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cetovimuttiṁ

cetovimuttti

accusative singular of cetovimuttti (feminine), a compound noun

1. liberation of mind
2. freedom from mental defilement
3. emancipation through mental discipline

Built from

• ceto — stem · mind
  From cetas (consciousness, thought), the inner dimension of experience that undergoes liberation.
• vi — prefix · apart, asunder
  The concrete sense of separation and unraveling; here, the undoing and dissolution of mental bonds.
• mut — root · release, free
  The core sense of letting go; in compounds, denotes emancipation from constraint.
• ti — ending · abstract noun
  Nominalizing suffix that derives the abstract noun (liberation) from the verb root.

Analysis. ceto- (mind, from cetas) + vimuttti (liberation, from vi- apart + √muc release). The compound denotes freedom achieved by liberating the mind from the three defilements (greed, hatred, delusion).

Etymology. ceto- from cetas (mind, consciousness), cognate with Latin sententia (perception, feeling); vimuttti from vimuc-, the verb 'to release', with vi- (apart, asunder) + √muc 'to release' (cognate with Latin mucus, originally 'to slip off'). The prefix vi- emphasizes the parting-away of bondage.

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

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