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vacīsaṅkhāro

vacīsaṅkhāra

masc nom sg of vacīsaṅkhāra (noun)

1. verbal formations (in the mind); thoughts in language; internal dialogue; mental precursor of speech
2. intention which results in verbal action

Built from

• vacī — stem · speech
  From √vac (speak); cognate with Latin vox, English voice. The stem refers to the faculty or mode of speech.
• saṅkhāra — stem · formations, volitions
  From sam- (together) + √kar (make): literally 'things brought together and made'. In Abhidhamma, saṅkhāra denotes the mental factors that construct and condition experience; here, the formative volitions that precede and constitute speech.

Analysis. saṅkhāra (formations, volitions) pertaining to vacī (speech). In Buddhist psychology, one of three types of saṅkhāra: the mental volitions and intentions that shape speech before it is uttered—the formative process of the mind as it prepares language.

Etymology. saṅkhāra from sam- (together) + √kar (make, do): things brought together, formed, constructed. vacī from √vac (speak), related to Latin vox (voice) and English voice. The compound treats verbal action as a formation process: intentions shape into speech.

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

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