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sammadaññāvimuttā

sammadaññāvimutta

masc nom pl of sammadaññāvimutta (adj); fem nom sg of sammadaññāvimutta (adj); fem nom pl of sammadaññāvimutta (adj); nt nom pl of sammadaññāvimutta (adj); …

1. who is liberated by perfect understanding; who is freed through complete comprehension; epithet of an arahant

Built from

• samm­ — root · rightly, perfectly
  Saṁ + ma: 'together' + 'measured, marked out', yielding 'right, fitting'. Related to Latin modus and English mode.
• a­ — prefix · not, without
  Plain negation prefix; here bonded to daññā (understanding) to form adaññā in older texts, or simply emphasizing daññā as the instrument.
• daññā — root · understanding, wisdom
  From √jñā (to know), cognate with English know, Latin gnoscere. In the Pali canon, daññā denotes liberating wisdom.
• vi­ — prefix · apart, asunder
  Direction prefix marking separation and clarity; here combined with mutta (released) to intensify the sense of complete liberation.
• mutta — stem · released, liberated
  Past participle of √muc (to loose, release); feminine nominative agreement adjusts the ending to -ā in sammadaññāvimuttā.

Analysis. samm­ + a­daññā­ + vimutta. Saṁ + ma = sammā (rightly, perfectly); a + daññā = adaññā (understanding, wisdom); vi + mutta (released). The compound reads as 'released through right understanding': sammā-daññā-vimutta with sandhi contraction of final -ā and initial a- to -a-.

Etymology. sammā from saṁ (together) + √mā (measure, mark out), yielding 'right, proper' (Latin modus 'measure', English mode); daññā from √jñā (know, cognate with English know, Latin gnoscere); vimutta from vi (apart) + √muc (loose, release, cognate with Latin mucus and English muck in the sense of what is loosened or fouled). The epithet encodes the canonical path: Right Understanding (sammādiṭṭhi) is the foremost factor leading to nibbāna.

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

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