俱

Phono-semantic compound:

人 (亻, person radical) - semantic, indicating people or human action.

具 (equipment, to possess) - phonetic, providing the sound gu and the sense of “having, being complete.”

Originally conveyed the idea of people all having something in common, acting or existing together.

Semantic range:

- together, jointly, side by side (함께, 같이);

- all, without exception (모두, 전부);

- by extension: to be fully present, to be complete.

俱樂部 (구락부) — “club,” social association (old Sino-Korean loan for “club”)

俱備 (구비) — to be fully equipped, complete

同俱 (동구) — together with

皆俱 (개구) — all, every one without exception

In Buddhist texts, 俱 frequently appears in compounds such as 俱生 (구생, “arising together”), referring to mental factors that arise simultaneously with consciousness, or 俱有 (구유), denoting things mutually possessing qualities.

The character carries connotations of universality and inseparability, stressing that certain aspects of existence or practice are not isolated but inherently interconnected.

This reflects a core Buddhist insight: phenomena arise not independently, but in co-dependent simultaneity.