Pronunciation guide: the Pali alphabet and its sounds

Pali has 41 letters, in this order (the dictionary’s order): a ā i ī u ū e o · k kh g gh ṅ · c ch j jh ñ · ṭ ṭh ḍ ḍh ṇ · t th d dh n · p ph b bh m · y r l ḷ v s h · ṃ. Devanagari is shown beside each word; Pali is also written in Sinhala, Burmese, Thai and other scripts.

Vowels

a	अ	a in “about” (short)
ā	आ	a in “father” (long)
i	इ	i in “sit”
ī	ई	ee in “see” (long)
u	उ	u in “put”
ū	ऊ	oo in “food” (long)
e	ए	ay in “day”; short before two consonants (mettā)
o	ओ	o in “go”; short before two consonants (sotthi)

Consonants

Throat

k	क	k in “skin”
kh	ख	k with a puff
g	ग	g in “go”
gh	घ	g with a puff
ṅ	ङ	ng in “sing”

Palate

c	च	ch in “church” (never k)
ch	छ	ch with a puff
j	ज	j in “jam”
jh	झ	j with a puff
ñ	ञ	ny in “canyon”

Tongue curled back

ṭ	ट	t, tongue tip curled back
ṭh	ठ	the same with a puff
ḍ	ड	d, tongue curled back
ḍh	ढ	the same with a puff
ṇ	ण	n, tongue curled back

Teeth

t	त	t on the teeth (French t)
th	थ	t with a puff, “at home” (never “thin”)
d	द	d on the teeth
dh	ध	d with a puff, “adhere” (never “this”)
n	न	n in “nut”

Lips

p	प	p in “spin”
ph	फ	p with a puff, “uphill” (never “f”)
b	ब	b in “bat”
bh	भ	b with a puff, “abhor”
m	म	m in “mat”

Others

y	य	y in “yes”
r	र	a light tapped r
l	ल	l in “love”
ḷ	ळ	l with the tongue curled back
v	व	between v and w
s	स	s in “sun” (never z)
h	ह	h in “hand”
ṃ	ं	niggahīta: a nasal hum (saṃgha ≈ “sang-gha”); also written ṁ

How to say a word

An h after a consonant (kh, th, dh, ph, bh…) is a puff of breath, never English “th” or “ph”.
Double consonants are held: dham·ma, bud·dha, sat·ta (like “bookcase”, not “booking”).
Long syllables have ā ī ū e o, end in ṃ, or come before two consonants; the others are short. Stress the second-last syllable if it is long (nib·bā·na, met·tā), otherwise the one before it.
Each entry shows the word split into syllables, e.g. nib·bā·na, saṅ·gha, met·tā.

Pali grammar, metre and literary devices

Grammar: genders and numbers

masculine	dhamma, buddha	most -a stems; nominative -o (dhammo)
feminine	mettā, paññā	mostly -ā, -i, -ī stems
neuter	citta, rūpa	-a stems; nominative -aṃ (cittaṃ)
singular / plural	dhammo / dhammā	Pali has two numbers; the old dual is lost

Grammar: the 8 cases (dhamma, masc.)

nominative	dhammo · dhammā	subject
accusative	dhammaṃ · dhamme	object; goal of motion
instrumental	dhammena · dhammehi	by, with
dative	dhammāya, dhammassa · dhammānaṃ	to, for
ablative	dhammā, dhammasmā, dhammamhā · dhammehi	from; because of
genitive	dhammassa · dhammānaṃ	of
locative	dhamme, dhammasmiṃ, dhammamhi · dhammesu	in, on, at; when
vocative	dhamma · dhammā	O …!

Singular · plural. buddha declines the same way: buddho, buddhaṃ, buddhena, buddhāya/buddhassa, buddhā, buddhassa, buddhe, buddha.

Grammar: verbs (bhavati / hoti “is, becomes”)

present	bhavati, hoti · bhavanti, honti	he/she is · they are; also bhavāmi/homi “I am”
aorist (past)	ahosi · ahesuṃ	he/she was · they were (also abhavi)
future	bhavissati, hessati, hohiti	will be
optative	bhaveyya	may be, should be (wishes, rules, conditions)
imperative	bhavatu, hotu · hontu	let it be · let them be
conditional	abhavissa	would have been (rare)

Grammar: non-finite forms

absolutive -tvā	bhavitvā, hutvā; gantvā, disvā	having been; having gone, having seen
infinitive -tuṃ	bhavituṃ, kātuṃ, gantuṃ	to be, to do, to go
present participle -nt / -māna	bhavanto, bhavamāna	being
past participle -ta / -na	bhūta, kata, dinna	become, done, given
future passive -tabba / -anīya	kātabba, karaṇīya	to be done, what should be done

Grammar: compounds (samāsa)

dvanda	samaṇabrāhmaṇā	“ascetics and brahmins”: X and Y
tappurisa	rājaputta	“king’s son”: Y of/by/for X
kammadhāraya	mahāpurisa	“great man”: Y that is X
digu	tiratana	“the three jewels”: a numeral first
bahubbīhi	mahāpañña	“(one) having great wisdom”: describes someone else
avyayībhāva	yathābalaṃ	“according to strength”: indeclinable, adverb-like

Grammar: sandhi (joining sounds)

vowel dropped	na + atthi → natthi	“there is not”
vowels merge	tatra + ayaṃ → tatrāyaṃ	a + a → ā
i + vowel	iti + evaṃ → iccevaṃ	i becomes y, ty → cc
ṃ + vowel	evaṃ + āha → evam āha	ṃ becomes m
ṃ + consonant	saṃ + gaha → saṅgaha	ṃ takes the nasal of the next consonant
doubling	pa + kamati → pakkamati	a consonant is doubled after a prefix

Prosody: heavy and light syllables

garu (heavy) –	ā ī ū e o; a short vowel + ṃ or two consonants	dham- in dhamma, saṃ- in saṃgha
lahu (light) ⏑	a short vowel (a i u) + at most one consonant	ma- in manasā

Metres are counted either by syllables (akkharachandas) or by morae, mattā (light = 1, heavy = 2).

Prosody: main metres

siloka (anuṭṭhubha)	4 × 8 syllables	the commonest; even lines usually end ⏑ – ⏑ x
tuṭṭhubha	4 × 11 syllables	yānīdha bhūtāni samāgatāni (Ratana-sutta, Sn 222)
jagatī	4 × 12 syllables	a tuṭṭhubha line with one more syllable; the two are often mixed in one verse
vetālīya	lines of 14 + 16 mattā	counted in morae, with the cadence – ⏑ – ⏑ –
opacchandasaka	lines of 16 + 18 mattā	like vetālīya, cadence – ⏑ – ⏑ – –
mattāchandas	metres counted in mattā	vetālīya, opacchandasaka and the old gīti/āryā forms

Dhammapada 1 (siloka): manopubbaṅgamā dhammā / manoseṭṭhā manomayā / manasā ce paduṭṭhena / bhāsati vā karoti vā: “Mind precedes things; mind is their chief, they are mind-made; if one speaks or acts with a corrupted mind …”

Literary devices in the canon

repetition, peyyāla	… pe …	repeated passages are written once and abbreviated with pe(yyāla), “and so on”
stock formulas	evaṃ me sutaṃ. ekaṃ samayaṃ bhagavā …	“Thus have I heard. At one time the Blessed One …”
numerical lists	cattāri ariyasaccāni	the Aṅguttara Nikāya is arranged by number (ones to elevens); mātikā are the Abhidhamma’s lists of headings
similes (upamā)	seyyathāpi … evam eva	“just as … even so”, e.g. the raft (kullūpama, MN 22)
verse and prose (geyya)	prose then summarising verses	geyya is one of the nine kinds (aṅga) of the Teacher’s word
dialogue, questions	taṃ kiṃ maññatha bhikkhave, rūpaṃ niccaṃ vā aniccaṃ vā ti? aniccaṃ bhante	teaching by question and answer (SN 22.59)
refrains	eko care khaggavisāṇakappo	“let one wander alone like the rhinoceros horn” ends each verse of Sn 35–75
chiasmus, ring structure	na hi verena verāni sammantīdha kudācanaṃ / averena ca sammanti	mirrored order (Dhp 5); many suttas end by returning to their opening
word-play	lujjatī ti kho bhikkhu, tasmā loko ti vuccati	“it crumbles (lujjati), so it is called the world (loka)” (SN 35.82)
epithets	bhagavā, tathāgata, sugata	and the ‘iti pi so’ list: arahaṃ sammāsambuddho vijjācaraṇasampanno …
framing stories	paccuppannavatthu · atītavatthu · samodhāna	a Jātaka’s present story frames the past story, then identifies the characters; Vinaya rules each have an origin story
uddāna	a mnemonic verse after each vagga	lists a key word from each sutta so the chapter can be recited from memory

Sources: A. K. Warder, Introduction to Pali (Pali Text Society, 3rd ed. 2001) and Pali Metre (PTS, 1967); W. Geiger, Pāli Literatur und Sprache (1916), rev. K. R. Norman as A Pāli Grammar (PTS, 1994); K. R. Norman, Pāli Literature (1983) and his papers on Pāli metre.

Pali Dictionary

कुसल

kusala

Say it: ku·sa·la

adjective

Sanskrit equivalent

कुशल kuśala

Meaning

Kusala

adjective

(adj.) clever, skilful, expert; good, right, meritorious MN.i.226; Dhp.44; Ja.i.222 Esp. appl. in moral sense (= puñña), whereas akusala is practically equivalent to pāpa. ekam pi ce pāṇaṁ aduṭṭhacitto mettāyati kusalo tena hoti Iti.21; sappañño paṇḍito kusalo naro Snp verse 591, Snp verse 523 ; Pv.3:3 (= nipuṇa). With kamma = a meritorious action, in kammaṁ katvā kusalaṁ DN.iii.157; Vv.30:7; Pv.10:11 see cpds
■ ācāra-k˚ good in conduct Dhp.376; parappavāda˚ skilled in disputation Dpvs.iv.19; magga˚ (and opp. amagga˚) one who is an expert as regards the Path (lit. & fig.) SN.iii.108; samāpatti˚, etc. AN.v.156 sq. sālittaka-payoge k˚ skilled in the art of throwing potsherds Pv-a.282
■ In derivation k. is explained by Dhpāla & Bdhgh by; kucchita and salana, viz. kucchita-salanādi atthena kusalaṁ Vv-a.169; kucchite pāpadhamme salayanti calayanti kappenti viddhaṁsenti ti kusalā Dhs-a.39; where four alternative derivations are given (cp. Mrs. Rh. D., Dhs. trsl. p. lxxxii).
(nt.) a good thing, good deeds, virtue, merit, good consciousness (citta omitted; cp. Dhs-a.162, Dhs-a.200, etc.): yassa pāpaṁ kataṁ kammaṁ kusalena pithīyati, so imaṁ lokaṁ pabhāseti “he makes this world shine, who covers an evil deed with a good one” MN.ii.104 = Dhp.173 = Thag.872; sukhañ ca k. pucchi (fitness) Snp verse 981; Vv.30:1 (= ārogyaṁ); DN.i.24; Ja.vi.367; Pv.1:3 (= puñña) Pv-a.75; Mil.25
■ In special sense as ten kusalāni equivalent to the dasasīlaṁ (cp. sīla) MN.i.47; AN.v.241 AN.v.274. All good qualities (dhammā) which constitute right and meritorious conduct are comprised in the phrase-kusala-dhammā Snp verse 1039, Snp verse 1078, expld. in extenso Cnd. s.v. See also cpd. ˚dhamma
■ Kusalaṁ karoti to do what is good and righteous, i.e. kāyena, vācāya manasā Iti.78; cp. Dhp.53; sabba-pāpassa akaraṇaṁ kusalassa upasampadā sacittapariyodapanaṁ etaṁ Buddhānusāsanaṁ DN.ii.49 = Dhp.183; cp. Ne.43, Ne.81 Ne.171, Ne.186. Kusalaṁ bhāveti to pursue righteousness (together with akusalaṁ pajahati to give up wrong habits) AN.i.58; AN.iv.109 sq.; Iti.9
■ akusala adj.: improper wrong, bad; nt.: demerit, evil deed DN.i.37, DN.i.163 bālo + akusalo Snp verse 879, Snp verse 887; = pāpa Pv-a.60, cp. pāpapasuto akatakusalo ib. 6. kusalaṁ & akusalaṁ are discussed in detail (with ref. to rūpâvacara˚ fivefold, to arūpâvacara˚ & lokuttara˚ fourfold, to kāmâvacara eight & twelvefold) at Vism.452–Vism.454
■ kusalākusala good and bad MN.i.489; SN.v.91; Mil.25; Ne.161, Ne.192; Ds.1124 sq
■ sukusala (dhammānaṁ) highly skilled DN.i.180 (cp. MN.ii.31).

-anuesin striving after righteousness Snp verse 965; cp kinkusalānuesin DN.ii.151 and kinkusalagavesin MN.i.163 sq.;
-abhisanda overflow of merit (+ puñña˚) AN.ii.54 sq.; AN.iii.51; AN.iii.337;
-kamma meritorious action, right conduct AN.i.104; AN.i.292 sq.; Ps.i.85; Ps.ii.72 sq.; Pv-a.9, Pv-a.26
-cittā (pl.) good thoughts Vb.169–Vb.173, Vb.184, Vb.285 sq. 294 sq.;
-cetanā right volition Vb.135;
-dhammā (pl. (all) points of righteousness, good qualities of character SN.ii.206; MN.i.98; AN.iv.11 sq.; AN.v.90 sq.; AN.v.123 sq.; Pp.68, Pp.71; Vb.105; Ps.i.101, Ps.i.132; Ps.ii.15, Ps.ii.230; Vv-a.74 Vv-a.127;
-pakkha “the side of virtue,” all that belongs to good character MN.iii.77 (and a˚) with adj. ˚pakkhika SN.v.91;
-macchariya Ds.1122 is to be corrected to kula˚ instead of kusala˚ (meanness as regards family cp. Nd ii.on veviccha;
-mūla the basis or root of goodness or merit; there are three: alobha, adosa, amoha MN.i.47, MN.i.489 = AN.i.203 = Ne.183; DN.iii.214; Ds.32, Ds.313 Ds.981; Vb.169 sq., Vb.210; Ne.126. Cp. ˚paccaya Vb.169; ˚ropanā Ne.50;
-anuesin striving after righteousness Snp verse 965; cp kinkusalānuesin DN.ii.151 and kinkusalagavesin MN.i.163 sq.;
-vipāka being a fruit of good kamma Ds.454; Vism.454 (twofold, viz ahetuka & sahetuka).;
-vedanā good, pure feeling Vb.3 sq.; cp. ˚saññā and ˚sankhārā Vb.6 sq.; Ne.126 (three ˚saññā, same as under ˚vitakkā);
-sīla good proper conduct of life MN.ii.25 sq.; adj. ˚sīlin DN.i.115 (= DN-a.i.286).

cp. Sk. kuśala

Pali Text Society Pali–English Dictionary (Rhys Davids & Stede, 1921–25). Source