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paṭighātāya

paṭighāta

masc dat sg of paṭighāta (noun)

1. warding off; repelling; driving off; keeping at bay (of); lit. striking back
2. collision, knocking against; lit. striking back
3. resistance; repulsion; aversion (of); lit. striking back
4. (of disease) prevention (of); lit. striking back

Built from

• paṭi — prefix · against, back
  Counter-movement; opposing or returning force. Works like Greek pros 'toward, against'.
• ghāta — root · striking, blow
  From √ghaṭ 'to strike or beat'. The concrete image of impact becomes the abstract notion of resistance or repulsion.
• -āya — ending · dative singular
  Marks the indirect object or beneficiary, here the goal toward which resistance is directed (e.g., 'for the warding off of').

Analysis. paṭi- (back, against) + ghāta (striking, from √ghaṭ 'strike'). Literal sense: 'striking back' or 'counter-blow'; generalized to repulsion, resistance, and aversion in the psychological sense.

Etymology. paṭi (against, back, from paṭ- 'oppose') + ghāta (blow, from √ghaṭ, cognate with Greek *phaganon 'blade', Latin findere 'cleave'). The prefix paṭi- carries the concrete image of turning back or opposing force; ghāta adds the force of striking. Together they build the doctrinal sense of obstruction and resistance—what opposes the arising of suffering or wholesome states.

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

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