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nihitadaṇḍo

nihitadaṇḍa

masc nom sg of nihitadaṇḍa (adj)

1. non-violent; lit. put down the stick

Built from

• ni — prefix · down, into
  The prefix ni- conveys downward motion and containment. Here it suggests placing into the ground, setting down firmly.
• dhā — root · place, put
  Sanskrit dhā, cognate with English 'do' and German 'tun'. The root carries the concrete image of physical placement.
• -ta — ending · past participle
  This suffix marks the past participle, turning the action into an adjective: 'placed', 'put', 'laid down'.
• daṇḍa — root · stick, rod, violence
  A noun meaning a stick or rod used for striking; metaphorically extended to punishment, force, and violence. No certain cognate in European languages.

Analysis. ni-hita-daṇḍa: compound of nihita (put down, laid aside) and daṇḍa (stick, rod, violence). Literally 'stick laid down', used metaphorically of one who has abandoned violence and aggression.

Etymology. nihita is the past participle of ni-dhā (to place down, set aside; ni- 'down into' + dhā 'place', cognate with English 'do' and Sanskrit dhā), while daṇḍa (stick, rod, punishment, violence) is from an ancient root meaning a rod or staff used for striking. The compound transfers the image of physically laying down one's weapon to the moral state of renouncing violence.

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

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