June 29, 2017; revised November 9, 2018; March 17, 2023
1. Pāli is a phonetic language. It does not have its alphabet. Tipiṭaka was initially written down in Pāli with the Sinhala alphabet.
- Pāli verses are composed for ease of oral transmission. Tipiṭaka was orally transmitted faithfully for several hundred years.
- So, in many cases, root words are hidden in combined words in verses that were composed to rhyme better for easy oral transmission.
2. Rather than trying to find roots in Sanskrit, that is the way to find the roots. As I explained with evidence from the Tipiṭaka, the Buddha prohibited using Sanskrit words or even translating the Tipiṭaka to Sanskrit; see "Preservation of the Dhamma."
- That is because, despite some similarities, in Sanskrit, many words were composed to sound more “impressive” without paying attention to embedded meanings.
- For example, Pratītyasamutpāda is the Sanskrit term for Paṭicca Samuppāda. Pratītyasamutpāda sounds impressive, but the meaning is not clear at all.
- On the other hand, it is evident in paṭi + icca leading to sama + uppāda; see, "Paṭicca Samuppāda – “Pati+ichcha”+” Sama+uppāda."
3. Pāli words are combined in ways to rhyme better. By finding critical roots embedded in such “combined words,” one can quickly figure out the meaning.
- “yadaniccam tam dukkham, yam dukkham tadanattā” verse appears in many suttā.
- To understand it, we need to "expand it" or "unfold it": "yad aniccam tam dukkham, yam dukkham tad anattā."
- Now the meaning becomes clear: “anicca nature leads to dukkha, dukkha nature leads to anatta nature”; see, "Anicca, Dukkha, Anatta – Wrong Interpretations."
4. The following are some examples of combinations of words to make a verse rhyme better for oral transmission.
Naidham = na idham or “not the case”.
Ayamantimā jāti = ayam +antima + jāti or "my last birth".
Nūppajjāti = na + uppajjāti: "will not arise".
Cittappasāda = citta + pasāda; note the two p’s in the combined word that allow it to rhyme better.
Similarly, in rupakkhandha = rupa khandha: "rupa aggregate."
Aveccappasāda = ava icca pasāda or "faith that leads to overcoming taṇhā (attachment)."
Buddha = bhava + uddha: one who figured out how to stop existences (bhava) from arising.
Bhavaṅga = bhava + aṅga; intrinsic aspect of bhava.
Sakkāya = sath + kāya: good collections usually refer to the five aggregates. Sakkāya diṭṭhi is the view that the five aggregates should be embraced.
Anāpāna = āna + āpāna: “taking in” and “putting out.”
Note the pronunciation of the following words backward to rhyme better:
- Anāgāmi = na āgāmi: not coming back (about not coming back to kāma lōka for a person who has attained the Anāgāmi stage of Nibbāna.
- Anatimāna = na + atimāna: atimāna is “high-mindedness,” and anatimāna is opposite or “humble.”
5. Just by knowing what is meant by the root "saṅ," many Pāli words can be understood easily; see, "What is “Saṅ”? Meaning of Sansara (or Samsara)".
- Note that some words are written and pronounced with emphasis on "m" rather than "n" because it rhymes better that way; a good example is samsāra (sansāra) which can be written and pronounced either way.
- On the other hand, sammā comes from "saṅ" + "mā" but is always pronounced as "sammā" because it rhymes easier that way, e.g., sammā diṭṭhi, sammā saṅkappa, etc.
- It must be kept in mind that "saṅ" has various levels. First, one needs to remove 'saṅ' that lead to immoral activities that can lead to births in the apāyās; after one becomes a Sōtapanna, one should strive to eliminate "saṅ" involving sense pleasures; after becoming an Anāgāmi, the goal is to remove "saṅ" associated with rupa and arupa jhāna. I only stated "sense pleasures" in the Table.
6. I plan to add another table for Pāli words with a few more key "roots."
Pāli Words with "Saṅ" Root
[table id=14 /]