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diṭṭhigahanaṁ

diṭṭhigahana

neuter accusative singular; from diṭṭhi + gahana, a nominal compound

1. thicket of views
2. tangle of opinions
3. labyrinth of doctrines

Built from

• diṭṭhi — stem · view, opinion
  From √dṛś 'to see'; abstract noun meaning 'that which is seen' or 'seeing-forth', i.e. the particular view or doctrine one holds.
• gahana — stem · thicket, tangle
  From √gah 'to seize, grasp'; a dense, gripping place—jungle or tangle—that catches and holds one fast, used metaphorically for the mesh of confused doctrines.

Analysis. diṭṭhi (view, opinion) + gahana (thicket, dense jungle, tangle). In the canon, used metaphorically for the confused tangle of wrong views and philosophical opinions that obscure the path to insight.

Etymology. diṭṭhi from √dṛś (to see), whence Sanskrit darśana; gahana from √gah (to seize, grasp), cognate with English gasp and grasp, expressing something dense and gripping that catches hold. The image is of views as a thick forest one must penetrate.

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

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