Atthaṁ

(also aṭṭha, esp. in combinations mentioned under 3) masculine & neuter

1. interest, advantage, gain; (moral) good blessing, welfare; profit, prosperity, well-being MN.i.111 (atthassa ninnetar, of the Buddha, bringer of good); SN.iv.94 (id.); SN.i.34 (attano a. one’s own welfare), SN.i.55 (id. SN.i.86, SN.i.102, SN.i.126 = AN.ii.46 (atthassa patti); SN.i.162 (attano ca parassa ca); SN.ii.222 (id.); SN.iv.347 (˚ṃ bhañjati destroy the good or welfare, always with musāvādena by lying cp. attha-bhañjanaka); AN.i.61 (˚ṃ anubhoti to fare well to have a (good) result); AN.iii.364 (samparāyika a. profit in the future life); AN.v.223 sq. (anattho ca attho ca detriment & profit); Iti.44 (variant reading attā better); Snp.37, Snp.58 (= Cnd.26, where the six kinds of advantages are enumerated as att˚ par˚ ubhay˚, i.e. advantage, resulting for oneself for others, for both; diṭṭhadhammik˚ samparāyik˚ param gain for this life, for a future life, and highest gain of all, i.e. Arahantship); Snp.331 (ko attho supitena what good is it to sleep = na hi sakkā supantena koci attho papuṇituṃ Snp-a.338; cp. ko attho supinena te Pv.ii.6#1) Pv-a.30 (atthaṃ sādheti does good, results in good, Pv-a.69 (samparāyikena atthena)
   ■ dat. atthāya for the good for the benefit of (gen.); to advantage, often eomb^d. with hitāya sukhāya, e.g. DN.iii.211 sq.; Iti.79
   ■ Kp.viii.1 (to my benefit); Pv.i.4#3 (= upakārāya Pv-a.18), Pv.ii.12#9 (to great advantage). See also below 6.
   ■ Sometimes in a more concrete meaning = riches, wealth e.g. Ja.i.256 (= vaḍḍhiṃ C.); Ja.iii.394 (id.); Pv.iv.1#4 (dhanaṃ Pv-a.219)
   ■ Often as-˚: att˚; one’s own wellfare, usually comb^d. with par˚; and ubhay˚; (see above SN.ii.29; SN.v.121; AN.i.158, AN.i.216; AN.iii.63 sq.; AN.iv.134; Snp.75 (att-aṭṭha, variant reading attha Cnd), Snp.284 (atta-d-attha); uttam˚; the highest gain, the very best thing Dhp.386 (= arahatta Dhp-a.iv.142); Snp.324 (= arahatta Snp-a.332); param˚ id. Cnd.26; sad˚; one’s own weal DN.ii.141; MN.i.4; SN.ii.29; SN.v.145; AN.i.144; sāttha (adj.) connected with advantage beneficial, profitable (of the Dhamma; or should we take it as “with the meaning, in spirit”? see sāttha DN.i.62; SN.

num. card, eight, decl. like pl. of adj. in-a A. The number in objective significance, based on natural phenomena: see compounds ˚angula, ˚nakha, ˚pada, ˚pāda B. The number in subjective significance

1. As mark of respectability and honour, based on the idea of the double square:
   1. in meaning “a couple” aṭṭha matakukkuṭe aṭṭha jīva-k. gahetvā (with 8 dead & 8 live cocks; eight instead of 2 because gift intended for a king) Dhp-a.i.213. sanghassa a salākabhattaṃ dāpesi Vv-a.75 = Dhp-a.iii.104. a. piṇḍapātāni adadaṃ Vv.34#8. a. vattha-yugāni (a double pair as offering) Pv-a.232, a therā Pv-a.32
      ■ The highest respectability is expressed by 8 × 8 = 64, and in this sense is freq. applied to gifts, where the giver gives a higher potency of a pair (2³). Thus a “royal” gift goes under the name of sabb-aṭṭhakaṃ dānaṃ (8 elephants, 8 horses 8 slaves etc.) where each of 8 constituents is presented in 8 exemplars Dhp-a.ii.45, Dhp-a.ii.46, Dhp-a.ii.71. In the same sense aṭṭh’ aṭṭha kahāpaṇā (as gift) Dhp-a.ii.41; aṭṭh-aṭṭhakā dibbākaññā Vv.67#3 (= catusaṭṭhi Vv-a.290); aṭṭhaṭṭhaka Dpvs.vi.56. Quite conspicuous is the meaning of a “couple” in the phrase satt-aṭṭha 7 or 8 = a couple e.g. sattaṭṭha divasā, a weck or so Ja.i.86; Ja.ii.101; Vv-a.264 (saṃvaccharā years)
   2. used as definite measure of quantity & distance, where it also implies the respectability of the gift, 8 being the lowest unit of items that may be given decently. Thus freq. as aṭṭha kahāpaṇā Ja.i.483; Ja.iv.138; Vv-a.76; Mil.291
      ■ In distances: a karīsā Dhp-a.ii.80; Dhp-a.iv.217; Pv-a.258; a. usabhā Ja.iv.142.
   3. in comb^n. with 100 and 1000 it assumes the meaning of “a great many”, hundreds, thousands. Thus aṭṭha sataṃ 800, Snp.227. As denotation of wealt (cp. below under 18 and 80): a-˚sata-sahassa-vibhava Dhp-a.iv.7. But aṭṭhasata at SN.iv.232 means 108 (3 × 36), probably also at Ja.v.377
      ■ aṭṭha sahassaṃ 8000; Ja.v.39 (nāgā). The same meaning applies to 80 as well as to its use as unit in comb^n. with any other decimal (18, 28, 38 etc.):
      1. 80 (asīti) a great many. Here belong the 80 smaller signs of a Mahāpurisa (see anuvyañjana), besides the 32 main signs (see dvattiṃsa) Vv-a.213 etc. Freq. as measure of riches, e.g. 80 waggon loads Pv.ii.7#5; asīti-koṭivibhava Dhp-a.iii.129; Pv-a.196; asīti hatth’ ubbedho rāsi (of gold Vv-a.66, etc. See further references under asīti
      2. The foll. are examples of 8 with other decimals:
         ■ 18 aṭṭhādasa (only MN.iii.239: manopavicārā) & aṭṭhārasa (this the later form) Vv-a.213 (avenika-buddhadhammā: Bhagavant’s qualities);