antikāśraya

 

The word antikāśraya is written in Devanagari as अन्तिकाश्रय

Antikāśraya means “contiguous support” or “support that is close by,” typically illustrated by a tree supporting a creeper.

Core Meaning

The primary definition across Sanskrit lexicons is “contiguous support”—a support that is physically near or touching, such as the way a tree supports a vine

Wisdom Library

. This is the most consistent meaning in the sources and is treated as the standard lexicographical sense.

Etymology and Compound Structure

• antika — “near, close, adjacent”
• āśraya — “support, refuge, resting upon”
  Together they form a tatpuruṣa compound meaning “support that is near/adjacent”

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Additional Lexical Nuances

The Wisdom Library entry notes two extended senses

Wisdom Library

:

• Contiguous support (primary meaning).
• The house of a neighbour, based on Hemacandra’s Abhidhānacintāmaṇi (glossed as pāḍosīghara, “neighbour’s house”). This meaning is less common and context‑dependent.
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Usage Notes

• The term is masculine: antikāśrayaḥ

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• It appears in classical lexicographical traditions (Amarasiṃha, Halāyudha, Hemacandra) as a standard entry for “support” or “prop.”
• Yogawiki also glosses it simply as “Stütze” (support)

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  , confirming the same core meaning.
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Summary

Antikāśraya refers primarily to a nearby or contiguous support, especially in natural imagery (tree–creeper). In some lexicographical contexts it can also denote a neighbour’s house, but this is secondary and less widely attested.