ध्यान

Hindi

Etymology

Borrowed from Sanskrit ध्यान (dhyāna). Doublet of दीन (dīn) (“creed, religion”).

Pronunciation

• (Delhi) IPA^(key): /d̪ʱjɑːn/, [d̪ʱjä̃ːn]

Noun

ध्यान • (dhyān) m (Urdu spelling دھیان)

1. attention, focus
   • 2014, Kausar Munir, Palat – Tera Hero Idhar Hai , (from the movie w:Main Tera Hero):

     तेरा ध्यान किधर है? यह तेरा हीरो इधर है!

     terā dhyān kidhar hai? yah terā hīro idhar hai!

     Where is your focus? Your hero is right here!

2. meditation, reflection
3. consideration, notice, heedfulness, care

   ध्यान रखना ― dhyān rakhnā ― to take care

   ध्यान से ― dhyān se ― carefully

4. reflection, reverie

Declension

Declension of ध्यान (masc cons-stem)

	singular	plural
direct	ध्यान dhyān	ध्यान dhyān
oblique	ध्यान dhyān	ध्यानों dhyānõ
vocative	ध्यान dhyān	ध्यानो dhyāno

Further reading

• McGregor, Ronald Stuart (1993) “ध्यान”, in The Oxford Hindi-English Dictionary, London: Oxford University Press

Marathi

Etymology

Borrowed from Sanskrit ध्यान (dhyāna).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /d̪ʱjan/

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

ध्यान • (dhyān) m

1. meditation
2. attention

Sanskrit

Alternative scripts

Alternative scripts

• ধ্যান (Assamese script)
• ᬥ᭄ᬬᬵᬦ (Balinese script)
• ধ্যান (Bengali script)
• 𑰠𑰿𑰧𑰯𑰡 (Bhaiksuki script)
• 𑀥𑁆𑀬𑀸𑀦 (Brahmi script)
• ဓျာန (Burmese script)
• ધ્યાન (Gujarati script)
• ਧ੍ਯਾਨ (Gurmukhi script)
• 𑌧𑍍𑌯𑌾𑌨 (Grantha script)
• ꦣꦾꦴꦤ (Javanese script)
• 𑂡𑂹𑂨𑂰𑂢 (Kaithi script)
• ಧ್ಯಾನ (Kannada script)
• ធ្យាន (Khmer script)
• ຘ຺ຍານ (Lao script)
• ധ്യാന (Malayalam script)
• ᢡᠶᠠ᠎᠊ᠠᠨᠠ (Manchu script)
• 𑘠𑘿𑘧𑘰𑘡 (Modi script)
• ᢑᠾᠶ᠋ᠠᢗᠨᠠ᠋ (Mongolian script)
• 𑧀𑧠𑧇𑧑𑧁 (Nandinagari script)
• 𑐢𑑂𑐫𑐵𑐣 (Newa script)
• ଧ୍ଯାନ (Odia script)
• ꢤ꣄ꢫꢵꢥ (Saurashtra script)
• 𑆣𑇀𑆪𑆳𑆤 (Sharada script)
• 𑖠𑖿𑖧𑖯𑖡 (Siddham script)
• ධ්‍යාන (Sinhalese script)
• 𑩮 𑪙𑩻𑩛𑩯 (Soyombo script)
• 𑚜𑚶𑚣𑚭𑚝 (Takri script)
• த்⁴யாந (Tamil script)
• ధ్యాన (Telugu script)
• ธฺยาน (Thai script)
• དྷྱཱ་ན (Tibetan script)
• 𑒡𑓂𑒨𑒰𑒢 (Tirhuta script)
• 𑨜𑩇𑨪𑨊𑨝 (Zanabazar Square script)

Etymology

Etymology tree

Sanskrit ध्यै (dhyai)

Sanskrit ध्यान (dhyāna)

From the root ध्यै (dhyai, “to contemplate, meditate, think of”); see there for more. Compare Persian دین (din, “religion”), Parthian 𐫅𐫏𐫗 (dyn, “religion”), Avestan 𐬛𐬀𐬉𐬥𐬁 (daēnā, “religion, vision”).

Pronunciation

• (Vedic) IPA^(key): /dʱjɑː.nɐ/
• (Classical Sanskrit) IPA^(key): /ˈd̪ʱjɑː.n̪ɐ/

Noun

ध्यान • (dhyāna) stem, n

1. meditation, contemplation, thought, reflection, (especially) profound and abstract religious meditation; a dhyana

   ध्यानम् आस्था, ध्यानं गम्, ध्यानम् आपद् ― dhyānam āsthā, dhyānaṃ gam, dhyānam āpad ― to indulge in religious meditation

2. mental representation of the personal attributes of a deity
3. insensibility, dullness

Declension

Neuter a-stem declension of ध्यान (dhyāna)
	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ध्यानम् dhyānam	ध्याने dhyāne	ध्यानानि / ध्याना¹ dhyānāni / dhyānā¹
Vocative	ध्यान dhyāna	ध्याने dhyāne	ध्यानानि / ध्याना¹ dhyānāni / dhyānā¹
Accusative	ध्यानम् dhyānam	ध्याने dhyāne	ध्यानानि / ध्याना¹ dhyānāni / dhyānā¹
Instrumental	ध्यानेन dhyānena	ध्यानाभ्याम् dhyānābhyām	ध्यानैः / ध्यानेभिः¹ dhyānaiḥ / dhyānebhiḥ¹
Dative	ध्यानाय dhyānāya	ध्यानाभ्याम् dhyānābhyām	ध्यानेभ्यः dhyānebhyaḥ
Ablative	ध्यानात् dhyānāt	ध्यानाभ्याम् dhyānābhyām	ध्यानेभ्यः dhyānebhyaḥ
Genitive	ध्यानस्य dhyānasya	ध्यानयोः dhyānayoḥ	ध्यानानाम् dhyānānām
Locative	ध्याने dhyāne	ध्यानयोः dhyānayoḥ	ध्यानेषु dhyāneṣu
Notes	¹Vedic

Descendants

• Pali: jhāna
  • → Khmer: ឈាន (chiən)
  • → Lao: ຊານ (sān)
  • → Burmese: ဈာန် (jhan)
  • → Northern Thai: ᨫᩣ᩠ᨶ (saan⁴)
  • → Thai: ฌาน (chaan)
• Prakrit: 𑀛𑀸𑀡 (jhāṇa)
  • Apabhramsa: झाण (jhāṇa)
    • Eastern Indo-Aryan:
      • Old Bengali: ঝাণ (jhāṇa)
    • Western Indo-Aryan:
      • Old Gujarati: झाण (jhāṇa)
• Sinhalese: දන් (dan)
• → Bengali: ধ্যান (dhên)
• → Chinese: 禪那／禅那 (chánnuó) (Middle Chinese /d͡ʑiᴇn nɑ/) ~ 禪／禅 (chán) (/d͡ʑiᴇn/)
  • → Japanese: 禅那 (zenna) ~ 禅 (zen)
    • → English: Zen
    • → French: zen
    • → German: Zen
    • → Spanish: Zen
    • → Thai: เซน (seen), เซ็น (sen)
  • → Korean: 선 (seon)
  • → Vietnamese: thiền na ~ thiền
• → English: dhyana
• → Gujarati: ધ્યાન (dhyān)
• → Hindustani:
  • Hindi: ध्यान (dhyān)
  • Urdu: دھیان (dhyān)
• → Kannada: ಧ್ಯಾನ (dhyāna)
• → Khmer: ធ្យាន (thyiən)
• → Marathi: ध्यान (dhyān)
• → Malayalam: ധ്യാനം (dhyānaṁ)
• → Punjabi: ਧਿਆਨ (dhiāna)
• → Tamil: தியானம் (tiyāṉam)
• → Telugu: ధ్యానం (dhyānaṁ)
• → Tibetan: བསམ་གཏན (bsam gtan) (calque)

Proper noun

ध्यान • (Dhyāna) m

1. name of a particular personification
2. name of the 11th day of the light half in Brahma's month

References

• Monier Williams (1899) “ध्यान”, in A Sanskrit–English Dictionary, […], new edition, Oxford: At the Clarendon Press, →OCLC, page 521/1.
• Mayrhofer, Manfred (1992) Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altindoarischen‎^[1] (in German), volume 1, Heidelberg: Carl Winter Universitätsverlag, pages 777-778; 798
• Cheung, Johnny (2007) Etymological Dictionary of the Iranian Verb (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 2), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, pages 48-50