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suppatiṭṭhitacittā

suppatiṭṭhitacitta

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

1. with a mind well established; with a mind fully centred (in)

Built from

• su- — prefix · well, good
  Intensifying prefix from PIE *su-. Cognate with Greek eu- (eulogy, European) and English sweet.
• patiṭṭhita — stem · established, set firm
  Past participle of patiṭṭhahati. Paṭi- 'back, against, in place' + ṭhita 'stood' (√sthā). The paṭi- gives the sense of being firmly rooted in one location.
• citta — stem · mind, heart, thought
  From √cit- 'perceive, think, know'. Cognate with Latin citāre 'set in motion', Greek kinein 'move'. The mind conceived as active, moving awareness.
• ā — ending · nominative marker
  Feminine singular or plural nominative ending -ā, marking the form as a substantivized adjective describing a feminine noun (often implying 'mindfulness' or the quality itself).

Analysis. su- (well) + patiṭṭhita (established, pp. of patiṭṭhahati) + citta (mind); a compound adjective meaning 'well-established in mind', describing meditators whose attention is firmly grounded.

Etymology. su- 'well' (from PIE *su- 'good', cognate with Greek eu- as in eulogy, and English sweet); patiṭṭhita from paṭi- 'back, against, in return' + ṭhita 'stood' (√sthā 'stand', cognate with English stand, Latin stāre); citta 'mind, thought' (from √cit- 'perceive, think', cognate with Latin citāre 'set in motion'). The prefix paṭi- lends the sense of 'firmly established in place' — mind grounded and steady.

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

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