kāraṇa

,

    1. a deed, action, performance, esp. an act imposed or inflicted upon somebody by a higher authority (by the king as representative of justice or by kamma MN.iii.181; see kamma 11 3.A b.) as an ordeal, a feat or punishment: a labour or task in the sense of the 12 labours of Heracles or the labours of Hades. kāraṇaṃ kārāpeti “he makes somebody perform the task. Pass, kāraṇaṃ or kāraṇā karīyati. Thus as a set of five tasks or purgatory obligations under the name of pañcavidha-bandhana “the group of five” (not, as Warren trsl. p. 257 “inflict on him the torture called the fivefold pinion”), a means of punishment in Niraya (q.v. under pañca). Not primarily torture (Rh. Davids, Mil trsl. i.254, and others with wrong derivation from kṛṇtati). At Dhp-a.iii.70 these punishments are comprehended under the term dasa-dukkhakāraṇāni (the ten punishments in misery); the meaning “punishment” also at Ja.iv.87 (tantarajjukaṃ k˚ṃ katvā), whereas at Ja.vi.416 k. is directly paraphrased by “maraṇa,” as much as “killing.” Often spelt karaṇa q.v.; the spelling kāraṇā (as f.) at Mil.185 seems to be a later spelling for kāraṇaṃ. See karaṇa for further reference
      ■ Kiṃ kāraṇaṃ ajja kāressati “what task will he impose on me to-day?” AN.v.324; as pañcavidhabandhana K˚ AN.i.141, Pv-a.251, Cnd.304#iii
      ■ As adj. ˚kāraṇa in dāruṇa˚ “being obliged to go through the dreadful trial” Pv-a.221
    2. duty obligation, in kāraṇ’ âkāraṇā (pl.) duties great and small Dhp-a.i.385 Cp. also kāraṇaṃ karoti to try MN.i.444
    3. a trick (i.e. a duty imposed by a higher authority through training) Ja.ii.325 (ānañja˚); Mil.201 (ākāsa-gamana˚)
    1. acting, action as (material) cause: k˚-bhūta being the cause of… Pv-a.15
    2. (intellectual) cause, reason Mil.150; Dhp-a.i.389; esp. as-˚: arodana the reason for not crying Pv-a.63; asocana˚ same, ibid Pv-a.62; āgamana˚ the reason for coming (here) ibid. Pv-a.81 Pv-a.106. = pariyatti, Dhp-a.36. = attha, SA on SN.i.215, Snp-a.i.238
      ■ instr. kāraṇena by necessity, needs Pv-a.195 tena k˚ therefore ibid. Pv-a.40.
      ■ abl. kāranā by means of through, by (= hetu or nissāya) Pv-a.27; imasmā k therefore Pv-a.40; kāraṇaṭṭhā (expl. as attha-kāraṇā Cnd) for the purpose of some object or advantage Snp.75; opp. nikkāraṇā from unselfishness ibid
      ■ sakāraṇa (adj.) with good reason (of vacana) Pv-a.109.

in meaning 1 represented in later Sk. by kāraṇā f., in meaning 2 = Sk. kāraṇa nt., equivalent to prakṛti, natural form, constituent, reason, cause