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saṁvaṭṭakappe

saṁvaṭṭakappa

noun, locative singular (feminine)

1. in a cycle of contraction
2. during the eon of cosmic dissolution

Built from

• saṁ — prefix · together, completely
  Collective prefix denoting unified or comprehensive action; from the same root as English 'same' and Latin 'similis'.
• vaṭṭ — root · roll, turn, cycle
  Cognate with Sanskrit vṛt and Indo-European *wert- 'turn'; the imagery is of a wheel or cycle turning.
• a — stem · formant
  Thematic vowel forming the noun stem.
• kappa — stem · eon, age
  From Sanskrit kalpa, denoting a vast span of time in cosmological reckoning.
• e — ending · locative
  Marks the locative case, expressing location or temporal frame ('in, during').

Analysis. saṁ + vaṭṭ + a + kappa: saṁ 'together' + vaṭṭ (root meaning 'roll, turn, cycle') + -a (stem formant) + kappa 'eon, age'. The compound denotes the phase of cosmic time in which the universe contracts or dissolves.

Etymology. vaṭṭ- is cognate with Sanskrit vṛt 'turn, roll, revolve', from the Indo-European root *wert- 'turn' (English wert, worth in the sense of 'value [that which turns on something]'; Latin vertere). The prefix saṁ- ('together') gives the sense of unified or collective turning. In Buddhist cosmology, saṁvaṭṭakappa specifically names the eon when the world-system contracts inward.

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

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