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parinibbuto
parinibbuta
masc nom sg of parinibbuta (pp)
- (of mental defilement) completely quenched; entirely emancipated; completely cooled; lit. completely blown away
- (of fire) extinguished; put out; quenched; lit. completely blown away
- (of an arahant) died one's final death; attained final Nibbāna; lit. completely blown away
- (of bad behaviour) settled down; cooled down; subsided (wrt); lit. completely blown away
Built from
- pari — prefix · around, completely
Prefix of totality and circumference, from Indo-European *per- (Greek peri-, Latin per-). Images the going all the way round, hence completeness.
- ni — prefix · down, out of
From Indo-European *ni- (English nether, German nieder). Carries the sense of downward motion and removal.
- bbā — root · blow, go out
From √vā (Sanskrit vāti 'blows'; English wind). The root meaning 'blow' becomes 'be extinguished' when applied to fire.
- ta — ending · past participle
Nominative singular masculine past participle ending, marking a completed action (the fire/defilements completely blown out).
Analysis. pari + nibbuta: pari (around, completely) + nis + vāna (fire blown out), yielding 'fire blown out all the way round', applied to defilements (in the path) and to the arahant's final passing.
Etymology. From pari- (around, completely; from Indo-European *per- 'forward, through', shared with Greek peri-, Latin per-) + ni- (down, into; akin to English nether, German nieder) + √vā (blow; Sanskrit vāti 'blows', related to English wind). The base nibbāna (Pali form of Sanskrit nirvāṇa) is literally 'blown out' — the fire of craving extinguished. Pari- extends this to 'completely, utterly' extinguished, used most powerfully of the arahant's final passing from existence.