life

Built from

pa — prefix · forward, forth
Marks intensive forward motion; intensifies the action of going forth or breaking away.
bbaji — root · turn, bend, go
Related to √bhaj; the reduplication or gemination suggests an older intensive or frequentative form meaning to depart or turn away.

Analysis. pa- (forward, forth) + -bbaji, a reduplicated or intensified form related to √bhaj (bend, turn, share). The prefix pa- marks the step forward into the ascetic path; the verb means to turn forth, to depart from household life into monastic life.

Etymology. √bhaj (bend, turn, allot; cognate with English break in the sense of diverging). The prefix pa- (forward) intensifies the sense of going forth. In the Pāli canon, pabbajjā (the noun) is the formal renunciation of lay life and adoption of monastic robes.

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

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