དག་སླང་ལ་རབ་ཏ་གཅས་པའ་མད་ཞས་བྱ་བ notes.27

notes.27

27. The Tibetan skad kyi byings, which we translate as “derivation,” is a grammatical term for the “root” (Skt. dhātu) of a word. If our interpretation is correct, “derivation” (Tib. skad byings, lit. “verbal root”) refers to the Buddha’s deriving the term for “mendicant” (Skt. bhikṣu) from the word for “ornament” (perhaps Skt. vibhūṣaṇa), which is not found among the standard etymologies given for the term in Buddhist literature (see note 24). Since this derivation is both unique and counterintuitive, Upāli here asks the Buddha for further explanation. Another possible interpretation of skad byings in this context would be “concealed speech,” by which Upāli might refer to the preceding coded series of surprising adornments listed by the Buddha (see note 25).