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paṇihito

paṇihita

masc nom sg of paṇihita (pp)

1. guided; directed; orientated; determined; intended; lit. placed down forward
2. disposed; inclined; prone; lit. placed down forward

Built from

• pa — prefix · forward, forth
  Intensifying prefix with concrete sense of stepping forward or projecting ahead. Works like Latin pro-.
• ni — prefix · down, into
  Directional prefix marking downward or inward motion. Cognate with English nether, German nieder.
• ṇhita — stem · placed, put
  Past participle stem of √hā/√dhā (to place, set), from Indo-European *dheh₂-. Cognates: Sanskrit dhā, English do, Latin facere.
• o — ending · nominative singular masculine
  Pali nominative singular masculine ending; here marking the subject in the nominative case.

Analysis. pa + ni + √hita (placed down forward): the prefix pa- (forward, forth) combined with ni- (down, into) and the past participle of √hā/√dhā (to place, put), yielding the sense of placing or directing something down and forward, hence orientating it toward a goal.

Etymology. From pa- (forward, forth; cognate with Greek/Latin pro-) + ni- (down, into; cognate with English nether) + √hā (to place; related to Sanskrit √dhā and Indo-European *dheh₂- 'to set, place', cognate with English do, Latin facere). The spatial imagery—placing something down and forward—yields the figurative sense of directing or orienting one's intention.

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

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