‹ Back to the text

parikkhīṇabhavasaṁyojanā

parikkhīṇabhavasamyojana

noun, feminine nominative singular (or accusative plural); compound of pari + kkhīṇa + bhava + samyojana

1. (in doctrinal usage) the fetters that bind to rebirth are exhausted
2. the complete severance of ties to becoming

Built from

• pari — prefix · around, complete
  Peri in Greek (perimeter). Signals total, all-encompassing exhaustion.
• kkhīṇa — stem · worn out, exhausted
  Past participle expressing the state of being entirely depleted or worn away.
• bhava — stem · becoming, rebirth
  The cycle of continued existence (saṁsāra); Sanskrit bhava, from √bhū.
• samyojana — stem · fetter, bond
  Saṁ (together) + yojana (yoking); the ties that bind beings to the wheel of becoming.

Analysis. pari- (all the way round, complete exhaustion) + kkhīṇa (worn out, exhausted) + bhava (becoming, rebirth) + samyojana (fetter, bond, attachment). The compound expresses the final spiritual state in which all worldly attachments and the residual drives toward continued existence have been completely worn away; it describes an arhat's attainment.

Etymology. kkhīṇa is past participle of khīyati (to wear away, be worn out), cognate with Sanskrit kṣīyate. bhava derives from √bhū (to be, become), shared across Indo-European (English be, Latin fu-). samyojana is saṁ (together) + yojana (yoking, bonding), from √yuj (to yoke, join), cognate with English yoke and Latin iungere.

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

Lite mode — plain HTML for e-readers and old browsers. Full version