Bāla1 (adj.) [cp. Sk. bāla (rarely Vedic, more freq. in Ep. & Class. Sk.); its orig. meaning is "young, unable to speak," cp. Lat. infans, hence "like a child, childish; infantile"] 1. ignorant (often with ref. to ignorance in a moral sense, of the common people, the puthujjana), foolish (as contrasted with paṇḍita cp. the Bālapaṇḍita -- sutta M iii.163 sq.; D ii.305 sq.; Vism 499, and contrasts at Sn 578; Dh 63, 64; Pv iv.332; Dhs 1300), lacking in reason, devoid of the power to think & act right. In the latter sense sometimes coupled with andha (spiritually blind), as andhabāla stupid & ignorant, mentally dull, e. g. at DhAi.143; ii.89; PvA 254. -- A fanciful etym. of b. at KhA 124 is "balanti ananti ti bālā." Other refs.: D i.59, 108; S i.23; A i.59, 68, 84; ii.51, 180; Sn 199, 259, 318, 578, 879; It 68; Dh 28, 60 sq., 71 sq., 206 sq., 330; J i.124 (lola˚ greedy -- foolish); v.366 (bālo āmaka -- pakkaŋ va); Vv 835; Pv i.82; iv.129; Pug 33; Nd1 163, 286 sq., 290; SnA 509 (=aviddasu); PvA 193. Compar. bālatara J iii.278, 279; VvA 326. -- 2. young, new; newly risen (of the sun): ˚ātāpa the morning sun DA i.287; DhA i.164; Mhbv 25; ˚vasanta "early spring" (=Citramāsa), N. of the first one of the 4 summer months (gimha -- māsā) KhA 192; -- suriya the newly risen sun J v.284; PvA 137, 211. -- 3. a child; in wider application meaning a youth under 16 years of age (cp. Abhp 251) DA i.134. Cp.bālaka.   -- nakkhatta N. of a certain "feast of fools," i. e. carnival DhA i.256. -- sangatacārin one who keeps company with a fool Dh 207.