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buddhavacana

6.7: `dvanda`, two or more things named together

Many compounds in the texts are simply lists. samaṇabrāhmaṇā is “ascetics and brahmins”, candimasūriyā “moon and sun”, jarāmaraṇaṁ “aging and death”. Kaccāyana calls such a compound a dvanda (“pair”): a combination of nouns that would all carry the same ending if they stood apart {329}, so that samaṇo ca brāhmaṇo ca (“an ascetic and a brahmin”) and the one word samaṇabrāhmaṇā say the same thing. The test is to put “and” between the members: if each keeps its own meaning and the compound means all of them together, it is a dvanda. There may be more than two members: sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupāyāsā (“sorrow, lamentation, pain, displeasure and despair”) strings five.

The next question is which of its two shapes the compound has. Usually it is plural, because it names more than one thing: samaṇabrāhmaṇā ends as samaṇā or brāhmaṇā would. But a pair of limbs, of instruments, of natural enemies or of unlike things, among other kinds, is treated as a single set, and the compound is then singular and neuter, ending in -aṁ whatever the gender of its members: cakkhusotaṁ (“eye and ear”) {322}. For trees, grasses, animals, wealth, grain and countries the texts use either shape, ajeḷakaṁ or ajeḷakā (“goats and sheep”) {323}.

How to recognise a dvanda

Section titled “How to recognise a dvanda”
what you see what it means example rule
nouns run together, “and” between them, a plural ending each member counted: X and Y samaṇabrāhmaṇā (ascetics and brahmins) {329}
the same, but singular and neuter in -aṁ, for the kinds of things in the table below the members as one set cakkhusotaṁ (eye and ear), pattacīvaraṁ (bowl and robe) {322}
the same, in either shape, for trees, animals, countries and the like counted, or as one set ajeḷakaṁ or ajeḷakā (goats and sheep) {323}

Two small changes can disguise the members. Where a member ending in a meets a vowel, the a is dropped and the join hides the second member: kāka and ulūka give kākolūkaṁ (“crow and owl”), aja and eḷaka give ajeḷakaṁ {12}. And in the singular neuter a long vowel is shortened, at the end of the compound, nāsikā in mukhanāsikaṁ (“mouth and nose”) {342}, and at the join, dāsī in dāsidāsaṁ (“female and male slaves”). Every rule number links to the full rule in the Kaccāyana translation; the chapter overview tables all the rules on compounds.

Which shape a dvanda takes

Section titled “Which shape a dvanda takes”

Kaccāyana lists the kinds of things, with a pair for each:

kind of things shape examples rule
anything not listed below: people, gods, the heavenly bodies plural candimasūriyā (moon and sun), sāriputtamoggallānā (Sāriputta and Moggallāna), brāhmaṇagahapatikā (brahmins and householders) {329}
limbs singular neuter mukhanāsikaṁ (mouth and nose), chavimaṁsalohitaṁ (skin, flesh and blood) {322}
instruments singular neuter saṅkhapaṇavaṁ (conch and drum), gītavāditaṁ (singing and music) {322}
farm gear singular neuter phālapācanaṁ (ploughshare and goad), yuganaṅgalaṁ (yoke and plough) {322}
parts of an army singular neuter asicammaṁ (sword and shield), hatthiassaṁ (elephants and horses) {322}
small creatures singular neuter ḍaṁsamakasaṁ (gadflies and mosquitoes), kīṭasarīsapaṁ (insects and reptiles) {322}
natural enemies singular neuter ahinakulaṁ (snake and mongoose), kākolūkaṁ (crow and owl) {322}
unlike things singular neuter samathavipassanaṁ (calm and insight), vijjācaraṇaṁ (knowledge and conduct) {322}
and the like singular neuter pattacīvaraṁ (bowl and robe), dāsidāsaṁ (female and male slaves) {322}
trees, grasses either assatthakapītanaṁ or assatthakapītanā (bodhi tree and kapītana tree), usīrabīraṇaṁ or usīrabīraṇā (vetiver root and vetiver grass) {323}
animals, wealth, grain either ajeḷakaṁ or ajeḷakā (goats and sheep), hiraññasuvaṇṇaṁ or hiraññasuvaṇṇā (unwrought and wrought gold), sāliyavaṁ or sāliyavā (rice and barley) {323}
countries, and the like either kāsikosalaṁ or kāsikosalā (Kāsi and Kosala), kaṇhasukkaṁ or kaṇhasukkā (the dark and the bright) {323}

Examples

Section titled “Examples”

In the phrases that spell a dvanda out, sotañca is sotaṁ ca: the ṁ becomes ñ before ca {31}.

samaṇo ca brāhmaṇo ca → samaṇabrāhmaṇā

🚹⨀①(samaṇo) ⏏️(ca) 🚹⨀①(brāhmaṇo) ⏏️(ca) → 🚹⨂①🆎(samaṇa+brāhmaṇa)
an ascetic / and / a brahmin / and → ascetics and brahmins
dvanda {329}: nouns joined with “and”, plural because each member is counted.

cakkhu ca sotañca → cakkhusotaṁ

🚻⨀①(cakkhu) ⏏️(ca) 🚻⨀①(sotaṁ) ⏏️(ca) → 🚻⨀①🆎(cakkhu+sota)
the eye / and / the ear / and → eye and ear
dvanda of limbs {322}: the pair taken as one set, so singular and neuter in -aṁ.

Exercises

Section titled “Exercises”

Resolve the following compounds into their members, say which shape of dvanda each has and why, and give the meaning. Look up the words in a dictionary and take note of the ending each member would take on its own. All four come from the texts of chapters 3 and the bonus chapter, each with a link to its sentence.

  1. nāmarūpaṁ (3: 3.3)
  2. sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupāyāsā (3: 3.11)
  3. assāsapassāsā (Bonus: 12, 14.2)
  4. kesamassuṁ (Bonus: 26, 12.8)

Answers

Section titled “Answers”

Note: please do the exercises first before checking the answers.

  1. nāmañca rūpañca → nāmarūpaṁ

🚻⨀①(nāmaṁ) ⏏️(ca) 🚻⨀①(rūpaṁ) ⏏️(ca) → 🚻⨀①🆎(nāma+rūpa)
name / and / form / and → name and form
dvanda of unlike things {322}, like vijjācaraṇaṁ, singular and neuter; chapter 3 renders it “phenomenal objects”.

  1. soko ca paridevo ca dukkhañca domanassañca upāyāso ca → sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupāyāsā

🚹⨀①(soko) ⏏️(ca) 🚹⨀①(paridevo) ⏏️(ca) 🚻⨀①(dukkhaṁ) ⏏️(ca) 🚻⨀①(domanassaṁ) ⏏️(ca) 🚹⨀①(upāyāso) ⏏️(ca) → 🚹⨂①🆎(soka+parideva+dukkha+domanassa+upāyāsa)
sorrow / and / lamentation / and / pain / and / displeasure / and / despair / and → sorrow, lamentation, pain, displeasure and despair
dvanda {329} of five members, plural; the a of domanassa is dropped before upāyāsa {12}; in 9: 2.6 the five stand apart, each in the ③.

  1. assāso ca passāso ca → assāsapassāsā

🚹⨀①(assāso) ⏏️(ca) 🚹⨀①(passāso) ⏏️(ca) → 🚹⨂①🆎(assāsa+passāsa)
in-breath / and / out-breath / and → breathing in and out
dvanda {329}, plural like samaṇabrāhmaṇā, each breath counted; in Bonus: 12, 14.2 they are the kāyasaṅkhāro.

  1. kesā ca massu ca → kesamassuṁ

🚹⨂①(kesā) ⏏️(ca) 🚻⨀①(massu) ⏏️(ca) → 🚻⨀②🆎(kesa+massu)
hair / and / beard / and → hair and beard
dvanda of limbs {322}, singular and neuter, here in the ②: kesamassuṁ ohāretvā, “having shaved off hair and beard”.