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saññāvedayitanirodhaṁ

saññāvedayitanirodha

accusative singular masculine of saññāvedayitanirodha (compound noun); typically in acc. form saññāvedayitanirodhaṁ

1. cessation of perception and feeling
2. the highest meditative attainment in which consciousness suspends (technical term for the 8th jhāna or formless realm attainment)
3. literally: stopping of the aggregate of perception-and-feeling

Built from

• saññā — root · perception, cognition
  saṁ + √jñā: 'knowing together', the reception and labeling of sensory inputs. Cognate with Latin 'cognitio' and English 'know'.
• vedayita — stem · feeling, felt
  Past participle of √vid (feel, experience). Cognate with English 'wit' and Latin 'vidēre' (to see, know).
• ni — prefix · down, into
  Movement downward or into a state. Cognates: English 'nether', German 'nieder'.
• rodha — stem · stopping, cessation
  From √rudh (check, block, stop). The state of cessation or blockage of mental activity.

Analysis. saññā (perception) + vedayita (feeling, experienced) + nirodha (cessation). A technical compound denoting the most refined state of samādhī: perception and feeling (saññā and vedanā, two of the five aggregates) cease even as consciousness persists in a rarefied state. This attainment is called the 'cessation of perception and feeling' (saññāvedayitanirodha) in the Pali canon and marks entry into a state beyond the formless realms.

Etymology. nirodha derives from ni- (down, into) + √rudh (check, obstruct), literally 'checking, blocking'; cognate with English 'rugged', German 'rücken'. Saññā is from sam- (together) + √jñā (know), 'knowing together, cognition'. Vedayita is from √vid (feel, experience), cognate with English 'wit' (to know) and Latin 'vidēre'. The compound as a whole is a doctrinal term established in the Abhidhamma and Sutta traditions.

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

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