cubibobi wrote: “what is the Pali breakdown of the word jhana?”
Good question.
“jhā” is to burn. That could be related to the word jhāna.
I will investigate this a bit more.
“Knowing about gati also tells me why I was not able to get into jhanā: kāma rāga is still strong…”
Yes. It is not possible to get to jhāna if kāma rāga is strong.
In any sutta describing the jhānic experience, there is this phrase: “So vivicceva kāmehi, vivicca akusalehi dhammehi savitakkaṃ savicāraṃ vivekajaṃ pītisukhaṃ paṭhamaṃ jhānaṃ upasampajja viharati..“.
Translated: “Withdrawn from sensuality (kāma rāga), withdrawn from akusala thoughts, and engaged in thoughts of renunciation and compassion, he enters and remains in the first jhāna..”.