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vipassanāya

vipassana

fem instr sg of vipassana (adj); masc dat sg of vipassana (adj); fem dat sg of vipassana (adj); nt dat sg of vipassana (adj); …

1. vipassanā (fem): insight; penetrating internal vision; introspection; lit. seeing distinctly
2. vipassana (adj): related to insight; regarding introspection; lit. about seeing distinctly

Built from

• vi- — prefix · apart, asunder
  The prefix vi- originally means 'in different directions' or 'asunder'; here it intensifies the act of seeing into keen, penetrating discernment. Works like Latin dis- (divide).
• pass- — root · to see
  From √paś (to see, perceive). Cognate with Latin patēre (to be open, visible), Greek pephanai (to show), and English 'spy'. The concrete image is looking at or beholding.
• -anā — ending · feminine abstract noun
  The feminine ending -anā derives abstract nouns from verbs and verbal stems, turning the action 'seeing' into the state or practice 'insight'. In the instrumental singular -āya, it expresses the means or instrument: 'by means of insight'.

Analysis. vi- (apart, asunder) + passanā (seeing): seeing distinctly, seeing things as they really are by breaking them apart into their constituent elements.

Etymology. The prefix vi- (apart, in different directions) intensifies the root √paś (to see), giving the literal sense 'seeing apart' or 'seeing distinctly'. The root √paś is cognate with Latin patēre (to be open, visible), Greek pephanai (to show), and English 'spy'. In Buddhist doctrine, vipassanā is the liberating insight that penetrates the three marks (anicca, dukkha, anattā) by discerning phenomena in their bare, disaggregated nature rather than as a unified self.

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

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