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asaṅkiliṭṭhacitto

asaṅkiliṭṭhacitta

masc nom sg of asaṅkiliṭṭhacitta (adj)

1. with an undefiled mind; with a pure heart; with an untainted mind

Built from

• a- — prefix · not, without
  Plain negation. Cf. English un-, Greek a(n)-.
• saṁ- — prefix · together, with
  Indicates joining or bringing together. Here it intensifies the sense of defilement spreading through the mind.
• kiliṭṭha — stem · defiled, foul
  Past participle of √kil (to make turbid or foul). The root conveys muddying or tainting, without secure Indo-European cognate.
• -citta — stem · mind, thought
  From √cit (to perceive, be aware); possibly cognate with Latin cient- and Greek kinein (to move), implying mental motion or stirring.
• -o — ending · nominative masculine singular
  Marks the subject as masculine singular in the nominative case.

Analysis. a-saṅkiliṭṭha-citta: 'not defiled mind'. The prefix a- negates saṅkiliṭṭha (past participle of saṅkilissati 'becomes defiled'), which is itself sam- + √kil (to make foul or turbid). citta is 'mind' or 'thought'. The compound thus means a mind unstained by defilement—a cardinal image of mental purity in the canon.

Etymology. a- (negation: without) + saṅkiliṭṭha (past participle of saṁ + √kil, to defile together; kil- means to make turbid or foul, without clear Indo-European cognate) + citta (mind, from √cit 'to perceive', cognate with Latin cient-, Greek kinein 'to move'). The image is of a mind not muddied or defiled by greed, hatred, or delusion.

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

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