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bodhisattasseva
bodhisatta
nominative singular masculine + enclitic eva
- Buddha before his awakening; lit. awakening being
- Buddha-to-be; being who has vowed to become a Buddha; aspirant Buddha; lit. awakening being
Built from
- bodhi — root · awakening
From √budh 'to awaken, perceive', cognate with English bid (to command, invite, originally 'make aware'); the concrete sense is coming to awareness, hence the state of Buddhahood as full consciousness.
- satta — root · being, creature
From √sat 'to be, sit', cognate with Latin sedeo 'sit', Sanskrit sattva, English sit; the concrete image is being present, hence any living being or self.
- eva — ending · only, very
Enclitic particle intensifying or restricting the preceding noun; here it emphasizes the defining essence: 'truly one who is awakening-being', underscoring that this person's nature is inseparable from the goal of Buddhahood.
Analysis. bodhisatta + eva: bodhi (awakening) + satta (being, creature) joined by eva (only, very), emphasizing the essential nature of one who embodies awakening-being.
Etymology. bodhi < √budh (to awaken, cognate with English bid, Sanskrit bodhati); satta < √sat (to be, sit, cognate with Latin sedeo, English sit); the compound fuses the goal (bodhi, awakening) with the agent (satta, being), forming a bahuvrihi possessive compound meaning 'one having awakening as the essence'.