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desitā
desita
masc nom pl of desita (pp); fem nom sg of desita (pp); fem nom pl of desita (pp); nt nom pl of desita (pp); …
- desita (pp): preached; taught; explained; instructed (by)
- desita (pp): confessed; admitted
- desita (pp): appointed; designated (by); lit. caused to point out
- desitar (masc): teacher; preacher; instructor (of something to someone)
Built from
- de- — prefix · forth, out
The prefix pa- (forward, forth) appears here in its variant form de-; it marks the outward direction of the action of pointing or teaching.
- sis — root · point, show
From √dis; the concrete image is the finger or hand pointing to direct attention. Sanskrit diś- and Latin dicere (to say, literally 'to point out') share this root; 'saying' derives from the gesture of directing attention.
- -i- — stem · participial stem
The connecting vowel before the past participle morpheme.
- -ta — ending · past participle
Marks completed action; here, 'pointed out/taught' as a completed or resulting state.
Etymology. From √dis (to point out, show direction). The root appears in Sanskrit diś- (point, direct) and is cognate with Latin dicere (say, speak: the original sense 'point out by speech' narrowed to 'speak'). The past participle desita literally means 'pointed out' or 'made clear', hence 'taught' or 'preached'. In the Canon, desita is the standard passive past participle of the Dhamma being expounded by the Buddha.