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dhamme

dhamma

masc acc pl of dhamma (noun); masc loc sg of dhamma (noun); masc acc pl of dhamma (adj); nt acc pl of dhamma (adj); …

1. nature; character
2. quality; characteristic; trait; inherent quality
3. teaching; discourse; doctrine
4. mental phenomena; thoughts
5. mental states
6. matter; thing; phenomenon
7. truth; reality; principle; truth behind the teaching
8. virtue; moral behaviour
9. …

Built from

• dham — root · place; establish; put
  From PIE *dhe-, the root underlying Sanskrit dharma and Greek tithenai. The concrete sense of 'placing' extends to what is established as a principle—natural law, teaching, or mental phenomenon.

Etymology. From Indo-European *dhe- 'to place, put, establish' (Sanskrit dharma, Greek tithenai 'to place', Latin facere 'to do, make'). The concrete sense 'what is placed or established' → 'law, ordinance' → 'doctrine, nature'. The semantic development tracks the notion of an established principle underlying both physical reality and ethical conduct. In Buddhist usage, dhamma denotes both the universal law of impermanence (anicatā) and the Buddha's teaching as the path to liberation.

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

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