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dhammassavanāya

dhammassavana

nt dat sg of dhammassavana (noun)

1. hearing the teaching; hearing a sermon; listening to the Dhamma

Built from

• dhamma — root · teaching, dharma
  The Buddha's teaching, the doctrine; from √dhṛ 'to hold or bear', what holds up the path to nirvana.
• assavana — stem · hearing, listening
  Compound of ā (toward the listener, reversing motion) + √su (hear), and -ana (abstract noun). The prefix ā transforms the verb 'to hear' into an act of receiving sound directed inward.
• āya — ending · dative singular
  Dative marks the goal or purpose: 'for the sake of hearing the Dhamma', the concrete purpose of gathering to listen.

Analysis. dhamma (the teaching, the Dhamma) + assavana (hearing, listening); assavana is ā + √su (hear), with ā reversed motion and su the root cognate with English 'sound' and Latin 'sonāre'. The compound expresses the devoted act of listening to the Buddha's teaching—a cardinal practice in the training.

Etymology. dhamma from √dhṛ (hold, bear); assavana from ā + √su (hear), cognate with English 'sound', Latin 'sonāre', Greek 'akoúō' (I hear); ā reverses the motion, turning √su into a receiving toward the listener rather than an outward broadcast.

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

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