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adukkhamasukhaṁ

adukkhamasukha

accusative singular neuter; alternate form of adukkhamasukhaṁ, a substantive adjective

1. pleasure that is neither pain nor joy
2. the equanimous feeling (in advanced meditation)
3. neutral sensation

Built from

• a — prefix · not, without
  Plain negation, as in avijjā 'ignorance'. Cognates: English un-, Greek a(n)- (atheist).
• dukkha — stem · pain, suffering
  Substantive; from Pali adjective; related to Sanskrit dukha, possibly from dhu- 'shake' or 'defective'.
• ma — prefix · not, not even
  Emphatic negator intensifying the negation of sukha; reinforces the sense of complete neutrality.
• sukha — stem · pleasure, ease, happiness
  Substantive; from Pali adjective; possibly cognate with Sanskrit sukha; the opposite pole of dukkha in the feeling triad.

Analysis. a + dukkha + masukha, lit. 'non-pain non-pleasure': a negative (a-) prefix + dukkha 'pain' + ma (emphatic negation, 'not even') + sukha 'pleasure'. The compound denotes a state beyond both suffering and happiness, central to jhānic experience.

Etymology. The a- prefix is Indo-European negation (English un-, Greek a-); dukkha and sukha are Pali adjectives meaning 'painful' and 'pleasant' respectively. The middle term masukha uses the emphatic negator ma + sukha to intensify the contrast. This term reflects the Buddhist analysis of vedanā (feeling) into three or more gradations.

Meanings from the Digital Pāḷi Dictionary; morphology and etymology by Claude.

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