Piṭṭhi & Piṭṭhī

feminine

1. the back Vin.ii.200 (piṭṭhī); MN.i.354; Ja.i.207; Ja.ii.159, Ja.ii.279. piṭṭhiṃ (paccāmittassa) passati to see the (enemy’s) back, i.e. to see the last of somebody Ja.i.296, Ja.i.488; Ja.iv.208. piṭṭhi as opposed to ura (breast) at Vin.ii.105; Snp.609; as opposed to tala (palm) with ref. to hand & foot: hattha (or pada-) tala & ˚piṭṭhi: Ja.iv.188; Vism.361
   ■ abl. piṭṭhito as adv (from) behind, at the back of Snp.412 (+ anubandhati to follow closely); Vv-a.256; Pv-a.78 (geha˚). piṭṭhito karoti to leave behind, to turn one’s back on Ja.i.71 (cp. pṛṣṭhato-mukha Divy.333). piṭṭhito piṭṭhito right on one’s heels, very closely Vin.i.47; DN.i.1, DN.i.226
2. top, upper side (in which meaning usually piṭṭha³) only in cpd. ˚pāsāṇa and loc. piṭṭhiyaṃ as adv. on top of Ja.v.297 (ammaṇa˚) piṭṭhi at Vv-a.101 is evidently faulty reading.

• -ācariya teacher’s understudy, pupil-teacher, tutor Ja.ii.100; Ja.v.458, Ja.v.473, Ja.v.501.
• -kaṇṭaka spina dorsi, backbone MN.i.58, MN.i.80, MN.i.89; MN.iii.92; Vism.271; Vb-a.243 Kp-a.49 sq.; Sdhp.102.
• -koṭṭhaka an upper room (bath room?) Dhp-a.ii.19, Dhp-a.ii.20.
• -gata following behind foll. one’s example Vism.47.
• -paṇṇasālā a leaf-hut at the back Ja.vi.545.
• -parikamma treating one’s back (by rubbing) Vin.ii.106.
• -passe (loc.) at the back of behind Ja.i.292; Pv-a.55, Pv-a.83, Pv-a.106.
• -pāda the back of the foot, lit. foot-back, i.e. the heel Vism.251; Kp-a.51 (˚aṭṭhika); DN-a.i.254.
• -pāsāṇa a flat stone or rock plateau, ridge Ja.i.278; Ja.ii.352; Ja.vi.279; Dhp-a.ii.58 Vb-a.5, Vb-a.266.
• -bāha the back of the arm, i.e. elbow (cp. ˚pāda) Kp-a.49, Kp-a.50 (˚aṭṭhi):
• -maṃsa the flesh of the back Pv-a.210; Snp-a.287.
• -maṃsika backbiting, one who talks behind a person’s back Snp.244 (= ˚maṃsakhādaka C.); Ja.ii.186 (of an unfair judge); Ja.v.1; Pv.iii.9#7 (BB; T. ˚aka). As -maṃsiya at Ja.v.10.
• -maṃsikatā backbiting Cnd.39.
• -roga back-ache Snp-a.111
• -vaṃsa back bone, a certain beam in a building Dhp-a.i.52.

= piṭṭha³, of which it has taken over the main function as noun. On relation piṭṭha → piṭṭhi cp. Trenckner, Notes 55; Franke, Bezzenberger’s Beiträge xx.287. Cp. also the Prk. forms piṭṭha piṭṭhī & piṣṭī, all representing Sk. prṣṭḥa: Pischel; Prk. Gram. §53