A Sanskrit masculine noun stem derived from the prefix upa (“near”) and the root as (“sit”), hence meaning “one who sits near” (i.e., either a servant or a devotee, a worshipper). It is used to refer to an aspirant on the Path as well as, in Buddhism, to one who obeys the Buddhist precepts. The female equivalent, used by the teachers of Helena P. BLAVATSKY to refer to her, is Upasika.

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