‹ Back to the text

dhuvo

dhuva

masc nom sg of dhuva (adj)

1. stable; enduring; permanent; eternal; everlasting; epithet of Nibbāna
2. continuous; constant; regular
3. certain; sure

Built from

• dhuv — root · hold firm, endure
  The root *dhreu- (Indo-European) underlying Sanskrit dhruva and English true; the concrete sense is being fixed or rooted in place, which abstracts to stability, permanence, and certainty—why it becomes a canonical epithet of the unconditioned (Nibbāna).

Etymology. From Indo-European *dhreu- (to hold firm, endure). Related to Sanskrit dhruva and English true, German treu (faithful). The root captures the concrete image of something fixed in place, immovable, hence figuratively steadfast and reliable—applied in the canon to Nibbāna as the one permanent refuge amid flux.

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

Lite mode — plain HTML for e-readers and old browsers. Full version