apayā

 In Sanskrit, "apayā" primarily means to depart, go away, withdraw, or disappear, with extended meanings including disappearance, loss, danger, death, or misfortune depending on context.

Grammatical and Literal Meaning

In classical Sanskrit, apayā (अपया) is a verb form meaning to depart, retire, 

go away, or fall off. It is often used in texts to signify physical or metaphorical 

withdrawal or vanishing from a state or place

Sanskrit Dictionary+2

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causative form yāpayati can indicate forcibly carrying something away. 

Beyond its literal sense, it also conveys loss, detriment, injury, or danger, 

which frequently contrasts with upāya (means, remedy, or skillful action)

Wisdom Library+1

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Contextual and Literary Applications

Vyākaraṇa (Sanskrit grammar): Apayā can refer to point of departure or 

separation in grammatical constructions

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Kavya (Poetry): Classical poets, including Kālidāsa, use apāya to denote

death or the eventual disappearance of beings; e.g., in Raghuvaṃśa, it

is associated with thoughts of mortality

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Yoga and Philosophy: In certain Yoga and Śaiva philosophical texts, apāya

represents that which is perishable or the passing away of cosmic cycles

(“going of the Ages”)

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Shaiva Philosophy: Apāya indicates failure or the lack of a means of valid

knowledge, with its opposite being nirapāya (without failure)

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Broader Meanings Across Traditions

In Marathi and Pali adaptations, the term can mean evil, harm, calamity, 

or state of loss

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It is also used geographically; for example, Āpayā names a river near

the Sarasvatī

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