Gayāśiras
/ɡəˈjɑː.ʃɪ.rəs/noun
A sacred hill near ancient Gayā in India, mentioned in Buddhist and Hindu sources.
Did you know?In Buddhist literature, Gayāśiras is associated with the Buddha’s teachings on the burning nature of sensory experience, making the mountain’s symbolism intensely ritual and transformative.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*ḱerh₂-s
“Head; the uppermost or projecting part of the body”
Vedic Sanskrit
Sanskrit
śiras
“Head; summit or upper end”
Classical Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Gayā
“Gayā, the ancient sacred city and region in present-day Bihar”
Classical Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Gayāśiras
“The head or summit of Gayā; the name of a sacred hill”
19th–20th Century
English
Gayashiras / Gayāśiras
“A transliterated proper name used in English-language Buddhist and Indological scholarship”