‹ Back to the text

ariyena

ariya

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

1. noble; distinguished; of an awakened being; of the Buddha
2. (abhi) supra-mundane
3. ethically noble person; person of moral integrity
4. awakened being; enlightened one; arahant
5. name of a privately awakened Buddha; lit. noble
6. speaker of an Indo-Aryan language; lit. noble

Etymology. From Indo-European *ar- (to fit, join, move); cognate with Sanskrit ārya-, Greek aristos (best), Latin ars (art, skill). The root sense "fitting" or "proper" underlay the word's application to speakers of Indo-Aryan languages, then to the morally and spiritually refined. In Buddhist usage, ariya denotes both the ethical nobility of awakened beings and the supra-mundane character of their insight.

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

Lite mode — plain HTML for e-readers and old browsers. Full version