bandhu
|ban-dhu|
/ˈbænduː/
tie; kinship link
Etymology
'bandhu' originates from Sanskrit, specifically the word 'bandhu', where the root 'bandh' meant 'to bind' or 'to tie'.
'bandhu' was used in Vedic and Classical Sanskrit texts and later entered English as a scholarly borrowing in 19th-century Indology and comparative-religion literature as 'bandhu'.
Initially, it meant 'relative, friend' and 'that which binds or links'; in English usage it retains these senses but is mainly used in technical, scholarly, or loanword contexts to denote kinship or metaphysical correspondence.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
a kinsman, relative, or close friend (used as a term of social or familial connection, borrowed from Sanskrit).
In the village, he was considered a bandhu—a trusted kinsman and ally.
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Noun 2
a link, bond, or correspondence—especially the conceptual connection between the microcosm and the macrocosm in Vedic and Indic ritual or cosmological thought.
In Vedic ritual theory, bandhu refers to the correspondences that bind human acts to cosmic order.
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Last updated: 2026/01/10 07:40