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subhakiṇhato

subhakiṇha

masc abl sg of subhakiṇha (noun); masc abl pl of subhakiṇha (noun); masc abl sg of subhakiṇha (adj)

1. name of a heavenly realm; name of a class of deities; lit. total beauty
2. epithet of a class of devas; lit. totally beautiful

Built from

• su — prefix · well, good
  Prefix of excellence. From PIE *su-, cognate with Greek eu- (eulogy, euphony).
• bha — root · shine, appear
  Root of brightness. Cognate with Sanskrit bhā, Greek phaos 'light', English beam (via Gmc). Appears in bhavana (development, radiance) and abhiññā contexts.
• kiṇha — stem · dark, black
  Adjective stem. Cognate with Sanskrit kṛṣṇa (dark, Krishna), possibly Greek knoktos. Forms a dvandva with bhā: the interplay of light and shadow in celestial beauty.
• to — ending · abl sg/pl
  Ablative case ending marking source or point of departure, used here in locative-descriptive sense ('from/in the realm of Subhakiṇha').

Analysis. su- + bhakiṇha; bhakiṇha is itself bha- + kiṇha, 'shining' + 'dark', a dvandva compound denoting the interplay of light and shadow, or radiance in its fullness.

Etymology. su- (well, good, from PIE *su-, cognate with Greek eu- in eulogy) + bhakiṇha (from bha- 'shine', cognate with Sanskrit bhā, Greek phao- 'appear'; kiṇha 'dark/black', cognate with Sanskrit kṛṣṇa, Greek knoktos). The compound subhakiṇha thus means 'well-dark' or 'beautifully radiant', a name for a celestial realm where devas possess luminous beauty.

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

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