Vatthu1 (nt.) [Class. Sk. vastu, fr. vas1] lit. "ground," hence 1. (lit.) object, real thing, property, thing, substance (cp. vatthu2!) A ii.209 (khetta˚, where khetta in lit. sense, cp. No. 2). Here belongs the defn of kāma as twofold: vatthu -- kāma and kilesa -- kāma, or desire for realities, objective kāma, and desire as property of stained character, i. e. subjective kāma, e. g. Nd1 1; SnA 99, 112; DhsA 62. -- On vatthụ as general philos. term cp. Dhs. trsln 2§§ 455, 679, 1229, also introd. p. 86; Cpd. 15, 31, 1741. -- 2. (appld meaning) object, item Vin i.121 (antima -- vatthuŋ ajjhāpannaka guilty of an extreme offence?); v.138 (the 10 āghāta -- vatthūni, as at Vbh 86); D iii.252 (seven niddesa˚), 255 (eight kusīta˚), 258 (eight dāna˚); S ii.41, 56 sq.; Vbh 71 (cakkhu˚ etc.), 306 sq., 353; Nett 114 (ten); SnA 172; DhA iv.2 (akkosa˚); PvA 8, 20 (dāna˚), 26 (left out in id. p. KhA 209), 29, 65 (alabbhaneyya˚), 96 (id.), 119, 121 (iṭṭha˚), 177,220. Cp. ˚bhūta. -- 3. occasion for, reason, ground A ii.158 (+khetta [in fig. sense!], āyatana & adhikaraṇa); iv.334; D i.13 sq. (aṭṭhādasahi vatthūhi etc.); Jii.5 (avatthumhi chandaŋ mâkari do not set your heart on what is unreasonable); vatthunā (instr.) because PvA 118; vatthuto (abl.) on account of PvA 241. <-> 4. basis, foundation, seat, (objective) substratum, substance, element J i.146 (kāyo paridevānaŋ v.); VbhA 404 (+ārammaṇa). See most of the cpds. -- 5. subjectmatter, subject, story, account SnA 4; DhA ii.66; PvA 77, 92, 263, 269. Cp. ˚gāthā & titles like Petavatthu, Vimānavatthu.

 -- kata made a foundation or basis of, practised thoroughly J ii.61; v.14 and passim (+bhāvita etc.). In phrase tālâvatthukata (=tāla avatthu kata) vatthu means foundation, basis, ground to feed and live on, thus "a palm deprived of its foundation": see refs. under tāla. -- gāthā the stanzas of the story, the introductory (explanatory, essential to its understanding) stanzas, something like "prologue" SnA 483, 575 (preceding Sn 699 & 976). -- dasaka tenfold substance or material basis VbhA 22. -- bhūta being an object, i. e. subject to J v.210. -- rūpa substance or substratum of matter, material form Vism 561, 564; VbhA 22, 172. -- visadakiriyā clearing of the foundation or fundamentals, purification of the elements VbhA 283=DhsA 76 (˚kiriyatā; trsln Expos. 101 "cleansing of things or substance"); Vism 128; VbhA 276.