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sāvakehi

sāvaka

masc instr pl of sāvaka (noun); masc abl pl of sāvaka (noun)

1. disciple; pupil; follower; lit. hearer

Built from

• sāv- — root · hear
  From √śru (Sanskrit śṛṇoti 'hears'). The auditory root underlying the disciple as 'hearer'—one who listens to the Dhamma.
• -aka — ending · agent nominal suffix
  Forms a noun meaning 'one who does' or 'one who is'. Here, 'one who hears' becomes the established term for a follower of the Buddha.

Etymology. From √śru (Sanskrit śṛṇoti 'hears'), which yields sāvaka as one who hears—the Buddha's teaching transmitted orally to listeners. Cognates: Sanskrit śrāvaka, Greek kouein (ear), English shear in the sense of 'perception'; related to Latin audīre 'hear'. The prefix sa- (together) is reanalyzed as part of the root in the historical form.

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

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