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yathāmūḷhaṁ

yathāmūḷha

adjective, accusative singular neuter (or adverb); from yathā + mūḷha

1. in confusion, in bewilderment
2. as if muddled or deluded

Built from

• yathā — prefix · as, like, in the manner of
  Adverbial form of the relative ya-, used to introduce comparative or conditional clauses. It does not carry spatial prefix imagery but functions as a manner-marker.
• mūḷha — stem · confused, bewildered
  Past participle of √muh (to be bewildered, to become confused). The stem expresses the state of mental delusion or cognitive impairment.

Analysis. yathā (as, in the manner of) + mūḷha (confused, deluded, from √muh 'to be bewildered'); literally 'as confused/bewildered'

Etymology. yathā is an old instrumental form of ya- (relative pronoun, 'which, what') meaning 'in which way', and mūḷha is the past participle of √muh 'to be bewildered, confused', itself cognate with Sanskrit mūḍha and likely related to English 'muddle'. The compound emphasizes the manner or state of confusion.

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

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