Dear Nina,

thank you.

Ven. Buddhadatta gives the following in the Concise Pali-English Dictionary:
vicaara (m) investigation, management, planning.
vitakka (m) reflexion, thought.
savitakka (adj) accompanied by reasoning.

Ven. Nyanatiloka has the following in the Manual of Buddhist Terms and Doctrines:
vicaara: discursive thinking.
vitakka: thought, thought-conception.
vitakka-vicaara: thought-conception and discursive thinking, (or applied and sustained thought).

PTS PED has the following:
vicaara (m) investigation, examination, consideration, deliberation.
vitakka (m) reflection, thought, thinking; "initial application" (vitakka is often combd with vicāra or "initial & sustained application" Mrs. Rh. D.; Cpd. 282; "reflection & investigation" Rh. D.; to denote the whole of the mental process of thinking.)
savicaara (adj) accompanied by investigation.
savitakka (adj) accompanied by reasoning.

F.L.Woodward (PTS 1995) has for his translation:
savicaara (adj) accompanied by sustained thought.
savitakka (adj) accompanied by directed thought.

The prefix 'sa' is another form of 'sa.m', meaning with, together, possessed of, having.

I suppose vitakka-vicaara as "reasoning and investigation" is a more literal translation of the compound, and does not exactly describe the experience of the meditator. I agree that "applied and sustained thinking", or even "focused and maintained awareness" is more adequate. What do you think?

metta,
Yong Peng.

--- In Pali@yahoogroups.com, Nina van Gorkom wrote:

> savitakka (adj) accompanied by reasoning.
> savicaara (adj) accompanied by investigation.

Usually the jhaanafactors of vitakka and vicaara are translated as applied thinking and sustained thinking. They are factors accompanying the lower stages of jhaana. They are still needed, the meditator has to 'think' of the meditation subject in order to be absorbed. But later on he can abandon these coarse factors, and then jhaana is more refined.

Adding from the commentary: there are different reasons for cultivating jhaana, such as becoming concentrated, as basis for developing miraculous powers, but here: as basis for vipassanaa. He emerges from jhaana and considers all conditioned dhammas, their causes and conditions until he has attained arahatship. The commentator speaks about lokiya jhaana and lokuttara jhaana.

N: Lokuttara jhaana accompanies lokuttara citta that experiences nibbaana.