sammāājīvena

sammāājīva

masc instr sg of sammāājīva (noun); masc instr sg of sammāājīva (adj); nt instr sg of sammāājīva (adj)

correct livelihood; right mode of earning a living
with correct livelihood; having right mode of earning a living

Built from

sam — prefix · together, rightly
The prefix sam- brings things into one, creating rightness and completeness. Related to Latin con- and English same.
mā — ending · instrumental marker
The -a- is part of the stem; -ena is the instrumental singular ending, here showing how sammāājīva functions as an instrument or accompaniment (with right livelihood).
ā — prefix · toward, up to
The prefix ā- reverses or completes the sense of motion verbs; here it marks the direction toward livelihood as an approach or manner of living.
jīv — root · live, life
The root √jīva means to live or be alive; Sanskrit jīva (life, soul); cognate with English quick and German lebendig, all from Indo-European *gwei- (to live).
a — ending · masculine nominative stem
The -a ending forms the masculine nominative singular stem, which then receives the instrumental suffix -ena.

Analysis. sammā (rightly, correctly) + ājīva (livelihood, mode of earning); compounds in the eightfold path (sammādiṭṭhi, sammāsaṅkappo, sammāvācā, sammāsammādanto, sammāājīva, sammāvāyāmo, sammāsati, sammāsamādhi). sammāājīva is right livelihood, the fifth factor of the noble eightfold path, comprising abstinence from trades that cause harm (trading in weapons, poisons, meat, and intoxicants).

Etymology. sammā derives from the root √sam (together, same, properly), with Sanskrit samyak (rightly, correctly, completely), related to Latin similis (like, same) and English same. ājīva from √jīva (to live), Sanskrit jīva (life, soul), related to English quick (alive) and German lebendig (lively); the root ultimately descends to Indo-European *gwei- (to live).

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

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