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i
. 71
. 79
ii Abhidhamma in Daily Life
Books written by Nina van Gorkom 187
Books translated by Nina van Gorkom 187
Preface 1
The Buddha’s teachings, contained in the “Tipit.aka” (Three Baskets) are: the Vinaya (Book
of Discipline for the monks), the Suttanta (Discourses) and the Abhidhamma. All three
parts of the Tipit.aka can be an inexhaustible source of inspiration and encouragement to
the practice, the development of right understanding of realities. The development of right
understanding will eventually lead to the eradication of wrong view and the other defile-
ments. In all three parts of the Tipit.aka we are taught about dhamma, about everything
which is real. Seeing is a dhamma, it is real. Colour is a dhamma, it is real. Feeling is a
dhamma, it is real. Our defilements are dhammas, they are realities.
When the Buddha attained enlightenment he clearly knew all dhammas as they really
are. He taught the “Dhamma”, the teaching on realities, to us in order that we also may
know dhammas as they are. Without the Buddha’s teaching we would be ignorant of reality.
We are inclined to take for permanent what is impermanent, for pleasant what is sorrowful
and unsatisfactory (dukkha), and for “self” what is non-self. The aim of all three parts of
the Tipit.aka is to teach people the development of the way leading to the end of defilements.
The Vinaya contains the rules for the monks and these rules help them to live to per-
fection the “brahman life” and to reach “. . . that unsurpassed goal of the brahman life,
realizing it by personal knowledge even in this life; for the sake of which clansmen rightly
go forth from the home into the homeless life. . . ” (Gradual Sayings, Book of the Fives,
chapter VI, paragraph 6, The Preceptor). The goal of the “brahman life” is the eradication
of defilements.
Not only monks, but also laymen should study the Vinaya. We read about the instances
that monks deviated from their purity of life; when there was such a case, a rule was laid
down in order to help them to be watchful. When we read the Vinaya we are reminded
of our own attachment (lobha), aversion (dosa) and ignorance (moha); they are realities.
So long as they have not been eradicated they can arise at any time. We are reminded
how deeply rooted defilements are and what they can lead to. When we consider this, we
are motivated to develop the eightfold Path which leads to the eradication of wrong view,
jealousy, stinginess, conceit and all other defilements.
In the Suttanta, the “Discourses”, the Dhamma is explained to different people at differ-
ent places on various occasions. The Buddha taught about all realities appearing through
the “six doors” of eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body-sense and mind. He taught about cause
and effect and about the practice leading to the end of all sorrow.
As regards the Abhidhamma, this is an exposition of all realities in detail. The prefix
“abhi” is used in the sense of “preponderance” or “distinction”. “Abhidhamma” means
“higher dhamma” or “dhamma in detail”. The form of this part of the Tipit.aka is different,
but the aim is the same: the eradication of wrong view and eventually of all defilements.
Thus, when we study the many enumerations of realities, we should not forget the real
purpose of our study. The theory (pariyatti) should encourage us to the practice (pat.ipatti)
which is necessary for the realization of the truth (pat.ivedha). While we are studying the
different mental phenomena (n¯amas) and physical phenomena (ru¯pas) and while we are
pondering over them, we can be reminded to be aware of the n¯ama and ru¯pa which appear
at that moment. In this way we will discover more and more that the Abhidhamma explains
everything which is real, that is, the “worlds” appearing through the six doors of the senses
and the mind.
2 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
This book is meant as an introduction to the study of the Abhidhamma. In order
to understand this book, some basic knowledge of Buddhism is necessary. My book The
Buddha’s Path could be helpful to make the reader acquainted with the basic principles
and tenets of Buddhism before he starts to read this book on the Abhidhamma.
I am using terms in P¯ali which is the original language of the scriptures of the old
Therav¯ada tradition. The English equivalents of the P¯ali terms are often unsatisfactory
since they stem from Western philosophy and psychology and therefore give an association
of meaning which is different from the meaning intended by the Buddhist teachings. I
hope that the reader, instead of being discouraged by the P¯ali terms and by the many
enumerations which are used in this book, will develop a growing interest in the realities to
be experienced in and around himself.
Ms. Sujin Boriharnwanaket has been of immense assistance and inspiration to me in my
study of the Abhidhamma. She encouraged me to discover for myself that the Abhidhamma
deals with realities to be experienced through the senses and the mind. Thus I learnt that
the study of the Abhidhamma is a process which continues throughout life. I hope that the
reader will have a similar experience and that he will be full of enthusiasm and gladness
every time he studies realities which can be experienced!
I have quoted many times from the suttas in order to show that the teaching contained in
the Abhidhamma is not different from the teaching in the other parts of the Tipit.aka. I have
mostly used the English translation of the “P¯ali Text Society” (Translation Series). For the
quotations from the Visuddhimagga (Path of Purification) I have used the translation by
Bhikkhu N~ ¯an. amoli (Colombo, Sri Lanka, 1964). The Visuddhimagga is an Encyclopedia
on Buddhism written by the commentator Buddhaghosa in the fifth century A.D. He also
edited the commentaries to most parts of the Tipit.aka, thereby basing his works on older
commentarial traditions.
The Abhidhamma consists of the following seven books1:
Dhammasangan. i (Buddhist Psychological Ethics)
Vibhan˙ ga (Book of Analysis)
Dh¯atukath¯a (Discussion on the Elements)
Puggalapan~n~atti (A Designation of Human Types)
Kath¯avatthu (Points of Controversy)
Yamaka (the Book of Pairs)
Pat.t.h¯ana (Conditional Relations)
When I first started to write this book my sources were the Visuddhimagga and the
Atthas¯alin¯ı (Expositor), the commentary to the Dhammasangan. i, written by Buddhaghosa.
I also used the Abhidhammattha Sangaha, an Encyclopedia of the Abhidhamma, written by
Anuruddha2. These works helped me greatly with the study of the Abhidhamma itself, of
1 For a synopsis of their contents see: Guide through the Abhidhamma Pitaka by Ven. Nyanatiloka.
2 This work was composed some time between the 8th and the 12th century A.D. It has been translated
into English and published by the P.T.S. under the title of “Compendium of Philosophy”, and by Ven.
N¯arada, Colombo, under the title of “A Manual of Abhidhamma”. It has also been translated by
the Venerable Bikkhu Bodhi as “A Comprehensive Manual of Abhidhamma”. Moreover, it has been
translated together with its commentary as “Summary of the Topics of Abhidhamma” and “Exposition
of the Topics of Abhidhamma”, by R.P. Wijeratne and Rupert Gethin.
Preface 3
the Dhammasangan. i and some of the other books of the abhidhamma I gradually acquired
later on.
The commentaries give a detailed explanation and nomenclature of the different cittas,
moments of consciousness, which each perform their own function, and they deal with the
different processes of cittas experiencing an object through a sense-door or through the
mind-door. Although not all the details concerning the processes of cittas can be found
in the scriptures themselves, the commentaries are firmly based on the scriptures. The
essence of the subjects explained by the commentaries can be found in the scriptures. The
Dhammasangan. i, which is an analytical exposition of realities, enumerates different cittas
arising in processes. The Vibhan˙ ga, under “Analysis of the Elements”, refers to cittas
performing their functions in processes and also the Pat.t.h¯ana refers to processes of cittas
under the heading of some of the conditions it deals with. Moreover, the Pat.isambhid¯amagga
(Khuddaka Nik¯aya) mentions (I, Treatise on Knowledge, in chapter XVII, under “behaviour
of citta”, vin~n~a¯n. a cariya) different functions of citta in a process. I hope that these few
references show that the commentator did not give his own personal views, but was faithful
to the tradition of the original scriptures.
In the last four chapters of this book I explain about the cittas which attain jh¯ana,
absorption, and the cittas which attain enlightenment. Some readers may wonder why
they should know details about these subjects. It is useful to study details about jh¯ana
and enlightenment because people may have wrong notions about them. The study of the
Abhidhamma will help one not to be deluded about realities. Moreover, it will help one
to understand the suttas where there is often reference to jh¯ana and to the attainment of
enlightenment.
I have added some questions after the chapters which may help the reader to ponder
over what he has read.
The late Bhikkhu Dhammadharo (Alan Driver) and also Mr. Jonothan Abbott gave me
most helpful corrections and suggestions for the text of the first edition of this book. I also
want to acknowledge my gratitude to the “Dhamma Study and Propagation Foundation”
and to the publisher Alan Weller who have made possible the third edition of this book.
Nina van Gorkom
Chapter 1: The Four Paramattha Dhammas 5
There are two kinds of reality: mental phenomena or n¯ama and physical phenomena or
ru¯pa. N¯ama experiences something; ru¯pa does not experience anything. What we take for
“self” are only n¯ama and ru¯pa which arise and fall away. The Visuddhimagga (Path of
Purification chapter XVIII, 25) explains:
For this has been said:
‘‘As with the assembly of parts
The word ‘chariot’ is countenanced,
So, when the khandhas are present,
‘A being’ is said in common usage’’.
(Kindred Sayings I, 135)
. . . So in many hundred suttas there is only mentality-materiality which is il-
lustrated, not a being, not a person. Therefore, just as when the component
parts (of a chariot) such as axles, wheels, frame, poles. . . are arranged in a
certain way, there comes to be the mere conventional term ‘chariot’, yet in the
ultimate sense, when each part is examined, there is no chariot so too, when
there are the five khandhas of clinging there comes to be the mere conventional
term ‘a being’, ‘a person’, yet in the ultimate sense, when each component is
examined, there is no being as a basis for the assumption ‘I am’ or ‘I’; in the
ultimate sense there is only mentality-materiality. The vision of one who sees
in this way is called correct vision.
All phenomena in and around ourselves are only n¯ama and ru¯pa which arise and fall
away; they are impermanent. N¯ama and ru¯pa are absolute realities, in P¯ali: paramattha
dhammas. We can experience their characteristics when they appear, no matter how we
name them; we do not necessarily have to call them n¯ama and ru¯pa. Those who have
developed “insight” can experience them as they really are: impermanent and not self.
Seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, experiencing tangible object through the bodysense and
thinking, all these n¯amas are impermanent. We are used to thinking that there is a self who
performs different functions such as seeing, hearing or thinking; but where is the self? Is it
one of those n¯amas? The more we know different n¯amas and ru¯pas by experiencing their
characteristics, the more will we see that “self” is only a concept; it is not a paramattha
dhamma (absolute or ultimate reality).
N¯amas are mental phenomena, ru¯pas are physical phenomena. N¯ama and ru¯pa are
different types of realities. If we do not distinguish them from each other and learn the
characteristic of each we will continue to take them for self. For example, hearing is n¯ama;
it has no form or shape, it has no ears. Hearing is different from earsense, but it has earsense
as a necessary condition. The n¯ama which hears experiences sound. Earsense and sound
are ru¯pas, they do not experience anything; they are entirely different from the n¯ama which
hears. If we do not learn that hearing, earsense and sound are realities which are altogether
different from each other, we will continue to think that it is self who hears.
The Visuddhimagga (XVIII, 34) explains:
Furthermore, n¯ama has no efficient power, it cannot occur by its own efficient
power It does not eat, it does not drink, it does not speak, it does not adopt
6 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
postures. And ru¯pa is without efficient power; it cannot occur by its own
efficient power. For it has no desire to eat, it has no desire to drink, it has no
desire to speak, it has no desire to adopt postures. But it is when supported
by ru¯pa that n¯ama occurs; and it is when supported by n¯ama that ru¯pa occurs.
When n¯ama has the desire to eat, the desire to drink, the desire to speak, the
desire to adopt a posture, it is ru¯pa that eats, drinks, speaks and adopts a
posture. . .
Furthermore (XVIII, 36) we read:
And just as men depend upon
A boat for traversing the sea,
So does the mental body need
The matter-body for occurrence.
And as the boat depends upon
The men for traversing the sea,
So does the matter-body need
The mental body for occurrence.
Depending each upon the other
The boat and men go on the sea.
And so do mind and matter both
Depend the one upon the other.
There are two kinds of conditioned n¯ama : citta (consciousness) and cetasika (men-
tal factors arising together with consciousness). They are n¯amas which arise because of
conditions and fall away again.
As regards citta, citta knows or experiences an object. Each citta has its object, in P¯ali:
¯aramman. a. Knowing or experiencing an object does not necessarily mean thinking about
it. The citta which sees has what is visible as object; it is different from the cittas which
arise afterwards, such as the cittas which know what it is that was perceived and which
think about it. The citta which hears (hearing-consciousness) has sound as its object. Even
when we are sound asleep and not dreaming, citta experiences an object. There isn’t any
citta without an object. There are many different types of citta which can be classified in
different ways.
Some cittas are kusala (wholesome), some are akusala (unwholesome). Kusala cittas
and akusala cittas are cittas which are cause; they can motivate wholesome or unwholesome
deeds through body, speech or mind which are able to bring about their appropriate re-
sults. Some cittas are the result of wholesome or unwholesome deeds; they are vip¯akacittas.
Some cittas are neither cause nor result; they are kiriyacittas (sometimes translated as
“inoperative”)1.
Cittas can be classified by way of j¯ati (j¯ati literally means “birth” or “nature”). There
are four j¯atis:
kusala
1 In chapter 3 and the following ones I will explain more about akusala, kusala, vip¯aka and kiriya.
Chapter 1: The Four Paramattha Dhammas 7
akusala
vip¯aka
kiriya
Both kusala vip¯aka (the result of a wholesome deed) and akusala vip¯aka (the result of
an unwholesome deed) are one j¯ati, the j¯ati of vip¯aka.
It is important to know which j¯ati a citta is. We cannot develop wholesomeness in
our life if we take akusala for kusala or if we take akusala for vip¯aka. For instance, when
someone speaks unpleasant words to us, the moment of experiencing the sound (hearing-
consciousness) is akusala vip¯aka, the result of an unwholesome deed we performed ourselves.
But the aversion which may arise very shortly afterwards is not vip¯aka, but it arises with
akusala citta. We can learn to distinguish these moments from each other by realizing their
different characteristics.
Another way of classifying citta is by plane of consciousness, in P¯ali: bhu¯mi. There
are different planes of consciousness. The sensuous plane of consciousness (k¯am¯avacara
cittas) is the plane of sense-impressions, which are: seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting and
the experiencing of tangible object through the bodysense. On account of pleasant and
unpleasant objects experienced through the senses, kusala cittas (wholesome cittas) and
akusala cittas (unwholesome cittas) arise. There are other planes of citta which do not ex-
perience sense-impressions. Those who cultivate samatha (tranquil meditation) and attain
absorption (jh¯ana), have jh¯anacittas. The jh¯anacitta is another plane of citta; it does not
experience sense-impressions. The lokuttara citta (“supramundane consciousness”) is the
highest plane of consciousness because it is the citta which directly experiences nibb¯ana.
There are still other ways of classifying citta and if we consider the different intensities
of citta there are many more distinctions to be made. For instance, akusala cittas, which
are rooted in attachment (lobha), aversion (dosa) and ignorance (moha), can be of many
different intensities. Sometimes they may motivate deeds, sometimes they may not, de-
pending on the degree of akusala. Kusala cittas too are of many different intensities. It is
useful to know different ways of classification because in this way we learn about different
aspects of citta. There are altogether eighty-nine (or, in another classification, hundred-
and-twenty-one) types of citta2. If we develop our knowledge of cittas and if we are aware
of them when they appear, we will be less inclined to take them for ”self”.
Cetasika is the second paramattha dhamma which is n¯ama. As we have seen, citta
experiences an object: seeing has what is visible as its object, hearing has sound as its
object, the citta which thinks experiences the object it is thinking of. However, there is not
only citta, there are also mental factors, cetasikas, which accompany citta. One can think
of something with aversion, with pleasant feeling or with wisdom. Aversion, feeling and
wisdom are mental phenomena which are not citta; they are cetasikas which accompany
different cittas. There is only one citta at a time, but there are several cetasikas arising
together with the citta and falling away together with the citta; citta never arises alone.
For example, feeling, in P¯ali: vedan¯a, is a cetasika which arises with every citta. Citta
only knows or experiences its object; it does not feel. Feeling, vedan¯a, however, has the
2 Cittas are classified as 121 when one takes into account the lokuttara cittas of those who have cultivated
both samatha and vipassan¯a and attain enlightenment with lokuttara jh¯anacittas, lokuttara cittas ac-
companied by jh¯ana-factors of different stages of jh¯ana, absorption. This will be explained in chapter
23.
8 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
function of feeling. Feeling is sometimes pleasant, sometimes unpleasant. When we do not
have a pleasant or an unpleasant feeling, there is still feeling: at that moment the feeling
is neutral or indifferent. There is always feeling; there isn’t any moment of citta without
feeling. When, for example, seeing-consciousness arises, feeling arises together with the
citta. The citta which sees perceives only visible object; there is not yet like or dislike. The
feeling which accompanies this type of citta is indifferent feeling. After seeing-consciousness
has fallen away, other cittas arise and there may be cittas which dislike the object. The
feeling which accompanies this type of citta is unpleasant feeling. The function of citta is
to cognize an object; citta is the “chief in knowing”. Cetasikas share the same object with
the citta, but they each have their own specific quality and function. Some cetasikas arise
with every citta whereas others do not3.
As we have seen, feeling, vedan¯a is a cetasika which arises with every citta. Contact, in
P¯ali: phassa, is another cetasika which arises with every citta; it “contacts” the object so
that citta can experience it. Perception or remembrance, in P¯ali: san~n~a¯, is also a cetasika
which arises with every citta. In the Visuddhimagga (XIV, 130) we read that san~n~a¯ has
the function of perceiving:
. . . Its function is to make a sign as a condition for perceiving again that “this
is the same”, as carpenters, etc., do in the case of timber. . .
Citta only experiences or cognizes an object; it does not “mark” the object. San~n~a¯
marks the object so that it can be recognized later. Whenever we remember something it
is san~n~a¯, not self, which remembers. It is san~n~a¯ which, for example, remembers that this
colour is red, that this is a house, or that this is the sound of a bird.
There are also types of cetasika which do not arise with every citta. Akusala (unwhole-
some) cetasikas arise only with akusala cittas. Sobhana (beautiful) cetasikas4 arise with
sobhana cittas. Lobha (attachment), dosa (aversion) and moha (ignorance) are akusala
cetasikas which arise only with akusala cittas. For example, when we see something beau-
tiful, cittas with attachment to what we have seen may arise. The cetasika which is lobha
arises with the citta at that moment. Lobha has the function of attachment or clinging.
There are several other akusala cetasikas which arise with akusala cittas, such as conceit
(m¯ana), wrong view (dit. t. hi) and envy (iss¯a). Sobhana cetasikas accompanying wholesome
cittas are for example alobha (generosity), adosa (loving kindness), amoha (or pan~n~a¯, wis-
dom). When we are generous alobha and adosa arise with the kusala citta. Pan~n~¯a, wisdom,
may arise too with the kusala citta, and moreover, there are other kinds of sobhana cetasikas
arising with the kusala citta as well. Defilements and wholesome qualities are cetasikas, they
are non-self. Altogether there are fifty-two different cetasikas.
Although citta and cetasika are both n¯ama, they each have different characteristics. One
may wonder how cetasikas can be experienced. When we notice a change in citta, a char-
acteristic of cetasika can be experienced. For instance, when akusala cittas with stinginess
arise after kusala cittas with generosity have fallen away, we can notice a change. Stinginess
and generosity are cetasikas which can be experienced; they have different characteristics.
We may notice as well the change from attachment to aversion, from pleasant feeling to
unpleasant feeling. Feeling is a cetasika we can experience, because feeling is sometimes pre-
3 There are seven types of cetasika which have to arise with every citta.
4 See chapter 19 for the meaning of sobhana. Sobhana cittas include not only kusala cittas, but also
vipakacittas and kiriyacittas which are accompanied by sobhana cetasikas.
Chapter 1: The Four Paramattha Dhammas 9
dominant and there are different kinds of feeling. We can experience that unpleasant feeling
is different from pleasant feeling and from indifferent feeling. These different cetasikas arise
with different cittas and they fall away immediately, together with the citta they accom-
pany. If we know more about the variety of citta and cetasika, it will help us to see the
truth.
Since citta and cetasika arise together it is difficult to experience the difference in their
characteristics. The Buddha was able to directly experience the different characteristics
of all cittas and cetasikas because his wisdom was of the highest degree. We read in the
Questions of King Milinda (Book III, “The Removal of Difficulties”, chapter 7, 875) that
the arahat N¯agasena said to King Milinda:
“A hard thing there is, O King, which the Blessed One has done.” “And what is
that?” “The fixing of all those mental conditions which depend on one organ of
sense, telling us that such is contact, such is feeling, such is san~n~a¯ (perception),
such is volition and such is citta.” “Give me an illustration.” “Suppose, O King,
a man were to wade down into the sea, and taking some water in the palm of his
hand, were to taste it with his tongue. Would he distinguish whether it were
water from the Ganges, or from the Jamun¯a, or from the Aciravat¯ı, or from
the Sarabhu¯, or from the Mah¯ı?” “Impossible, Sir.” “More difficult than that,
great King, is it to have distinguished between the mental conditions which
follow on the exercise of any one of the organs of sense!”
Citta and cetasika are paramattha dhammas (absolute realities) which each have their
own unchangeable characteristic. These characteristics can be experienced, regardless how
one names them. Paramattha dhammas are not words or concepts, they are realities.
Pleasant feeling and unpleasant feeling are real; their characteristics can be experienced
without having to call them “pleasant feeling” or “unpleasant feeling”. Aversion is real; it
can be experienced when it presents itself.
There are not only mental phenomena, there are also physical phenomena. Physical
phenomena or ru¯pa are the third paramattha dhamma. There are several kinds of ru¯pas
which each have their own characteristic6. There are four principle ru¯pas which are called
the Great Elements (in P¯ali: mah¯a-bhu¯ta-ru¯pa). They are:
Element of Earth or solidity (to be experienced as hardness or softness)
Element of Water or cohesion
Element of Fire or temperature (to be experienced as heat or cold)
Element of Wind or motion (to be experienced as oscillation or pressure)
These “Great Elements” are the principle ru¯pas which arise together with all the other
kinds of ru¯pa, which are the derived ru¯pas (in P¯ali: up¯ad¯a-ru¯pa). Ru¯pas never arise alone;
they arise in “groups” or “units”. There have to be at least eight kinds of ru¯pa arising
together. For example, whenever the ru¯pa which is temperature arises, solidity, cohesion,
motion and other ru¯pas have to arise as well. “Derived ru¯pas” are, for example, the physical
sense-organs of eyesense, earsense, smellingsense, tastingsense and bodysense, and the sense-
objects of visible object, sound, odour and flavour.
5 I am using the translation by T.W. Rhys Davids, Part I, Dover Publications, New York.
6 There are twenty-eight classes of ru¯pa in all.
10 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
Different characteristics of ru¯pa can be experienced through eyes, ears, nose, tongue,
bodysense and mind. These characteristics are real since they can be experienced. We use
conventional terms such as “body” and “table”; both have the characteristic of hardness
which can be experienced through touch. In this way we can prove that the characteristic
of hardness is the same, no matter whether it is in the body or in the table. Hardness is a
paramattha dhamma; “body” and “table” are not paramattha dhammas but only concepts.
We take it for granted that the body stays and we take it for “self”, but what we call “body”
are only different ru¯pas arising and falling away. The conventional term “body” may delude
us about reality. We will know the truth if we learn to experience different characteristics
of ru¯pa when they appear.
Citta, cetasika and ru¯pa only arise when there are the right conditions, they are con-
ditioned dhammas (in P¯ali: san˙ kh¯ara dhammas7). Seeing cannot arise when there is no
eyesense and when there is no visible object; these are necessary conditions for its arising.
Sound can only arise when there are the right conditions for its arising. When it has arisen
it falls away again. Everything which arises because of conditions has to fall away again
when the conditions have ceased. One may think that sound stays, but what we take for a
long, lasting moment of sound are actually many different ru¯pas succeeding one another.
The fourth paramattha dhamma is nibb¯ana. Nibb¯ana is a paramattha dhamma because
it is real. Nibb¯ana can be experienced through the mind-door if one follows the right Path
leading towards it: the development of the wisdom which sees things as they are. Nibb¯ana
is n¯ama. However, it is not citta or cetasika, paramattha dhammas which arise because of
conditions and fall way. Nibb¯ana is the n¯ama which is an unconditioned reality8; therefore
it does not arise and it does not fall away. Citta and cetasika are n¯amas which experience
an object; nibb¯ana is the n¯ama which does not experience an object, but nibb¯ana itself
can be the object of citta and cetasika which experience it. Nibb¯ana is not a person, it is
non-self, anatt¯a.
Summarising the four paramattha dhammas, they are:
citta
cetasika
ru¯pa
nibb¯ana
When we study Dhamma it is essential to know which paramattha dhamma such or such
reality is. If we do not know this we may be misled by conventional terms. We should, for
example, know that what we call “body” are actually different ru¯pa-paramattha dhammas,
not citta or cetasika. We should know that nibb¯ana is not citta or cetasika, but the fourth
paramattha dhamma. Nibb¯ana is the end of all conditioned realities which arise and fall
away: for the arahat, the perfected one, who passes away, there is no more rebirth, no more
n¯amas and ru¯pas which arise and fall away.
All conditioned dhammas, citta, cetasika and ru¯pa, are impermanent, “anicca”.
7 San˙kh¯ara dhammas are conditioned dhammas that arise together depending on each other. The P¯ali
term “san˙khata” is also used. San˙khata means what has been put together, composed by a combination
of factors. San˙khata dhamma is what has arisen because of conditions.
8 In P¯ali: asan˙khata: not conditioned, the opposite of san˙khata. In the Dhammasangan. i nibb¯ana is
referred to as asan˙khat¯a dhatu, the unconditioned element. Sometimes the term visan˙kh¯ara dhamma,
the dhamma which is not san˙kh¯ara (vi is negation), is used.
Chapter 1: The Four Paramattha Dhammas 11
All conditioned dhammas are “dukkha”; they are “suffering” or unsatisfactory, since
they are impermanent.
All dhammas are non-self, “anatt¯a” (in P¯ali: sabbe dhamm¯a anatt¯a, Dhammapada,
vs. 279).
Thus, the conditioned dhammas, not nibb¯ana, are impermanent and dukkha. But all
dhammas, that is, the four paramattha dhammas, nibb¯ana included, have the characteristic
of anatt¯a, non-self.
What is the difference between n¯ama and ru¯pa?
What is the difference between citta and cetasika?
Do cetasikas experience an object?
Is there more than one cetasika arising together with the citta?
Can nibb¯ana experience an object?
Is nibb¯ana a “self”?
Chapter 2: The Five Khandhas 13
The Buddha discovered the truth of all phenomena. He knew the characteristic of each
phenomenon by his own experience. Out of compassion he taught other people to see
reality in many different ways, so that they would have a deeper understanding of the
phenomena in and around themselves. When realities are classified by way of paramattha
dhammas (absolute realities), they are classified as:
citta
cetasika
ru¯pa
nibb¯ana
Citta, cetasika and ru¯pa are conditioned realities (san˙ kh¯ara dhammas). They arise
because of conditions and fall away again; they are impermanent. One paramattha dhamma,
nibb¯ana, is an unconditioned reality (asan˙ khata dhamma); it does not arise and fall away.
All four paramattha dhammas are anatt¯a, non-self.
Citta, cetasika and ru¯pa, the conditioned realities, can be classified by way of the five
khandhas. Khandha means “group” or “aggregate”. What is classified as khandha arises
because of conditions and falls away again. The five khandhas are not different from the
three paramattha dhammas which are citta, cetasika and ru¯pa. Realities can be classified
in many different ways and thus different names are given to them. The five khandhas are:
Ru¯pakkhandha, which are all physical phenomena
Vedan¯akkhandha, which is feeling (vedan¯a)
San~n~a¯kkhandha, which is remembrance or “perception” (san~n~a¯)
San˙kh¯arakkhandha, comprising fifty cetasikas (mental factors arising with the citta)
Vin~n~a¯n. akkhandha, comprising all cittas (89 or 121)1
As regards the fifty-two kinds of cetasika which may arise with citta, they are classified
as three khandhas: the cetasika which is feeling (vedan¯a) is classified as one khandha, the
vedan¯akkhandha; the cetasika which is remembrance or “perception” (san~n~a¯) is classified
as one khandha, the san~n~a¯kkhandha; as regards the other fifty cetasikas, they are classified
altogether as one khandha, the san˙ kh¯arakkhandha. For example, in san˙ kh¯arakkhandha
are included the following cetasikas: volition or intention (cetan¯a), attachment (lobha),
aversion (dosa), ignorance (moha), loving kindness (mett¯a), generosity (alobha) and wisdom
(pan~n~a¯). All defilements and all good qualities are included in san˙ kh¯arakkhandha, they
are impermanent not “self”. San˙ kh¯arakkhandha is sometimes translated as “activities” or
“mental formations”2
As regards citta, all cittas are one khandha: vin~n~a¯n. akkhandha. The P¯ali terms vin~n~a¯n. a,
mano and citta are three terms for the same reality: that which has the characteris-
tic of knowing or experiencing something. When citta is classified as khandha the word
vin~n~a¯n. a is used. Thus, one khandha is ru¯pakkhandha and the other four khandhas are
n¯amakkhandhas. Three n¯amakkhandhas are cetasika and one n¯amakkhandha is citta.
1 See chapter 1.
2 San˙kh¯ara has different meanings in different contexts. San˙kh¯ara dhamma comprises all conditioned
realities. San˙kh¯arakkhandha comprises fifty cetasikas.
14 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
Anything which is khandha does not last; as soon as it has arisen it falls away again.
Although khandhas arise and fall away, they are real; we can experience them when they
present themselves. Nibb¯ana, the unconditioned dhamma which does not arise and fall
away, is not a khandha.
The Visuddhimagga (XX, 96) explains about the arising and falling away of n¯ama and
ru¯pa:
There is no heap or store of unarisen n¯ama-ru¯pa (existing) prior to its arising.
When it arises it does not come from any heap or store; and when it ceases, it
does not go in any direction. There is nowhere any depository in the way of
heap or store or hoard of what has ceased. But just as there is no store, prior
to its arising, of the sound that arises when a lute is played, nor does it come
from any store when it arises, nor does it go in any direction when it ceases,
nor does it persist as a store when it has ceased (“Kindred Sayings” IV, 197),
but on the contrary, not having been, it is brought into being owing to the lute,
the lute’s neck, and the man’s appropriate effort, and having been, it vanishes
— so too all material and immaterial states (ru¯pa and n¯ama), not having been,
are brought into being, having been, they vanish.
The khandhas are realities which can be experienced. We experience ru¯pakkhandha
when, for example, we feel hardness. This phenomenon does not stay; it arises and falls
away. Ru¯pakkhandha is impermanent. Not only ru¯pas of the body, but the other physical
phenomena are included in ru¯pakkhandha as well. For example, sound is ru¯pakkhandha; it
arises and falls away, it is impermanent.
Vedan¯akkhandha (feeling) is real; we can experience feelings. Vedan¯akkhandha com-
prises all kinds of feelings. Feeling can be classified in different ways. Sometimes feelings
are classified as threefold:
pleasant feeling
unpleasant feeling
indifferent feeling
Sometimes they are classified as fivefold. In addition to pleasant feeling, unpleasant
feeling and indifferent feeling there are:
pleasant bodily feeling
painful bodily feeling
Bodily feeling is feeling which has bodysense, the ru¯pa which has the capacity to receive
bodily impressions, as condition; the feeling itself is n¯ama, but it has ru¯pa (bodysense) as
condition. When an object contacts the bodysense, the feeling is either painful or pleasant;
there is no indifferent bodily feeling. When the bodily feeling is painful it is akusala vip¯aka
(the result of an unwholesome deed), and when the bodily feeling is pleasant it is kusala
vip¯aka (the result of a wholesome deed).
Since there are many different moments of feeling arising and falling away it is difficult to
distinguish them from each other. For instance, we are inclined to confuse pleasant bodily
feeling which is vip¯aka and the pleasant feeling which may arise shortly afterwards together
with attachment to that pleasant bodily feeling. Or we may confuse painful bodily feeling
and unpleasant feeling which may arise afterwards together with aversion. When there is
bodily pain, the painful feeling is vip¯aka, it accompanies the vip¯akacitta which experiences
Chapter 2: The Five Khandhas 15
the unpleasant object impinging on the bodysense3. Unpleasant (mental) feeling may arise
afterwards; it is not vip¯aka, but it accompanies the akusala citta with aversion, and thus
it is akusala. The akusala citta with aversion arises because of our accumulated aversion
(dosa). Though bodily feeling and mental feeling are both n¯ama, they are entirely different
kinds of feelings, arising because of different conditions. When there are no more conditions
for dosa there can still be painful bodily feeling, but there is no longer unpleasant (mental)
feeling. The arahat, the perfected one who has eradicated all defilements, may still have
akusala vip¯aka so long as his life has not terminated yet, but he has no aversion.
We read in the Kindred Sayings (I, Sag¯ath¯a-vagga, the M¯ara-suttas, chapter II, para-
graph 3, The Splinter):
Thus have I heard: The Exalted One was once staying at R¯ajagaha, in the
Maddakucchi, at the Deer-preserve. Now at that time his foot was injured by
a splinter. Sorely indeed did the Exalted One feel it, grievous the pains he
suffered in the body, keen and sharp, acute, distressing and unwelcome. He
truly bore them, mindful and deliberate, nor was he cast down. . .
Feelings are sixfold when they are classified by way of the contacts occurring through
the six doors: there is feeling which arises because of what is experienced through the eyes,
the ears, the nose, the tongue, the bodysense and the mind. All these feelings are different;
they arise because of different conditions. Feeling arises and falls away together with the
citta it accompanies and thus at each moment feeling is different.
We read in the Kindred Sayings (IV, Sal.¯ayatana-vagga, Part II, Kindred Sayings about
Feeling, paragraph 8, Sickness II) that the Buddha said to the monks:
. . . Monks, a monk should meet his end collected and composed. This is our
instruction to you.
. . . Now, monks, as that monk dwells collected, composed, earnest, ardent,
strenuous, there arises in him feeling that is pleasant, and he thus understands:
“There is arisen in me this pleasant feeling. Now that is owing to something,
not without cause. It is owing to this contact. Now this contact is imperma-
nent, compounded, arisen owing to something. Owing to this impermanent
contact which has so arisen, this pleasant feeling has arisen: How can that be
permanent?” Thus he dwells contemplating the impermanence in contact and
pleasant feeling, contemplating their transience, their waning, their ceasing, the
giving of them up. Thus as he dwells contemplating their impermanence the
lurking tendency to lust for contact and pleasant feeling is abandoned in him.
So also as regards contact and painful feeling. . . contact and neutral feeling. . .
There are still many more ways of classifying feelings. If we know about different ways
of classifying feelings it will help us to realize that feeling is only a mental phenomenon
which arises because of conditions. We are inclined to cling to feeling which has fallen away,
instead of being aware of the reality of the present moment as it appears through eyes,
ears, nose, tongue, bodysense or mind. In the passage of the Visuddhimagga which was
quoted above (XX, 96) n¯ama and ru¯pa are compared to the sound of a lute which does not
3 The experiences through the senses which are seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting and body-consciousness
are vip¯akacittas, the results of kamma. When these cittas experience a pleasant object they are kusala
vip¯aka, the result of kusala kamma, and when they experience an unpleasant object they are akusala
vip¯aka, the result of akusala kamma.
16 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
come from any “store” when it arises, nor goes in any direction when it ceases, nor persists
as a “store” when it has ceased. However, we cling so much to feelings that we do not
realize that the feeling which has fallen away does not exist any more, that it has ceased
completely. Vedan¯akkhandha (feeling) is impermanent.
San~n~a¯kkhandha (perception) is real; it can be experienced whenever we remember some-
thing. San~n~a¯ accompanies every moment of citta. Each citta which arises experiences an
object and san~n~a¯ which arises with the citta remembers and “marks” that object so that
it can be recognized. Even when there is a moment that one does not recognize something
citta still experiences an object and san~n~a¯ which arises with the citta “marks” that object.
San~n~a¯ arises and falls away with the citta; san~n~a¯ is impermanent. So long as we do not see
san~n~a¯ as it really is: only a mental phenomenon which falls away as soon as it has arisen,
we will take san~n~a¯ for self.
San˙ kh¯arakkhandha (all the cetasikas other than vedan¯a and san~n~¯a) is real; it can be ex-
perienced. When beautiful mental factors (sobhana cetasikas) arise, such as generosity and
compassion, or when unwholesome mental factors arise, such as anger and stinginess, we can
experience san˙ kh¯arakkhandha. All these phenomena arise and fall away; san˙ kh¯arakkhandha
is impermanent.
Vin~n~a¯n. akkhandha (citta) is real; we can experience it when there is seeing, hearing,
smelling, tasting, experiencing tangible object through the bodysense or thinking.
Vin~n~a¯n. akkhandha arises and falls away; it is impermanent. All san˙ kh¯ara dhammas
(conditioned phenomena), that is, the five khandhas, are impermanent.
Sometimes the khandhas are called the “khandhas of clinging” (in P¯ali:
up¯ad¯anakkhandha). Those who are not arahats still cling to the khandhas. We take the
body for self; thus we cling to ru¯pakkhandha. We take mentality for self; thus we cling to
vedan¯akkhandha, to san~n~a¯kkhandha, to san˙ kh¯arakkhandha and to vin~n~a¯n. akkhandha. If
we cling to the khandhas and do not see them as they are, we will have sorrow. So long as
the khandhas are still objects of clinging for us, we are like people afflicted by sickness.
We read in the Kindred Sayings (III, Khandha-vagga, the First Fifty, paragraph 1,
Nakulapitar) that the housefather Nakulapitar, who was an old, sick man, came to see the
Buddha at Crocodile Haunt in the Deerpark. The Buddha said to him that he should train
himself thus:
“Though my body is sick, my mind shall not be sick.”
Later on S¯ariputta gave him a further explanation of the Buddha’s words:
Herein, housefather, the untaught many-folk. . . who are unskilled in the worthy
doctrine, untrained in the worthy doctrine − these regard body as the self, they
regard the self as having body, body as being in the self, the self as being in
the body. “I am the body”, they say, “body is mine”, and are possessed by
this idea; and so, possessed by this idea, when body alters and changes, owing
to the unstable and changeable nature of the body, then sorrow and grief, woe,
lamentation and despair arise in them. They regard feeling (vedan¯a) as the
self. . . They regard perception (san~n~a¯) as the self. . . They regard the activities
(san˙ kh¯arakkhandha) as the self. . . They regard consciousness (vin~n~a¯n. a) as the
self. . . That, housefather, is how body is sick and mind is sick too.
And how is body sick, but mind is not sick?
Chapter 2: The Five Khandhas 17
Herein, housefather, the well-taught ariyan disciple regards not body as the
self, regards not the self as having body, nor body as being in the self, nor
self as being in the body. He says not “I am body”, he says not “body is
mine”, nor is possessed by this idea. As he is not so possessed, when body
alters and changes owing to the unstable and changeable nature of body, then
sorrow and grief, woe, lamentation and despair do not arise in him. He regards
not feeling (vedan¯a) as the self. . . He regards not perception (san~n~a¯) as the
self. . . He regards not the activities (san˙ kh¯arakkhandha) as the self He
regards not consciousness (vin~n~a¯n. a) as the self. . . Thus, housefather, body is
sick, but mind is not sick.
So long as we are still clinging to the khandhas we are like sick people, but we can be
cured of our sickness if we see the khandhas as they are. The khandhas are impermanent
and thus they are dukkha (unsatisfactory). We read in the Kindred Sayings (III, Khandha-
vagga, Last Fifty, paragraph 104, Suffering) that the Buddha taught to the monks the four
noble Truths: the Truth of dukkha, the Truth of the arising of dukkha, the Truth of the
ceasing of dukkha, the Truth of the way leading to the ceasing of dukkha. He said:
Monks, I will teach you dukkha4, the arising of dukkha, the ceasing of dukkha,
the way leading to the ceasing of dukkha. Do you listen to it.
And what, monks, is dukkha? It is to be called the five khandhas of grasping.
What five? The ru¯pakkhandha of grasping, the vedan¯akkhandha of grasp-
ing, the san~n~a¯kkhandha of grasping, the san˙ kh¯arakkhandha of grasping, the
vin~n~a¯n. akkhandha of grasping. This, monks, is called dukkha.
And what, monks, is the arising of dukkha? It is that craving that
leads downward to rebirth. . . the craving for feeling, for rebirth, for no
rebirth This, monks, is called the arising of dukkha.
And what, monks, is the ceasing of dukkha? It is the utter passionless ceas-
ing, the giving up, the abandonment of, the release from, the freedom from
attachment to that craving. . .
This, monks, is called the ceasing of dukkha.
And what, monks, is the way going to the ceasing of dukkha?
It is the ariyan eightfold Path This, monks, is the way going to the ceasing
of dukkha.
So long as we still cling to the khandhas they will arise at rebirth, and this means sorrow.
If we develop the eightfold Path, the development of right understanding of realities, we
will learn to see what the khandhas really are. Then we are on the way leading to the
ceasing of dukkha, which means: no more birth, old age, sickness and death. Those who
have attained the last stage of enlightenment, the stage of the arahat, will be, after their
life-span is over, free from the khandhas.
Which paramattha dhammas are n¯ama?
4 In the English translation “dukkha” is sometimes translated as “suffering”, sometimes as “ill”. Here the
English text uses the word “suffering”.
18 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
Which paramattha dhammas are san˙ kh¯ara dhamma (conditioned realities)?
Which paramattha dhamma is the unconditioned reality?
Which san˙ kh¯ara dhammas are n¯ama?
Are all cetasikas san˙ kh¯arakkhandha?
Is vedan¯a cetasika (feeling) a khandha?
Is san~n~a¯ cetasika (remembrance or perception) a khandha?
Is painful bodily feeling vip¯aka?
Is unhappy mental feeling vip¯aka?
Which khandhas are n¯ama?
Is seeing-consciousness a khandha?
Is the concept “human being” a khandha?
Is sound a khandha?
Which paramattha dhammas are khandha?
Chapter 3: Different Aspects of Citta 19
The Buddha spoke about everything which is real. What he taught can be proved by our
own experience. However, we do not really know the most common realities of daily life:
the mental phenomena and physical phenomena which appear through eyes, ears, nose,
tongue, bodysense and mind. It seems that we are mostly interested in the past or the
future. However, we will find out what life really is if we know more about the realities of
the present moment, and if we learn to be aware of them when they appear.
The Buddha explained that citta (consciousness) is a reality. We may doubt whether
cittas are real. How can we prove that there are cittas? Could it be that there are only
physical phenomena and not mental phenomena? There are many things in our life we take
for granted such as our homes, meals, clothes, or the tools we use every day. These things
do not appear by themselves. They are brought about by a thinking mind, by citta.Citta
is a mental phenomenon; it knows or experiences something. Citta is not like a physical
phenomenon which does not experience anything. We listen to music which was written
by a composer. It was citta which had the idea for the music; it was citta which made the
composer’s hand move in order to write down the notes. His hand could not have moved
without citta.
Citta can achieve many different effects. We read in the Atthas¯alin¯ı (the commentary
to the Dhammasangan. i, the first book of the Abhidhamma) Book I, Part II, Analysis of
Terms, 64:
How is consciousness (i.e. mind) capable of producing a variety or diversity of
effects in action? There is no art in the world more variegated than the art of
painting. In painting, the painter’s masterpiece is more artistic than the rest of
his pictures. An artistic design occurs to the painters of masterpieces that such
and such pictures should be drawn in such and such a way. Through this artistic
design there arise operations of the mind (or artistic operations) accomplishing
such things as sketching the outline, putting on the paint, touching up, and
embellishing. . . Thus all classes of arts in the world, specific or generic, are
achieved by the mind. And owing to its capacity thus to produce a variety or
diversity of effects in action, the mind, which achieves all these arts, is in itself
artistic like the arts themselves. Nay, it is even more artistic than the art itself,
because the latter cannot execute every design perfectly. For that reason the
Blessed One has said, “Monks, have you seen a masterpiece of painting?” “Yes,
Lord.” “Monks, that masterpiece of art is designed by the mind. Indeed, monks,
the mind is even more artistic than that masterpiece.” (Kindred Sayings, III,
151)
We then read about the many different things which are accomplished by citta: good
deeds, such as deeds of generosity, and bad deeds, such as deeds of cruelty and deceit, are
accomplished by citta and these deeds produce different results. There is not just one type
of citta, but there are many different types of cittas.
Different people react differently to what they experience, thus, different types of citta
arise. What one person likes, another dislikes. We can also notice how different people are
when they make or produce something. Even when two people plan to make the same thing
the result is quite different. For example, when two people make a painting of the same
tree, the paintings are not at all the same. People have different talents and capacities;
20 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
some people have no difficulty with their studies, whereas others are incapable of study.
Cittas are beyond control; they each have their own conditions for their arising.
Why are people so different from one another? The reason is that they accumulate
different inclinations. When a child has been taught from his youth to be generous he
accumulates generosity. People who are angry very often accumulate a great deal of anger.
We all have accumulated different inclinations, tastes and skills.
Each citta which arises falls away completely and is succeeded by the next citta. How
then can there be accumulation of good and bad inclinations? The reason is that each citta
which falls away is succeeded by the next citta. Our life is an uninterrupted series of cittas
and each citta conditions the next citta and this again the next, and thus the past can
condition the present. It is a fact that our good cittas and bad cittas in the past condition
our inclinations today. Thus, good and bad inclinations are accumulated.
We all have accumulated many impure inclinations and defilements (in P¯ali: kilesa). De-
filements are for example greed or attachment (lobha), anger (dosa) and ignorance (moha).
There are different degrees of defilements: there are subtle defilements or latent tendencies,
medium defilements and gross defilements. Subtle defilements do not appear with the citta,
but they are latent tendencies which are accumulated and lie dormant in the citta. At the
time we are asleep and not dreaming, there are no akusala cittas but there are unwholesome
latent tendencies. When we wake up akusala cittas arise again. How could they appear if
there were not in each citta accumulated unwholesome latent tendencies? Even when the
citta is not akusala there are unwholesome latent tendencies so long as they have not been
eradicated by wisdom. Medium defilement is different from subtle defilement since it arises
together with the citta. Medium defilement arises with akusala cittas rooted in attachment,
lobha, aversion, dosa, and ignorance, moha. Medium defilement is, for example, attachment
to what one sees, hears or experiences through the bodysense, or aversion towards the ob-
jects one experiences. Medium defilement does not motivate ill deeds. Gross defilement
motivates unwholesome actions, akusala kamma, through body, speech and mind, such as
killing, slandering or the intention to take away other people’s possessions. Kamma is ac-
tually volition or intention; it can motivate good deeds or bad deeds. Kamma is a mental
phenomenon and thus it can be accumulated. People accumulate different defilements and
different kammas.
Different accumulations of kamma are the condition for different results in life. This
is the law of kamma and vip¯aka, of cause and result. We see that people are born into
different circumstances. Some people live in agreeable surroundings and they have many
pleasant experiences in their lives. Other people may often have disagreeable experiences;
they are poor or they suffer from ill health. When we hear about children who suffer from
malnutrition, we wonder why they have to suffer whereas other children receive everything
they need. The Buddha taught that everyone receives the results of his own deeds. A
deed or kamma of the past can bring about its result later on, because akusala kamma
and kusala kamma are accumulated. When there are the right conditions the result can be
brought about in the form of vip¯aka. When the word “result” is used, people may think
of the consequences of their deeds for other people, but “result” in the sense of vip¯aka
has a different meaning. Vip¯akacitta is a citta which experiences an unpleasant object or
a pleasant object and this citta is the result of a deed we did ourselves. We are used to
thinking of a self who experiences unpleasant and pleasant things. However, there is no self;
there are only cittas which experience different objects. Some cittas are cause; they can
Chapter 3: Different Aspects of Citta 21
motivate good deeds or bad deeds which are capable of bringing about their appropriate
results. Some cittas are result or vip¯aka. When we see something unpleasant, it is not self
who sees; it is a citta, seeing-consciousness, which is the result of an unwholesome deed
(akusala kamma) we performed either in this life or in a past life. This kind of citta is
akusala vip¯aka. When we see something pleasant, it is a citta which is kusala vip¯aka, the
result of a wholesome deed we performed. Every time we experience an unpleasant object
through one of the five senses, there is akusala vip¯aka. Every time we experience a pleasant
object through one of the five senses there is kusala vip¯aka.
If one is being hit by someone else, the pain one feels is not the vip¯aka (result) of the
deed performed by the other person. The person who is being hit receives the result of a
bad deed he performed himself; for him there is akusala vip¯aka through the bodysense. The
other person’s action is the proximate cause of his pain. As regards the other person who
performs the bad deed, it is his akusala citta which motivates that deed. Sooner or later he
will receive the result of his own bad deed. When we have more understanding of kamma
and vipaka we will see many events of our life more clearly.
The Atthas¯alin¯ı (Book I, Analysis of Terms, Part II, 65) explains that kamma of different
people causes different results at birth and throughout life. Even bodily features are the
result of kamma. We read:
. . . In dependence on the difference in kamma appears the difference in the
destiny of beings without legs, with two legs, four legs, many legs, vegeta-
tive, spiritual, with perception, without perception, with neither perception
nor without perception. Depending on the difference in kamma appears the
difference in the births of beings, high and low, base and exalted, happy and
miserable. Depending on the difference in kamma appears the difference in the
individual features of beings as beautiful or ugly, high-born or low-born, well-
built or deformed. Depending on the difference in kamma appears the difference
in the worldly conditions of beings as gain and loss, fame and disgrace, blame
and praise, happiness and misery.
Further on we read: (“Sutta Nip¯ata”, 654)
By kamma the world moves, by kamma men
Live, and by kamma are all beings bound
As by its pin the rolling chariot wheel.
The Buddha taught that everything arises because of conditions; it is not by chance
that people are so different in bodily features and character, and that they live in such
different circumstances. Even the difference in bodily features of animals is due to different
kamma. Animals have citta too; they may behave badly or they may behave well. Thus
they accumulate different kammas which produce different results. If we understand that
each kamma brings about its own result, we will know that there is no reason to be proud
if we are born into a rich family or if we receive praise, honour or other pleasant things.
When we have to suffer we will understand that suffering is due to our own deeds. Thus we
will be less inclined to blame other people for our unhappiness or to be jealous when others
receive pleasant things. When we understand reality we know that it is not self who receives
something pleasant or who has to suffer; it is only vip¯aka, a citta which arises because of
conditions and which falls away immediately.
22 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
We see that people who are born into the same circumstances still behave differently.
For example, among people who are born into rich families, some are stingy, others are
not. The fact that one is born into a rich family is the result of kamma. Stinginess is
conditioned by one’s accumulated defilements. There are many different types of conditions
which play their part in the life of each person. Kamma causes one to be born into certain
circumstances and one’s accumulated tendencies condition one’s character.
One may have doubts about past lives and future lives, since one only experiences the
present life. However, in the present life we notice that different people experience different
results. These results must have their causes in the past. The past conditions the present
and the deeds we perform now will bring about their results in the future. In understanding
the present we will be able to know more about the past and the future.
Past, present and future lives are an uninterrupted series of cittas. Each citta which
arises falls away immediately to be succeeded by the next citta. Cittas do not last, but
there isn’t any moment without citta. If there were moments without citta the body would
be a dead body. Even when we are sound asleep there is citta. Just as each citta that falls
away is succeeded by the next citta, even so the last citta of this life is succeeded by the
first citta of the next life, the rebirth-consciousness. Therefore, accumulations can continue
on from one citta to the next citta, from life to life. Thus we see that life goes on and on.
We are moving in a cycle, the cycle of birth and death.
The next citta cannot arise until the previous citta has passed away. There can be only
one citta at a time, but cittas arise and fall away so rapidly that one has the impression
that there can be more than one citta at a time. We may think that we can see and hear at
the same time, but in reality each of these cittas arises at a different moment. We can verify
through our own experience that seeing is a type of citta which is different from hearing;
these cittas arise because of different conditions and experience different objects.
A citta is that which experiences something; it experiences an object. Each citta must
experience an object, there cannot be any citta without an object. Cittas experience differ-
ent objects through the six doors of eyes, ears, nose, tongue, bodysense and mind. Seeing
is a citta experiencing that which appears through the eyes. We can use the word “visible
object” for the object which is seen but it is not necessary to name it “visible object”.
When visible object contacts the eyesense there are conditions for seeing. Seeing is different
from thinking about what we see; the latter is a type of citta which experiences something
through the mind-door. Hearing is a citta which is different from seeing; it has different
conditions and it experiences a different object. When sound contacts the earsense, there
are conditions for a citta which experiences sound. There have to be the right conditions for
the arising of each citta. We cannot smell through the ears and taste with the eyes. A citta
which smells experiences odour through the nose. A citta which tastes experiences flavour
through the tongue. A citta which experiences tangible object experiences this through the
bodysense. Through the mind-door cittas are able to experience all kinds of objects. There
can be only one citta at a time and citta can experience only one object at a time.
We may understand in theory that a citta which sees has a characteristic which is dif-
ferent from a citta which hears, and that citta is different from a physical phenomenon
which does not experience anything. Knowing this may seem quite simple to us, but theo-
retical knowledge is different from knowing the truth by one’s own experience. Theoretical
knowledge is not very deep; it cannot eradicate the concept of self. Only in being aware
Chapter 3: Different Aspects of Citta 23
of phenomena as they appear through the six doors, will we know the truth by our own
experience. This kind of understanding can eradicate the concept of self.
The objects which we experience are the world in which we live. At the moment we
see, the world is visible object. The world of visible object does not last, it falls away
immediately. When we hear, the world is sound, but it falls away again. We are absorbed
in and infatuated with the objects we experience through eyes, ears, nose, tongue, bodysense
and mind-door, but not one of these objects lasts. What is impermanent should not be taken
for self.
In the Gradual Sayings (Book of the Fours, chapter V, paragraph 5, Rohitassa) we read
that Rohitassa, a deva, asked the Buddha about reaching the world’s end. He said to the
Buddha:
“Pray, lord, is it possible for us, by going, to know, to see, to reach world’s
end, where there is no more being born or growing old, no more dying, no more
falling (from one existence) and rising up (in another)?”
“Your reverence, where there is no more being born or growing old, no more
dying, no more falling from one existence and rising up in another, I declare
that end of the world is not by going to be known, seen or reached.”
“It is wonderful, lord! It is marvellous, lord, how well it is said by the Exalted
One: ‘Where there is no more being born. . . that end of the world is not by
going to be known, seen or reached!’
Formerly, lord, I was the hermit called Rohitassa, Bhoja’s son, one of psychic
power, a skywalker The extent of my stride was as the distance between the
eastern and the western ocean. To me, lord, possessed of such speed and of
such a stride, there came a longing thus: I will reach the world’s end by going.
But, lord, not to speak of (the time spent over) food and drink, eating, tasting
and calls of nature, not to speak of struggles to banish sleep and weariness,
though my life-span was a hundred years, though I travelled a hundred years, yet
I reached not world’s end but died ere that. Wonderful indeed, lord! Marvellous
it is, lord, how well it has been said by the Exalted One: ‘Your reverence, where
there is no more being born that end of the world is not by going to be known,
seen or reached.”’
“But your reverence, I declare not that there is any making an end of ill
(dukkha) without reaching the world’s end. Nay, your reverence, in this very
fathom-long body, along with its perceptions and thoughts, I proclaim the world
to be, likewise the origin of the world and the making of the world to end, like-
wise the practice going to the ending of the world.
Not to be reached by going is world’s end.
Yet there is no release for man from ill
Unless he reach the world’s end. Then let a man
Become world-knower, wise, world-ender,
Let him be one who lives the holy life1.
1 In P¯ali:
brahmacariya.
24 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
Knowing the world’s end by becoming calmed
He longs not for this world or another.’’
The Buddha taught people about the “world” and the way to reach the end of the world,
that is, the end of suffering, dukkha. The way to realize this is knowing the world, that is,
knowing “this very fathom-long body, along with its perceptions and thoughts”, knowing
oneself.
People are born into different circumstances: some are born rich, others are born poor.
What is the cause of this?
People behave differently: some are stingy, others are generous. By what is this condi-
tioned?
Each citta which arises falls away completely. How is it possible that defilements can
be accumulated?
Chapter 4: The Characteristic of Lobha 25
Cittas are of different types. They can be classified as kusala cittas (wholesome cittas),
akusala cittas (unwholesome cittas), vip¯akacittas (cittas which are result) and kiriyacittas
(cittas which are neither cause nor result). All these kinds of cittas arise in a day, yet we
know so little about them. Most of the time we do not know whether the citta is kusala,
akusala, vip¯aka or kiriya. If we learn to classify our mind we will have more understanding
of ourselves and of others. We will have more compassion and loving kindness towards
others, even when they behave in a disagreeable way. We do not like the akusala cittas of
others; we find it unpleasant when they are stingy or speak harsh words. However, do we
realize at which moments we ourselves have akusala cittas? When we dislike other people’s
harsh words, we ourselves have akusala cittas with aversion at that moment. Instead of
paying attention to the akusala cittas of others we should be aware of our own akusala
cittas. If one has not studied the Abhidhamma which explains realities in detail, one may
not know what is akusala. People may take what is unwholesome for wholesome and thus
accumulate unwholesomeness without knowing it. If we know more about different types of
citta we can see for ourselves which types arise more often, kusala cittas or akusala cittas,
and thus we will understand ourselves better.
We should know the difference between kusala and akusala. The Atthas¯alin¯ı (Book I,
Part I, chapter I, 38) speaks about the meaning of the word “kusala”. The word “kusala”
has many meanings; it can mean “of good health”, “faultless”, “skillful”, “productive of
happy results”.
When we perform d¯ana (generosity), s¯ıla (good moral conduct) and bh¯avan¯a (mental
development), the citta is kusala. All different kinds of wholesomeness such as the appreci-
ation of other people’s good deeds, helping others, politeness, paying respect, observing the
precepts, studying and teaching Dhamma, samatha (tranquil meditation) and vipassan¯a
(development of “insight”, right understanding of realities), are included in d¯ana, s¯ıla or
bh¯avan¯a. Kusala is “productive of happy results”; each good deed will bring a pleasant
result. The Atthas¯alin¯ı (Book I, Part I, chapter I, 39) states about akusala:
“A-kusala means “not kusala”. Just as the opposite to friendship is enmity, or
the opposite to greed, etc. is disinterestedness, etc., so “akusala” is opposed to
“kusala”. . .
Unwholesome deeds will bring unhappy results. Nobody wishes to experience an unhappy
result, but many people are ignorant about the cause which brings an unhappy result, about
akusala. They do not realize when the citta is unwholesome, and they do not always know
it when they perform unwholesome deeds.
When we study the Abhidhamma we learn that there are three groups of akusala cittas.
They are:
Lobha-mu¯la-cittas, or cittas rooted in attachment (lobha)
Dosa-mu¯la-cittas, or cittas rooted in aversion (dosa)
Moha-mu¯la-cittas, or cittas rooted in ignorance (moha)
Moha (ignorance) arises with every akusala citta. Akusala cittas rooted in lobha (at-
tachment) actually have two roots: moha and lobha1. They are named “lobha-mu¯la-cittas”,
1 Mu¯la or hetu are the P¯ali terms for root. There are three akusala hetus: lobha, dosa and moha. Akusala
cittas are classified by way of the accompanying roots.
26 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
because there is not only moha, which arises with every akusala citta, but lobha as well.
Lobha-mu¯la-cittas are thus named after the root which is lobha. Akusala cittas rooted in
dosa (aversion) have two roots as well: moha and dosa. They are named “dosa-mu¯la-cittas”
after the root which is dosa. Akusala cittas rooted in moha (ignorance), have only one root
which is moha. Each of these three classes of akusala cittas includes again different types
of akusala citta and thus we see that there is a great variety of cittas.
Now I shall deal first with lobha-mu¯la-citta. Lobha is the paramattha dhamma (absolute
reality) which is cetasika (mental factor arising with the citta); it is a reality and thus it
can be experienced.
Lobha is “clinging” or “attachment”. The Visuddhimagga (XIV, 162) states:
. . . lobha has the characteristic of grasping an object, like birdlime (lit. “monkey
lime”). Its function is sticking, like meat put in a hot pan. It is manifested as
not giving up, like the dye of lampblack. Its proximate cause is seeing enjoyment
in things that lead to bondage. Swelling with the current of craving, it should
be regarded as taking (beings) with it to states of loss, as a swift-flowing river
does to the great ocean.
Lobha is sometimes translated as “greed” or “craving”; it can be translated by different
words, since there are many degrees of lobha. Lobha can be coarse, medium or subtle.
Most people can recognize lobha when it is very obvious, but not when it is of a lesser
degree. For example, we can recognize lobha when we are inclined to eat too much of a
delicious meal, or when we are attached to alcoholic drinks and cigarettes. We are attached
to people and we suffer when we lose those who are dear to us through death. Then we
can see that attachment brings sorrow. Sometimes attachment is very obvious, but there
are many degrees of lobha and often we may not know that we have lobha. Cittas arise
and fall away very rapidly and we may not realize it when lobha arises on account of what
we experience in daily life through the six doors, especially if the degree of lobha is not as
intense as greed or lust. Every time there is a pleasant sight, sound, odour, taste or tangible
object, lobha is likely to arise. It arises many times a day.
Lobha arises when there are conditions for its arising; it is beyond control. In many suttas
the Buddha speaks about lobha, points out the dangers of it and the way to overcome it.
The pleasant objects which can be experienced through the five senses are in several suttas
called the “five strands of sense-pleasures”. We read in the Mah¯a-dukkhakkhandha-sutta
(“Greater Discourse on the Stems of Anguish”, Middle Length Sayings I, no. 13) that the
Buddha, when he was staying near S¯avatth¯ı, in the Jeta Grove, said to the monks:
And what, monks, is the satisfaction in pleasures of the senses? These five,
monks, are the strands of sense-pleasures. What five? Visible objects cogniz-
able by the eye, agreeable, pleasant, liked, enticing, connected with sensual
pleasures, alluring. Sounds, cognizable by the ear. . . Smells, cognizable by the
nose. . . Tastes cognizable by the tongue. . . Touches, cognizable by the body,
agreeable, pleasant, liked, enticing, connected with sensual pleasures, alluring.
These, monks, are the five strands of sense-pleasures. Whatever pleasure, what-
ever happiness arises in consequence of these five strands of sense-pleasures, this
is the satisfaction in sense-pleasures.
The satisfaction in sense-pleasures is not true happiness. Those who do not know the
Buddha’s teachings may think that attachment is wholesome, especially when it arises
Chapter 4: The Characteristic of Lobha 27
with pleasant feeling. They may not know the difference between attachment and loving
kindness (mett¯a), phenomena which may both arise with pleasant feeling. However, a
citta accompanied by pleasant feeling is not necessarily kusala citta. When we learn more
about akusala cittas and kusala cittas and when we are mindful of their characteristics, we
will notice that the pleasant feeling which may arise with lobha-mu¯la-citta (citta rooted in
attachment) is different from the pleasant feeling which may arise with kusala citta. Feeling
(vedan¯a) is a cetasika which arises with every citta. When the citta is akusala, the feeling
is also akusala, and when the citta is kusala, the feeling is also kusala. We may be able
to know the difference between the characteristic of the pleasant feeling arising when we
are attached to an agreeable sight or sound, and the characteristic of the pleasant feeling
arising when we are generous.
The Buddha pointed out that lobha brings sorrow. When we lose people who are dear to
us or when we lose the things we enjoy, we have sorrow. If we are attached to a comfortable
life we may have aversion when we have to endure hardship or when things do not turn out
the way we want them to be. We read in the Greater Discourse on the Stems of Anguish,
which was quoted above, that the Buddha spoke to the monks about the dangers in the
pleasures of the senses:
And what, monks, is the peril in sense-pleasures? In this case, monks, a young
man of family earns his living by some craft He is afflicted by the cold, he is
afflicted by the heat, suffering from the touch of gadflies, mosquitos, wind, sun,
creeping things, dying of hunger and thirst. This, monks, is a peril in pleasures
of the senses that is present, a stem of ill. . .
If, monks, this young man of family rouses himself, exerts himself, strives thus,
but if these possessions do not come to his hand, he grieves, mourns, laments,
beating his breast and wailing, he falls into disillusionment, and thinks: “Indeed
my exertion is in vain, indeed my striving is fruitless.” This too, monks, is a
peril in the pleasures of the senses that is present. . .
And again, monks, when sense-pleasures are the cause. . . kings dispute with
kings, nobles dispute with nobles, brahmans dispute with brahmans, household-
ers dispute with householders, a mother disputes with her son, a son disputes
with his mother, a father disputes with his son, a son disputes with his father,
a brother disputes with a brother, a brother disputes with a sister, a sister
disputes with a brother, a friend disputes with a friend. Those who enter into
quarrel, contention, dispute and attack one another with their hands and with
stones and with sticks and with weapons, these suffer dying then and pain like
unto dying. This too, monks, is a peril in the pleasures of the senses that is
present. . .
We then read about many more perils in pleasures of the senses, and about the bad
results they will cause in the future. The Buddha also explained about the satisfaction and
peril in “material shapes”. We read:
“And what, monks, is the satisfaction in material shapes? Monks, it is like a
girl in a noble’s family or a brahman’s family or a householder’s family who at
the age of fifteen or sixteen is not too tall, not too short, not too thin, not too
fat, not too dark, not too fair − is she, monks, at the height of her beauty and
loveliness at that time?”
28 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
“Yes, Lord.”
“Monks, whatever happiness and pleasure arise because of beauty and loveli-
ness, this is satisfaction in material shapes.
And what, monks, is peril in material shapes? As to this, monks, one might
see that same lady after a time, eighty or ninety or a hundred years old, aged,
crooked as a rafter, bent, leaning on a stick, going along palsied, miserable,
youth gone, teeth broken, hair thinned, skin wrinkled, stumbling along, the
limbs discoloured. . .
. . . And again, monks, one might see that same lady, her body thrown aside in
a cemetery, dead for one, two or three days, swollen, discoloured, decomposing.
What would you think, monks? That which was former beauty and loveliness
has vanished, a peril has appeared?”
“Yes, Lord.”
“This too, monks, is a peril in material shapes. . . ”
What the Buddha told the monks may sound crude to us, but it is reality. We find it
difficult to accept life as it really is: birth, old age, sickness and death. We cannot bear
to think of our own body or the body of someone who is dear to us as being a corpse.
We accept being born, but we find it difficult to accept the consequences of birth, which
are old age, sickness and death. We wish to ignore the impermanence of all conditioned
things. When we look into the mirror and when we take care of our body we are inclined
to take it for something which stays and which belongs to us. However, the body is only
ru¯pa, elements which fall away as soon as they have arisen. There is no particle of the body
which lasts.
One may cling to the body with wrong view, in P¯ali: dit.t.hi. Dit.t.hi is a cetasika which
can arise with lobha-mu¯la-citta (citta rooted in attachment). Sometimes there is lobha
without wrong view, dit.t.hi, and sometimes with wrong view.
There are different kinds of dit.t.hi. The belief in a “self” is one kind of dit.t.hi. We
may cling to mental phenomena as well as to physical phenomena with the wrong view of
self. Some people believe that there is a self who exists in this life and who will continue
to exist after this life-span is over. This is the “eternity-belief”. Others believe in a self
who, existing only in this life, will be annihilated after this life-span is over. This is the
“annihilation-belief”. Another form of dit.t.hi is the belief that there is no kamma which
produces vip¯aka, that deeds do not bring their results. There have always been people in
different countries who think that they can be purified of their imperfections merely by
ablution in water or by prayers. They believe that the results of ill deeds they committed
can thus be warded off. They do not know that each deed can bring about its own result.
We can only purify ourselves of imperfections if the wisdom is cultivated which can eradicate
them. If one thinks that deeds do not bring about their appropriate results one may easily
be inclined to believe that the cultivation of wholesomeness is useless. This kind of belief
may lead to ill deeds and to the corruption of society.
There are eight types of lobha-mu¯la-citta and of these, four types arise with wrong view,
dit.t.hi (in P¯ali: dit.t.higata-sampayutta; sampayutta means: associated with). Four types
of lobha-mu¯la-citta arise without wrong view (in P¯ali: dit.t.higata-vippayutta; vippayutta
means: dissociated from).
Chapter 4: The Characteristic of Lobha 29
As regards the feeling which accompanies the lobha-mu¯la-citta, lobha-mu¯la-cittas can
arise either with pleasant feeling or indifferent feeling, never with unpleasant feeling. Of
the four types of lobha-mu¯la-citta which are accompanied by dit.t.hi, two types arise with
pleasant feeling, somanassa (in Pali: somanassa-sahagata; sahagata means: accompanied
by); two types arise with indifferent feeling, upekkh¯a (in P¯ali: upekkh¯a-sahagata). For
example, when one clings to the view that there is a self who will continue to exist, the
citta can be accompanied by pleasant feeling or by indifferent feeling. Of the four lobha-
mu¯la-cittas arising without dit.t.hi, two types are accompanied by pleasant feeling and two
types are accompanied by indifferent feeling. Thus, of the eight types of lobha-mu¯la-citta,
four types arise with pleasant feeling and four types arise with indifferent feeling.
In classifying lobha-mu¯la-cittas there is yet another distinction to be made. Lobha-mu¯la-
cittas can be “unprompted”, asan˙ kh¯arika, or “prompted”, sasan˙ kh¯arika. “Asan˙ kh¯arika”
can be translated a “unprompted“, “not induced”, or “spontaneous”; sasan˙ kh¯arika can be
translated as “prompted” or “induced”. The Visuddhimagga(XIV, 91) states about lobha-
mu¯la-citta that it is “sasan˙ kh¯arika” “when it is with consciousness which is sluggish and
urged on.”
The lobha-mu¯la-cittas which are sasan˙ kh¯arika can be prompted by the advice or request
of someone else, or they arise induced by oneself. When the cittas are sasan˙ kh¯arika, they are
“sluggish and urged on”; they are not keen, they are weaker than when they are asan˙ kh¯arika.
Of the four lobha-mu¯la-cittas arising with dit.t.hi, two types are unprompted, asan˙ kh¯arika,
and two types are prompted, sasan˙ kh¯arika. As regards the lobha-mu¯la-cittas arising without
dit.t.hi, two types are unprompted, asan˙ kh¯arika, and two types are prompted, sasan˙ kh¯arika.
Thus, of the eight types of lobha-mu¯la-cittas, four types are unprompted and four types are
prompted.
It is useful to learn the P¯ali terms and their meaning, because the English translation
does not render the meaning of realities very clearly.
The eight types of lobha-mu¯la-citta are:
Accompanied by pleasant feeling, with wrong view, unprompted. (Somanassa-
sahagatam. , dit.t.higata-sampayuttam. , asan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. 2).
Accompanied by pleasant feeling, with wrong view, prompted. (Somanassa-sahagatam. ,
dit.t.higata-sampayuttam. , sasan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. ).
Accompanied by pleasant feeling, without wrong view, unprompted. (Somanassa-
sahagatam. , dit.t.higata-vippayuttam. , asan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. ).
Accompanied by pleasant feeling, without wrong view, prompted. (Somanassa-
sahagatam. , dit.t.higata-vippayuttam. , sasan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. ).
Accompanied by indifferent feeling, with wrong view, unprompted. (Upekkh¯a-
sahagatam. , dit.t.higata-sampayuttam. , asan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. ).
Accompanied by indifferent feeling, with wrong view, prompted. (Upekkh¯a-sahagatam. ,
dit.t.higata-sampayuttam. , sasan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. ).
Accompanied by indifferent feeling, without wrong view, unprompted. (Upekkh¯a-
sahagatam. , dit.t.higata-vippayuttam. , asan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. ).
Accompanied by indifferent feeling, without wrong view, prompted. (Upekkh¯a-
sahagatam. , dit.t.higata-vippayuttam. , sasan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. ).
2 ekam. means “one”. The m. at the end of a word is pronounced as “ng”.
30 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
As we have seen, lobha-mu¯la-cittas can be unprompted or prompted. The Atthas¯alin¯ı
(Book II, Part IX, chapter III, 225) gives an example of lobha-mu¯la-cittas, accompanied by
dit.t.hi, which are prompted. A son of a noble family marries a woman who has wrong views
and therefore he associates with people who have wrong views. Gradually he accepts those
wrong views and then they are pleasing to him.
Lobha-mu¯la-cittas without dit.t.hi which are sasan˙ kh¯arika arise, for example, when one,
though at first not attached to alcoholic drink, takes pleasure in it after someone else
persuades one to drink.
As we have seen, lobha-mu¯la-cittas can be accompanied by pleasant feeling or by in-
different feeling. Lobha-mu¯la-cittas without dit.t.hi, accompanied by pleasant feeling, can
arise, for example, when we enjoy ourselves while seeing a beautiful colour or hearing an
agreeable sound. At such moments we can be attached without wrong view about realities.
When we enjoy beautiful clothes, go to the cinema, or laugh and talk with others about
pleasurable things there can be many moments of enjoyment without the idea of self, but
there can also be moments with dit.t.hi, moments of clinging to a “self”.
Lobha-mu¯la-cittas without dit.t.hi, accompanied by indifferent feeling, may arise, for ex-
ample, when we like to stand up, or like to take hold of different objects. Since we generally
do not have happy feeling with these actions, there may be lobha with indifferent feeling
at such moments. Thus we see that lobha often motivates the most common actions of our
daily life.
When there is lobha is there always pleasant feeling, somanassa, as well?
Does dit.t.hi, wrong view, arise only with lobha-mu¯la-citta?
How many types of lobha-mu¯la-citta are there? Why is it useful to know this?
Chapter 5: Different Degrees of Lobha 31
Lobha, attachment, leads to sorrow. If we really understand this, we will wish to eradicate
lobha. The eradication of lobha, however, cannot be done immediately. We may be able to
suppress lobha for a while, but it will appear again when there are the right conditions for
its arising. Even though we know that lobha brings sorrow, it is bound to arise time and
again. However, there is a way to eradicate it: it can be eradicated by the wisdom which
sees things as they are.
When we study cittas more in detail it will help us to know ourselves. We should know
not only the gross lobha but also the degrees of lobha which are more subtle. The following
sutta gives an example of lobha which is more subtle. We read in the Kindred Sayings (I,
Sag¯ath¯a-vagga IX, Forest Suttas paragraph 14):
A certain monk was once staying among the Kosalese in a certain forest-tract.
Now while there was that monk, after he had returned from his alms-round and
had broken his fast, plunged into the lotus-pool and sniffed up the perfume of a
red lotus. Then the deva who haunted that forest tract, moved with compassion
for that monk, desiring his welfare, and wishing to agitate him, drew near and
addressed him in the verse:
‘‘That blossom, water-born, thing not given,
You stand sniffing up the scent of it.
This is one class of things that may be stolen.
And you a smell-thief must I call, dear sir.’’
(The monk:)
‘‘Nay, nought I bear away, I nothing break.
Standing apart I smell the water’s child.
Now for what reason am I smell-thief called?
One who does dig up water-lilies, one
Who feeds on lotuses, in motley tasks
Engaged: why have you no such name for him?’’
(The Deva:)
‘‘A man of ruthless, wicked character,
Foul-flecked as is a handmaid’s dirty cloth:
With such the words I say have no concern.
But this it is meet that I should say (to you):
To him whose character is void of vice,
Who ever makes quest for what is pure:
What to the wicked but a hair-tip seems,
To him does great as a rain-cloud appear. ’’
We should also know the more subtle lobha which arises when we enjoy a fragrant smell
or beautiful music. It seems that there are no akusala cittas when we do not harm others,
32 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
but also the more subtle lobha is akusala; it is different from generosity which is kusala.
We cannot force ourselves not to have lobha, but we can come to know the characteristic
of lobha when it appears.
Not only the suttas, but also the Vinaya (Book of Discipline for the monks) gives exam-
ples of lobha which is more subtle. Each part of the teachings, the Vinaya, the Suttanta and
the Abhidhamma can help us to know ourselves better. When we read the Vinaya we see
that even monks who lead a life with contentment with little, still have accumulated condi-
tions for lobha. Every time there was a case where monks deviated from their purity of life,
a rule was laid down in order to help them to be more watchful. Thus we can understand
the usefulness of the rules, which go into even the smallest details of the monk’s behaviour.
The rules help the monk to be watchful even when performing the most common actions of
daily life such as eating, drinking, robing himself and walking. There are rules which forbid
seemingly innocent actions like playing in the water or with the water (Expiation, P¯acittiya
53), or teasing other monks. Such actions are not done with kusala cittas, but with akusala
cittas.
We read in the Vinaya (III, Suttavibhan. ga, Expiation, P¯acittiya 85) that the monks
should not enter a village at the wrong time. The reason is that they would indulge more
easily in worldly talk. We read:
Now at that time the group of six monks, having entered a village at the wrong
time, having sat down in a hall, talked a variety of worldly talk, that is to say:
talk of kings, of thieves, of great ministers, of armies, of fears, of battles, of food,
of drink, of clothes, of beds, of garlands, of scents, of relations, of vehicles, of
villages, of little towns, of towns, of the country, of women, of strong drink, of
streets, of wells, of those departed before, of diversity, of speculation about the
world, about the sea, on becoming and not becoming thus and thus. . .
This passage is useful for laypeople as well. We cannot help talking about worldly
matters, but we should know that our talking, even if it seems innocent, is often motivated
by lobha-mu¯la-cittas or by dosa-mu¯la-cittas (cittas rooted in aversion). In order to know
ourselves we should find out by what kind of citta our talking is motivated.
Every time a lobha-mu¯la-citta arises lobha is accumulated. When the conditions are
there, lobha can motivate ill deeds through body, speech or mind. When we see to what
kinds of deeds lobha can lead we will be more inclined to develop the wisdom which even-
tually will lead to its eradication.
Ill deeds are called in P¯ali: akusala kamma. Kamma is the cetasika (mental factor arising
with the citta) which is intention or volition, in P¯ali: cetan¯a. However, the word “kamma”
is also used in a more general sense for the deeds which are intended by cetan¯a. The term
kamma-patha (literally “course of action”) is used as well in this sense. There are akusala
kamma-pathas and kusala kamma-pathas, ill deeds and good deeds, accomplished through
body, speech and mind. As regards akusala kamma-patha, there are ten akusala kamma-
pathas and these are conditioned by lobha, dosa and moha. Moha, ignorance, accompanies
every akusala citta, it is the root of all evil. Thus, whenever there is akusala kamma-
patha, there must be moha. Some akusala kamma-pathas can sometimes be performed with
lobha-mu¯la-citta and sometimes with dosa-mu¯la-citta. Therefore, when we see someone else
committing an ill deed we cannot always be sure which kind of citta motivates that deed.
The ten akusala kamma-pathas are the following:
Chapter 5: Different Degrees of Lobha 33
Killing
Stealing
Sexual misbehaviour
Lying
Slandering
Rude speech
Frivolous talk
Covetousness
Ill-will
Wrong view (dit.t.hi)
Killing, stealing and sexual misbehaviour are three akusala kamma-pathas accomplished
through the body. Lying, slandering, rude speech and frivolous talk are four akusala
kamma-pathas accomplished through speech. Covetousness, ill-will and wrong view are
three akusala kamma-pathas accomplished through the mind. As regards akusala kamma-
patha through the body, killing is done with dosa-mu¯la-citta. Stealing can sometimes
be performed with lobha-mu¯la-citta and sometimes with dosa-mu¯la-citta. It is done with
lobha-mu¯la-citta if one wishes to take what belongs to someone else in order to enjoy it
oneself. It is done with dosa-mu¯la-citta if one wishes someone else to suffer damage. Sexual
misbehaviour is performed with lobha-mu¯la-citta.
As far as the akusala kamma-pathas through speech are concerned, lying, slandering
and frivolous talk are performed with lobha-mu¯la-citta if one wishes to obtain something
for oneself, or if one wishes to endear oneself to other people. As regards lying, we may
think that there is no harm in a so-called “white lie” or a lie said for fun. However, all
kinds of lies are motivated by akusala cittas. We read in the “Discourse on an Exhortation
to R¯ahula at Ambalat.t.hik¯a” (Middle Length Sayings II, no. 61, Bhikkhu-vagga) that the
Buddha spoke to his son R¯ahula about lying. The Buddha said:
Even so, R¯ahula, of anyone for whom there is no shame at intentional lying, of
him I say that there is no evil he cannot do. Wherefore, for you, R¯ahula, “I will
not speak a lie, even for fun” − this is how you must train yourself, R¯ahula.
Lying can also be done with dosa-mu¯la-citta and this is the case when one wants to
harm someone else.
As regards slandering, we all are inclined to talk about others. When there is no intention
to harm the reputation of others, there is no akusala kamma-patha. However, when talking
about others becomes a habit, there can easily be an occasion for akusala kamma-patha.
This kind of akusala kamma-patha is performed with lobha-mu¯la-citta if one slanders in
order to obtain something for oneself or in order to please others. It is performed with
dosa-mu¯la-citta if one wants to harm someone else. We will be less inclined to talk about
others or to judge them when we see ourselves and others as phenomena which arise because
of conditions and which do not stay. At the moment we talk about other people’s actions,
these phenomena have fallen away already; what they said or did exists no more.
Rude speech is performed with dosa-mu¯la-citta. Frivolous talk is talk about idle, sense-
less things. This kind of talk can be performed with lobha-mu¯la-citta or with dosa-mu¯la-
citta. Frivolous talk is not always akusala kamma-patha. It can be done with akusala citta
which does not have the intensity of akusala kamma-patha.
34 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
As regards akusala kamma-patha through the mind, ill-will, the intention to hurt or
harm someone else, is motivated by dosa-mu¯la-citta; covetousness and wrong view are
motivated by lobha-mu¯la-citta1. There is akusala kamma-patha which is covetousness when
one intends to obtain by dishonest means what belongs to someone else. As regards dit.t.hi
(wrong view), there are many kinds of dit.t.hi; however, three kinds of dit.t.hi are akusala
kamma-patha through the mind. One of them is ahetuka-dit.t.hi, the belief that there is
no cause for the existence of beings and no cause for their purity or corruption. Another
wrong view which is akusala kamma-patha through the mind is akiriy¯a-dit.t.hi, the belief
that there are no good and bad deeds which produce their results. The third wrong view
which is akusala kamma-patha through the mind is natthika-dit.t.hi or annihilation view.
Natthika-dit.t.hi is the belief that there is no result of kamma and that there is no further
life after death.
All degrees of lobha, be it coarse or more subtle, bring sorrow. We are like slaves so long
as we are absorbed in and infatuated with the objects which present themselves through
eyes, ears, nose, tongue, bodysense and mind. We are not free if our happiness depends on
the situation we are in, and the way others behave towards us. One moment people may
be kind to us, but the next moment they may behave in an unpleasant way towards us. If
we attach too much importance to the affection of others, we shall be easily disturbed in
mind, and thus become slaves of our moods and emotions.
We can become more independent and free if we realize that both we ourselves and other
people are only n¯ama and ru¯pa, phenomena arising because of conditions and falling away
again. When others speak in an unpleasant way to us there are conditions which cause them
to speak in that way, and there are conditions which cause us to hear such speech. Other
people’s behaviour and our reactions to it are conditioned phenomena which do not stay.
At the moment we are thinking about these phenomena, they have fallen away already.
The development of insight is the way to become less dependent on the vicissitudes of life.
When there is more understanding of the present moment, we will attach less importance
to the way people behave towards us.
Since lobha is rooted so deeply, it can only be eradicated in different stages. Dit.t.hi
has to be eradicated first. The sot¯apanna, the person who has realized the first stage of
enlightenment, has eradicated dit.t.hi. He has developed the wisdom which realizes that all
phenomena are n¯ama and ru¯pa, not self. Since he has eradicated dit.t.hi, the lobha-mu¯la-
cittas with dit.t.hi do not arise anymore. As we have seen, four types of lobha-mu¯la-citta arise
with dit.t.hi (they are dit.t.higata-sampayutta), and four types arise without dit.t.hi (they are
dit.t.higatha-vippayutta). As for the sot¯apanna, the four types of lobha-mu¯la-citta without
dit.t.hi still arise; he has not yet eradicated all kinds of attachment. The sot¯apanna still has
conceit. Conceit can arise with the four types of lobha-mu¯la-citta which are without dit.t.hi
(dit.t.higata-vippayutta). There may be conceit when one compares oneself with others, when
one, for example, thinks that one has more wisdom than others. When we consider ourselves
better, equal or less in comparison with others we may find ourselves important and then
there is conceit. When we think ourselves less than someone else it is not necessarily kusala;
there may still be a kind of upholding of ourselves and then there is conceit. Conceit is
rooted so deeply that it is eradicated only when one has become an arahat.
1 As we have seen (in Ch 4), wrong view accompanies lobha-mu¯la-cittas. Whenever there is wrong view
there is clinging to such view.
Chapter 5: Different Degrees of Lobha 35
The person who has attained the second stage of enlightenment, the sakad¯ag¯am¯ı (once-
returner), has less lobha than the sot¯apanna. The person who has attained the third stage
of enlightenment, the an¯ag¯am¯ı (never-returner), has no more clinging to the objects which
present themselves through the five senses, but he still has conceit and he clings to rebirth.
The arahat, the perfected one who has attained the fourth and last stage of enlightenment,
has eradicated all forms of lobha completely.
The arahat is completely free since he has eradicated all defilements. We read in the
Kindred Sayings (IV, Sal.¯ayatanavagga, Kindred Sayings on Sense, Third Fifty, chapter IV,
paragraph 136, Not including), that the Buddha said to the monks, while he was staying
among the Sakkas at Devadaha:
Devas and mankind, monks, delight in objects, they are excited by objects. It
is owing to the instability, the coming to an end, the ceasing of objects, monks,
that devas and mankind live woefully. They delight in sounds, scents, savours,
in touch, they delight in mindstates, and are excited by them. It is owing to
the instability, the coming to an end, the ceasing of mindstates, monks, that
devas and mankind live woefully.
But the Tath¯agata, monks, who is arahat, a Fully-enlightened One, seeing,
as they really are, both the arising and the destruction, the satisfaction, the
misery and the way of escape from objects, − he delights not in objects, takes
not pleasure in them, is not excited by them. It is owing to the instability, the
coming to an end, the ceasing of objects that the Tath¯agata dwells at ease. . .
The Buddha and all those who are arahats have eradicated clinging to all objects which
are experienced. They have penetrated the true nature of conditioned realities which arise
and fall away, which are impermanent. The arahat will attain the end of rebirth, the
cessation of the arising of conditioned realities and therefore, he is “dwelling at ease”.
When the objective is not d¯ana (generosity), s¯ıla (morality) or bh¯avan¯a (mental devel-
opment), can talking be done with kusala citta?
Which cetasika is kamma?
Which are the ten akusala kamma-pathas?
Are all kinds of wrong view, dit.t.hi, akusala kamma-patha?
Why does attachment always lead to sorrow?
Who has eradicated all kinds of lobha?
Chapter 6: The Characteristic of Dosa 37
When we are angry with other people we harm ourselves by our anger. The Buddha pointed
out the adverse effects of anger (dosa). We read in the Gradual Sayings (Book of the Sevens,
chapter VI, paragraph 10, Anger) about the ills a rival wishes his rival to have and which
are actually the ills coming upon an angry woman or man. The sutta states:
. . . Monks, there is the case of a rival, who wishes thus of a rival: “Would that he
were ugly!” And why? A rival, monks, does not like a handsome rival. Monks,
this sort of person, being angry, is overwhelmed by anger; he is subverted by
anger: and however well he be bathed, anointed, trimmed as to the hair and
beard, clad in spotless linen; yet for all that he is ugly, being overwhelmed by
anger. Monks, this is the first condition, fostered by rivals, causing rivals, which
comes upon an angry woman or man.
Again, there is the case of a rival, who wishes thus of a rival: “Would that
he might sleep badly!” And why? A rival, monks, does not like a rival to
sleep well. Monks, this sort of person, being angry, is overwhelmed by anger;
he is subverted by anger: and in spite of his lying on a couch, spread with a
fleecy cover, spread with a white blanket, spread with a woollen coverlet, flower
embroidered, covered with rugs of antelope skins, with awnings above; or on a
sofa, with crimson cushions at either end; yet for all that he lies in discomfort,
being overwhelmed by anger. Monks, this is the second condition. . .
We then read about other misfortunes a rival wishes for his rival, which come upon an
angry woman or man. We read that a rival wishes his rival to be without prosperity, wealth
and fame. Further we read that a rival wishes a rival to be without friends and this happens
to someone who is an angry person. The text states:
Monks, this sort of person, being angry whatever friends, intimates, relations
and kinsmen he may have, they will avoid him and keep far away from him,
because he is overwhelmed by anger. . .
A rival wishes his rival to have an unhappy rebirth and this can happen to an angry
person. We read:
. . . Monks, this sort of person, being angry he misconducts himself in deed,
in word and thought; so living, so speaking and so thinking, on breaking up of
the body after death he is reborn in the untoward way, the ill way, the abyss,
hell. . .
We would like to live in a world of harmony and unity among nations and we are
disturbed when people commit acts of violence. We should consider what the real cause is
of war and discord between people: it is the defilements which people have accumulated.
When we have aversion we think that other people or unpleasant situations are the cause
of our aversion. However, our accumulation of dosa is the real cause for aversion to arise
time and again. If we want to have less dosa we should know the characteristic of dosa and
we should be aware of it when it arises.
Dosa has many degrees; it can be a slight aversion or it can be more coarse, such as anger.
We can recognize dosa when it is coarse, but do we realize that we have dosa when it is more
subtle? Through the study of the Abhidhamma we learn more about the characteristic of
dosa. Dosa is an akusala cetasika (mental factor) arising with akusala citta; it is a cetasika
38 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
that is an unwholesome root, akusala hetu. A citta rooted in dosa is called in P¯ali: dosa-
mu¯la-citta. The characteristic of dosa is different from the characteristic of lobha. When
there is lobha, the citta likes the object which it experiences at that moment, whereas when
there is dosa, the citta has aversion towards the object it experiences. We can recognize
dosa when we are angry with someone and when we speak disagreeable words to him. But
when we are afraid of something there is dosa as well, because one has aversion towards the
object one is afraid of. There are so many things in life we are afraid of; we are afraid of
the future, of diseases, of accidents, of death. We look for many means in order to be cured
of anguish, but the only way is the development of the wisdom which eradicates the latent
tendency of dosa.
Dosa is conditioned by lobha: we do not want to lose what is dear to us and when this
actually happens we are sad. Sadness is dosa, it is akusala. If we do not know things as they
are, we believe that people and things last. However, people and things are only phenomena
which arise and then fall away immediately. The next moment they have changed already.
If we can see things as they are we will be less overwhelmed by sadness. It makes no sense
to be sad about what has happened already.
In the Psalms of the Sisters (Ther¯ıg¯ath¯a, 33) we read that the King’s wife Ubbir¯ı mourned
the loss of her daughter J¯ıv¯a. Every day she went to the cemetery. She met the Buddha
who told her that in that cemetery about eighty-four thousand of her daughters (in past
lives) had been burnt. The Buddha said to her:
O, Ubbir¯ı, who wails in the wood
Crying, ‘‘O J¯ıv¯a! O my daughter dear!’’
Come to yourself! See, in this burying-ground
Are burnt full many a thousand daughters dear,
And all of them were named like her.
Now which of all those J¯ıv¯as do you mourn?
After Ubbir¯ı pondered over the Dhamma thus taught by the Buddha she developed
insight and saw things as they really are; she even attained arahatship.
There are other akusala cetasikas which can arise with cittas rooted in dosa. Regret or
worry, in P¯ali: kukkucca, is an akusala cetasika which arises with dosa-mu¯la-citta at the
moment we regret something bad we did or something good we omitted to do. When there
is regret we are thinking of the past instead of knowing the present moment. When we have
done something wrong it is of no use to have aversion.
Envy (iss¯a) is another cetasika which can arise with dosa-mu¯la-citta. There is envy when
we do not like someone else to enjoy pleasant things. At that moment the citta does not
like the object it experiences. We should find out how often envy arises, even when it is
more subtle. This is a way to know whether we really care for someone else or whether we
only think of ourselves when we associate with others.
Stinginess (macchariya) is another akusala cetasika which may arise with dosa-mu¯la-
citta. When we are stingy there is dosa as well. At that moment we do not like someone
else to share in our good fortune.
Dosa always arises with an unpleasant feeling (domanassa vedan¯a). Most people do not
like to have dosa because they do not like to have an unpleasant feeling. As we develop
Chapter 6: The Characteristic of Dosa 39
more understanding of realities we want to eradicate dosa not so much because we dislike
unpleasant feeling, but rather because we realize the adverse effects of akusala.
Dosa can arise on account of the objects experienced through the five sense-doors and the
mind-door. It can arise when we see ugly sights, hear harsh sounds, smell unpleasant odours,
taste unappetizing food, experience unpleasant tangible objects through the bodysense and
think of disagreeable things. Whenever there is a feeling of uneasiness, no matter how
slight, it is evident that there is dosa. Dosa may often arise when there is the experience of
unpleasant objects through the senses, for example, when the temperature is too hot or too
cold. Whenever there is a slightly unpleasant bodily sensation dosa may arise, be it only of
a lesser degree.
Dosa arises when there are conditions for it. It arises so long as there is still attachment
to the objects which can be experienced through the five senses. Everybody would like
to experience only pleasant things and when one does not have them any more, dosa may
arise.
Another condition for dosa is ignorance of the Dhamma. If we are ignorant of kamma and
vip¯aka, cause and result, dosa may arise very easily on account of an unpleasant experience
through one of the senses and thus dosa is accumulated time and again. An unpleasant
experience through one of the senses is akusala vip¯aka caused by an unwholesome deed we
performed. When, for example, someone speaks unpleasant words to us, we may be angry
with that person. Those who have studied the Dhamma know that hearing an unpleasant
sound is akusala vip¯aka which is not caused by someone else but by an unwholesome deed
performed by oneself. A moment of vip¯aka falls away immediately, it does not stay. Are we
not inclined to keep on thinking about an unpleasant experience? If there is more awareness
of the present moment one will be less inclined to think with aversion about one’s akusala
vip¯aka.
When we study the Abhidhamma we learn that there are two types of dosa-mu¯la-citta:
one of these is unprompted (asan˙kh¯arika) and one is prompted (sasan˙kh¯arika). Dosa is
prompted (sasan˙ kh¯arika) when, for example, one becomes angry after having been reminded
of the disagreeable actions of someone else. Dosa-mu¯la-cittas are always accompanied by
domanassa (unpleasant feeling). There are two types of dosa-mu¯la-citta which are the
following:
Accompanied by unpleasant feeling, arising with anger, unprompted (Domanassa-
sahagatam. , pat.igha-sampayuttam. 1, asan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. ).
Accompanied by unpleasant feeling, arising with anger, prompted (Domanassa-
sahagatam. , pat.igha-sampayuttam. , sasan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. ).
As we have seen, there are many degrees of dosa; it may be coarse or more subtle.
When dosa is coarse, it causes akusala kamma-patha (unwholesome deeds) through body,
speech or mind. Two kinds of akusala kamma-patha through the body can be performed
with dosa-mu¯la-citta: killing and stealing. If we want less violence in the world we should
try not to kill. When we kill we accumulate a great deal of dosa. The monk’s life should
be a life of non-violence; he should not hurt any living being in the world. However, not
everyone is able to live like the monks. Defilements are anatt¯a (not self); they arise because
of conditions. The purpose of the Buddha’s teaching is not to lay down rules which forbid
1 Pat.igha is another word for dosa.
40 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
people to commit ill deeds, but to help people to develop the wisdom which eradicates
defilements. There are precepts for laypeople, but these are rules of training rather than
commandments.
As regards stealing, this can either be performed with lobha-mu¯la-citta or with dosa-
mu¯la-citta. It is done with dosa-mu¯la-citta when there is the intention to harm someone
else. Doing damage to someone else’s possessions is included in this kamma-patha.
Four kinds of akusala kamma-patha through speech can be performed with dosa-mu¯la-
citta: lying, slandering, rude speech and frivolous talk. Lying, slandering and frivolous
talk can either be performed with lobha-mu¯la-citta or with dosa-mu¯la-citta. Slandering, for
example, is performed with dosa-mu¯la-citta when there is the intention to cause damage
to someone else, such as doing harm to his good name and causing him to be looked down
upon by others. Most people think that the use of weapons is to be avoided, but they forget
that the tongue can be a weapon as well, a weapon which can badly wound. Evil speech
does a great deal of harm in the world; it causes discord between people. When we speak
evil we harm ourselves, because at such moments akusala kamma is accumulated and it is
capable of producing akusala vip¯aka.
We read in the Sutta Nip¯ata (Chapter III, the Great Chapter, 10, Kok¯aliya, “Khuddaka
Nik¯aya”) that while the Buddha was staying at S¯avatth¯ı, the bhikkhu Kok¯aliya visited him.
Kok¯aliya spoke evil of S¯ariputta and Moggall¯ana, saying that they had evil desires. Three
times the Buddha told him not to speak in that way. After Kok¯aliya had departed boils
developed all over his body which became bigger and bigger and discharged pus and blood.
He died and was reborn in the Paduma hell. Later on the Buddha told the monks about
Kok¯aliya’s evil speech and his rebirth in hell. We read (vs. 657, 658) that the Buddha said:
“Surely in the mouth of a man, when born, an axe is born, with which the fool
cuts himself, saying a badly-spoken (utterance).
He who praises him who is to be blamed, or blames him who is to be praised, ac-
cumulates evil by his mouth. Because of that evil he does not find happiness. . .
As regards akusala kamma-patha through the mind performed with dosa-mu¯la-citta, this
is the intention to hurt or harm someone else.
People often speak about violence and the ways to cure it. Who of us can say that
he is free from dosa and that he will never kill? We do not know how much dosa we have
accumulated in the course of many lives. When the conditions are present we might commit
an act of violence we did not realize we were capable of. When we understand how ugly
dosa is and to what deeds it can lead we want to eradicate it.
In performing kind deeds we cannot eradicate the latent tendency of dosa, but at least at
those moments we do not accumulate more dosa. The Buddha exhorted people to cultivate
loving kindness (mett¯a). We read in the Karaniya Mett¯a-sutta (Sutta Nip¯ata, vs. 143-152)2
that the Buddha spoke the following words.
What should be done by one skillful in good
So as to gain the State of Peace is this:
2 I am using the translation by the venerable Bhikkhu N~ anamoli, Buddhist Publication Society, Wheel 7,
Kandy, Sri Lanka.
Chapter 6: The Characteristic of Dosa 41
Let him be able, and upright, and straight.
Easy to speak to, gentle, and not proud,
Contented too, supported easily,
With few tasks, and living very lightly,
His faculties serene, prudent and modest,
Unswayed by the emotions of the clans;
And let him never do the slightest thing
That other wise men might hold blamable.
(And let him think) ‘‘In safety and in bliss
May creatures all be of a blissful heart.
Whatever breathing beings there may be,
No matter whether they are frail or firm,
With none excepted, be they long or big
Or middle-sized, or be they short or small
Or thick, as well as those seen or unseen,
Or whether they are dwelling far or near,
Existing or yet seeking to exist,
May creatures all be of a blissful heart.
Let no one work another one’s undoing
Or even slight him at all anywhere;
And never let them wish each other ill
Through provocation or resentful
thought.’’
And just as might a mother with her life
Protect the son that was her only child,
So let him then for every living thing
Maintain unbounded consciousness in being,
And let him too with love for all the world
Maintain unbounded consciousness in being
Above, below, and all around in between,
Untroubled, with no enemy or foe.
And while he stands, or walks or while he sits
Or while he lies down, free from drowsiness,
Let him resolve upon mindfulness:
This is Divine Abiding here, they say.
But when he has no trafficking with views3,
Is virtuous, and has perfected seeing,
And purges greed for sensual desires,
He surely comes no more to any womb.
The Buddha taught us not to be angry with those who are unpleasant to us. We read
in the Vinaya (Mah¯avagga X, 349) that the Buddha said to the monks:
3 Wrong view.
42 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
They who (in thought) belabour this: That man
has me abused, has hurt, has worsted me,
has me despoiled: in these wrath is not allayed.
They who do not belabour this: That man
has me abused, has hurt, has worsted me,
has me despoiled: in them wrath is allayed.
Nay, not by wrath are wrathful moods allayed
here (and) at any time,
but by not-wrath are they allayed:
this is an (ageless) endless rule.
At times it seems impossible for us to have mett¯a instead of dosa. For example, when
people treat us badly we may feel very unhappy and we keep on pondering over our misery.
So long as dosa has not been eradicated there are still conditions for its arising. By being
mindful of all realities which appear the wisdom is developed which can eventually eradicate
dosa.
Dosa can only be eradicated stage by stage. The sot¯apanna (the streamwinner, who
has attained the first stage of enlightenment) has not yet eradicated dosa and also at the
subsequent stage of enlightenment, the stage of the sakad¯ag¯am¯ı (once-returner), dosa is not
yet eradicated completely. The an¯ag¯am¯ı (the non-returner, who has attained the third stage
of enlightenment) has eradicated dosa completely; he has no more latent tendency of dosa.
We have not eradicated dosa, but when dosa appears, we can be mindful of its charac-
teristic in order to know it as a type of n¯ama, arising because of conditions. When there is
no mindfulness of dosa when it appears, dosa seems to last and we take it for self. Through
mindfulness of n¯amas and ru¯pas which present themselves one at a time, we will learn that
there are different characteristics of n¯ama and ru¯pa, none of which lasts and we will also
know the characteristic of dosa as only a type of n¯ama, not self.
When a clearer understanding of realities is developed we will be less inclined to ponder
for a long time over an unpleasant experience, since it is only a type of n¯ama which does
not last. We will attend more to the present moment instead of thinking about the past
or the future. We will also be less inclined to tell other people about unpleasant things
which have happened to us, since that may be a condition for both ourselves and others to
accumulate more dosa. When someone is angry with us we will have more understanding
of his situation; he may be tired or not feeling well. Those who treat us badly deserve
compassion because they actually make themselves unhappy.
Right understanding of realities will help us most of all to have more loving kindness
and compassion towards others instead of dosa.
Why is lobha a condition for dosa?
Chapter 6: The Characteristic of Dosa 43
Lying, slandering and frivolous talk are akusala kamma-patha through speech which
can be performed either with lobha-mu¯la-citta or with dosa-mu¯la-citta. When are they
performed with dosa-mu¯la-citta?
Is there akusala kamma-patha through the mind performed with dosa-mu¯la-citta?
Chapter 7: Ignorance 45
We may know when we have akusala cittas rooted in lobha (attachment) or akusala cittas
rooted in dosa (aversion), but do we know when we have akusala cittas rooted in moha
(ignorance)? What is the characteristic of moha? We may think someone ignorant who
does not have much education, who does not speak foreign languages, who does not know
anything about history or politics. We call someone ignorant who does not know what is
happening in the world. Is that the kind of ignorance which should be eradicated? If that
were true it would mean that there is more wholesomeness in one’s life if one speaks foreign
languages or if one knows about history and politics. We can find out that this is not true.
In order to understand the characteristic of moha we should know what we are ignorant of
when there is moha. There is the world of concepts which in our daily, ordinary language are
denoted by conventional terms and there is the world of paramattha dhammas or ultimate
realities. When we think of the concept which in conventional language is denoted by
“world”, we may think of people, animals and things and we call them by their appropriate
names. But do we know the phenomena in ourselves and around ourselves as they really
are: only n¯ama and ru¯pa which do not last?
The world of paramattha dhammas is real. N¯ama and ru¯pa are paramattha dhammas.
The n¯amas and ru¯pas which appear in our daily life can be directly experienced through the
five sense-doors and the mind-door, no matter how we name them. This is the world which
is real. When we see, there is the world of visible object. When we hear, there is the world
of sound. When we experience an object through touch there is the world of tangible object.
Visible object and seeing are real. Their characteristics cannot be altered and they can be
directly experienced; it does not matter whether we call them “visible object” and “seeing”,
or whether we give them another name. But when we cling to concepts which are denoted
by conventional terms such as “tree” or “chair”, we do not experience any characteristic of
reality. What is real when we look at a tree? What can be directly experienced? Visible
object is a paramattha dhamma, a reality; it is a kind of ru¯pa which can be directly
experienced through the eyes. Through touch hardness can be experienced; this is a kind
of ru¯pa which can be directly experienced through the bodysense, it is real. “Tree” is a
concept or idea of which we can think, but it is not a paramattha dhamma, not a reality
which has its own unchangeable characteristic. Visible object and hardness are paramattha
dhammas, they have their own characteristics which can be directly experienced, no matter
how one names them.
The world experienced through the six doors is real, but it does not last; it is imperma-
nent. When we see, there is the world of the visible, but it falls away immediately. When
we hear, there is the world of sound, but it does not last either. It is the same with the
world of smell, the world of flavour, the world of tangible object and the world of objects
experienced through the mind-door. However, we usually know only the world of concepts,
because ignorance and wrong view have been accumulated for so long. Ignorance of para-
mattha dhammas is the kind of ignorance which should be eradicated; it brings sorrow.
Ignorance conditions the wrong view of self and all other defilements. So long as there is
ignorance we are deluding ourselves, we do not know what our life really is: conditioned
phenomena which arise and fall away.
The world in the sense of paramattha dhammas is in the teachings called “the world in
the ariyan sense”. The ariyan has developed the wisdom which sees things as they are; he
46 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
truly knows “the world”. We read in the Kindred Sayings (IV, Sal.¯ayatana-vagga, Kindred
Sayings on Sense, Second Fifty, chapter IV, paragraph 84, Transitory) that A¯ nanda said to
the Buddha:
“ ‘The world! The world!’ is the saying lord. Pray, how far, lord, does this
saying go?”
“What is transitory by nature, A¯ nanda, is called ‘the world’ in the ariyan sense.
And what, A¯ nanda, is transitory by nature? The eye, A¯ nanda, is transitory
by nature. . . objects. . . tongue. . . mind1 is transitory by nature, mind-states,
mind-consciousness, mind-contact, whatsoever pleasant feeling, unpleasant feel-
ing or indifferent feeling which arises owing to mind-contact, that also is tran-
sitory by nature. What is thus transitory, A¯ nanda, is called ‘the world’ in the
ariyan sense.”
Someone may think that he can truly know himself without knowing the world as it
appears through the six doors. He may think that he knows his anger and attachment,
but, in fact, he has not experienced them as they are: only different types of n¯ama and
not self. So long as he has wrong view of realities he does not really know himself and he
cannot eradicate defilements. He clings to an idea, to the concept of self; he has not directly
experienced any characteristic of reality. It is difficult to know when there are lobha, dosa
and moha, and it is difficult to be aware also of the more subtle degrees of akusala. When
we start to develop “insight”, right understanding of realities, we realize how little we know
ourselves.
When there is moha we live in darkness. It was the Buddha’s great compassion which
moved him to teach people Dhamma. Dhamma is the light which can dispel darkness. If we
do not know Dhamma we are ignorant of the world, of ourselves; we are ignorant of good
and ill deeds and their results; we are ignorant of the way to eradicate defilements.
The study of the Abhidhamma will help us to have more understanding of the charac-
teristic of moha. The Atthas¯alin¯ı (Book II, Part IX, chapter I, 249) states about moha:
“Delusion” (moha) has the characteristic of blindness or opposition to knowl-
edge; the essence of non-penetration, or the function of covering the intrinsic
nature of the object; the manifestation of being opposed to right conduct or
causing blindness; the proximate cause of unwise attention; and it should be
regarded as the root of all akusala. . .
There are many degrees of moha. When we study Dhamma we become less ignorant
of realities; we will have more understanding of paramattha dhammas, of kamma and
vip¯aka. However, this does not mean that we can already eradicate moha. Moha cannot
be eradicated merely by thinking of the truth; it can only be eradicated by developing
the wisdom which knows “the world in the ariyan sense”: eyesense, visible object, seeing-
consciousness, earsense, sound, hearing-consciousness, and all realities appearing through
the six doors.
When we study the Abhidhamma we learn that moha arises with all akusala cittas.
Lobha-mu¯la-cittas have moha and lobha as roots; dosa-mu¯la-cittas have moha and dosa
as roots. There are two types of akusala citta which have moha as their only root, these
1 The P¯ali text is abridged, but also included are: the ear. . . the nose. . . the bodysense, all realities
appearing through the six doors.
Chapter 7: Ignorance 47
are moha-mu¯la-cittas. One type of moha-mu¯la-citta is moha-mu¯la-citta accompanied by
doubt (in P¯ali: vicikicch¯a), and one type is moha-mu¯la-citta accompanied by restlessness
(in P¯ali: uddhacca). The feeling which accompanies moha-mu¯la-cittas is always indifferent
feeling (upekkh¯a). When the citta is moha-mu¯la-citta there is no like or dislike; one does
not have pleasant or unpleasant feeling. Both types of moha-mu¯la-citta are unprompted
(asan˙ kharika).
The characteristic of moha should not be confused with the characteristic of dit.t.hi (wrong
view), which only arises with lobha-mu¯la-cittas. When dit.t.hi arises one takes, for example,
what is impermanent for permanent, or one believes that there is a self. Moha is not wrong
view, it is ignorance of realities. Moha conditions dit.t.hi, but the characteristic of moha is
different from the characteristic of dit.t.hi.
The two types of moha-mu¯la-citta are:
Arising with indifferent feeling, accompanied by doubt (Upekkh¯a-sahagatam. , vici-
kicch¯a-sampayuttam. ).
Arising with indifferent feeling, accompanied by restlessness (Upekkh¯a-sahagatam. ,
uddhacca-sampayuttam. ).
When we have the type of moha-mu¯la-citta which is accompanied by doubt, we doubt
about the Buddha, the Dhamma and the Sangha2. We may doubt whether the Buddha
really discovered the truth, whether he taught the Path leading to the end of defilements,
whether there are other people who can become enlightened as well. We may doubt about
past and future lives, about kamma and vip¯aka. There are many degrees of doubt. When
we start to develop insight we may have doubt about the reality of the present moment; we
may doubt whether it is n¯ama or ru¯pa. For example, when there is hearing, there is sound
as well, but there can be awareness of only one reality at a time, since only one object at a
time can be experienced by citta. We may doubt whether the reality which appears at the
present moment is the n¯ama which hears or the ru¯pa which is sound. N¯ama and ru¯pa arise
and fall away so rapidly and when a precise understanding of their different characteristics
has not been developed one does not know which reality appears at the present moment.
There will be doubt about the world of paramattha dhammas until pan~n~a¯ (wisdom) clearly
knows the characteristics of n¯ama and ru¯pa as they appear through the six doors.
The Atthas¯alin¯ı (Book II, Part IX, chapter III, 259) states about doubt:
Here doubt means exclusion from the cure (of knowledge). Or, one investigat-
ing the intrinsic nature by means of it suffers pain and fatigue (kicchati)−thus
it is doubt. It has shifting about as characteristic, mental wavering as function,
indecision or uncertainty in grasp as manifestation, unsystematic thought (un-
wise attention) as proximate cause, and it should be regarded as a danger to
attainment.
Doubt is different from wrong view (dit.t.hi). When there is dit.t.hi one clings, for exam-
ple, to the view that phenomena are permanent or that they are self. When vicikicch¯a,
doubt, arises, one wonders whether the mind is different from the body or not, whether
phenomena are permanent or impermanent. There is no other way to eradicate doubt but
the development of pan~n~a¯ which sees realities as they are. People who have doubts about
2 The Sangha is the order of monks, but it also means the “ariyan Sangha”, the noble persons who have
attained enlightenment.
48 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
the Buddha and his teachings may think that doubt can be cured by studying historical
facts. They want to find out more details about the time the Buddha lived and about the
places where he moved about; they want to know the exact time the texts were written
down. They cannot be cured of their doubt by studying historical events; this does not lead
to the goal of the Buddha’s teachings which is the eradication of defilements.
People in the Buddha’s time too were speculating about things which do not lead to the
goal of the teachings. They were wondering whether the world is finite or infinite, whether
the world is eternal or not eternal, whether the Tath¯agata (the Buddha) exists after his final
passing away or not. We read in the Lesser Discourse to M¯alun˙ ky¯a (Middle Length Sayings
II, no. 63) that M¯alun˙ ky¯aputta was displeased that the Buddha did not give explanations
with regard to speculative views. He wanted to question the Buddha on these views and
if the Buddha would not give him an explanation with regard to these views he wanted
to leave the order. He spoke to the Buddha about this matter and the Buddha asked him
whether he had ever said to M¯alun˙ ky¯aputta:
“Come you, M¯alun˙ ky¯aputta, fare the Brahma-faring3 under me and I will ex-
plain to you either that the world is eternal or that the world is not eternal. . . or
that the Tath¯agata is. . . is not after dying. . . both is and is not after dying. . .
neither is nor is not after dying?”
We read that M¯alun˙ ky¯aputta answered: “No, revered sir.” The Buddha also asked
him whether he (M¯alun˙ ky¯aputta) had said that he would “fare the Brahma-faring” under
the Lord if the Lord would give him an explanation with regard to these views and again
M¯alun˙ ky¯aputta answered: “No, revered sir.” The Buddha then compared his situation with
the case of a man who is pierced by a poisoned arrow and who will not draw out the arrow
until he knows whether the man who pierced him is a noble, a brahman, a merchant or
a worker; until he knows the name of the man and his clan; until he knows his outward
appearance; until he knows about the bow, the bowstring, the material of the shaft, the
kind of arrow. However, he will pass away before he knows all this. It is the same with the
person who only wants to “fare the Brahma-faring” under the Lord if explanations with
regard to speculative views are given to him. We read that the Buddha said:
The living of the Brahma-faring, M¯alun˙ ky¯aputta, could not be said to depend
on the view that the world is eternal. Nor could the living of the Brahma-faring,
M¯alun˙ ky¯aputta, be said to depend on the view that the world is not eternal.
Whether there is the view that the world is eternal or whether there is the view
that the world is not eternal, there is birth, there is ageing, there is dying, there
are grief, sorrow, suffering, lamentation and despair, the destruction of which I
lay down here and now. . .
Wherefore, M¯alun˙ ky¯aputta, understand as not explained what has not been
explained by me, and understand as explained what has been explained by
me. And what, M¯alun˙ ky¯aputta, has not been explained by me? That the
world is eternal. . . that the world is not eternal has not been explained by
me. . . And why, M¯alun˙ ky¯aputta, has this not been explained by me? It is
because it is not connected with the goal, it is not fundamental to the Brahma-
faring, and does not conduce to turning away from, nor to dispassion, stopping,
3 The Brahma-faring is the “holy life” of the monk who develops the eightfold Path in order to become an
arahat. In a wider sense: all those who develop the eightfold Path leading to enlightenment, laypeople
included, are “faring the Brahma-faring”, in P¯ali: brahma-cariya.
Chapter 7: Ignorance 49
calming, superknowledge, awakening, nor to nibb¯ana. Therefore it has not
been explained by me, M¯alun˙ ky¯aputta. And what has been explained by me,
M¯alun˙ ky¯aputta? “This is dukkha” has been explained by me, M¯alun˙ ky¯aputta.
“This is the arising of dukkha” has been explained by me. “This is the stopping
of dukkha” has been explained by me. “This is the course leading to the
stopping of dukkha” has been explained by me. And why, M¯alun˙ ky¯aputta,
has this been explained by me? It is because it is connected with the goal, it
is fundamental to the Brahma-faring, and conduces to turning away from, to
dispassion, stopping, calming, super-knowledge, awakening and nibb¯ana. . .
Doubt cannot be cured by speculating about matters which do not lead to the goal; it
can only be cured by being aware of the n¯ama and ru¯pa which present themselves now.
Even when there is doubt, this can be realized as only a type of n¯ama which arises because
of conditions and which is not self. Thus the reality of the present moment will be known
more clearly.
The second type of moha-mu¯la-citta is accompanied by indifferent feeling, arising with
restlessness (upekkh¯a-sahagatam. , uddhacca-sampayuttam. ). Uddhacca is translated as rest-
lessness or excitement. Uddhacca arises with all akusala cittas. When there is uddhacca
there is no sati (mindfulness) with the citta. Sati arises with each wholesome citta; it is
mindful, non-forgetful, of what is wholesome. There is sati not only in vipassan¯a, the devel-
opment of right understanding of realities, but also with each kind of kusala. There is sati
when one performs d¯ana (generosity), observes s¯ıla (good moral conduct) or applies oneself
to bh¯avan¯a, mental development, which comprises studying or teaching the Dhamma, the
development of samatha, tranquil meditation, and vipassan¯a. Sati in vipassan¯a is aware of
a characteristic of n¯ama or ru¯pa.
When there is uddhacca, the citta cannot be wholesome; one cannot at that moment ap-
ply oneself to d¯ana, s¯ıla or bh¯avan¯a. Uddhacca distracts the citta from kusala. Uddhacca is
restlessness with regard to kusala. Thus, uddhacca is different from what we in conventional
language mean by restlessness.
Uddhacca arises also with the moha-mu¯la-citta which is accompanied by doubt, since
it arises with each akusala citta. The second type of moha-mu¯la-citta, however, is called
uddhacca-sampayutta; it is different from the first type of moha-mu¯la-citta which is called
vicikicch¯a-sampayutta.
The second type of moha-mu¯la-citta, the moha-mu¯la-citta which is uddhacca-
sampayutta, accompanied by restlessness, arises countless times a day, but it is difficult to
know its characteristic. If one has not developed vipassan¯a one does not know this type
of citta. When we are forgetful of realities and “day-dreaming”, there is not necessarily
this type of citta. When we are “day-dreaming”there is not only the second type of
moha-mu¯la-citta (uddhacca-sampayutta), but also lobha-mu¯la-cittas (cittas rooted in
attachment) and dosa-mu¯la-cittas (cittas rooted in aversion) may arise.
Moha-mu¯la-citta can arise on account of what we experience through the five sense-doors
and through the mind-door. When, for example, we have heard sound, moha-mu¯la-citta
may arise. When the second type of moha-mu¯la-citta which is uddhacca-sampayutta arises,
there is ignorance and forgetfulness with regard to the object which is experienced at that
moment. We may not see the danger of this type of citta since it is accompanied by
indifferent feeling and thus less obvious. However, all kinds of akusala are dangerous.
50 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
Moha is dangerous, it is the root of all akusala. When we are ignorant of realities, we
accumulate a great deal of akusala. Moha conditions lobha; when we do not know realities
as they are we become absorbed in the things we experience through the senses. Moha
also conditions dosa; when we are ignorant of realities we have aversion towards unpleasant
experiences. Moha accompanies each akusala citta and it conditions all ten kinds of akusala
kamma patha (killing, stealing, lying etc.) which are accomplished through body, speech
and mind4. Only when there is mindfulness of the realities which appear through the six
doors, the wisdom is developed which can eradicate moha.
The sot¯apanna (the “streamwinner”, who has attained the first stage of enlightenment)
has eradicated the moha-mu¯la-citta which is accompanied by doubt, vicikicch¯a; he has no
more doubts about paramattha dhammas, he knows the “world in the ariyan sense”. He has
no doubts about the Buddha, the Dhamma and the Sangha. He has no doubts about the
Path leading to the end of defilements. The sot¯apanna, the sakad¯ag¯am¯ı (the “once-returner,
who has attained the second stage of enlightenment) and the an¯ag¯am¯ı (the “non-returner”,
who has attained the third stage of enlightenment) still have the type of moha-mu¯la-citta
accompanied by uddhacca, restlessness. Only the arahat has eradicated all akusala.
Ignorance is not seeing the true characteristics of realities, not knowing the four noble
Truths. Out of ignorance one does not see the first noble Truth, the Truth of dukkha: one
does not realize the n¯ama and ru¯pa which appear as impermanent and therefore one does
not see them as dukkha, unsatisfactory. One does not know the second noble Truth: the
origin of dukkha which is craving. Because of clinging to n¯ama and ru¯pa there is no end
to the cycle of birth and death and thus there is no end to dukkha. One does not know
the noble truth of the cessation of dukkha, which is nibb¯ana. One does not know the noble
Truth of the way leading to the cessation of dukkha, which is the eightfold Path. The
eightfold Path is developed through vipassan¯a.
We read in the Kindred Sayings (IV, Sal.¯ayatana-vagga, Kindred Sayings about Jam-
bukh¯adaka, paragraph 9) that Jambukh¯adaka asked S¯ariputta:
“ ‘Ignorance, ignorance!’ is the saying, friend S¯ariputta. Pray, what is igno-
rance?”
“Not understanding about dukkha, friend, not understanding about the arising
of dukkha, the ceasing of dukkha, the way leading to the ceasing of dukkha −
this, friend, is called ‘ignorance’.”
“But is there any way, friend, any approach to the abandoning of this igno-
rance?”
“There is indeed a way, friend, to such abandoning.”
“And what, friend, is that way, that approach to the abandoning of this igno-
rance?”
“It is this ariyan eightfold Path, friend. . . ”
The ariyan eightfold Path leads to the eradication of moha.
What is ignorance? Why should it be eradicated?
4 See chapter 5.
Chapter 7: Ignorance 51
How can it be eradicated?
When there is doubt (vicikicch¯a) about realities, is there moha as well?
On account of experiences through which doors can moha arise?
Chapter 8: Ahetuka Cittas (Rootless Cittas) 53
If we want to know ourselves we should not merely know the moments of akusala cittas or
kusala cittas but other moments as well. When we see something ugly, we dislike what we
see. At the moment of dislike there is akusala citta rooted in dosa (aversion). Before there is
dislike, however, there must be moments of merely seeing visible object. At these moments
there are not yet akusala cittas, but cittas which are without “root” (in P¯ali: hetu).
There are six cetasikas which are hetu or root. Three of these hetus are akusala; they
are: lobha (attachment), dosa (aversion) and moha (ignorance). Three hetus are sobhana
(beautiful); they are: alobha1 (greedlessness or generosity), adosa (non-hate or loving kind-
ness) and amoha (pan~n~a¯ or wisdom). The citta or cetasika which is accompanied by a hetu
is sahetuka (“sa” means “with”). For example, dosa-mu¯la-citta is sahetuka; moha and dosa
are the hetus which arise with dosa-mu¯la-citta.
Cittas without hetu are ahetuka cittas. There are many ahetuka cittas arising in a day.
Whenever we see, hear, smell, taste or experience tangible object through the bodysense,
there are ahetuka cittas before cittas with akusala hetus or with sobhana hetus arise. We
are inclined to pay attention only to the moments of like and dislike, but we should know
other moments as well; we should know ahetuka cittas.
There are altogether eighteen types of ahetuka citta. As I will explain, fifteen types
of ahetuka cittas are vip¯akacittas and three types are kiriyacittas (cittas which are “inop-
erative”, neither cause nor result). Seven of the fifteen ahetuka vip¯akacittas are akusala
vip¯akacittas (results of unwholesome deeds) and eight of them are kusala vip¯akacittas (re-
sults of wholesome deeds). When a pleasant or an unpleasant object impinges on the
eyesense, seeing-consciousness only experiences what appears through the eyes, there is no
like or dislike yet of the object. Seeing-consciousness is an ahetuka vip¯akacitta. Cittas
which like or dislike the object arise later on; these are sahetuka cittas (arising with hetus).
Seeing is not the same as thinking of what is seen. The citta which pays attention to the
shape and form of something and knows what it is, does not experience an object through
the eye-door but through the mind-door; it has a different characteristic. When one uses
the word “seeing” one usually means: paying attention to the shape and form of something
and knowing what it is. However, there must also be a kind of citta which merely sees
visible object, and this citta does not know anything else. What we see we can call “visible
object” or “colour”; what is meant is: what appears through the eyes. When there is hear-
ing, we can experience that hearing has a characteristic which is different from seeing; the
citta which hears experiences sound through the ears. Only in being aware of the different
characteristics of realities and investigating them over and over again, will we come to know
them as they are. People may think that there is a self who can see and hear at the same
time, but through which door can the self be experienced? The belief in a self is wrong
view.
Seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting and the experience of tangible object through the
bodysense do not arise without conditions; they are the results of kamma. Eyesense,
earsense, smelling-sense, tasting-sense and bodysense are ru¯pas which are produced by
kamma, they are the corporal result of kamma. Only the mental result of kamma is called
1 In P¯ali “a” is a negative.
54 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
vip¯aka, and thus only citta and cetasika (mental factors arising with the citta) can be
vip¯aka. Ru¯pa is not vip¯aka.
The Buddha taught that everything which arises must have conditions for its arising.
When we see something unpleasant there must be a condition for it: it is the result of
akusala kamma. Akusala vip¯aka cannot be the result of kusala kamma. Seeing something
pleasant is kusala vip¯aka; this can only be the result of kusala kamma. The vip¯akacitta
which experiences an unpleasant or pleasant object through one of the five senses is ahetuka.
At that moment there are no akusala hetus (unwholesome roots) or sobhana hetus (beautiful
roots) arising with the citta.
Seeing-consciousness, hearing-consciousness and the other sense-cognitions which expe-
rience a pleasant object or an unpleasant object through the corresponding sense-doors are
ahetuka vip¯akacittas. There are two kinds of ahetuka vip¯aka experiencing an object through
each of the five sense-doors: one is akusala vip¯aka and one is kusala vip¯aka. Thus there are
five pairs of ahetuka vip¯akacittas which arise depending on the five sense-doors. There are
also other kinds of ahetuka vip¯akacitta which will be dealt with later on. The ten ahetuka
vip¯akacittas which are the five pairs are called in P¯ali: dvi-pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. a (two times five
vin~n~a¯n. a2). Summing them up they are:
Seeing-consciousness (cakkhu-vin~n~a¯n. a, “cakkhu” means eye): akusala vip¯aka, accom-
panied by indifferent feeling (upekkh¯a): kusala vip¯aka, accompanied by indifferent
feeling.
Hearing-consciousness (sota-vin~n~a¯n. a, “sota” means ear): akusala vip¯aka, accompanied
by indifferent feeling: kusala vip¯aka, accompanied by indifferent feeling.
Smelling-consciousness (gh¯ana-vin~n~a¯n. a, “gh¯ana” means nose): akusala vip¯aka, accom-
panied by indifferent feeling: kusala vip¯aka, accompanied by indifferent feeling.
Tasting-consciousness (jivh¯a-vin~n~a¯n. a, “jivh¯a” means tongue): akusala vip¯aka, accom-
panied by indifferent feeling: kusala vip¯aka, accompanied by indifferent feeling.
Body-consciousness (k¯aya-vin~n~a¯n. a, “k¯aya” means body): akusala vip¯aka, accompanied
by painful bodily feeling (dukkha-vedan¯a): kusala vip¯aka, accompanied by pleasant
bodily feeling (sukha-vedan¯a).
The ahetuka vip¯akacittas which see, hear, smell and taste are invariably accompanied by
indifferent feeling, upekkh¯a, no matter whether they are akusala vip¯aka or kusala vip¯aka.
The citta which dislikes the object may arise afterwards. This citta is “sahetuka”, with hetus
(roots), and it is accompanied by unpleasant feeling. Or the citta which likes the object
may arise; this citta which is also “sahetuka”, with roots, may be accompanied by pleasant
feeling or by indifferent feeling. We are inclined to think that the dvi-pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. as, such
as seeing or hearing, can occur at the same time as like or dislike of the object, but this is
not so. Different cittas arise at different moments and the feelings which accompany the
cittas are different too; these realities arise each because of their own conditions and they
are non-self.
The feeling arising with body-consciousness which experiences tangible object through
the bodysense cannot be indifferent feeling; it arises either with painful bodily feeling or
with pleasant bodily feeling. When an unpleasant tangible object is experienced the feel-
ing which accompanies the ahetuka vip¯akacitta is painful bodily feeling, dukkha-vedan¯a.
2 “dvi” is “two” and “pan~ca” is “five”.
Chapter 8: Ahetuka Cittas (Rootless Cittas) 55
When a pleasant tangible object is experienced the feeling which accompanies the ahetuka
vip¯akacitta is pleasant bodily feeling, sukha-vedan¯a. Painful bodily feeling and pleasant
bodily feeling are n¯ama which can arise only with the vip¯akacitta which experiences an
object through the bodysense. Bodily feeling is conditioned by impact on the bodysense.
Both bodily feeling and mental feeling are n¯ama, but they arise because of different condi-
tions and at different moments. For example, we may have pleasant bodily feeling when we
are in comfortable surroundings, but in spite of that, we may still be worried and also have
moments of “mental” unpleasant feeling which accompanies dosa-mu¯la-citta; these feelings
arise at different moments and because of different conditions. Pleasant bodily feeling is the
result of kusala kamma. The mental unpleasant feeling which arises when we are unhappy
is conditioned by our accumulation of dosa (aversion); it is akusala. The whole day there
are tangible objects experienced through the bodysense, which is a kind of ru¯pa. Tangible
object can be experienced all over the body, also inside the body, and thus the door of the
bodysense can be anywhere in the body. Whenever we touch hard or soft objects, when
cold or heat contacts the body, and when we move, bend or stretch, there are unpleasant
or pleasant objects experienced through the bodysense. One may wonder whether at each
moment there is a bodily impression, pleasant bodily feeling or painful bodily feeling arises.
One may notice the coarse bodily feelings, but not the subtle bodily feelings. For example,
when something is a little too hard, too cold or too hot, there is painful bodily feeling,
dukkha-vedan¯a, arising with the ahetuka vip¯akacitta which experiences the object through
the bodysense. One may not notice the subtle bodily feelings if one has not learned to be
aware of realities.
The arahat, when he experiences an unpleasant object or a pleasant object through the
bodysense, has painful bodily feeling or pleasant bodily feeling arising with the ahetuka
vip¯akacitta which is body-consciousness, but he has no akusala cittas or kusala cittas after
the vipakacitta; instead he has kiriyacittas (“inoperative cittas”3). We read in the Kindred
Sayings (IV, Sal.¯ayatana-vagga, Kindred Sayings about Feeling, Book I, paragraph 6) that
the Buddha said to the monks:
“The untaught manyfolk, monks, feels feeling that is pleasant, feeling that is
painful and feeling that is neutral. The well-taught ariyan disciple, monks, feels
the same three feelings.
Now herein, monks, what is the distinction, what is the specific feature, what is
the difference between the well-taught ariyan disciple and the untaught many-
folk?”
“For us, lord, things are rooted in the Exalted One ”
“ The untaught manyfolk, monks, being touched by feeling that is painful, weeps
and wails, cries aloud, knocks the breast, falls into utter bewilderment. For he
feels a twofold feeling, bodily and mental. . . Touched by that painful feeling
he feels repugnance for it. Feeling that repugnance for the painful feeling, the
lurking tendency to repugnance fastens on him. Touched by the painful feeling,
he delights in pleasant feeling. Why so? The untaught manyfolk, monks, knows
of no refuge from painful feeling save sensual pleasure. Delighting in that sensual
pleasure, the lurking tendency to sensual pleasure fastens on him ”
3 The arahat does not perform kusala kamma or akusala kamma, deeds which produce results. For him
there is no kamma which could produce rebirth.
56 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
Is this not real life? Touched by painful feeling, we long for pleasant feeling; we believe
that it is real happiness. We do not see life as it really is: dukkha. We wish to ignore
sickness, old age and death, “lamentation and despair”, and the impermanence of all con-
ditioned realities. We expect happiness in life and when we have to suffer we think that
pleasant feeling might cure us of suffering and we cling to it. In the Buddha’s teaching of
the “Dependent Origination”4 it is said that feeling conditions craving. Not only pleasant
feeling and indifferent feeling condition craving, but also unpleasant feeling conditions crav-
ing, since one wishes to be liberated from unpleasant feeling (Visuddhimagga, XVII, 238).
Furthermore, we read in the sutta:
. . . If he feels feeling that is pleasant, he feels it as one in bondage. If he feels
feeling that is painful, he feels it as one in bondage. If he feels feeling that is
neutral, he feels it as one in bondage. This untaught manyfolk, monks, is called
‘in bondage to birth, death, sorrow and grief, woe, lamentation and despair.
He is in bondage to dukkha’. So I declare.
But, monks, the well-taught ariyan disciple, when touched by painful feeling,
weeps not, wails not, cries not aloud, knocks not the breast, falls not into utter
bewilderment. He feels but one feeling, the bodily, not the mental. . . 5 If he
feels a feeling that is pleasant, he feels it as one freed from bondage. If he feels
a feeling that is painful, he feels it as one that is freed from bondage. If he feels
a neutral feeling, he feels it as one that is freed from bondage. This well-taught
ariyan disciple, monks, is called ‘freed from the bondage of birth, old age, from
sorrow and grief, from woe, lamentation and despair, freed from the bondage
of dukkha.’ So I declare. . . ”
Feelings arise because of conditions and fall away again. They are impermanent and they
should not be taken for self. We read in the Kindred Sayings (Sa.l¯ayatana-vagga, Kindred
Sayings on Sense, Third Fifty, paragraph 130, H¯aliddaka):
Once the venerable Kacc¯ana the Great was staying among the folk of Avanti, at
Osprey’s Haunt, on a sheer mountain crag. Then the housefather H¯aliddak¯ani
came to the venerable Kaccana the Great. Seated at one side he said this:
“ It has been said by the Exalted One, sir, ‘Owing to diversity in elements arises
diversity of contact. Owing to diversity of contact arises diversity of feeling.’
Pray, sir, how far is this so?”
“Herein, housefather, after having seen with the eye a pleasant object, a monk
comes to know as such6 eye-consciousness that is a pleasant experience. Owing
to contact that is pleasant to experience arises happy feeling.
After having seen with the eye an unpleasant object, a monk comes to know
as such eye-consciousness that is an unpleasant experience. Owing to contact
that is unpleasant to experience arises unpleasant feeling.
After having seen with the eye an object that is of indifferent effect, a monk
comes to know as such eye-consciousness that experiences an object which is
4 In P¯ali: Pat.iccasamupp¯ada. The teaching of the conditionality of all n¯amas and ru¯pas of our life.
5 He feels bodily pain, not mental pain.
6 The P.T.S. translation has: at the thought “This is such and such”, comes to know eye-consciousness
that is a pleasant experience.
Chapter 8: Ahetuka Cittas (Rootless Cittas) 57
of indifferent effect. Owing to contact that is indifferent to experience arises
feeling that is indifferent.
So also, housefather, after having heard a sound with the ear, smelt a scent with
the nose, tasted a savour with the tongue, experienced tangible object with the
body, cognized with the mind a mental object that is pleasant. . . Owing to
contact that is pleasant to experience arises happy feeling. But after having
cognized a mental object which is unpleasant. . . owing to contact that is un-
pleasant to experience arises unhappy feeling. Again, after having cognized
with the mind a mental object that is indifferent in effect, he comes to know as
such mind-consciousness that experiences an object which is of indifferent ef-
fect. Owing to contact that is indifferent arises feeling that is indifferent. Thus,
housefather, owing to diversity in elements arises diversity of contact. Owing
to diversity of contact arises diversity of feeling.”
If we are mindful of realities which appear through the different doorways we will come
to know from direct experience different characteristics of n¯amas and ru¯pas; we will know
different types of citta and different kinds of feeling. We will understand that all these
realities are only conditioned elements and not self. We will know from direct experience
that there are not only cittas accompanied by lobha, dosa and moha, and cittas accompanied
by “beautiful” roots, but also cittas which are ahetuka, cittas without roots. One may not
find it useful and interesting to know more about seeing, hearing and the other realities
appearing through the different doorways. However, in order to see things as they are,
it is essential to know that the citta which, for example hears sound, has a characteristic
which is different from the citta which likes or dislikes the sound and that these cittas arise
because of different conditions. What the Buddha taught can be proved by being mindful
of realities.
Which are the six hetus (roots)?
When there is seeing it may be kusala vip¯aka or akusala vip¯aka. Are there hetus
accompanying seeing-consciousness?
Chapter 9: Ahetuka Cittas which are Unknown in Daily Life 59
There are eighteen types of ahetuka citta, cittas arising without hetu (root). Fifteen types of
ahetuka cittas are vip¯aka. As we have seen, ten of these fifteen cittas are dvi-pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. as
(five pairs). They are the pairs of:
seeing-consciousness
hearing-consciousness
smelling-consciousness
tasting-consciousness
body-consciousness
Each of these is a pair of which one is akusala vip¯aka and one kusala vip¯aka.
Seeing-consciousness is the result of kamma. When it is the result of an ill deed, seeing-
consciousness is akusala vip¯akacitta which experiences an unpleasant object; when it is the
result of a good deed, it is kusala vip¯akacitta which experiences a pleasant object. The
function of seeing-consciousness is experiencing visible object.
Kamma which produces the vip¯akacitta which is seeing-consciousness does not only
produce that type of vip¯akacitta, it also produces two other types of vip¯akacitta which suc-
ceed seeing-consciousness. Seeing-consciousness is succeeded by another vip¯akacitta which
receives the object. This citta, which still has the same object as seeing-consciousness, is
called the receiving-consciousness, sampat.icchana-citta. Visible object which is experienced
by seeing-consciousness does not fall away when seeing-consciousness falls away, because it
is ru¯pa; ru¯pa does not fall away as rapidly as n¯ama. When an object is experienced through
one of the six doors, there is not merely one citta experiencing that object, but there is a
series or process of cittas succeeding one another, which share the same object.
If the seeing-consciousness is akusala vip¯aka, the sampat.icchana-citta (receiving-
consciousness) is also akusala vip¯aka; if the seeing-consciousness is kusala vip¯aka, the
sampat.icchana-citta is also kusala vip¯aka. Thus, there are two types of sampat.icchana-
citta: one is akusala vip¯aka and one is kusala vip¯aka. Sampat.icchana-citta is ahetuka
vip¯aka; there are no akusala hetus (unwholesome roots) or sobhana hetus (beautiful
roots) arising with this type of citta. Sampat.icchana-citta succeeds seeing-consciousness;
seeing-consciousness is a condition for the arising of sampat.icchana-citta. Likewise,
when there is hearing-consciousness which hears sound, sampat.icchana-citta succeeds
hearing-consciousness. It is the same with regard to the other sense-doors.
Sampat.icchana-citta always arises with upekkh¯a (indifferent feeling), no matter whether
the sampat.icchana-citta is akusala vip¯aka or kusala vip¯aka.
After the sampat.icchana-citta has arisen and fallen away, the process of cittas experi-
encing an object is not yet over. The sampat.icchana-citta is succeeded by another ahetuka
vip¯akacitta which is still the result of kamma. This type of citta is called investigating-
consciousness, sant¯ıran. a-citta. Sant¯ıran. a-citta investigates or considers the object which
was experienced by one of the dvi-pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. as (“the five pairs”), and which was “re-
ceived” by the sampat.icchana-citta. Sant¯ıran. a-citta succeeds sampat.icchana-citta in a pro-
cess of cittas experiencing an object through one of the five sense-doors; sampat.icchana-citta
is a condition for the arising of sant¯ıran. a-citta. When seeing has arisen, sampat.icchana-citta
succeeds the seeing-consciousness, and sant¯ıran. a-citta succeeds the sampat.icchana-citta in
60 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
the process of cittas which experience visible object. It is the same with the sant¯ıran. a-
citta which arises in the process of cittas experiencing an object through one of the other
sense-doors; it succeeds the sampat.icchana-citta. We cannot choose whether sant¯ıran. a-citta
should arise or not; cittas arise because of conditions, they are beyond control.
Sant¯ıran. a-citta is also an ahetuka vip¯akacitta. When the object is unpleasant, the
sant¯ıran. a-citta is akusala vip¯aka and it is accompanied by upekkh¯a (indifferent feeling). As
regards sant¯ıran. a-citta which is kusala vip¯aka, there are two kinds. When the object is pleas-
ant but not extraordinarily pleasant, sant¯ıran. a-citta is accompanied by upekkh¯a. When the
object is extraordinarily pleasant, the sant¯ıran. a-citta is accompanied by somanassa, pleas-
ant feeling. Thus, there are three kinds of sant¯ıran. a-citta in all. It depends on conditions
which kind of sant¯ıran. a-citta arises.
Thus, there are fifteen types of ahetuka citta which are vip¯aka. Summarising them, they
are:
10 cittas which are dvi-pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. a (five pairs)
1 sampat.icchana-citta (receiving-consciousness) which is akusala vip¯aka
1 sampat.icchana-citta which is kusala vip¯aka
1 sant¯ıran. a-citta (investigating-consciousness) which is akusala vip¯aka, accompanied
by upekkh¯a (indifferent feeling)
1 sant¯ıran. a-citta which is kusala vip¯aka, accompanied by upekkh¯a
1 sant¯ıran. a-citta which is kusala vip¯aka, accompanied by somanassa (pleasant feeling)
Seven types of the ahetuka vipakacittas are akusala vip¯aka and eight types are kusala
vip¯aka, since there are two types of sant¯ıran. a-citta which are kusala vip¯aka.
There are altogether eighteen ahetuka cittas. Of these eighteen ahetuka cittas fifteen
are vip¯akacittas and three are kiriyacittas. Kiriyacittas are different from akusala cittas
and kusala cittas and from vip¯akacittas. Akusala cittas and kusala cittas are cittas which
are cause; they can motivate ill deeds and good deeds which are capable of producing their
appropriate results. Vip¯akacittas are cittas which are the result of akusala kamma and
kusala kamma. Kiriyacittas are cittas which are neither cause nor result.
One type of ahetuka kiriyacitta is the five-door-adverting-consciousness, in Pali:
pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta1. When an object impinges on one of the five senses,
there has to be a citta which adverts or turns towards the object through that
sense-door. When visible object impinges on the eyesense, there has to be the
adverting-consciousness which adverts to visible object through the eye-door, the
eye-door-adverting-consciousness (cakkhu-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta; “cakkhu” means “eye”),
before there can be seeing-consciousness (cakkhu-vin~n~a¯n. a). When sound impinges on
the earsense, the ear-door-adverting-consciousness ( sota-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta; “sota”
means “ear”) has to advert to the sound through the ear-door before there can be
hearing-consciousness (sota-vin~n~a¯n. a). The pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta merely turns towards
the object which impinges on one of the five senses. It turns, for example, towards the
visible object or sound which impinges on the corresponding sense-organ, but it does not
see or hear. The pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta is an ahetuka kiriyacitta, it arises without hetu
(root); there is not yet like or dislike when this citta arises. The pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta
1 “Pan~ca” is five, “dv¯ara” is door, “¯avajjana” is adverting or turning towards.
Chapter 9: Ahetuka Cittas which are Unknown in Daily Life 61
is succeeded by one of the dvi-pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. as, which is vip¯akacitta. Each citta which
arises in the process of cittas experiencing an object has its own function.
The cittas which experience an object through one of the sense-doors do not know
anything else but that object. When one, for example, is reading, the citta which sees
experiences only visible object and it does not know the meaning of the letters. After the
eye-door process has been completed visible object is experienced through the mind-door
and then there can be other mind-door processes of cittas which know the meaning of
what has been written and which think about it. Thus, there are processes of cittas which
experience an object through one of the senses and processes of cittas which experience an
object through the mind-door.
Another type of ahetuka kiriyacitta is the mind-door-adverting-consciousness, in P¯ali:
mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana citta. This type of citta arises both in the sense-door process and in
the mind-door process but it performs two different functions according as it arises in each
of those two kinds of processes, as we will see.
When an object contacts one of the sense-doors, the pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta (five-
sense-door-adverting consciousness) turns towards the object, one of the dvi-pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. as
experiences it, sampat.icchana-citta receives the object and sant¯ıran. a-citta investigates it.
The process of cittas experiencing the object through that sense-door is, however, not yet
over. The sant¯ıran. a-citta is succeeded by an ahetuka kiriyacitta which experiences the object
through that sense-door and “determines” that object, the determining-consciousness, in
P¯ali: votthapana-citta2. It is actually the same type of citta as the mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta
(mind-door-adverting-consciousness, the first citta of the mind-door process), but when it
arises in a sense-door process it can be called votthapana-citta, since it performs the function
of votthapana, determining the object, in the sense-door process. The votthapana-citta,
after it has determined the object, is followed by akusala cittas or by kusala cittas3. The
votthapana-citta itself is neither akusala citta nor kusala citta; it is kiriyacitta. This citta
which determines the object is anatt¯a, non-self. There is no self who can determine whether
there will be akusala cittas or kusala cittas. The akusala cittas or kusala cittas which succeed
the votthapana-citta are non-self either; it depends on one’s accumulations of akusala and
kusala whether the votthapana-citta will be succeeded by akusala cittas or by kusala cittas.
The cittas arising in a sense-door process which experience a sense object such as colour
or sound, arise and fall away, succeeding one another. When the sense-door process of cittas
is finished, the sense object experienced by those cittas has also fallen away. Cittas arise
and fall away extremely rapidly and very shortly after the sense-door process is finished, a
mind-door process of cittas starts, which experience the sense object which has just fallen
away. Although it has fallen away, it can be object of cittas arising in a mind-door process.
The mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta is the first citta of the mind-door process, it adverts through
the mind-door to the object which has just fallen away. In the sense-door process the
pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta adverts to the object which has not fallen away yet. For example,
it adverts to visible object or sound which is still impinging on the appropriate sense-
door. The mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta which arises in the mind-door process, however, can
experience an object which has fallen away already. It adverts, for example, to visible object
which has been experienced through the eye-door or to sound which has been experienced
2 Votthapana can be translated as “fixing”, “establishing” or “determining”.
3 Except in the case of arahats who have neither kusala cittas nor akusala cittas, but kiriyacittas instead.
62 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
through the ear-door. After the mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta has adverted to the object it
is succeeded by either kusala cittas or akusala cittas (in the case of non-arahats), which
experience that same object. The mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta is neither akusala citta nor
kusala citta; it is kiriyacitta. It depends on one’s accumulations by which types of cittas
the mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta is succeeded: by akusala cittas or by kusala cittas. All cittas
arise because of their own conditions; they are anatt¯a, not a person, not self.
The ahetuka kiriyacitta which is classified as mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta can perform two
functions: in the mind-door process it performs the function of ¯avajjana or adverting, it
adverts to the object through the mind-door; in the sense-door process this citta performs
the function of votthapana or determining the object. The citta which determines the object
in the sense-door process can be called, after its function, the votthapana-citta4.
When sound impinges on the earsense it can be experienced by cittas arising in the
ear-door process and after that it is experienced by cittas arising in a mind-door process.
Processes of cittas which experience an object through one of the five senses and through
the mind-door succeed one another time and again.
How can there be akusala cittas or kusala cittas in the process of cittas which experi-
ence an object through one of the sense-doors, when one does not even know yet what is
experienced? There can be akusala cittas or kusala cittas before one knows what it is. One
can compare this situation with the case of a child who likes a brightly coloured object such
as a balloon before it knows that the object is a balloon. We can have like or dislike of an
object before we know what it is.
Another ahetuka kiriyacitta is the hasitupp¯ada-citta, the smile-producing-consciousness
of the arahat. Only arahats have this type of citta. When they smile the hasitupp¯ada-
citta may arise at that moment. Smiling can be motivated by different types of cittas.
When people who are not arahats smile, it may be motivated by lobha or by kusala citta.
Arahats do not have any defilements; they do not have akusala cittas. Neither do they
have kusala cittas; they do not accumulate any more kamma. Instead of kusala cittas they
have kiriyacittas accompanied by sobhana (beautiful) roots, sobhana kiriyacittas. Arahats
do not laugh aloud, because they have no accumulations for laughing; they only smile.
When they smile the smiling may be motivated by sobhana kiriyacitta or by the ahetuka
kiriyacitta which is called hasitupp¯ada-citta.
Thus, of the eighteen ahetuka cittas, fifteen are ahetuka vip¯akacittas and three are
ahetuka kiriyacittas. The three ahetuka kiriyacittas are:
1 Pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta ( five-door-adverting-consciousness).
2 Mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta ( mind-door-adverting-consciousness), which performs the
function of adverting to the object through the mind-door when it arises in the mind-
door process and which performs the function of votthapana (determining the object)
when it arises in the sense-door process.
3 Hasitupp¯ada-citta ( smile-producing-consciousness).
Those who are not arahats can have only seventeen of the eighteen types of ahetuka
citta. These seventeen types of ahetuka citta arise in our daily life. When an object
4 Among the 89 types of citta there is no special type of citta which is votthapana-citta; the mano-
dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta serves the function of votthapana.
Chapter 9: Ahetuka Cittas which are Unknown in Daily Life 63
impinges on one of the five senses, the pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta (the five-door-adverting-
consciousness) turns towards the object through that sense-door. This citta is followed
by pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. a (one of the ten cittas which are the “five pairs”) which experiences the
object, by sampat.icchana-citta which receives it, by sant¯ıran. a-citta which investigates it and
by votthapana-citta which determines the object and then by akusala cittas or kusala cittas.
When the cittas of the sense-door process have fallen away the object is experienced through
the mind-door. The mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta adverts to the object through the mind-door
and is then followed by akusala cittas or kusala cittas. There is “unwise attention” (ayoniso
manasik¯ara) to the object which is experienced if akusala cittas arise, and there is “wise
attention” (yoniso manasik¯ara) to the object if kusala cittas arise. For example, when
we see insects there may be dislike and then there are dosa-mu¯la-cittas, cittas rooted in
aversion. Thus there is unwise attention. The dosa may be so strong that one wants to
kill the insects; then there is akusala kamma. If one realizes that killing is akusala and one
abstains from killing, there are kusala cittas and thus there is wise attention. If one studies
the Dhamma and develops vipassan¯a, insight, it is a condition for wise attention to arise
more often. When we are mindful of the n¯ama or ru¯pa which appears through one of the
sense-doors or through the mind-door, there is wise attention at that moment.
When there are two people in the same situation, one person may have unwise attention
and the other may have wise attention, depending on their accumulations. We read in the
Kindred Sayings (IV, Sal.¯ayatana-vagga, Kindred Sayings on Sense, Fourth Fifty, chapter V,
paragraph 202, Lustful) about the monk, who, after he has experienced an object through
one of the six doors, has unwise attention, and about the monk who has wise attention. We
read that Mah¯a-Moggall¯ana said to the monks:
Friends, I will teach you the way of lusting and also of not lusting. . .
And how, friends, is one lustful?
Herein, friends, a monk, seeing an object with the eye, feels attachment for
objects that charm, feels aversion from objects that displease, abides without
having established mindfulness of the body, and his thoughts are mean. He
realizes not, in its true nature, that emancipation of heart, that emancipation
of wisdom, wherein those evil, unprofitable states that have arisen cease without
remainder.
This monk, friends, is called “lustful after objects cognizable by the eye, nose,
tongue. . . objects cognizable by the mind.” When a monk so abides, friends, if
M¯ara5 come upon him by way of the eye, M¯ara gets an opportunity. If M¯ara
come upon him by way of the tongue by way of the mind, M¯ara gets access,
gets opportunity. . .
So dwelling, friends, objects overcome a monk, a monk overcomes not objects.
Sounds overcome a monk, a monk overcomes not sounds. Scents, savours, tan-
gibles and mind-states overcome a monk, a monk overcomes not sounds, scents,
savours, tangibles and mind-states. This monk, friends, is called “conquered
by objects, sounds, scents, savours, tangibles and mind-states, not conqueror of
them.” Evil, unprofitable states, passion-fraught, leading to rebirth overcome
him, states unhappy, whose fruit is pain, whose future is rebirth, decay and
death. Thus, friends, one is lustful.
5 The “Evil One”. M¯ara stands for everything which is unwholesome and dukkha, suffering.
64 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
And how, friends, is one free from lust?
Herein, friends, a monk, seeing an object with the eye, is not attached to objects
that charm, nor averse from objects that displease. . .
Tasting a savour with the tongue. . . with mind cognizing a mind-state, he is
not attached to mind-states that charm, nor is he averse from mind-states
that displease, but dwells, having established mindfulness of the body and his
thought is boundless. So that he realizes in its true nature that emancipation
of heart, that emancipation of wisdom, wherein those evil, unprofitable states
that have arisen come to cease without remainder.
This monk, friends, is called “not lustful after objects cognizable by the
eye. . . not lustful after mind-states cognizable by the mind.” Thus dwelling,
friends, if M¯ara come upon him by way of the eye, of the tongue, of the
mind. . . M¯ara gets no access, gets no opportunity. . .
Moreover, friends, so dwelling a monk conquers objects, objects do not conquer
him. He conquers sounds, scents, savours, tangibles, mind-states. They do not
conquer him. Such a monk, friends, is called, “conqueror of objects, sounds,
scents, savours, tangibles and mind-states.” He is conqueror, not conquered. He
conquers those evil, unprofitable states, passion-fraught, inciting to lust, leading
to rebirth, states unhappy, whose fruit is pain, rebirth, decay and death. Thus,
friends, is one free from lust.
What is kiriyacitta?
When we smile, is it always motivated by lobha, attachment?
Can akusala cittas and kusala cittas arise in a sense-door process?
Chapter 10: The First Citta in Life 65
Time and again there are cittas arising which experience different objects through the senses
and through the mind-door. There are seeing or hearing, there are cittas with attachment
to what is seen or heard. These cittas arise because of different conditions. Seeing and the
citta with attachment to visible object do not arise at the same time, they are different and
they perform different functions. We will understand more about cittas if we know in what
order they arise and which function they perform. Each citta has its own function (in P¯ali:
kicca). There are fourteen functions of citta in all.
The citta arising at the first moment of life must also have a function. What is birth,
and what is it actually that is born? We speak about the birth of a child, but in fact, there
are only n¯ama and ru¯pa which are born. The word “birth” is a conventional term. We
should consider what birth really is. N¯ama and ru¯pa arise and fall away all the time and
thus there is birth and death of n¯ama and ru¯pa all the time. In order to understand what
causes birth we should know what conditions the n¯ama and ru¯pa which arise at the first
moment of a new lifespan.
What arises first at the beginning of our life, n¯ama or ru¯pa? At any moment of our
life there have to be both n¯ama and ru¯pa. In the planes of existence where there are five
khandhas (four n¯amakkhandhas and one ru¯pakkhandha), n¯ama cannot arise without ru¯pa;
citta cannot arise without the body1. What is true for any moment of our life is also true for
the first moment of our life. At the first moment of our life n¯ama and ru¯pa have to arise at
the same time. The citta which arises at that moment is called the rebirth-consciousness or
pat. isandhi-citta2. Since there isn’t any citta which arises without conditions, the pat.isandhi-
citta must also have conditions. The pat.isandhi-citta is the first citta of a new life and thus
its cause can only be in the past. One may have doubts about past lives, but how can people
be so different if there were no past lives? We can see that people are born with different
accumulations. Can we explain the character of a child only by the parents? What we mean
by “character” is actually n¯ama. Could parents transfer to another being n¯ama which falls
away as soon as it has arisen? There must be other factors which are the condition for
a child’s character. Cittas which arise and fall away succeed one another and thus each
citta conditions the next one. The last citta of the previous life (dying-consciousness) is
succeeded by the first citta of this life. That is why tendencies one had in the past can
continue by way of accumulation from one citta to the next one and from past lives to the
present life. Since people accumulated different tendencies in past lives, they are born with
different tendencies and inclinations.
We do not only see that people are born with different characters, we also see that
they are born in different surroundings; some people are born in pleasant surroundings and
some people are born in miserable surroundings. In order to understand this we should
not cling to conventional terms such as “person” or “surroundings”. If we think in terms
of paramattha dhammas we will see that being in pleasant or miserable surroundings is
nothing else but the receiving of pleasant or unpleasant objects through eyes, ears, nose,
1 There are different planes of existence where one can be born and not in all of them are both n¯ama and
ru¯pa. In some planes there is only n¯ama and in one plane there is only ru¯pa.
2 Pat.isandhi means relinking, it “links” the previous life to the present life. It is usually translated as
rebirth-consciousness, but, since there is no person who is reborn, birth-consciousness would be more
correct.
66 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
tongue and bodysense. It is kusala vip¯aka or akusala vip¯aka. Vip¯aka (result) does not arise
without conditions; it is caused by good or bad deeds, by kamma. Different people perform
different kamma and each deed brings its own result. The fact that people are born in
different surroundings must have a condition: it is conditioned by kamma performed in a
previous life. Kamma causes one to be born. The pat.isandhi-citta is the result of kamma;
it is vip¯aka.
In this world we see different births of people and of animals. When we compare the
life of an animal with the life of a human being, we notice that being born an animal is
sorrowful; it is akusala vip¯aka. Being born a human being is kusala vip¯aka, even if one
is born poor or if one has to experience many unpleasant things during one’s life. The
pat.isandhi-cittas of different people are of many different degrees of kusala vip¯aka because
the kusala kammas which produced them were of different degrees.
At the first moment of our life kamma produces the pat.isandhi-citta and then ru¯pa has
to arise at the same time. One may wonder what the cause is of the ru¯pa arising at the
first moment of life. We see that people are born with different bodily features: some are
strong, some are weak, some are handicapped from birth. This must have a cause. It is
kamma which causes both n¯ama and ru¯pa to be born.
Could the ru¯pa we call “dead matter” and the ru¯pa we call “plant” be produced by
kamma? A plant is not “born” because a plant cannot perform good and bad deeds; it
has no kamma that could cause its birth. Temperature is the condition for the life of a
plant. As regards human beings, kamma produces ru¯pa at the moment the pat.isandhi-citta
arises. There couldn’t be life if kamma did not produce ru¯pa from the first moment of life.
There are four factors which produce different ru¯pas of the body. As we have seen kamma
is one factor. The other factors are: citta, temperature and nutrition. Kamma produces
ru¯pa at the moment the pat.isandhi-citta arises and after that the other factors also start
to produce ru¯pas. Temperature produces ru¯pa; if there were not the right temperature the
new life could not develop. Temperature produces ru¯pa throughout our life. As soon as
the pat.isandhi-citta has fallen away, at the moment the next citta arises, citta too starts to
produce ru¯pa, and it produces ru¯pa throughout our life. Furthermore, nutrition produces
ru¯pa so that the body can grow. It produces ru¯pa throughout our life. Thus we see that
there are four factors which produce ru¯pas of the body.
As regards ru¯pas which are not of the body but ru¯pas outside, such as ru¯pas in dead
matter or in plants, these are produced solely by temperature.
Kamma produces ru¯pa not only at the first moment of life but throughout our life.
Kamma does not only produce the vip¯akacittas which experience pleasant and unpleasant
objects through the sense-doors, it also produces throughout our life the ru¯pas which can
function as the sense-doors through which these objects are received. Could we for instance
create our own eyesense? It could not be produced by temperature, only by kamma. Trans-
plantation of the eye cannot be successful unless kamma produces eyesense in the body of
the receiver.
Birth by way of the mother’s womb is not the only way of birth. We learn from the
teachings that there can be birth in four different ways: by way of the womb, by way of
eggs, by way of moisture and by way of spontaneous birth.
People would like to know when life starts in the mother’s womb. We cannot determine
the exact moment. Life starts at the moment the pat.isandhi-citta arises together with the
Chapter 10: The First Citta in Life 67
ru¯pa which is at the same time produced by kamma. A lifespan ends when the last citta,
the dying-consciousness (cuti-citta) falls away. So long as the dying-consciousness has not
fallen away there is still life. One cannot know the moment the dying-consciousness of
someone else arises and falls away unless one has cultivated the knowledge of the cittas of
other people. A Buddha or someone else who has cultivated this special kind of knowledge
could know the exact moment of someone’s death.
We may wonder which kamma in our life will produce the pat.isandhi-citta of the next
life. Some people believe that by doing many good deeds in this life they can be assured
of a happy rebirth. But the kamma which produces rebirth will not necessarily be from
this life. We have in past lives as well as in this life performed both akusala kamma and
kusala kamma and these kammas are of different degrees. Some kammas produce results
in the same life in which they have been performed, some produce result in the form of
rebirth-consciousness of a future life, or they produce result in the course of a future life.
We have performed deeds in past lives which could produce rebirth but which have not yet
come to fruition. We cannot know which kamma will produce our next rebirth.
If akusala kamma produces the rebirth of the next life there will be an unhappy rebirth.
In that case the cittas which arise shortly before the dying-consciousness are akusala cittas
and they experience an unpleasant object. The pat.isandhi-citta of the next life which
succeeds the cuti-citta (the dying-consciousness), experiences that same unpleasant object.
If kusala kamma produces the rebirth there will be a happy rebirth. In that case kusala cittas
arise shortly before the cuti-citta and they experience a pleasant object. The pat.isandhi-
citta of the next life experiences that same pleasant object.
People want to know whether they can ensure a happy rebirth for themselves by con-
trolling the last cittas before the cuti-citta, by inducing them to be kusala. Some people
invite monks to chant at the deathbed of a dying person in order to help him to have kusala
cittas. However, nobody can be sure that his rebirth will be a happy one, unless he has
attained one of the stages of enlightenment. One cannot have power over one’s cittas. Can
we control our thoughts now, at this moment? Since we cannot do this, how could we
control our thoughts at the time shortly before dying? There is no self who can decide
about his rebirth in a next life. After the last akusala cittas or kusala cittas in life have
fallen away, the cuti-citta arises. The cuti-citta is succeeded by the pat.isandhi-citta of the
next life. When the pat.isandhi-citta arises a new lifespan starts. So long as there is kamma
there will be future lives.
The pat.isandhi-citta performs the function of rebirth or relinking. It “links” the past to
the present. Since only the first citta of a lifespan performs the function of rebirth there is
only one pat.isandhi-citta in a life. There is no self who transmigrates from one life to the
next life; there are only n¯ama and ru¯pa arising and falling away. The present life is different
from the past life but there is continuity in so far as the present life is conditioned by the
past. Since the pat.isandhi-citta succeeds the cuti-citta of the previous life, the accumulated
tendencies of past lives go on to the pat.isandhi-citta. Thus, inclinations one has in the
present life are conditioned by the past.
The pat.isandhi-citta is the result of a previous good deed or bad deed committed in
the past. The object the pat.isandhi-citta experiences is, as we have seen, the same as the
object experienced by the last akusala cittas or kusala cittas which arose before the cuti-
citta of the previous life. The Visuddhimagga (XVII, 164-168) explains by way of similes
that although the present is different from the past there is continuity. The being who is
68 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
born is not the same as the being of the past life, but it is conditioned by the past. There
is “neither absolute identity nor absolute otherness”, as the Visuddhimagga explains. We
read with regard to the pat.isandhi-citta:
An echo, or its like, supplies
The figures here; connectedness
By continuity denies
Identity and otherness.
And here let the illustration of this consciousness be such things as an echo, a
light, a seal impression, a looking glass image, for the fact of its not coming here
from the previous becoming and for the fact that it arises owing to causes that
are included in past becomings. For just as an echo, a light, a seal impression,
and a shadow, have respectively sound, etc., as their cause and come into being
without going elsewhere, so also this consciousness.
And with the stream of continuity there is neither identity nor otherness. For if
there were absolute identity in a stream of continuity, there would be no forming
of curd from milk. And yet if there were absolute otherness, the curd would not
be derived from milk. And so too with all causally arisen things. . . So neither
absolute identity nor absolute otherness should be assumed here.
One is glad to be born if one does not realize that birth is the result of kamma and
that one will go forth in the cycle of birth and death so long as there is kamma. Not
seeing the dangers of birth is ignorance. At this moment we are in the human plane of
existence but so long as we have not attained any stage of enlightenment we cannot be
sure that there will not be rebirth in one of the woeful planes. We all have performed both
akusala kamma and kusala kamma in different lives. Who knows which of those deeds will
produce the pat.isandhi-citta of the next life, even if we continue doing good deeds? Some
people think that birth in a heavenly plane is desirable, but they do not realize that life
in a heavenly plane does not last and that, after a lifespan in heaven is over, an ill deed
previously performed could produce a pat.isandhi-citta in a woeful plane.
We read in the “Discourse on Fools and the Wise” (Middle Length Sayings III, 129) that
the Buddha, when he was staying in the Jeta Grove, in An¯athapin. d. ika monastery, spoke
to the monks about the sufferings in hell and about the anguishes of animal birth. The
Buddha said:
“In many a disquisition could I, monks, talk a talk about animal birth, but it is
not easy to describe in full, monks, so many are the anguishes of animal birth.
Monks, it is like a man who might throw a yoke with one hole into the sea. An
easterly wind might take it westwards, a westerly wind might take it eastwards,
a northerly wind might take it southwards, a southerly wind might take it
northwards. There might be a blind turtle there who came to the surface once
in a hundred years. What do you think, monks? Could that blind turtle push
his neck through that one hole in the yoke?”
“If at all, revered sir, then only once in a very long while.”
“Sooner or later, monks, could the blind turtle push his neck through the one
hole in the yoke; more difficult than that, do I say, monks, is human status once
Chapter 10: The First Citta in Life 69
again for the fool who has gone to the Downfall. What is the cause of that?
Monks, there is no dhamma-faring there, no even-faring, no doing of what is
skilled, no doing of what is good. Monks, there is devouring of one another
there and feeding on the weak. Monks, if some time or other once in a very
long while that fool came to human status (again), he would be born into those
families that are low: a family of low caste or a family of hunters or a family of
bamboo-plaiters or a family of cartwrights or a family of refuse-scavengers, in
such a family as is needy, without enough to drink or to eat, where a covering
for the back is with difficulty obtained. Moreover, he would be ill-favoured,
ugly, dwarfish, sickly, blind or deformed or lame or paralysed; he would be
unable to get food, drink, clothes, vehicles, garlands, scents and perfumes, bed,
dwelling and lights; he would fare wrongly in body, wrongly in speech, wrongly
in thought. Because he had fared wrongly in body, speech and thought, at the
breaking up of the body after dying he would arise in the sorrowful ways, a bad
bourn, the Downfall, Niraya Hell. . .
. . . This, monks, is the fool’s condition, completed in its entirety ”
The Buddha spoke about the dangers of birth in many different ways. He said that
birth is dukkha (sorrow); it is followed by old age, sickness and death. He pointed out the
foulness of the body and he reminded people that also at this very moment the body is
dukkha, impermanent and non-self. If we continue taking mind and body for self there will
be no end to the cycle of birth and death.
We read in the Kindred Sayings (II, Nid¯ana-vagga, chapter XV, Kindred Sayings on
the Incalculable Beginning, paragraph 10, A Person) that the Buddha, when he was in
R¯ajagaha, on Vulture’s Peak, said to the monks:
Incalculable is the beginning, monks, of this faring on. The earliest point is not
revealed of the running on, faring on of beings, cloaked in ignorance, tied by
craving. . .
The bones of one single person, monks, running on, faring on for an aeon would
be a cairn, a pile, a heap as great as Mount Vepulla, were there a collector of
those bones and the collection were not destroyed.
How is this? Incalculable is the beginning, monks, of this faring on. The earliest
point is not revealed of the running on, faring on of beings, cloaked in ignorance,
tied by craving. . .
Thus spoke the Exalted One. After the Wellfarer had said this, he spoke further:
The pile of bones (of all the bodies of) one man
Who has alone one aeon lived,
Were heaped a mountain high − so said the mighty seer −
Yes, reckoned high as Vipula
To north of Vulture’s Peak, crag-fort of Magadha.
When he with perfect insight sees
The Ariyan Truths: − what dukkha is and how it comes
And how it may be overpassed,
The Ariyan Eightfold Path, the way all ill to abate −
Seven times at most reborn, a man
70 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
Yet running on, through breaking every fetter down,
Endmaker does become of dukkha.
It is fortunate to be born in the human plane where we can cultivate insight. When the
first stage of enlightenment (the stage of the sot¯apanna) has been attained, the four noble
Truths have been directly understood. Then we will not be reborn more than seven times
and we can be sure that there will eventually be an end to rebirth.
How many functions of citta are there in all?
The four classes, j¯atis, of citta are: akusala, kusala, vip¯aka and kiriya. Of which j¯ati is
the pat.isandhi-citta?
Is birth as a human being always the result of kusala kamma?
When does human life start?
Why is birth sorrow (dukkha)?
Chapter 11: Different Types of Rebirth-Consciousness 71
We see many different beings in this world, men and animals, all with a different appearance
and with a different character. They must have been different from the first moment of their
lives, from the moment of rebirth-consciousness, pat.isandhi-citta. We may be inclined to
think that there must be many types of pat.isandhi-citta, but, on the other hand, beings
who are born in this world also have many things in common. We share the same world
and we receive impressions through the senses, no matter whether we are rich or poor. On
account of the objects which we experience through the six doors, kusala cittas and akusala
cittas arise. All these cittas, arising in daily life, are cittas of the sense-sphere, k¯am¯avacara
cittas. “K¯ama” means “sensual enjoyment” or “object of sensual enjoyment”. However,
k¯am¯avacara cittas are not only cittas rooted in attachment, lobha; they are all the cittas
pertaining to the sense sphere.
Human birth is the result of kusala kamma. The pat.isandhi-citta arising in the human
plane of existence where there are sense impressions is the result of kusala kamma performed
by k¯am¯avacara cittas, cittas pertaining to the “sense-sphere”. It cannot be the result of
jh¯anacittas which are not k¯am¯avacara cittas. The jh¯anacittas arising when there is calm to
the degree of “absorption” do not experience objects which present themselves through the
five senses. Jh¯anacittas cannot cause birth in this world. Thus, beings born in the human
plane of existence have in common that their pat.isandhi-citta is the result of kusala kamma
performed by k¯am¯avacara cittas. As regards the many varieties of human birth, this is due
to the degree of kusala kamma which produced the pat.isandhi-citta.
One could divide human beings as regards their birth into two classes, but each of these
two classes includes many degrees of vip¯aka. The two classes are:
Those who are born with a pat.isandhi-citta which is ahetuka kusala vip¯aka (which
means that the kusala vip¯akacitta is not accompanied by beautiful roots: by alobha or
non-attachment, by adosa or non-aversion, or by pan~n~a¯ or wisdom)
Those who are born with a pat.isandhi-citta which is sahetuka kusala vip¯aka (kusala
vip¯aka accompanied by beautiful roots)
When a human being is born with a pat.isandhi-citta which is ahetuka, his birth is
the result of k¯am¯avacara kusala kamma (kamma performed by kusala cittas of the sense-
sphere), but the degree of the kusala kamma is less than the kusala kamma which produces a
sahetuka pat.isandhi-citta, a pat.isandhi-citta with “beautiful” roots (sobhana hetus). People
who are born with an ahetuka pat.isandhi-citta are handicapped from the first moment of
life. Eyesense or earsense does not develop or they have other defects. However, when we see
someone who is handicapped we cannot tell whether there was at the first moment of his life
an ahetuka pat.isandhi-citta or a sahetuka pat.isandhi-citta. We cannot tell whether someone
was handicapped from the first moment of his life or whether he became handicapped later
on, even while he was still in his mother’s womb, and thus we do not know which type of
pat.isandhi-citta he was born with. The fact that a person is handicapped has not happened
by chance; it is due to one’s kamma.
There is only one type of pat.isandhi-citta which is ahetuka kusala vip¯aka, but there are
many degrees of this vip¯aka depending on the kamma which produces it: there can be birth
in different surroundings, in unpleasant surroundings, though not in woeful planes, and in
pleasant surroundings. This type of pat.isandhi-citta can even arise in the lowest heavenly
plane.
72 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
There is also an ahetuka pat.isandhi-citta which is akusala vip¯aka. This type of citta
does not arise in the human plane, but in a woeful plane. Only one type of pat.isandhi-citta
is akusala vip¯aka, but it is of many degrees. There are many varieties of akusala kamma
and thus there must be many varieties of unhappy rebirth. The unhappy rebirth we can see
in this world is birth as an animal. There are three more classes of woeful planes, which we
cannot see; they are the world of petas (ghosts), the world of asuras (demons), and the hell
planes. There are different kinds of hell planes because there are many degrees of akusala
kamma which produce different kinds of unhappy rebirth.
The function of pat.isandhi can be performed by different types of vip¯akacittas which are
the results of different kammas. It depends on kamma which type of vip¯akacitta performs
the function of pat.isandhi in the case of a particular being. The pat.isandhi-citta, the first
citta in life, does not arise within a sense-door process or a mind-door process of cittas
experiencing an object which impinges on one of the six doors. It merely performs the
function of rebirth.
There are two ahetuka vip¯akacittas which can perform the function of pat.isandhi,
namely: sant¯ıran. a akusala vip¯akacitta and sant¯ıran. a kusala vip¯akacitta. As we have seen
(in chapter 9), sant¯ıran. a-citta is an ahetuka vip¯akacitta. When sant¯ıran. a-citta arises in
a sense-door process of cittas experiencing an object through one of the five senses, it
performs the function of investigating (sant¯ıran. a) the object. However, sant¯ıran. a-citta
can also perform the function of rebirth, and this is the case when the pat.isandhi-citta
is ahetuka vip¯aka. The same type of citta can perform more than one function, but at
different moments and at different occasions. When sant¯ıran. a-citta performs the function
of pat.isandhi it does not arise in a sense-door process and it does not investigate an object.
As we have seen (in chapter 9), there are three kinds of sant¯ıran. a-citta:
Sant¯ıran. a-citta which is akusala vip¯aka, accompanied by upekkh¯a (indifferent feeling)
Sant¯ıran. a-citta which is kusala vip¯aka, accompanied by upekkh¯a
Sant¯ıran. a-citta which is kusala vip¯aka, accompanied by somanassa (pleasant feeling)
The sant¯ıran. a-citta which is akusala vip¯aka, accompanied by upekkh¯a, can perform the
function of pat.isandhi in woeful planes. This means that the type of pat.isandhi-citta arising
in woeful planes is of the same type as the akusala vip¯akacitta which is sant¯ıran. a-citta
performing the function of investigating in a sense-door process of cittas.
The sant¯ıran. a-citta which is kusala vip¯aka, accompanied by upekkh¯a, can, apart from
the function of investigating in a sense-door process, also perform the function of pat.isandhi
in the human plane and in the lowest heavenly plane.
The sant¯ıran. a-citta which is kusala vip¯aka, accompanied by somanassa, does not perform
the function of pat.isandhi.
Akusala kamma and kusala kamma of different beings can produce nineteen different
types of pat.isandhi-citta in all, arising in different planes of existence. One of these types is
akusala vip¯aka and eighteen types are kusala vip¯aka. Of the types of citta which are kusala
vip¯aka, one type is ahetuka kusala vip¯aka and seventeen types are sahetuka kusala vip¯aka
(accompanied by beautiful roots). There are many degrees of each of these nineteen types of
pat.isandhi-citta because kamma can be of many degrees. It is due to kamma that people are
born ugly or beautiful and that they are born in unpleasant or in pleasant surroundings.
The fact that one is born into miserable circumstances does not mean that one’s next
Chapter 11: Different Types of Rebirth-Consciousness 73
birth will also be into miserable circumstances. It all depends on the kamma which has
been accumulated and which produces result. As regards people who are born into happy
circumstances, if akusala kamma produces their next birth, this will be an unhappy one.
We read in the Gradual Sayings (Book of the Fours, chapter IX, paragraph 5, Darkness):
Monks, these four persons are found existing in the world. What four?
He who is in darkness and bound for darkness; he who is in darkness but bound
for light; he who is in light but bound for darkness; he who is in light and bound
for light.
And how, monks, is a person in darkness bound for darkness?
In this case a certain person is born in a low family, the family of a scavenger
or a hunter or a basket-weaver or wheelwright or sweeper, or in the family of
some wretched man hard put to it to find a meal or earn a living, where food
and clothes are hard to get. Moreover, he is ill-favoured, ugly, dwarfish, sickly,
purblind, crooked, lame or paralysed, with never a bite or sup, without clothes,
vehicle, without perfumes or flower-garlands, bed, dwelling or lights. He lives
in the practice of evil with body, speech and thought; and so doing, when body
breaks up, after death, he is reborn in the waste, the way of woe, the downfall,
in hell. Thus, monks, is the person who is in darkness and bound for darkness.
And how, monks, is a person in darkness but bound for light?
In this case a certain person is born in a low family without bed, dwelling or
lights. He lives in the practice of good with body, speech and thought and
so doing, when body breaks up, after death he is reborn in the happy bourn,
in the heaven-world.
And how, monks, is a person in light but bound for darkness?
In this case a certain person is born in a high family. . .
And that man is well-built, comely and charming, possessed of supreme beauty
of form. He is one able to get clothes, vehicle, perfumes and flower-garlands,
bed, dwelling and lights. But he lives in the practice of evil with body, speech
and thought. So doing, when body breaks up, after death he is reborn in the
waste, the way of woe, the downfall, in hell. Thus, monks, is the person who is
in light but bound for darkness.
And how, monks, is a person who is in light and bound for light?
In this case a person is born in a high family. . . able to get clothes bed,
dwelling and lights. He lives in the practice of good with body, speech and
thought. So doing, when body breaks up after death, he is reborn in the happy
bourn, in the heaven-world. Thus, monks, is one who is in light and bound for
light.
These, monks, are the four persons found existing in the world.
The kusala kamma producing a pat.isandhi-citta which is sahetuka vip¯aka (with beautiful
roots) is of a higher degree than the kusala kamma producing an ahetuka pat.isandhi-citta.
K¯am¯avacara kusala kammas (kusala kammas of the “sense sphere”) can produce eight
different types of sahetuka vip¯akacittas which can perform the function of pat.isandhi. Which
type of vipakacitta performs this function in the case of a particular being depends on the
kusala kamma which produces it.
74 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
People are born with different characters and with different capacities; they are born
with different degrees of wisdom or without wisdom. The pat.isandhi-cittas of people are
different. When the pat.isandhi-citta is sahetuka, it is always accompanied by alobha (non-
attachment or generosity) and adosa (non-aversion or kindness), but not always by wisdom.
It can be accompanied by wisdom or it can be without wisdom, depending on the kamma
which produces it. When the pat.isandhi-citta is accompanied by wisdom, one is born with
three sobhana hetus (beautiful roots): alobha, adosa and pan~n~a¯. Someone who is born with
wisdom is more inclined to develop wisdom in the course of his life than someone who is
born without wisdom. Those who are born with a pat.isandhi-citta accompanied by wisdom
can attain enlightenment if they cultivate the eightfold Path. If one is born without wisdom
one can still develop right understanding, but in that life one cannot attain enlightenment.
Thus we see that everything in our life depends on conditions.
Apart from the difference in the number of roots (two hetus or three hetus) which
accompany the sahetuka pat.isandhi-citta there are other differences. Kusala kamma which
produces the pat.isandhi-citta can be kamma performed by kusala citta with somanassa,
pleasant feeling, or with upekkh¯a, indifferent feeling; by kusala citta which is “unprompted”
(not induced, asan˙ kh¯arika) or by kusala citta which is “prompted” (induced, sasan˙ kh¯arika)1.
Several factors determine the nature of kusala kamma which produces its result accordingly.
The sahetuka pat.isandhi-cittas which are the results of k¯am¯avacara kusala kammas can be
classified as eight different types in all. Summing them up they are:
Accompanied by pleasant feeling, with wisdom, unprompted. (Somanassa-sahagatam. ,
n~a¯n. a-sampayuttam. , asan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. 2).
Accompanied by pleasant feeling, with wisdom, prompted. (Somanassa-sahagatam. ,
n~a¯n. a-sampayuttam. , sasan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. ).
Accompanied by pleasant feeling, without wisdom, unprompted. (Somanassa-
sahagatam. , n~a¯n. a-vippayuttam. , asan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. ).
Accompanied by pleasant feeling, without wisdom, prompted. (Somanassa-sahagatam. ,
n~a¯n. a-vippayuttam. , sasan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. ).
Accompanied by indifferent feeling, with wisdom, unprompted. (Upekkh¯a-sahagatam. ,
n~a¯n. a-sampayuttam. , asan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. ).
Accompanied by indifferent feeling, with wisdom, prompted. (Upekkh¯a-sahagatam. ,
n~a¯n. a-sampayuttam. , sasan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. ).
Accompanied by indifferent feeling, without wisdom, unprompted. (Upekkh¯a-
sahagatam. , n~a¯n. a-vippayuttam. , asan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. ). Accompanied by indifferent
feeling, without wisdom, prompted. (Upekkh¯a-sahagatam. ,
sasan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. ).
n~a¯n. a-vippayuttam. ,
It is useful to know more details about pat.isandhi-citta, because it can help us to under-
stand why people are so different. The eight types of sahetuka pat.isandhi-citta which are
the results of k¯am¯avacara kusala kammas do not arise only in the human plane, but they
also arise in those heavenly planes of existence which are “sensuous” planes of existence,
k¯ama-bhu¯mi.
1 See Ch. 4. Kusala cittas can arise unprompted, spontaneously, or prompted, induced either by someone
else or by one’s own deliberation.
2 N~ a¯n. a is wisdom (pan~n~¯a).
Chapter 11: Different Types of Rebirth-Consciousness 75
Eleven planes are k¯ama-bhu¯mis (or k¯ama-lokas), sensuous planes of existence, and of
these one is the plane of human beings, six are heavenly planes and four are woeful planes.
Beings born in one of the k¯ama-bhu¯mis receive sense impressions, they have k¯am¯avacara
cittas. There are also higher heavenly planes which are not k¯ama-bhu¯mi. There are thirty-
one classes of planes of existence in all3.
If one is born in one of the kama-bhu¯mis and cultivates jh¯ana, absorption, one can,
besides k¯am¯avacara cittas, also have ru¯pa-jh¯anacittas and aru¯pa-jh¯anacittas4. If one culti-
vates the eightfold Path one can have lokuttara cittas, supramundane cittas which directly
experience nibb¯ana.
When someone attains jh¯ana, the kusala kamma he performs is not k¯am¯avacara kusala
kamma; at the moment of jh¯ana there are no sense impressions. The kusala kamma which is
jh¯ana does not produce result in the same lifespan one attains it, but it can produce result
in the form of pat.isandhi-citta, the pat.isandhi-citta of the next life. In that case there are
jh¯anacittas arising shortly before death and the pat.isandhi-citta of the next life experiences
the same object as those jh¯anacittas.
The result of ru¯p¯avacara kusala citta (kusala citta which is ru¯pa-jh¯anacitta) is birth in
a heavenly plane which is not k¯ama-bhu¯mi but a ru¯pa-brahma-plane (fine-material world).
The result of an aru¯p¯avacara kusala citta (kusala citta which is aru¯pa-jh¯anacitta) is birth in
a heavenly plane which is an aru¯pa-brahma plane (immaterial world). There are different
ru¯pa-brahma-planes and aru¯pa-brahma planes.
There are five stages of ru¯pa-jh¯ana and thus there are five types of ru¯p¯avacara kusala
citta which can produce five types of ru¯p¯avacara vip¯akacitta. There are four stages of
aru¯pa-jh¯ana and thus there are four types of aru¯p¯avacara kusala citta which can produce
four types of aru¯p¯avacara vip¯akacitta. Therefore, there are five types of pat.isandhi-citta
which are the results of ru¯p¯avacara kusala cittas and four types of pat.isandhi-citta which are
the results of aru¯p¯avacara kusala cittas. Altogether there are nine types of pat.isandhi-citta
which are the results of the different types of jh¯anacittas. They are sahetuka vip¯akacittas
and they are always accompanied by pan~n~a¯.
Summarising the nineteen types of pat.isandhi-citta:
1 akusala vip¯aka sant¯ıran. a-citta (ahetuka, result of akusala kamma)
1 kusala vip¯aka sant¯ıran. a-citta (ahetuka, result of k¯am¯avacara kusala kamma)
8 mah¯a-vip¯akacittas (sahetuka, results of k¯am¯avacara kusala kammas)5
5 ru¯p¯avacara vip¯akacittas (sahetuka, results of ru¯pa-jh¯anacittas)
4 aru¯p¯avacara vip¯akacittas (sahetuka, results of aru¯pa-jh¯anacittas)
We do not know which of our deeds will produce the pat.isandhi-citta of our next life.
Even a deed performed in a former life can produce the pat.isandhi-citta of the next life.
The Buddha encouraged people to perform many kinds of kusala kamma. Each good deed
is very valuable; it is certain to bear its fruit sooner or later. We read in As it was said
(Khuddaka Nik¯aya, “Itivuttaka”, the Ones, chapter III, paragraph 6) about the value of
generosity. The Buddha said to the monks:
3 This will be explained in chapter 20, Planes of Existence.
4 For the difference between ru¯pa-jh¯ana, fine-material jh¯ana, and aru¯pa-jh¯ana, immaterial jh¯ana, see
chapter 22.
5 The terms mah¯a-kusala, mah¯a-vip¯aka and mah¯a-kiriya are used for k¯amavacara cittas.
76 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
Monks, if beings knew, as I know, the ripening of sharing gifts they would not
enjoy their use without sharing them, nor would the taint of stinginess obsess
the heart and stay there. Even if it were their last bit, their last morsel of food,
they would not enjoy its use without sharing it, if there were anyone to receive
it. . .
Kusala kamma can cause a happy rebirth, but the end of birth is to be preferred to
any kind of rebirth. If one cultivates the eightfold Path and attains arahatship there will
be no more rebirth. The dying-consciousness (cuti-citta) of the arahat is not succeeded by
a pat.isandhi-citta. The Buddha reminded people of the dangers of birth and encouraged
them to be mindful, in order to attain the “deathless” which is nibb¯ana. We read in the
Gradual Sayings (Book of the Eights, chapter VIII, paragraph 4) that the Buddha, when
he was staying at N¯adika, in the Brick Hall, said to the monks:
Mindfulness of death, monks, when made become, when developed is very fruit-
ful, of great advantage, merging and ending in the deathless.
And how, monks, is it so. . . ?
Take the case of a monk, who, when the day declines and night sets in, reflects
thus: “Many indeed are the chances of death for me. A snake or scorpion or a
centipede might bite me and might cause my death; that would be a hindrance
to me. I might stumble and fall; the food I have eaten might make me ill; bile
might convulse me; phlegm choke me; winds (within me) with their scissor-like
cuts give me ache; or men or non-humans might attack me and might cause my
death. That would be a hindrance to me.”
Monks, that monk must reflect thus: “Are there any evil and wrong states
within me that have not been put away and that would be a hindrance to
me were I to die tonight?” If, monks, on consideration he realize that there
are such states. . . then to put away just those evil and wrong states, an intense
resolution, effort, endeavour, exertion, struggle, mindfulness and self-possession
must be made by that monk.
Monks, just as a man whose turban is on fire, or whose hair is burning, would
make an intense resolution, effort, endeavour, exertion, struggle, mindfulness
and self-possession to put out his (burning) turban or hair; even so, monks, an
intense resolution, effort, endeavour, exertion, struggle, mindfulness and self-
possession must be made by that monk to put away just those evil and wrong
states.
But if that monk, on review, realize that there are no such states within him
that have not been put away which would be a hindrance to him, were he to die
that night − then let that monk live verily in joy and gladness, training himself
day and night in the ways of righteousness.
Take the case, monks, of a monk who reflects likewise. . . when the night is spent
and day breaks. He must reflect in the same way. . .
Monks, mindfulness of death when so made become, so developed is very fruit-
ful, of great advantage, merging and ending in the deathless.
Can the pat.isandhi-citta be ahetuka?
Chapter 11: Different Types of Rebirth-Consciousness 77
How many types of pat.isandhi-citta are there?
How many types of pat.isandhi-citta are akusala vip¯aka?
When the pat.isandhi-citta is accompanied by wisdom, by which factor is this condi-
tioned?
Chapter 12: The Function of Bhavanga (Life-Continuum) 79
There are moments when there are no sense-impressions, when one does not think, when
there are no akusala cittas or kusala cittas. Is there at those moments still citta? Even
when there are no sense-impressions and no thinking there must be citta; otherwise there
would be no life. The type of citta which arises and falls away at those moments is called
bhavanga-citta. Bhavanga literally means “factor of life”; bhavanga is usually translated
into English as “life-continuum”. The bhavanga-citta keeps the continuity in a lifespan, so
that what we call a “being” goes on to live from moment to moment. That is the function
of the bhavanga-citta.
One may wonder whether bhavanga-cittas often arise. There must be countless
bhavanga-cittas arising at those moments when there are no sense-impressions, no
thinking, no akusala cittas or kusala cittas. When we are asleep and dreaming akusala
cittas and kusala cittas arise, but even when we are in a dreamless sleep there still has to
be citta. There are bhavanga-cittas at such moments. Also when we are awake countless
bhavanga-cittas arise; they arise in between the different processes of citta. It seems that
hearing, for example, can arise very shortly after seeing, but in reality there are different
processes of citta and in between these processes bhavanga-cittas arise.
The bhavanga-citta succeeds the first citta in life, the pat.isandhi-citta, rebirth-
consciousness. When the rebirth-consciousness falls away it conditions the arising of the
next citta, the second citta in that life and this is the first bhavanga-citta in life.
The bhavanga-citta is vip¯akacitta; it is the result of the same kamma which produced
the pat.isandhi-citta. There is only one pat.isandhi-citta in a life, but there are countless
bhavanga-cittas. Not only the first bhavanga-citta, but all bhavanga-cittas arising during a
lifespan are the result of the kamma which produced the pat.isandhi-citta.
The bhavanga-citta is the same type of citta as the pat.isandhi-citta. There are nine-
teen types of pat.isandhi-citta and thus there are nineteen types of bhavanga-citta. If the
pat.isandhi-citta is akusala vip¯aka, which is the case when there is birth in a woeful plane,
all bhavanga-cittas of that life are akusala vip¯aka as well. If the pat.isandhi-citta is ahetuka
kusala vip¯aka, in which case one is handicapped from the first moment of life, all bhavanga-
cittas of that life are ahetuka kusala vip¯aka as well. If the pat.isandhi-citta is sahetuka
(arising with sobhana hetus, beautiful roots), the bhavanga-citta is sahetuka as well. All
bhavanga-cittas during a lifespan are of the same type as the pat.isandhi-citta of that life,
they arise with the same hetus, they are accompanied by the same cetasikas, mental factors.
If one is born with two hetus, with alobha (non-attachment) and adosa (non-aversion), but
without wisdom, then all bhavanga-cittas have only two hetus. Such a person can cultivate
wisdom, but he cannot become enlightened during that life. If one is born with three hetus,
which means that one is born with alobha, adosa and pan~n~a¯ (wisdom), all bhavanga-cittas
are accompanied by these three sobhana hetus as well. Thus that person is more inclined to
cultivate wisdom and, if he develops the eightfold Path, he can attain enlightenment during
that life. If one is born with somanassa, happy feeling, all bhavanga-cittas of that life are
accompanied by somanassa.
Every citta must experience an object and thus the bhavanga-citta too experiences an
object. Seeing has what is visible as object; hearing has sound as object. The bhavanga-
citta does not arise within a process of cittas and thus it has an object which is different
from the objects which present themselves time and again and are experienced through the
80 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
sense-doors and through the mind-door. The bhavanga-citta which is of the same type of
citta as the pat.isandhi-citta also experiences the same object as the pat.isandhi-citta.
As we have seen (in chapter 10), the pat.isandhi-citta experiences the same object as the
akusala cittas or kusala cittas which arose shortly before the dying-consciousness, cuti-citta,
of the previous life. If akusala kamma produces the rebirth of the next life there will be an
unhappy rebirth. In that case akusala cittas arise shortly before the dying-consciousness and
they experience an unpleasant object. The pat.isandhi-citta of the next life which succeeds
the cuti-citta (the dying-consciousness), experiences that same unpleasant object. If kusala
kamma produces the rebirth there will be a happy rebirth. In that case kusala cittas arise
shortly before the cuti-citta and they experience a pleasant object. The pat.isandhi-citta of
the next life experiences that same pleasant object. Whatever object is experienced by the
last kusala cittas or akusala cittas of the previous life, the pat.isandhi-citta experiences that
same object. The pat.isandhi-citta is succeeded by the first bhavanga-citta of that life and
this citta experiences the same object as the pat.isandhi-citta. Moreover, all bhavanga-cittas
of that life experience that same object.
The Visuddhimagga (XIV, 114) states with regard to the bhavanga-citta:
When the pat.isandhi-citta has ceased, then, following on whatever kind of rebirth-
consciousness it may be, the same kinds, being the result of the same kamma whatever
it may be, occur as bhavanga-citta with that same object; and again those same kinds.
And as long as there is no other kind of arising of consciousness to interrupt the continuity,
they also go on occurring endlessly in periods of dreamless sleep, etc., like the current of a
river.
The bhavanga-cittas are like the current of a river and this current is interrupted when
an object presents itself through one of the senses or through the mind-door. When the
cittas of the sense-door process or the mind-door process have fallen away, the current of
bhavanga-cittas is resumed.
When an object contacts one of the five senses the stream of bhavanga-cittas is inter-
rupted and there is a sense-cognition. However, there cannot be a sense-cognition imme-
diately. When sound, for example, impinges on the earsense, there is not immediately
hearing. There are still some bhavanga-cittas arising and falling away before the pan~ca-
dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta (five-door-adverting consciousness) adverts to the sound through the
ear-door and hearing arises. The bhavanga-cittas do not perform the function of advert-
ing to the sound which contacts the earsense, they do not experience the sound. They
have their own function which is keeping the continuity in a lifespan, and they experience
their own object which is the same as the object of the pat.isandhi-citta. Although the
bhavanga-citta does not experience the sound which contacts the earsense, it can be af-
fected, “disturbed” by it and then the stream of bhavanga-cittas will be interrupted and
sound will be experienced by cittas which arise in the ear-door process. One may wonder
how the bhavanga-citta which experiences its own object can still be “affected” by an object
which impinges on one of the doorways. Each citta can experience only one object at a
time but the bhavanga-citta can still be affected by an object which impinges on one of
the doorways. A commentary to the Visuddhimagga, the Paramattha-Man~ju¯sa, (478; see
Visuddhimagga XIV, 115, footnote 46) explains this by way of a simile:
. . . But how does there come to be disturbance (movement) of the bhavanga that has
a different support? Because it is connected with it. And here the example is this: when
Chapter 12: The Function of Bhavanga (Life-Continuum) 81
grains of sugar are put on the surface of a drum and one of the grains of sugar is tapped, a
fly sitting on another grain of sugar moves.
When a ru¯pa which is one of the sense objects contacts one of the senses, there is first
one moment of bhavanga-citta arising and falling away which is denoted by the name at¯ıta-
bhavanga or “past bhavanga”. This citta is succeeded by the bhavanga-calana or “vibrating
bhavanga”. It is called “vibrating bhavanga” because it is disturbed by the object, although
it does not experience that object. The last bhavanga-citta which arises before the stream of
bhavanga-cittas is interrupted and the pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta adverts to the object, is the
bhavangupaccheda or “arrest-bhavanga”, so called because the stream of bhavanga-cittas is
arrested after this citta.
The different names which denote these bhavanga-cittas do not represent different func-
tions; bhavanga-cittas have as their only function to keep the continuity in the life of a
being. The different names only indicate that these bhavanga-cittas are the last ones before
the stream is interrupted and a new object which impinges on one of the doorways is experi-
enced by a process of cittas. When the bhavangupaccheda, the arrest-bhavanga, has arisen
and fallen away, a sense-door process of cittas which experience an object through one of the
sense-doors can begin. When the sense-door process is over, the stream of bhavanga-cittas
is resumed, so that the series of cittas succeeding one another in our life is not interrupted.
The object which impinged on one of the senses is then experienced through the mind-
door. In between the sense-door process and the mind-door process, however, there are
bhavanga-cittas. When the cittas of the mind-door process have fallen away, the stream of
bhavanga-cittas is resumed.
A sense object which is experienced through one of the five senses is ru¯pa. Ru¯pa arises
and falls away, but it does not fall away as rapidly as n¯ama. One ru¯pa which impinges on
one of the senses, can be experienced by several cittas succeeding one another in a process.
When, for example, the ru¯pa which is sound impinges on the earsense, it can be experienced
by cittas arising in the ear-door process. Before the process starts there are bhavanga-cittas.
The last bhavanga-cittas which arise before the sound can be experienced by the cittas of
the ear-door process are:
at¯ıta-bhavanga (past bhavanga)
bhavanga-calana (vibrating bhavanga)
bhavangupaccheda (arrest-bhavanga)
When the stream of bhavanga-cittas has been arrested, the ear-door-adverting-
consciousness (sota-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta) adverts to the object through the ear-door. The
following cittas in that process which each perform their own function can experience the
sound before it falls away. The duration of one material unit, a ru¯pa, has been determined
by the commentaries as seventeen moments of citta. The number seventeen should be seen
as a comparative notion which is expressed here1. The cittas in a complete sense-door
process of cittas, including three bhavanga-cittas which arise before the impinging ru¯pa
is experienced, are seventeen in number. Later on (in chapter 15) I will deal in more
detail with all the cittas arising in a process. Within this process each citta performs its
own function while they experience a ru¯pa which has not fallen away yet. Therefore, the
duration of a ru¯pa has been counted as seventeen moments of citta which succeed one
1 See Ven. Nyanaponika, “Abhidhamma Studies”, The Problem of Time.
82 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
another in a process2. We cannot count these moments, we cannot imagine the shortness
of time of a process of cittas; one citta lasts shorter than a flash of lightning.
A process of cittas does not always run its full course. When a ru¯pa impinges on one
of the senses, it may happen that more than one moment of bhavanga-citta passes before
the bhavanga-calana, which precedes the bhavangupaccheda; in that case the ru¯pa which
has impinged on one of the senses does not survive until the process is completed since it
cannot last longer than seventeen moments of citta. A process can, after it has started, be
interrupted, for example, after the votthapana-citta (determining-consciousness), and then
there are no kusala cittas or akusala cittas in that process3. It may also happen that the
at¯ıta-bhavanga is succeeded by the bhavanga-calana which is “disturbed” by the object, but
that the ru¯pa then falls away. In that case there is no bhavangupaccheda (arrest-bhavanga);
the stream of bhavanga-cittas is not interrupted and the sense-door process cannot start.
Sound may, for example, impinge on the earsense and then the at¯ıta-bhavanga is succeeded
by the bhavanga-calana. However, the bhavangupaccheda does not arise and thus the
current of bhavanga-cittas is not interrupted and the ear-door process cannot start. In that
case the sound cannot be heard.
When a sense-door process of cittas begins, the ru¯pa which has impinged on that sense-
door is experienced. When the sense-door process of cittas which experience a ru¯pa such as
visible object or sound is over, that object has also fallen away. Cittas succeed one another
extremely rapidly and very shortly after the sense-door process of cittas is over, a mind-door
process of cittas begins. The cittas of the mind-door process which follows upon the sense-
door process experience through the mind-door the ru¯pa which has just fallen away. Before
the mind-door process begins, however, there are bhavanga-cittas. Bhavanga-cittas arise
in between the different processes of cittas. The last two bhavanga-cittas arising before
the mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta, the mind-door-adverting consciousness, are the bhavanga-
calana (vibrating bhavanga) and the bhavangupaccheda (arrest-bhavanga)4. Then the
mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta adverts to the object through the mind-door and it is succeeded
by seven kusala cittas or akusala cittas (in the case of non-arahats)5.
Summarising these cittas, they are:
bhavanga-calana (vibrating bhavanga), bhavangupaccheda (arrest-bhavanga)
mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta (mind-door-adverting-consciousness)
seven akusala or kusala cittas (or, for the arahat: kiriyacittas)
When the mind-door process is over, the stream of bhavanga-cittas is resumed until
there is again a process of cittas experiencing an object through one of the sense-doors or
through the mind-door. There are countless bhavanga-cittas arising throughout our life in
between the processes of cittas experiencing an object through one of the sense-doors or
through the mind-door.
2 The commentaries count the duration of ru¯pa as sixteen or seventeen moments of citta. Although the
scriptures do not expressively mention these numbers, they refer to the different cittas in processes which
each perform their own function while they experience an object, as I explained in my preface.
3 According to the Atthas¯alin¯ı II, Book I , Part X, Ch 2, 269, the object is in that case weak.
4 The at¯ıta bhavanga, which is merely one moment of bhavanga which elapses before the bhavanga calana
and the subsequent bhavangupaccheda preceding a sense-door process, is not counted again before the
mind-door process starts.
5 I will explain in more detail about these cittas in Chapter 14.
Chapter 12: The Function of Bhavanga (Life-Continuum) 83
What is the mind-door? It is different from the sense-doors. A “doorway” is the means
through which citta experiences an object. The sense-doors are the following ru¯pas: eye-
sense, earsense, smellingsense, tastingsense and bodysense. Bodysense is all over the body.
These ru¯pas are the means through which a sense object is experienced. The mind-door
is not one of these ru¯pas. In order to understand what the mind-door is we should con-
sider what the first citta of the mind-door process is. This citta which performs the func-
tion of adverting to the object is the mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta, the mind-door-adverting-
consciousness. It does not advert to the object through one of the five senses but through
the mind-door. The mind-door must be n¯ama, it is a citta. The citta which precedes the
mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta is the mind-door, it is the means through which the cittas of the
mind-door process, beginning with the mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta, receive the object. The
citta which precedes the mano-dvar¯avajjana-citta is the bhavangupaccheda and this citta
is the mind-door. It is the mind-door through which the mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta adverts
to the object and it is also the doorway for the succeeding cittas of that process.
The study of the different sense-door processes and mind-door processes which take their
course according to conditions will help us to see realities as elements which are devoid of
self, beyond control. We may, for example, be infatuated with a beautiful sound we hear.
What we take for a long time of hearing are many different moments of citta which do
not last. Even when we do not know yet the origin of the sound, what kind of sound it is,
sound has already been experienced through the mind-door since cittas succeed one another
extremely rapidly, arising and falling away. Sound does not stay either, it falls away.
We read in the Kindred Sayings (IV, Sal.¯ayatana-vagga, Kindred Sayings on Sense, Fourth
Fifty, chapter V, paragraph 205, The Lute) that the Buddha said to the monks:
. . . Suppose, monks, the sound of a lute has never been heard by a r¯ajah or
royal minister. Then he hears the sound of a lute and says: “Good men, pray,
what is that sound so entrancing, so delightful, so intoxicating, so ravishing, of
such power to bind?”
Then they say to him: “That, lord, is the sound of what is called a lute, that
sound so entrancing, so delightful, so intoxicating, so ravishing, of such power
to bind.”
Then he says: “Go, my men. Fetch me that lute.”
So they fetch him that lute and say to him: “This, lord, is that lute, the sound
of which is so entrancing of such power to bind.”
Then he says: “Enough of this lute, my men. Fetch me that sound.”
They say to him: “This lute so called, lord, consists of divers parts, a great
number of parts. It speaks because it is compounded of divers parts, to wit,
owing to the belly, owing to the parchment, the handle, the frame, the strings,
owing to the bridge and proper effort of a player. Thus, lord, this lute, so
called, consists of divers parts, of a great number of parts. It speaks because it
is compounded of divers parts.”
Then that r¯ajah breaks up that lute into ten or a hundred pieces. Having done
so, he splinters and splinters it again. Having done so, he burns it in fire, then
makes it a heap of ashes and winnows the heap of ashes in a strong wind or lets
them be borne down by the swift stream of a river.
84 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
Then he says: “A poor thing is what you call a lute, my men, whatever a lute
may be. Herein the world is exceeding careless and led astray.”
Even so, monks, a monk investigating body as far as there is scope for body,
investigating feeling, perception, the activities (san˙ kh¯arakkhandha), investigat-
ing consciousness, so far as there is scope for consciousness − in all of these
investigations, whatever there be of “I” or “I am” or “Mine”, there is none of
that for him.
At which moments do bhavanga-cittas arise?
When did the first bhavanga-citta in life arise?
Can bhavanga-citta be ahetuka?
Can bhavanga-citta be accompanied by wisdom?
Chapter 13: Functions of Citta 85
Each citta has its own function to perform; no citta arises without performing a function.
For example, seeing and hearing are functions performed by citta. We are not used to
considering seeing and hearing as functions, because we cling to a self. If we want to know
more about cittas we should learn about their different functions (in P¯ali: kicca).
The function performed by the first citta in life is the function of pat.isandhi (rebirth
or “relinking”). The pat.isandhi-citta is succeeded by the bhavanga-citta (life-continuum).
The function of bhavanga, life-continuum, is the second function of citta. The bhavanga-
citta keeps the continuity in a lifespan. So long as one is still alive bhavanga-cittas arise
and fall away during the time there is no sense-door process or mind-door process of cittas.
Bhavanga-cittas arise in between the different processes of cittas which experience an object
through one of the six doors. For example, seeing and thinking about what was seen arise
in different processes of citta and there have to be bhavanga-cittas in between the different
processes.
When a ru¯pa impinges on one of the senses the current of bhavanga-cittas is interrupted;
there are a few more bhavanga-cittas arising and falling away, and then the five-door-
adverting consciousness, the pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta, arises. The pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-
citta is the first citta in the process of cittas experiencing the ru¯pa which has come into
contact with one of the senses.
The pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta performs the function of ¯avajjana or adverting to the ob-
ject which impinges on one of the five senses; it adverts to the object through that sense-
door. The pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta is an ahetuka kiriyacitta.
The Visuddhimagga (XIV, 107) states concerning the pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta (mind-
element):
Herein, the mind-element has the characteristic of being the forerunner of eye-
consciousness, etc., and cognizing visible data, and so on. Its function is to
advert. It is manifested as confrontation of visible data, and so on. Its proxi-
mate cause is the interruption of (the continued occurrence of consciousness as)
life-continuum (bhavanga). It is associated with equanimity (upekkh¯a) only.
The pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta is the “forerunner” because it arises before seeing, hear-
ing and the other sense-cognitions (pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. a). When it adverts to an object which
has contacted the eye-sense, it adverts through the eye-door and it is eye-door-adverting-
consciousness (cakkhu-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta). When it adverts to an object which has con-
tacted the ear-sense it is the ear-door-adverting-consciousness (sota-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta).
The pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta is named after the sense-door through which it adverts to the
object. The pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta arises countless times a day, but we do not notice it.
Whenever there is seeing, the eye-door-adverting-consciousness has adverted already to the
visible object which has impinged on the eyesense, and it has fallen away already. Whenever
there is hearing or any one of the other pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. as, the pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta has
adverted to the object already and it has fallen away.
The pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta is succeeded by the other cittas of the sense-door process
which experience that same object. When that process is over, the object is experienced
through the mind-door. First there are bhavanga-cittas and then the mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-
citta (mind-door-adverting-consciousness) performs the function of ¯avajjana, adverting,
through the mind-door.
86 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
Thus there are two types of citta which perform the function of adverting (¯avajjana-kicca)
these are: the pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta which adverts to the object through one of the
five sense-doors and the mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta which adverts to the object through the
mind-door. The mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta is an ahetuka kiriyacitta; it is not accompanied
by unwholesome roots (akusala hetus) or beautiful roots (sobhana hetus). After it has
adverted to the object it is followed by kusala cittas or by akusala cittas.
When visible object contacts the eye-sense the eye-door-adverting-consciousness
(cakkhu-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta) adverts to visible object through the eye-door. When the
eye-door-adverting-consciousness has fallen away it is succeeded by seeing-consciousness
(cakkhu-vin~n~a¯n. a). The function of seeing (in P¯ali: dassana-kicca) is performed by
seeing-consciousness. Seeing is vipaka; it is the result of kusala kamma or akusala kamma.
We are born to receive the results of our deeds: we see, hear and experience objects
through the other senses.
The citta which performs the function of seeing only sees visible object. This citta does
not like or dislike, it is an ahetuka vip¯akacitta. Neither does it think about the object. If
one does not develop right understanding one does not realize that the citta which only
sees visible object is a reality different from the citta which likes or dislikes the visible
object and different from the citta which pays attention to shape and form. Because of
our accumulated ignorance and wrong view we do not realize the impermanence of citta
which falls away as soon as it has arisen and which is succeeded by another citta which is
a different reality.
There are only two kinds of citta which can perform the function of seeing: one is akusala
vip¯aka and one is kusala vip¯aka.
When sound has impinged on the earsense and the ear-door-adverting-consciousness
has arisen and fallen away, hearing-consciousness arises. The function of hearing (in P¯ali:
savana-kicca) is another function of citta. Hearing is ahetuka vip¯aka. Two kinds of citta
can perform the function of hearing: one is akusala vip¯aka and one is kusala vip¯aka.
Another function of citta is the function of smelling (in P¯ali: gh¯ayana-kicca). Two kinds
of citta which are both ahetuka vip¯aka can perform this function: one is akusala vip¯aka and
one is kusala vip¯aka.
There are two kinds of ahetuka vip¯akacitta which can perform the function of tasting
(in P¯ali: s¯ayana kicca): one is akusala vip¯aka and one is kusala vip¯aka. When the citta
which performs this function tastes, for example, a sweet or a salty flavour, it merely
experiences that flavour; it does not know the name of the flavour. The cittas which know
the conventional name of the flavour arise later on.
The function of experiencing tangible object through the bodysense (in P¯ali: phusana-
kicca) is another function of citta. When an object contacts the bodysense, the pan~ca-
dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta adverts to the object through the doorway of the bodysense. It is suc-
ceeded by body-consciousness (k¯aya-vin~n~a¯n. a) which performs the function of experiencing
tangible object through the bodysense. Two kinds of citta which are both ahetuka vip¯aka
can perform this function: one is akusala vip¯aka and one is kusala vip¯aka. The objects
experienced by k¯aya-vin~n~a¯n. a are the following ru¯pas:
solidity (experienced as hardness or softness)
temperature (experienced as heat or cold)
motion (experienced as oscillation or pressure)
Chapter 13: Functions of Citta 87
These objects are experienced through the doorway of the bodysense, which is ru¯pa.
This ru¯pa, which has the capacity to receive bodily impressions, is all over the body, except
in those parts where there is no sensitivity.
Thus, summarising the functions performed by the cittas which are the pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. as,
they are:
the function of seeing (dassana-kicca)
the function of hearing (savana-kicca)
the function of smelling (gh¯ayana-kicca)
the function of tasting (s¯ayana-kicca)
the function of experiencing tangible object (phusana kicca)
Seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting and experiencing tangible object are different func-
tions, not performed by a self but by citta. These cittas arise because of their appropriate
conditions. In order to remind people of this truth the Buddha explained how cittas ex-
perience objects through the five senses and through the mind-door. He pointed out the
different conditions for the arising of cittas and the impermanence of these conditions. Since
the conditions for the arising of cittas are impermanent, cittas cannot be permanent.
We read in the Kindred Sayings (IV, Sal.¯ayatana-vagga, Kindred Sayings on Sense, Sec-
ond Fifty, chapter IV, paragraph 93, Duality II) that the Buddha said to the monks:
Owing to a dual (thing), monks, consciousness comes into being. And what,
monks, is that dual owing to which consciousness comes into being?
Owing to the eye and objects arises eye-consciousness. The eye is impermanent,
changing, its state is “becoming otherness”. So also are objects. Thus this
dual, mobile and transitory, impermanent, changing, − its state is “becoming
otherness”.
Eye-consciousness is impermanent, changing, its state is “becoming otherness”.
That condition, that relation of the uprising of eye-consciousness, − they also
are impermanent, changing, their state is “becoming otherness”. This eye-
consciousness, arising as it does from an impermanent relation, − how could it
be permanent?
Now the striking together, the falling together, the meeting together of these
three things1, − this, monks, is called “eye-contact”. Eye-contact is imperma-
nent, changing, its state is “becoming otherness”. That condition, that relation
of the uprising of eye-contact − they also are impermanent This eye-contact,
arising as it does from an impermanent relation,-how could it be permanent?
Contacted, monks, one feels. Contacted, one is aware. Contacted, one per-
ceives. Thus these states also are mobile and transitory, impermanent and
changing. Their state is “becoming otherness”. . .
The same is said with regard to the other doorways.
In the process of citta, the pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. a is succeeded by sampat.icchana-citta. This citta
which performs the function of sampat.icchana, receiving the object, receives the object after
the pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. a has fallen away. Sampat.icchana-citta is ahetuka vip¯aka. Two kinds of
citta can perform this function: one is akusala vip¯aka and one is kusala vip¯aka.
1 That is: eye, visible object and eye-consciousness.
88 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
Kamma does not only produce the dvi-pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. as (the five pairs) and
sampat.icchana-citta, it also produces sant¯ıran. a-citta (investigating-consciousness) which
succeeds sampat.icchana-citta. Sant¯ıran. a-citta performs in the sense-door process the
function of investigating the object, sant¯ıran. a; it is ahetuka vip¯akacitta. The function
of investigating the object is another function of citta, different from seeing, hearing,
smelling, tasting, experiencing tangible object through the bodysense and sampat.icchana,
receiving.
As we have seen (in chapter 9), there are three kinds of sant¯ıran. a-citta which can perform
the function of investigating:
sant¯ıran. a-citta which is akusala vip¯aka, accompanied by upekkh¯a
sant¯ıran. a-citta which is kusala vip¯aka, accompanied by upekkh¯a
sant¯ıran. a-citta which is kusala vip¯aka, accompanied by somanassa (when the object is
extraordinarily pleasant)
Sant¯ıran. a-citta is succeeded by votthapana-citta, determining-consciousness. Vottha-
pana is another function of citta; the votthapana-citta determines the object in the sense-
door process. After it has determined the object it is succeeded by kusala cittas or by
akusala cittas. Votthapana-citta is not vip¯aka, it is not kusala or akusala but it is an
ahetuka kiriyacitta. The conditions for its arising are different from the conditions for
sant¯ıran. a-citta which is produced by kamma. As we have seen (in Chapter 9), the citta
which performs the function of votthapana is the ahetuka kiriyacitta which is classified
as mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta. The mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta performs two functions: in the
mind-door process it performs the function of adverting to the object through the mind-
door, and in the sense-door process it performs the function of votthapana and then it can
be called, after its function, votthapana-citta.
Cittas experience pleasant or unpleasant objects through the senses and through the
mind-door. If someone has accumulated a great deal of lobha and dosa, lobha-mu¯la-cittas
are likely to arise when the object is pleasant and dosa-mu¯la-cittas are likely to arise when
the object is unpleasant. At such moments there is “unwise attention” to the object. These
cittas arise because of conditions, they are not self, and beyond control.
We are inclined to think that in the process of cittas, akusala vip¯akacittas which expe-
rience an unpleasant object should necessarily be followed by akusala cittas, since we let
ourselves be ruled by the objects we experience. However, if there is “wise attention” there
is no aversion towards unpleasant objects. Kusala cittas and akusala cittas arise because of
conditions which are entirely different from the conditions for vip¯akacittas. Akusala vip¯aka
and kusala vip¯aka are the result of kamma. We wish to control our vip¯aka, but this is
impossible. When it is time for akusala vip¯aka, we cannot prevent it from arising. We
should understand that our life is n¯ama and ru¯pa, which arise because of conditions and fall
away immediately. If we would truly understand vip¯aka as it is: as only a moment of citta
which falls away as soon as it has arisen, we would be less likely to have aversion towards
unpleasant objects we experience.
One may wonder whether it is necessary to know in detail about cittas and their func-
tions. Is it not enough to know only about kusala cittas and akusala cittas? Apart from
kusala cittas and akusala cittas we should know also about other kinds of cittas which
perform different functions in the processes of cittas and which arise because of different
conditions. Then there will be more understanding of the fact that there is no self who
Chapter 13: Functions of Citta 89
can direct the arising of particular cittas at particular moments. There is no self who can
choose to have kusala cittas. People have different accumulations and thus, when an object
presents itself, kusala cittas or akusala cittas will arise in the process of cittas which expe-
rience that object, according to one’s accumulations. When, for example, different people
smell delicious food, some people may have akusala cittas whereas others may have kusala
cittas. Those who are attached to food are likely to have lobha-mu¯la-cittas. In the case of
someone who has accumulations for d¯ana (generosity), kusala cittas may arise when he has
smelled the food; he may wish to offer food to the monks. In the case of others again, there
may be kusala cittas with pan~n~a¯ which realizes odour, for example, as only a kind of ru¯pa,
not some “thing”, impermanent and devoid of a “self”.
Through the study of the Dhamma and above all through the development of “insight”,
right understanding of realities, there can be conditions for kusala cittas and then there is
“wise attention” to the object. No matter whether the object is pleasant or unpleasant, in
the sense-door process the votthapana-citta can be succeeded by kusala cittas and in the
mind-door process the mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta can, after it has adverted to the object, be
succeeded by kusala cittas. If there can be “wise attention” at this moment, there will be
more conditions for “wise attention” in the future.
Kusala cittas and akusala cittas are bound to arise because we have accumulated both
kusala and akusala. People are inclined to blame the world for the arising of their defilements
because they do not know that defilements are accumulated in the citta; defilements are not
in the objects around ourselves. One might wish to be without the six doors in order to have
no defilements. However, the only way to eradicate defilements is: knowing the realities
which appear through the six doors. We read in the Kindred Sayings (IV, Sa.l¯ayatana-
vagga, Kindred Sayings on Sense, Fourth Fifty, chapter III, paragraph 194, On fire) that
the Buddha said to the monks:
I will teach you, monks, a discourse (illustrated) by fire, a Dhamma-discourse.
Do you listen to it. And what, monks, is that discourse?
It were a good thing, monks, if the organ of sight were seared with a red-
hot iron pin, on fire, all ablaze, a glowing mass of flame. Then would there
be no grasping of the marks or details of objects cognizable by the eye. The
consciousness might stand fast, being firmly bound by the satisfaction either of
the marks or details (of the objects). Should one die at such a time, there is
the possibility of his winning one of two destinies, either hell or rebirth in the
womb of an animal. Seeing this danger, monks, do I so declare.
It were a good thing, monks, if the organ of hearing were pierced with an iron
spike, on fire. . . if the organ of smell were pierced with a sharp claw, on fire if
the organ of taste were seared with a sharp razor, on fire if the organ of touch
were seared with a sword, on fire. . .
It were a good thing, monks, to be asleep. For sleep, I declare, is barren for
living things. It is fruitless for living things, I declare. It is dull for living
things, I declare. For (if asleep) one would not be applying his mind to such
imaginations as would enslave him, so that (for instance) he would break up
the Order. Seeing this danger (of being awake), monks, do I so declare.
As to that, monks, the well-taught ariyan disciple thus reflects:
90 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
“Let alone searing the organ of sight with an iron pin, on fire, all ablaze, a glow-
ing mass of flame; what if I thus ponder: Impermanent is the eye, impermanent
are objects, impermanent is eye-consciousness, eye-contact, the pleasant or un-
pleasant or neutral feeling which arises owing to eye-contact, − that also is
impermanent. . . ”
So seeing, the well-taught ariyan disciple is repelled by the eye, by objects, by
eye-consciousness, by eye-contact. He is repelled by that pleasant or unpleas-
ant or neutral feeling that arises owing to eye-contact. . . Being repelled he is
dispassionate. Dispassionate, he is set free. By freedom comes the knowledge,
“I am freed”, so that he realizes: “Destroyed is rebirth. Lived is the righteous
life. Done is the task. For life in these conditions there is no hereafter.”
Such, monks, is the Dhamma-discourse (illustrated) by fire.
This sutta reminds us to be mindful at this moment, when we are seeing, hearing,
smelling, tasting, experiencing objects through the bodysense or through the mind-door.
All these moments are functions, performed by different cittas which do not last.
Which citta in a sense-door process determines the object before it is succeeded by
akusala cittas or by kusala cittas? Is it accompanied by hetus (roots) or is it ahetuka?
Which citta in the mind-door process precedes the kusala cittas or akusala cittas arising
in that process? What is its function?
Is the citta which in the mind-door process precedes the kusala cittas or akusala cittas
the first citta in that process experiencing the object?
Can this citta be accompanied by wisdom?
Sound is experienced through the ear-door and through the mind-door. Has the sound
fallen away when it is experienced through the mind-door?
How many types of citta can perform the function of adverting to the object, ¯avajjana
?
Chapter 14: The Function of Javana 91
When we see, hear, smell, taste, experience an object through the bodysense or through
the mind-door, there is not only one citta experiencing the object through the appropriate
doorway, but a series or process of cittas. A ru¯pa which impinges on one of the senses
is experienced by a process of cittas. When that sense-door process is over, the object is
experienced by cittas arising in a mind-door process. Cittas in sense-door processes and in
mind-door processes arise and fall away continuously.
We may not know that both in a sense-door process and in a mind-door process there
are akusala cittas or kusala cittas arising. Because of our accumulated ignorance we do not
clearly know our different cittas and we do not recognize our more subtle defilements.
In a sense-door process the object is experienced first by cittas which are not kusala
cittas or akusala cittas; it is experienced by kiriyacittas and by vip¯akacittas. The five-
door-adverting-consciousness (pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta) is an ahetuka kiriyacitta (without
beautiful roots or unwholesome roots). It is succeeded by one of the dvi-pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. as
(the five pairs of seeing-consciousness, hearing-consciousness, etc.) and this citta is ahetuka
vip¯aka. Then there are two more ahetuka vip¯akacittas: the sampat.icchana-citta which
receives the object and the sant¯ıran. a-citta which investigates the object. The sant¯ıran. a-
citta is succeeded by the votthapana-citta (determining-consciousness) which is an ahetuka
kiriyacitta. The votthapana-citta determines the object and is then succeeded by kusala
cittas or by akusala cittas. In the case of those who are arahats there are no kusala cittas
or akusala cittas succeeding the votthapana-citta but kiriyacittas. When the cittas of the
sense-door process have fallen away, cittas of the mind-door process experience the object.
First there are bhavanga-cittas and then the mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta arises which has the
function of adverting to the object through the mind-door. The mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta
is succeeded by kusala cittas or by akusala cittas in the case of those who are not arahats.
The mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta is not kusala or akusala, it is ahetuka kiriyacitta.
Since cittas arise and fall away very rapidly it is hard to know the different cittas which
arise. Often we may not even know when we have kusala cittas or akusala cittas. For
example, after there has been seeing we may not realize when there is attachment to the
object, when there is aversion towards it, or when there is ignorance of realities. If we study
the Dhamma we will learn about our cittas in detail and we will also come to know our
more subtle defilements. Ignorance of our akusala cittas is dangerous. If we do not know
when we have akusala cittas we will continue to accumulate akusala.
The kusala cittas and akusala cittas which arise perform a function; they perform
the function of javana or “running through the object”1. In the sense-door process the
votthapana-citta has determined the object already when the javana-cittas arise. Thus, the
kusala cittas or akusala cittas which follow have as their only function to “run through” the
object. There is not just one moment of citta which performs the function of javana, but
usually there are seven cittas in succession which perform this function2. As we have seen
1 Javana is sometimes translated as “impulsion” or as “apperception”.
2 In the “Book of Conditional Relations” it has been explained under “repetition condition” that kusala
khandhas are followed by kusala khandhas and akusala khandhas by akusala khandhas. The commen-
taries, the Visuddhimagga ( XIV, 121) and the Atthasalin¯ı (II, Book I, Part X, chapter II, 270) state
that there are six or seven moments of javana. The number of seven is not expressively stated in the
scriptures, but when we consider the number of cittas in the mind-door process during which enlighten-
92 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
(in chapter 12) one material unit, a sense-object which is experienced by cittas in a process,
equals sixteen or seventeen mental units. Such numbers should be seen as a comparative
notion. Within a process of cittas the duration of javana occupies seven moments. Since
cittas arise and fall away extremely rapidly we cannot count these seven moments, it all
takes place in a flash.
The javana-cittas arising in one process are a sequence of seven cittas of the same type.
If the first javana-citta is kusala, the succeeding six cittas are also kusala cittas; if the first
javana-citta is akusala, the succeeding six cittas are also akusala cittas. Do we know when
the javana-cittas are akusala cittas rooted in lobha, dosa or moha, or when they are kusala
cittas? We are ignorant most of the time, even of javana-cittas.
There are fifty-five kinds of citta which can perform the function of javana. There are
twelve akusala cittas performing the function of javana, namely: eight lobha-mu¯la-cittas,
two dosa-mu¯la-cittas and two moha-mu¯la-cittas3.
There are eight k¯am¯avara kusala cittas4, which are called mah¯a-kusala cittas, performing
the function of javana.
There are eight mah¯a-kiriyacittas of the arahat (kiriyacittas, “inoperative cittas”, which
are not ahetuka, but accompanied by sobhana hetus) performing the function of javana. The
arahat has mah¯a-kiriyacittas instead of mah¯a-kusala cittas since he does not accumulate
any more kamma. Mah¯a-kiriyacittas are of the sensuous plane of consciousness; they are
not jh¯anacittas or lokuttara cittas.
Arahats also have k¯am¯avacara cittas; they see, hear or think of objects experienced
through the senses. However, there are no kusala cittas or akusala cittas arising on account
of what is experienced.
For the arahat there is also an ahetuka kiriyacitta performing the function of javana,
which may arise when he smiles: the hasitupp¯ada-citta or the smile-producing consciousness.
Those who attain ru¯pa-jh¯ana (fine-material jh¯ana) can have five types of ru¯p¯avacara
kusala cittas performing the function of javana, since there are five stages of ru¯pa-jh¯ana.
Arahats who attain ru¯pa-jh¯ana can have five types of ru¯p¯avacara kiriyacittas which perform
the function of javana.
For those who attain aru¯pa-jh¯ana (immaterial jh¯ana) there can be four types of
aru¯p¯avacara kusala cittas performing the function of javana, since there are four stages
of aru¯pa-jh¯ana. Arahats who attain aru¯pa-jh¯ana can have four types of aru¯p¯avacara
kiriyacittas performing the function of javana.
Those who directly experience nibb¯ana have lokuttara cittas. There are four stages
of enlightenment and at each of these stages lokuttara kusala citta or magga-citta
(“path-consciousness; “magga” means path) and lokuttara vip¯akacitta or phala-citta
(“fruit-consciousness”; “phala” means fruit) arise. Thus there are for the four stages of
enlightenment four pairs of lokuttara cittas: four magga-cittas and four phala-cittas5.
ment is attained, as we will see in chapter 24, we have an indication that the number of javana-cittas
as given by the commentaries is based on canonical tradition. In different parts of the scriptures the
javana-cittas of this process are denoted by particular names and in this way we can know the number
of these cittas.
3 See Ch 4, 6 and 7.
4 K¯am¯aavacara cittas are cittas of the sensuous plane of consciousness, not jh¯anacittas or lokuttara cittas.
Details will be given in Ch 19.
5 Lokuttara cittas will be explained in chapter 23 and 24.
Chapter 14: The Function of Javana 93
Lokuttara magga-citta produces result immediately, in the same process of cittas. The
phala-citta citta succeeds the magga-citta in the same process. Kusala kamma that is not
lokuttara, supramundane, does not produce vip¯aka in the same process but it does so later
on. The magga-citta performs the function of javana, “running through the object” which
is nibb¯ana, and the phala-cittas also perform the function of javana. The vip¯akacittas
other than the lokuttara vip¯akacitta do not perform the function of javana. Thus, all eight
lokuttara cittas perform the function of javana.
There are fifty-five cittas in all which perform the function of javana. Summarising them,
they are:
8 lobha-mu¯la-cittas (cittas rooted in attachment)
2 dosa-mu¯la-cittas (cittas rooted in aversion)
2 moha-mu¯la-cittas (cittas rooted in ignorance)
8 mah¯a-kusala cittas (k¯am¯avacara kusala cittas)
8 mah¯a-kiriyacittas
1 hasitupp¯ada-citta (ahetuka kiriyacitta of the arahat which may arise when he smiles)
5 ru¯p¯avacara kusala cittas (ru¯pa-jh¯anacittas)
5 ru¯p¯avacara kiriyacittas (ru¯pa-jh¯anacittas of the arahat)
4 aru¯p¯avacara kusala cittas (aru¯pa-jh¯anacittas)
4 aru¯p¯avacara kiriyacittas (aru¯pa-jh¯anacittas of the arahat)
4 magga-cittas (lokuttara kusala cittas)
4 phala-cittas (lokuttara vip¯akacittas)
It is useful to know that when akusala cittas arise on account of an object, not merely
one akusala citta, but seven akusala cittas arise in one process and this process of cittas can
be followed by other processes with akusala javana-cittas. Each time we dislike something
there are processes of cittas which experience the object, and in each of these processes
there are seven akusala javana-cittas. Countless akusala cittas may arise on account of
something we dislike or are attached to.
There is no self who can prevent akusala cittas from arising; as soon as the votthapana-
citta in the sense-door process has determined the object, this citta is succeeded by akusala
cittas already, and as soon as the mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta has adverted to the object in
the mind-door process, this citta is succeeded by akusala cittas already. The cittas which
arise in processes do so in a fixed order. When the first javana-citta has arisen it has to
be succeeded by the following javana-cittas. The first javana-citta conditions the second
one and this again the following one; each subsequent javana-citta is conditioned by the
preceding one.
Processes with kusala javana-cittas and processes with akusala javana-cittas can arise
shortly one after the other. For instance, people have the intention to offer food to the
monks. However, when someone has bought the ingredients for the food he is going to offer,
he may find the cost rather high. At that moment there may be cittas with stinginess and
then the javana-cittas are akusala cittas. Thus we see that accumulated defilements can
appear at any time when there are conditions, even if one has the intention to do a good
deed.
94 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
It is during the time of the javana-cittas that we accumulate wholesomeness or unwhole-
someness. There is no self who can control javana-cittas, but knowing the conditions for
wholesomeness will help us to have kusala cittas.
The Buddha, out of compassion, taught people the way to have less akusala. He encour-
aged them to perform all kinds of kusala, no matter whether it is d¯ana (generosity), s¯ıla
(morality) or bh¯avan¯a (mental development). He taught the development of the wisdom
which can eradicate all kinds of akusala. There are different degrees of wisdom, pan~n~a¯. If
there is understanding of what is kusala and what is akusala, there is pan~n~a¯, but it is not of
the degree that it can eradicate akusala. When pan~n~a¯ has been developed to the degree of
“insight-wisdom”, it will become clearer that there is no self who develops wholesomeness
and abstains from ill deeds. However, only the pan~n~¯a of the sot¯apanna has eradicated the
wrong view of self. So long as there is the concept of self, defilements cannot be eradicated.
The person who is not an ariyan (noble person who has attained enlightenment) may be
able to observe the five precepts, but there is a difference between him and the sot¯apanna,
the ariyan who has attained the first stage of enlightenment, who does not transgress them.
The non-ariyan may transgress the five precepts when there are conditions for it, whereas
for the sot¯apanna there are no more conditions for transgressing them. Moreover, the
sot¯apanna who observes s¯ıla does not take the observing of s¯ıla for self any more, since he
has eradicated the latent tendency of wrong view. Thus his s¯ıla is purer. He is on the way
leading to the eradication of all defilements.
When we are not mindful of realities, we take the objects we experience for “self”. When
pan~n~a¯ realizes the objects which are experienced as n¯ama and ru¯pa, elements which do not
last and which are devoid of self, there is less opportunity for akusala javana-cittas.
In the Visuddhimagga (I, 55) we read about the “Elder” Mah¯a-Tissa:
. . . It seems that as the Elder was on his way from Cetiyapabbata to
Anur¯adhapura for alms, a certain daughter-in-law of a clan, who had
quarrelled with her husband and had set out early from Anur¯adhapura all
dressed up and tricked out like a celestial nymph to go to her relatives’
home, saw him on the road, and being low-minded, she laughed a loud laugh.
(Wondering) “What is that?”, the Elder looked up, and finding in the bones of
her teeth the perception of foulness, he reached Arahatship. Hence it was said:
‘‘He saw the bones that were her teeth,
And kept in mind his first perception;
And standing on that very spot,
The Elder became an Arahat.’’
But her husband who was going after her saw the Elder
and asked ‘‘Venerable sir, did you by any chance
see a woman?’’ The Elder told him:
‘‘Whether it was a man or woman
That went by I noticed not;
But only that on this high road
There goes a group of bones.’’
Chapter 14: The Function of Javana 95
Mah¯a-Tissa was not absorbed in the object he experienced, nor entranced by the details.
He realized when he perceived the woman’s teeth the “foulness of the body” and he did
not take what he perceived for “self”. The perception of the “foulness of the body” can
remind us not to see the self in the body, but to realize bodily phenomena as ru¯pas which
do not stay. Mah¯a-Tissa saw things as they are; the pan~n~a¯ arising at that moment was to
the degree that it could eradicate all defilements.
There are countless javana-cittas in a day with lobha, dosa and moha, and therefore we
should not be heedless. We read in the Kindred Sayings (IV, Sal.¯ayatana-vagga, Kindred
Sayings on Sense, Second Fifty, chapter V, paragraph 97, Dwelling heedless) :
At S¯avatth¯ı was the occasion (of this discourse). . .
“I will teach you, monks, of the one who dwells heedless, and of the one who
dwells earnest. Do you listen to it.
And how, monks, does one dwell heedless?
In him, monks, who dwells with the faculty of sight uncontrolled, the heart is
corrupted by objects cognizable by the eye. In him whose heart is corrupted
there is no delight. Without delight there is no joy. Where joy is not, there is
no calm. Without calm one dwells in sorrow. The sorrowful man’s heart is not
composed. When the heart is not composed, one has not clear ideas. Through
not having clear ideas he is reckoned as one who dwells heedless.
(And it is the same with regard to the faculties of taste, touch and mind.)
And how, monks, does one dwell earnest?
In him, monks, who dwells with the faculty of sight controlled the heart is not
corrupted by objects cognizable by the eye. In him whose heart is not corrupted
delight is born. In one delighted joy is born. When one is joyful the body is
calmed. He whose body is calmed feels at ease. Composed is the heart of him
who is at ease. When the heart is composed one’s ideas are clear. Through
having clear ideas one is reckoned as one who dwells earnest.
(And it is the same with regard to the faculty of taste, touch and mind)
Thus, monks, is one a dweller in earnestness.”
Are there for the arahat only lokuttara cittas performing the function of javana, or can
he also have k¯am¯avacara cittas (cittas of the sense sphere) performing the function of
javana?
Are there vip¯akacittas which can perform the function of javana?
Chapter 15: The Functions of Tad¯aramman. a and Cuti 97
An object which impinges on one of the senses can be visible object, sound, odour, flavour
or tangible object. Each of these objects is ru¯pa. They arise and fall away, but they
do not fall away as rapidly as nama. As we have seen (in chapter 12), ru¯pa lasts as
long as seventeen moments of citta. When a sense object which is ru¯pa impinges on one
of the senses, a process of cittas occurs which arise in a particular order and perform
each their own function while they experience that sense object. The first citta of that
process, the pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta, five-door-adverting-consciousness, does not arise im-
mediately. First there have to be bhavanga-cittas and these are: at¯ıta-bhavanga, past
bhavanga, bhavanga-calana, vibrating bhavanga, and bhavangupaccheda, arrest-bhavanga
or last bhavanga before the current of bhavanga-cittas is arrested. These bhavanga-cittas
do not experience the ru¯pa which impinges on one of the senses. The pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-
citta, which is a kiriyacitta, adverts to the object and is then succeeded by one of the
dvi-pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. as (seeing-consciousness, hearing-consciousness, etc.) which is vip¯aka, the
result of a good deed or a bad deed. There is, however, not only one moment of vip¯aka
in a process, but several moments. The pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. a (sense-cognition) is succeeded by
sampat.icchana-citta (receiving-consciousness) which is vip¯aka and this citta is succeeded
by sant¯ıran. a-citta (investigating-consciousness) which is also vip¯aka. The sant¯ıran. a-citta is
succeeded by the votthapana-citta (determining-consciousness) which is kiriyacitta. This
citta is succeeded by seven javana-cittas1 which are, in the case of non-arahats, akusala cit-
tas or kusala cittas. All cittas, starting with the pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta, experience the
object which impinges on one of the senses. Counting from the at¯ıta-bhavanga, fifteen mo-
ments of citta have elapsed when the seventh javana-citta has fallen away. If the ru¯pa which
has impinged on one of the senses and at¯ıta-bhavanga arose at the same time, that ru¯pa can
survive two more moments of citta, since the duration of ru¯pa equals seventeen moments
of citta. Thus, after the javana-cittas there can be two more moments of citta which di-
rectly experience the object. These cittas, which are vip¯akacittas, are tad¯aramman. a-cittas
or tad¯alambana-cittas. They perform the function of tad¯aramman. a or tad¯alambana, which
is translated as “registering” or “retention”. Tad¯aramman. a literally means “that object”;
the citta “hangs on” to that object. When the tad¯aramman. a-cittas have fallen away the
sense-door process has run its full course. There is, however, not always a complete sense-
door process. When a ru¯pa which impinges on one of the senses, more than three moments
of bhavanga-cittas may pass before a process starts and then the process cannot run its full
course. Since ru¯pa does not last longer than seventeen moments of citta, it falls away before
the tadaramman. a-cittas could arise. Thus, in that case there are no tad¯aramman. a-cittas2.
Only in the sensuous plane of existence kamma can, after k¯am¯avacara javana-cittas (of
the sense-sphere), produce the vip¯akacittas which are the tad¯aramman. a-cittas, “hanging
on” to the sense object3. For those who are born in ru¯pa-brahma-planes where there are
1 See chapter 14.
2 The “Abhidhammattha Sangaha”, Ch 4, Analysis of Thought Processes, calls sense objects “very great”
when the process runs its full course; it calls them “great” when the process is interrupted after the
javana-cittas; it calls them “slight” when the process is interrupted after the votthapana-citta; it calls
them very slight when the process does not start.
3 See Visuddhimagga XIV, 122.
98 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
less conditions for sense-impressions, and for those who are born in aru¯pa-brahma planes
where there are no sense-impressions, there are no tad¯aramman. a-cittas4.
Summarising the cittas which succeed one another when a ru¯pa impinges on one of the
senses and becomes the object of cittas of a sense-door process which runs its full course:
At¯ıta-bhavanga (past bhavanga)
Bhavanga-calana (vibrating bhavanga)
Bhavangupaccheda (arrest-bhavanga)
Pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta (five-door-adverting-consciousness)
Dvi-pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. a (the five pairs of seeing-consciousness, etc.)
Sampat.icchana-citta (receiving-consciousness)
Sant¯ıran. a-citta (investigating-consciousness)
Votthapana-citta (determining-consciousness)
Javana-cittas
ditto kusala cittas or akusala cittas
ditto (in the case of non-arahats)
ditto “running through the object”
ditto
ditto
ditto
Tad¯aramman. a-citta (registering-consciousness)
ditto
The tad¯aramman. a-citta experiences an object not only through the five sense-doors
but also through the mind-door. In the sense-door process tad¯aramman. a-citta can arise
only when the object has not fallen away yet. If tad¯aramman. a-cittas arise in a sense-door
process they can also arise in the succeeding mind-door process. The tad¯aramman. a-citta is
a vip¯akacitta which can experience an object through six doors. For example, when visible
object contacts the eyesense and the process runs its full course, the tad¯aramman. a-cittas
arising in that process experience the object through the eye-door. The tad¯aramman. a-
cittas of the mind-door process which succeeds the eye-door process experience that object
through the mind-door5. When the object which contacts the sense-door is unpleasant,
all the vip¯akacittas in that process and thus also the tad¯aramman. a-cittas, if they arise,
are akusala vip¯aka. The tad¯aramman. a-cittas of the succeeding mind-door process are also
akusala vip¯aka. When the object which contacts the sense-door is pleasant, all vip¯akacittas
of that process, including the tad¯aramman. a-cittas, are kusala vip¯aka. It is the same with
the tadaramman. a-cittas of the subsequent mind-door process.
4 Birth in a ru¯pa-brahma plane is the result of ru¯p¯avacara kusala citta (ru¯pa-jh¯anacitta) and birth in an
aru¯pa-brahma-plane is the result of aru¯p¯avacara kusala citta (aru¯pa-jh¯anacitta). Those who develop
jh¯anacitta see the disadvantage of sense impressions, they want to be freed from them.
5 The “Abhidhammattha Sangaha”, in Ch 4, Analysis of Thought Processes, calls the object, experienced
through the mind-door, when the process runs its full course, a “clear object”. If the mind-door process
is interrupted after the javana-cittas, the object is called “obscure”.
Chapter 15: The Functions of Tad¯aramman. a and Cuti 99
The function of tad¯aramman. a can be performed by eleven different types of vip¯akacitta:
by three ahetuka vip¯akacittas (unaccompanied by hetus, roots) and by eight sahetuka
vip¯akacittas (accompanied by sobhana hetus, beautiful roots).
If the tad¯aramman. a-citta is ahetuka, the function of tad¯aramman. a is performed by the
ahetuka vip¯akacitta which is classified as sant¯ıran. a-citta. As we have seen (in chapter 9),
there are three kinds of sant¯ıran. a-citta: one type is akusala vip¯aka accompanied by up-
ekkh¯a (indifferent feeling), one type is kusala vip¯aka, accompanied by upekkh¯a, and one
type is kusala vip¯aka, accompanied by somanassa (pleasant feeling). As stated before (in
chapter 11), sant¯ıran. a-citta can perform more than one function at different occasions.
Sant¯ıran. a-citta performs the function of sant¯ıran. a (investigating the object) when it arises
in a sense-door process and succeeds sampat.icchana-citta. Apart from the function of inves-
tigating the object, sant¯ıran. a-citta can also perform the functions of pat.isandhi (rebirth),
bhavanga and cuti (dying). In those cases sant¯ıran. a-citta does not arise within a pro-
cess of cittas. Moreover, sant¯ıran. a-citta can perform the function of tad¯aramman. a. Apart
from the three ahetuka vip¯akacittas which can perform the function of tad¯aramman. a, there
are eight sahetuka vip¯akacittas or mah¯a-vip¯akacittas which can perform the function of
tad¯aramman. a.
All the time cittas arise and fall away, performing different functions. The last function
of citta in life is the function of cuti (dying). When we say in conventional language that
a person has died, the cuti-citta (dying-consciousness), which is the last citta of that life,
has fallen away. The cuti-citta is succeeded by the pat.isandhi-citta (rebirth-consciousness)
of the following life.
Death is unavoidable. Everybody, no matter whether he is in one of the unhappy planes,
in the human plane or in one of the heavenly planes, has to have cuti-citta. We read in
the teachings about birth, old age, sickness and death. Old age is mentioned immediately
after birth, before sickness is mentioned. The reason is that as soon as we are born, we
are already ageing, we are already on our way to death. We read in the Sutta-Nip¯ata (The
Group of Discourses, chapter III, paragraph 8, The Barb, vs. 574-587, Khuddaka Nik¯aya):
The life of mortals here cannot be predicted by any sign, and (its duration) is
uncertain. (It is) difficult and brief, and it is combined with misery.
For there is no means whereby those born do not die. Even (for one) arriving
at old age there is death, for of such a nature are living creatures.
Just as for ripe fruit there is constantly fear of falling, so for mortals who are
born there is constantly fear of death.
Just as vessels made of clay by a potter all have breaking as their end, so is the
life of mortals.
Young and old, those who are foolish and those who are wise, all go into the
power of death, all have death as their end.
When they are overcome by death, going from here to the next world, the father
does not protect the son, nor the relatives the (other) relatives.
See, while the relatives are actually looking on, (and) wailing much, each one
of the mortals is led away like a cow to be slaughtered.
Thus the world is smitten by death and old age. Therefore wise men do not
grieve, knowing the way of the world.
100 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
Whose path you do not know, whether come or gone, not seeing both ends you
lament (him) uselessly.
If lamenting (and) harming himself a deluded person should pluck out any
advantage (from his action), a wise man would do that too.
For not by weeping and grief does one obtain peace of mind. His misery arises
all the more, his body is harmed.
He becomes thin and discoloured, harming himself by himself. The departed
ones do not fare well thereby. Lamentation is useless.
Not abandoning grief a person goes all the more to misery. Bewailing the dead
man he goes under the influence of grief. . .
If one is not wise, one grieves, but for those who develop the eightfold Path, there will
be less sorrow. For him who has attained the stage of the arahat, there will be cuti-citta,
but it will not be succeeded by pat.isandhi-citta. Then the end to birth, old age, sickness
and death has been reached.
We read in the Gradual Sayings (Book of the Threes, chapter VII, paragraph 62, Terror,
V and VI):
Monks, these three terrors part mother and son. What three?
A mother cannot bear to see her son grow old. She says, “I am growing old.
Let not my son grow old.” The son likewise cannot bear to see his mother grow
old. He says, “I am growing old. Let not my mother grow old.” And it is the
same with regard to getting sick and dying. These are the three terrors that
part mother and son.
But, monks, there is a way, there is a practice that leads to the abandoning, to
the overpassing of these three terrors that part mother and son, a way which
joins mother and son. What is that way, what is that practice which so leads?
It is just this Eightfold Way, to wit: Right view, right thinking, right speech,
right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration.
That is the way, that is the practice. . .
The eightfold Path eventually leads to the end of birth, old age, sickness and death.
If one is not an arahat, there will be a pat.isandhi-citta succeeding the cuti-citta. Before
the cuti-citta arises, there are only five javana-cittas instead of seven, because the javana
process is weaker due to the nearness of death (Vis. chapter XVII, 143). These are the
last javana-cittas of that lifespan. If akusala kamma produces the rebirth of the next life
there will be an unhappy rebirth. In that case the last javana-cittas are akusala cittas and
they experience an unpleasant object. If kusala kamma produces the rebirth there will be
a happy rebirth. In that case the last javana-cittas are kusala cittas and they experience a
pleasant object6. These javana-cittas experience an object through one of the sense-doors
or through the mind-door. The object that presents itself to the dying person may be
the past kamma that will condition his rebirth, a sign of past kamma, a sign of his future
destiny or any object that is experienced through one of the senses (Vis. XVII, 136-146).
The tadaramman. a-citta which has as function to register the object may or may not follow.
Then the cuti-citta arises, the last citta of this present life. The cuti-citta is succeeded by
the pat.isandhi-citta of the following life and this citta experiences the same object as the
6 See chapter 10.
Chapter 15: The Functions of Tad¯aramman. a and Cuti 101
last javana-cittas arising before the cuti-citta of the previous life. Whatever that object may
have been, the pat.isandhi-citta of the new life and also all bhavanga-cittas arising in the
course of that new life and finally the cuti-citta of that life experience that object. There
is sometimes a misunderstanding that the cuti-citta of the previous life determines one’s
rebirth, but this is not so. The only function of the cuti-citta is being the last moment
of a lifespan. The cuti-citta is vip¯akacitta produced by the kamma which produced the
pat.isandhi-citta and the bhavanga-cittas of the life which is just ending; it is of the same
type as these cittas and it experiences the same object. Past kusala kamma or akusala
kamma which will produce one’s rebirth conditions the last javana-cittas to experience a
pleasant object or an unpleasant object.
The pat.isandhi-citta, the bhavanga-cittas and the cuti-citta in one lifespan are the same
type of vip¯akacitta and they experience the same object. There are nineteen types of citta
which can perform the function of pat.isandhi7 and the function of bhavanga, and these
same nineteen types of citta can perform the function of cuti.
If someone suffers great pains before he dies because of an accident or sickness, the last
javana-cittas arising before the cuti-citta will not necessarily be akusala cittas. There may
be akusala cittas with aversion when he feels the pain, but the last javana-cittas may be
kusala cittas, depending on the kamma which will produce his next birth.
We read in the Gradual Sayings (Book of the Sixes, chapter VI, paragraph 2, Phagguna)
that the Buddha visited the venerable Phagguna who was very ill. Phagguna had attained
the second stage of enlightenment (the stage of the sakad¯ag¯am¯ı, once-returner); he was not
yet completely freed from the “five lower fetters”. We read in the sutta that the Buddha
said to Phagguna:
“I hope, Phagguna, you’re bearing up, keeping going; that your aches and pains
grow less, not more; that there are signs of their growing less, not more?”
“Lord, I can neither bear up nor keep going; my aches and pains grow grievously
more, not less; and there are signs of their growing more, not less.
Lord, the violent ache that racks my head is just as though some lusty fellow
chopped at it with a sharp-edged sword; lord, I can neither bear up nor keep
going; my pains grow more, not less ”
So the Exalted One instructed him, roused him, gladdened him and comforted
him with Dhamma-talk, then rose from his seat and departed.
Now not long after the Exalted One’s departure, the venerable Phagguna died;
and at the time of his death his faculties were completely purified.
Then went the venerable A¯ nanda to the Exalted One, saluted him, and sat
down at one side. So seated, he said:
“Lord, not long after the Exalted One left, the venerable Phagguna died; and
at that time his faculties were completely purified.”
“But why, A¯ nanda, should not the faculties of the monk Phagguna have been
completely purified? The monk’s mind, A¯ nanda, had not been wholly freed
from the five lower fetters; but, when he heard that Dhamma teaching, his
mind was wholly freed.
7 See chapter 11.
102 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
There are these six advantages, A¯ nanda, in hearing Dhamma in time, in testing
its goodness in time. What six?
Consider, A¯ nanda, the monk whose mind is not wholly freed from the five lower
fetters, but, when dying, is able to see the Tath¯agata: the Tath¯agata teaches
him Dhamma, lovely in the beginning, lovely in the middle, lovely in the end, its
goodness, its significance; and makes known the brahman-life8, wholly fulfilled,
perfectly pure. When he has heard that Dhamma teaching, his mind is wholly
freed from the five lower fetters9. This, A¯ nanda, is the first advantage in hearing
Dhamma in time.
Or. . . though not just able to see the Tath¯agata, sees his disciple, who teaches
him Dhamma. . . and makes known the brahman-life. . . Then is his mind wholly
freed from the five lower fetters. This, A¯ nanda, is the second advantage. . .
Or. . . though not able to see the Tath¯agata or his disciple, continues to reflect
in mind on Dhamma, as heard, as learnt, ponders on it, pores over it. Then
is his mind wholly freed from the five lower fetters. This, A¯ nanda, is the third
advantage in testing its goodness in time. . . ”
The same is said with regard to the monk who has attained the third stage of enlight-
enment (the stage of the an¯ag¯am¯ı), and who, after hearing Dhamma in time and testing its
goodness in time, can attain the stage of the arahat.
Summary of functions (kicca) of citta:
Pat.isandhi (rebirth)
Bhavanga (life-continuum)
A¯ vajjana (adverting, through the sense-doors and through the mind- door)
Seeing
Hearing
Smelling
Tasting
Experiencing tangible object through the bodysense
Sampat.icchana (receiving)
Sant¯ıran. a (investigating)
Votthapana (determining)
Javana (impulsion, or “running through the object”)
Tad¯aramman. a (or tad¯alambana, registering)
Cuti (dying)
Why can tad¯aramman. a-citta not arise in the ru¯pa-brahma planes and in the aru¯pa-
brahma planes?
By how many types of citta can the function of cuti (dying) be performed?
8 In P¯ali: brahma-cariya: pure or holy life. This term is not only used for the monk’s life, but also with
regard to all those who develop the eightfold Path which leads to the eradication of all defilements.
9 Those who have attained the third stage of enlightenment, the stage of the anagam¯ı, non-returner, are
completely free from the five “lower fetters”.
Chapter 16: Objects and Doors 103
Citta knows or experiences something, it experiences an object. There cannot be any citta
without an object. When an object presents itself through one of the five senses or through
the mind-door, do we realize that it is citta which experiences an object? So long as we do
not see things as they really are, we think that a self experiences objects, and, moreover,
we take objects for permanent and for self. For example, when we see a log of wood, we are
used to thinking that the object which is seen at that moment is a log of wood; we do not
realize that only visible object is the object which can be seen. When we touch the log of
wood, hardness or cold, for example, can be experienced through the bodysense. We take
the log of wood for a thing which lasts, but what we call “log of wood” are many different
ru¯pas which arise and fall away. Only one characteristic of ru¯pa can be experienced at a
time, when it presents itself. If we develop understanding of the different characteristics
which appear through different doorways we will be able to see things as they really are.
The ariyan sees life in a way which is different from the way the non-ariyan sees it. What
the non-ariyan takes for happiness (in P¯ali: sukha), is for the ariyan sorrow (dukkha); what
for the non-ariyan is sorrow, is for the ariyan happiness. In the Kindred Sayings (IV,
Sal.¯ayatana-vagga, Third Fifty, chapter IV, paragraph 136) it is said in verse:
Things seen and heard, tastes, odours, what we touch,
Perceive−all, everything desirable,
Pleasant and sweet, while one can say ‘‘it is’’,
These are deemed ‘‘sukha’’ by both gods and men.
And when they cease to be they hold it woe.
The dissolution of the body-self
To ariyans seems ‘‘sukha’’. Everything
The world holds good, sages see otherwise.
What other men call ‘‘sukha’’, that the saints
Call ‘‘dukkha’’; what the rest so name,
That do the ariyans know as happiness.
Behold a Dhamma that’s hard to apprehend.
Hereby are baffled they that are not wise.
Darkness is theirs, enmeshed by ignorance:
Blindness is theirs, who cannot see the light...
The Buddha taught about objects, experienced by cittas through different doors, in
order to cure people of their blindness. When we study the teachings we learn that there
are six classes of objects (in P¯ali: ¯aramman. a), which can be known by citta.
The first class is: visible object or ru¯p¯aramman. a. The object which is experienced
through the eye-door can only be the kind of ru¯pa which is visible object. We can call
it visible object or colour, it does not matter how we name it; but we should know that
it is just that which is visible, that which appears through the eyes. Visible object is
not a thing or a person we may think of. When we think that we see a tree, animal or
man, we think of concepts and such moments are different from seeing, the experience
of what is visible.
104 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
The second class of ¯aramman. a, is sound (sadd¯aramman. a).
The third class is smell (gandh¯aramman. a).
The fourth class is taste (ras¯aramman. a).
The fifth class is tangible object, experienced through the bodysense
(phot.t.habb¯aramman. a). Tangible object comprises the following ru¯pas:
the Element of Earth1 (in P¯ali: pat.havi-dh¯atu) or solidity, which can be experi-
enced as hardness or softness
the Element of Fire (in P¯ali: tejo-dh¯atu) or temperature, which can be experienced
as heat or cold
the Element of Wind (in Pali: v¯ayo-dh¯atu) or motion, which can be experienced
as motion or pressure
— Solidity (earth), cohesion (water), temperature (fire) and motion (wind or
air) are the four principle ru¯pas (mah¯a-bhu¯ta-ru¯pas). Ru¯pas arise in groups
or units of several kinds of ru¯pas and the four principle ru¯pas always have to
arise together with any other kind of ru¯pa, no matter whether it is in the body
or external. Cohesion or fluidity (the Element of Water, in P¯ali: apo-dh¯atu)
cannot be experienced through the bodysense. When we touch water the
characteristics of hardness or softness, heat or cold, motion or pressure can
be directly experienced through the bodysense. The characteristic of cohesion
can be experienced only through the mind-door; it is, as we will see, included
in the sixth class of ¯aramman. a, the dhamm¯aramman. a.
Dhamm¯aramman. a comprises all objects other than those included in the first five
classes of objects, as will be explained later on. Dhamm¯aramman. a can be experienced
only through the mind-door.
If one has not developed “insight”, right understanding of realities, one does not clearly
know which object presents itself through which doorway, one is confused as to objects and
doors; thus, one is confused about the world. The ariyan is not confused about the world;
he knows the objects which appear through the six doors as n¯ama and ru¯pa, not self.
The Discourse on the Six Sixes (Middle Length Sayings III, no. 148) is very helpful
for the understanding of realities which present themselves through the six doors. When
the Buddha was staying in the Jeta Grove in An¯athapin. d. ika’s monastery, he explained to
the monks about the six “internal sense-fields” and the six “external sense-fields” (in P¯ali:
¯ayatana). The six “internal sensefields” are the five senses and the mind. The six “external
sense-fields” are the objects, experienced through six doors. The Buddha explained about
six classes of consciousness (seeing, hearing, etc.) which arise in dependence on six doors
and on the objects experienced through these doors. He also explained about six kinds of
contact (phassa), six kinds of feeling conditioned by the six kinds of contact, and six kinds
of craving conditioned by the six kinds of feeling. Thus there are “Six Sixes”, six groups of
six realities.
The Buddha then explained about the person who has attachment, aversion and igno-
rance with regard to what he experiences through the six doors. We read:
1 Here earth, water, fire and wind do not denote conventional ideas; in Buddhism they are names for
characteristics of realities.
Chapter 16: Objects and Doors 105
“Monks, visual consciousness arises because of eye and visible object, the meet-
ing of the three is sensory impingement2 ; an experience arises conditioned by
sensory impingement that is pleasant or painful or neither painful nor pleasant.
He, being impinged on by a pleasant feeling, delights, rejoices and persists in
cleaving to it; a tendency to attachment is latent in him. Being impinged on
by a painful feeling, he grieves, mourns, laments, beats his breast and falls into
disillusion; a tendency to repugnance is latent in him. Being impinged on by a
feeling that is neither painful nor pleasant, he does not comprehend the origin
nor the going down nor the satisfaction nor the peril of that feeling nor the
escape from it as it really is; a tendency to ignorance is latent in him ”
The same is said with regard to the other doorways. We then read about the person
who has developed the wisdom which can eradicate attachment, aversion and ignorance:
“. . . He, being impinged on by pleasant feeling, does not delight, rejoice or
persist in cleaving to it; a tendency to attachment is not latent in him. Being
impinged on by a painful feeling, he does not grieve, mourn, lament, beat
his breast or fall into disillusion; a tendency to repugnance is not latent in
him. Being impinged on by a feeling that is neither painful nor pleasant, he
comprehends the origin and the going down and the satisfaction and the peril
of that feeling and the escape as it really is, a tendency to ignorance is not
latent in him. That he, monks, by getting rid of any tendency to attachment
to a pleasant feeling, by driving out any tendency to repugnance for a painful
feeling, by rooting out any tendency to ignorance concerning a feeling that is
neither painful nor pleasant, by getting rid of ignorance, by making knowledge
arise, should here and now be an end-maker of dukkha − this situation exists.
Seeing this thus, monks, the instructed disciple of the ariyans turns away from
eye, turns away from material shapes, turns away from visual consciousness,
turns away from impact on the eye, turns away from feeling, turns away from
craving. He turns away from ear, he turns away from sounds He turns away
from nose, he turns away from smells. . . He turns away from tongue he turns
away from tastes. . . He turns away from body, he turns away from touches He
turns away from mind, he turns away from mental states, he turns away from
mental consciousness, he turns away from impact on the mind, he turns away
from feeling, he turns away from craving. Turning away he is dispassionate;
by dispassion he is freed; in freedom is the knowledge that he is freed, and he
comprehends: Destroyed is birth, brought to a close the Brahma-faring, done
is what was to be done, there is no more of being such or so.”
Thus spoke the Lord. Delighted, these monks rejoiced in what the Lord had
said. And while this exposition was being given the minds of as many as sixty
monks were freed from the cankers without grasping.
While the Buddha explained to the monks about the objects appearing through the six
doors, the monks were mindful of n¯ama and ru¯pa while they listened; they developed right
understanding and several among them could even attain arahatship.
2 Contact
106 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
As we have seen, dhamm¯aramman. a, the sixth class of objects, can be experienced
only through the mind-door. It includes all objects other than the sense objects.
Dhamm¯aramman. a can again be subdivided into six classes. They are:
The five sense-organs (pas¯ada-ru¯pas)
The subtle ru¯pas (sukhuma-ru¯pas)
Citta
Cetasika
Nibb¯ana
Concepts and conventional terms (pan~n~atti)
The first class of dhamm¯aramman. a comprises the five sense-organs (pas¯ada-ru¯pas); they
are the ru¯pas which have the capacity to receive sense-impressions. The pas¯ada-ru¯pas
themselves do not experience anything, they are ru¯pa, not n¯ama; they function as the doors
through which cittas experience objects. The pas¯ada-ru¯pas can only be known through
the mind-door, not through the sense-doors. For example, we know that there is eyesense,
because there is seeing, but we cannot experience eyesense through the eyes.
The five sense-organs are classified as gross (ol¯arika) ru¯pas. Altogether there are twenty-
eight kinds of ru¯pa of which twelve are classified as gross and sixteen as subtle (sukhuma).
The gross ru¯pas include, besides the five sense-organs, the sense objects which can be
experienced through the five sense-doors; these are seven ru¯pas, that is to say: four ru¯pas
which can respectively be experienced through the four sense-doors of eyes, ears, nose and
tongue, and the three ru¯pas of solidity, temperature and motion which can be experienced
through the door of the bodysense. Thus, there are altogether twelve gross ru¯pas. As
we have seen, the sense objects have been classified separately, they are not included in
dhamm¯aramman. a.
There are sixteen kinds of subtle ru¯pa and these have been classified as the second class
of dhamm¯aramman. a. They include, for example, nutritive essence (oj¯a), bodily intimation,
k¯aya-vin~n~atti, the ru¯pa which is the physical condition for expression through the body,
such as gestures or facial expression, and vocal intimation, vac¯ıvin~n~atti, the ru¯pa which is
the physical condition for speech or other ways of vocal intimation.
Citta is another class of dhamm¯aramman. a. Cittas experience different objects,
¯aramman. as, but citta itself can be ¯aramman. a as well. Kusala cittas, akusala cittas and
many other types of citta can be the object experienced by another citta.
The class of dhamm¯aramman. a which is cetasika comprises all fifty-two cetasikas. Feeling
is a cetasika. Painful feeling, for example, can be known by citta; then the object of citta
is dhamm¯aramman. a. When one experiences hardness the object is not dhamm¯aramman. a
but tangible object (phot.t.habb¯aramman. a), which is included in the fifth class of objects.
Hardness and painful feeling can appear closely one after the other. If one does not realize
that hardness and painful feeling are different ¯aramman. as and if one is ignorant of the
different characteristics of n¯ama and ru¯pa, one will continue taking them for self.
Citta can experience all objects. Also nibb¯ana can be experienced by citta. Nibb¯ana
is dhamm¯aramman. a, it can only be experienced through the mind-door. Thus, citta can
experience both conditioned dhammas and the unconditioned dhamma, which is nibb¯ana.
The citta which experiences conditioned dhammas is lokiya citta, “mundane”3. The citta
3 This does not mean “worldly” as it is understood in conventional language.
Chapter 16: Objects and Doors 107
which, at the attainment of enlightenment, directly experiences nibb¯ana is lokuttara citta,
“supramundane citta”.
Another class of dhamm¯aramman. a is concepts(pan~n~atti), that is to say, both ideas and
conventional terms . Thus we see that citta can know both paramattha dhammas, absolute
realities, and concepts which are not real in the absolute sense.
A concept or a conventional truth is not a paramattha dhamma. We can think of a
person, an animal or a thing because of remembrance of past experiences, but these are not
paramattha dhammas, realities which each have their own unchangeable characteristic, no
matter how one names them. When there is thinking about a concept, it is n¯ama which
thinks; thinking is a paramattha dhamma but the concept which is the object of thinking
is not real in the absolute sense.
Pan~n~atti can mean a concept or idea which is not real in the absolute sense as well as a
conventional term. Conventional terms can denote both realities and things which are not
real. A term which in itself is not a paramattha dhamma, can denote a paramattha dhamma.
For instance, the terms “n¯ama” and “ru¯pa” are pan~n~atti, but they denote paramattha
dhammas. It is essential to know the difference between paramattha dhamma and pan~n~atti.
If we cling to the terms “n¯ama” and “ru¯pa” and continue thinking about n¯ama and ru¯pa,
instead of being aware of their characteristics when they appear, we will know only pan~n~attis
instead of realities.
Summarising the objects which citta can experience: five classes of objects which are
ru¯pas, namely, visible object, sound, smell, taste and tangible object ; the sixth class,
dhamm¯aramman. a, which is again subdivided into six classes, including: citta, cetasika, the
ru¯pas which are the five senses, subtle ru¯pas, nibb¯ana and also pan~n~atti.
Different objects can be experienced through different doorways (in P¯ali: dv¯ara). For
example, the eyesense, the pas¯ada-ru¯pa which has the capacity to receive visible object, is
a necessary condition for citta to experience visible object. If there were no pas¯ada-ru¯pa
in the eye, citta could not experience visible object. This ru¯pa is the means, the doorway,
through which citta experiences visible object.
Cittas arising in the sense-door processes know their objects through the doors of the
eye, the ear, the nose, the tongue and the bodysense. As regards the door of the bodysense,
the pasada-ru¯pa which has the capacity to receive tangible object such as hardness, softness,
heat, cold, motion or pressure, is any part of the body where there is sensitivity for such
impressions. Thus, any part of the body can be body-door, except those parts which have
no sensitivity.
Five doors are ru¯pa and one door is n¯ama. The mind-door is n¯ama. The cittas of
the mind-door process experience an object through the mind-door. Before the mind-door-
adverting-consciousness, mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta, arises, there are the bhavanga-calana (vi-
brating bhavanga) and the bhavangupaccheda (arrest-bhavanga). The bhavangupaccheda,
the citta preceding the mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta, is the mind-door. It is the “doorway”
through which the mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta and the succeeding cittas of the mind-door
process experience the object. It is useful to know through which door cittas experience
different objects. For example, visible object, ru¯p¯aramman. a, can be experienced both
through the eye-door and through the mind-door. It is experienced through the eye-door
when it has not fallen away yet. When it is experienced by the cittas in the mind-door
process following upon that eye-door process, it has just fallen away. When visible object
108 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
is experienced through the mind-door the cittas only know visible object, they do not pay
attention to shape and form or think of a person or a thing. But time and again there are
also mind-door processes of cittas which think of people or things and then the object is
a concept, not visible object. The experience of visible object conditions the thinking of
concepts which arises later on.
In both the sense-door process and the mind-door process javana-cittas arise4; these
javana-cittas are, if one is not an arahat, either kusala cittas or akusala cittas. When
visible object is experienced through the eye-door, one does not yet perceive a person or
a thing, but, already in the sense-door process, attachment to what is seen can arise, or
aversion towards it, or ignorance. Defilements are deeply rooted, they can arise in the
sense-door processes and in the mind-door processes. We may think that the enslavement
to objects which are experienced through the different doorways is caused by the objects.
Defilements, however, are not caused by objects, they are accumulated in the citta which
experiences the object.
We read in the Kindred Sayings (IV, Sal.¯ayatana-vagga, Fourth Fifty, chapter III, para-
graph 191, Kot.t.hika) that S¯ariputta and Mah¯a-Kot.t.hika were staying near V¯ar¯anasi at
Isipatana, in the Antelope Park. Kot.t.hika said to S¯ariputta:
“How now, friend? Is the eye the bond of objects, or are objects the bond of the
eye? Is the tongue the bond of savours, or are savours the bond of the tongue?
Is mind the bond of mind-objects5, or are mind-objects the bond of the mind?”
“Not so, friend Kot.t.hika. The eye is not the bond of objects, nor are objects
the bond of the eye, but that desire and lust that arise owing to these two.
That is the bond. And so with the tongue and the mind. . . it is the desire and
lust that arise owing to savours and tongue, mind-objects and mind.
Suppose, friend, two oxen, one white and one black, tied by one rope or one
yoke-tie. Would one be right in saying that the black ox is the bond for the
white one, or that the white one is the bond for the black one?”
“Surely not, friend.”
“No, friend. It is not so. But the rope or the yoke-tie which binds the two, −
that is the bond that unites them. So it is with the eye and objects, with tongue
and savours, with mind and mind-objects. It is the desire and lust which arise
owing to them that form the bond that unites them.
If the eye, friend, were the bond of objects, or if objects were the bond of the
eye, then this righteous life for the utter destruction of dukkha could not be
proclaimed. But since it is not so, but the desire and lust which arise owing
to them are the bond, therefore is the righteous life for the utter destruction of
dukkha proclaimed. . .
There is in the Exalted One an eye, friend. The Exalted One sees an object
with the eye. But in the Exalted One is no desire and lust. Wholly heart-free
is the Exalted One. There is in the Exalted One a tongue. . . a mind. But in
the Exalted One is no desire and lust. Wholly heart-free is the Exalted One.
4 See chapter 14.
5 The P¯ali text has dhamm¯a, and the English text has here “mind-states”.
Chapter 16: Objects and Doors 109
By this method, friend, you are to understand, as I said before, that the bond
is the desire and lust that arise owing to things.”
Through which doors can motion be experienced?
Through which door can bodysense be experienced?
What class of ¯aramman. a (object) is cohesion?
What class of ¯aramman. a is lobha-mu¯la-citta (citta rooted in attachment)?
Through which door can lobha-mu¯la-citta be experienced?
Through which doors can lobha-mu¯la-citta experience an object?
What class of ¯aramman. a is cold?
What class of ¯aramman. a is painful bodily feeling?
What class of ¯aramman. a is unpleasant mental feeling?
What class of ¯aramman. a is pan~n~a¯ (wisdom)?
Is the word “peace” an ¯aramman. a? If so, what class?
How many doors are ru¯pa and how many n¯ama?
Can visible object be experienced through the mind-door?
Through how many doors does citta know dhamm¯aramman. a?
How many classes of ¯aramman. a are known through the mind-door?
Chapter 17: Doors and Physical Bases of Citta 111
The Buddha pointed out the dangers of being infatuated with the objects we experience
through the six doors. He taught people to develop the wisdom which knows the realities
experienced through the six doors as n¯ama and ru¯pa, phenomena which are impermanent
and non-self. What is impermanent is “dukkha”, it cannot be happiness. When we come
to know things as they are, we will be less infatuated with objects.
We read in the Kindred Sayings (IV, Sal.¯ayatana-vagga, Kindred Sayings on Sense, Sec-
ond Fifty, chapter III, paragraph 81, A brother) about the purpose of the Buddha’s teach-
ings. The text states:
Then a number of monks came to see the Exalted One. . . Seated at one side
those monks said to the Exalted One: −
“Now here, lord, the wandering sectarians thus question us: ‘What is the objec-
tive, friend, for which the holy life is lived under the rule of Gotama the recluse?’
Thus questioned, lord, we thus make answer to those wandering sectarians: ‘It
is for the full knowledge of dukkha that the holy life is lived under the rule of
the Exalted One.’ Pray, lord, when, thus questioned, we so make answer, do
we state the views of the Exalted One, without misrepresenting the Exalted
One by stating an untruth? Do we answer in accordance with his teaching,
so that no one who agrees with his teaching and follows his views could incur
reproach?”
“Truly, monks, when thus questioned you thus make answer, you do state my
views in stating that it is for the full knowledge of dukkha that the holy life
is lived under my rule.
But if, monks, the wandering sectarians should thus question you: ‘But what,
friend, is that dukkha, for the full knowledge of which the holy life is lived
under the rule of Gotama the recluse?’ − thus questioned you should answer
thus: ‘The eye, friend is dukkha. For the full knowledge of that the holy life is
lived. . . Objects that pleasant or unpleasant or indifferent feeling that arises
through eye-contact. . . the mind that pleasant or unpleasant or indifferent
feeling that arises through mind-contact, − that also is dukkha. Fully to know
that, the holy life is lived under the rule of the Exalted One.’ Thus questioned,
monks, by those wandering sectarians, thus should you make answer.”
In being aware of n¯ama and ru¯pa which appear, such as seeing, visible object, feeling or
thinking, we can prove to ourselves the truth of the Buddha’s teachings; we can prove that
the objects experienced through the six doors are impermanent and non-self. The truth
will not be known if one follows other people blindly or if one speculates about the truth.
We read in the Kindred Sayings (IV, Sal.¯ayatana-vagga, Third Fifty, chapter V, paragraph
152, Is there a method?) that the Buddha said:
“Is there, monks, any method, by following which a monk, apart from belief,
apart from inclination, apart from hearsay, apart from argument as to method,
apart from reflection on reasons, apart from delight in speculation, could affirm
insight thus: ‘Ended is birth, lived is the righteous life, done is the task, for life
in these conditions there is no hereafter’ ?”
112 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
“For us, lord, things have their root in the Exalted One. . . Well indeed were it if
the meaning of this that has been spoken were to manifest itself in the Exalted
One. Hearing it from him the monks will remember it.”
“There is indeed a method, monks, by following which a monk. . . could affirm
insight. . . And what is that method?
Herein, monks, a monk, seeing an object with the eye, either recognizes within
him the existence of lust, aversion and ignorance, thus: ‘I have lust, aversion
and ignorance’, or recognizes the non-existence of these qualities within him,
thus: ‘I have not lust, aversion and ignorance.’ Now as to that recognition of
their existence or non-existence within him, are these conditions, I ask, to be
understood by belief, or by inclination, or hearsay, or argument as to method,
or reflection on reasons, or delight in speculation?”
“Surely not, lord.”
“Are these states to be understood by seeing them with the eye of wisdom?”
“Surely, lord.”
“Then, monks, this is the method by following which, apart from belief. . . a
monk could affirm insight thus: ‘Ended is birth. . . for life in these conditions
there is no hereafter.’ “
The same is said with regard to the doors of the ear, the nose, the tongue, the body and
the mind.
When we study the Abhidhamma we should keep in mind the purpose of the Buddha’s
teachings: the eradication of defilements through the wisdom which realizes the phenom-
ena appearing through the six doors as they are. The development of this wisdom is the
“method” leading to the end to the cycle of birth and death.
We should remember that the Abhidhamma is not a theoretical textbook but an exposi-
tion of realities appearing in daily life. We learn about n¯ama and ru¯pa; we learn about cittas
which each have their own function in the sense-door process and in the mind-door process.
There are sense-door processes and mind-door processes time and again, and objects are
experienced by cittas arising in these processes. If there is awareness of characteristics of
n¯ama and ru¯pa when they appear, the pan~n~a¯ is developed which can eradicate defilements.
This kind of wisdom is deeper than any kind of theoretical knowledge.
N¯ama and ru¯pa which arise and fall away are conditioned realities, they arise because
of different conditions. Through the study of the Abhidhamma we learn about different
conditions for n¯ama and ru¯pa. Each reality which arises is dependent on several conditions.
For instance, seeing is vip¯aka, produced by kamma. Visible object conditions seeing by
being its object (¯aramman. a). If there is no visible object there cannot be seeing. Eyesense,
the kind of ru¯pa in the eye (pas¯ada-ru¯pa) which is able to receive visible object, is another
condition for seeing.
The ru¯pa which is eyesense can function as the door (in P¯ali: dv¯ara) for seeing. A
door or “dv¯ara” is the means through which citta experiences an object. There is eyesense
arising and falling away all the time; throughout our life it is produced by kamma. However,
eyesense is not a door all the time, because there is not all the time the experience of visible
object. Eyesense is a door only when citta experiences visible object. It is the same with
the pas¯ada-ru¯pas which are the other sense-organs. They are doors only when they are the
means through which citta experiences an object.
Chapter 17: Doors and Physical Bases of Citta 113
The eye-door is the means through which citta experiences visible object. Not only
the cittas which are eye-door-adverting-consciousness, cakkhu-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta, and
seeing-consciousness, cakkhu-vin~n~a¯n. a, experience the object through the eye-door, the
other cittas of that process, which are receiving-consciousness, sampat.icchana-citta,
investigating-consciousness, sant¯ıran. a-citta, determining-consciousness, votthapana-citta,
the javana-cittas and the tad¯aramman. a-cittas (retention) are also dependent on the same
door, in order to experience the object. All the cittas of that process experience the
object through the eye-door while they each perform their own function. After the ru¯pa
which is experienced by these cittas has fallen away, the object is experienced through the
mind-door (mano-dv¯ara).
Cittas arising in a process which experience an object through one of the six doors
are v¯ıthi-cittas (v¯ıthi means: way, course or process). V¯ıthi-cittas are named after the
door through which they experience an object. For example, the cittas which experience
an object through the eye-door are called cakkhu-dv¯ara-v¯ıthi-cittas (cakkhu-dv¯ara means
eye-door). The cittas which experience an object through the ear-door (sota-dv¯ara) are
called sota-dv¯ara-v¯ıthi-cittas. The cittas which experience an object through the mind-
door (mano-dv¯ara) are called mano-dv¯ara-v¯ıthi-cittas.
In between the different processes of citta there have to be bhavanga-cittas
(life-continuum). Bhavanga-cittas are not v¯ıthi-cittas. They are not part of the process of
cittas experiencing objects which time and again throughout our life impinge on the six
doors. They experience an object without being dependent on any doorway. As we have
seen (in chapter 15), the pat.isandhi-citta, rebirth-consciousness, the bhavanga-cittas and
the cuti-citta, dying consciousness, in one lifespan experience the same object as the last
javana-cittas which arose before the cuti-citta of the previous life. The pat.isandhi-citta,
the bhavanga-citta and the cuti-citta are “process-free cittas” (v¯ıthi-mutta cittas), thus,
they are different from the cittas arising in sense-door processes and mind-door processes.
Some cittas perform their function only through one door. For example, the two
types of citta which are hearing-consciousness, sota-vin~n~a¯n. a, which can be kusala vip¯aka
or akusala vip¯aka, only perform their functions through one door, the ear-door. Some
cittas can perform their function through more than one door. Sampat.icchana-citta,
receiving-consciousness, performs its function of receiving the object through five
doors, depending on the doorway which is contacted by the object. Sant¯ıran. a-citta,
investigating-consciousness, performs different functions through different doorways. It
performs the function of investigating the object through the five sense-doors, and it
can perform the function of tad¯aramman. a (retention or registering, occurring after the
javana-cittas) through six doorways1. It also performs functions without being dependent
on any doorway and this is the case when it performs the functions of pat.isandhi, bhavanga
and cuti2.
In the processes of citta the doorway (dv¯ara) is the means through which citta experi-
ences its object. The physical base or vatthu is another factor which conditions citta by
being its place of origin. In the planes of existence where there are n¯ama and ru¯pa, cittas
do not arise independently of the body; a citta which arises has a ru¯pa as its place of origin.
Cittas such as seeing, hearing or thinking could not arise without the body. Where does
1 See chapter 15.
2 See chapter 11, 12 and 15.
114 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
seeing arise? It needs the eye as its physical base. The eyesense, cakkhuppas¯ada-ru¯pa, the
ru¯pa in the eye which can receive visible object, is the physical base for the citta which
sees. The physical base or vatthu is not the same as dv¯ara or doorway. Although the
five sense-organs can serve as dv¯ara and vatthu, dv¯ara and vatthu have different functions.
For example, the cakkhuppas¯ada-ru¯pa functions as the eye-door (cakkhu-dv¯ara), the means
through which cittas of the eye-door process experience an object, and also as the eye-base
(cakkhu-vatthu), the physical base, the place of origin for seeing-consciousness. This ru¯pa
is the base only for seeing-consciousness, not for the other cittas of that process. Thus,
one and the same ru¯pa, the eyesense, serves as both doorway and base only for seeing-
consciousness. Regarding the other cittas of the eye-door process, they have the eyesense
as doorway, but they have a different base, as I shall explain later. It is the same in the
case of the other pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. as (sense-cognitions). The vatthu for hearing-consciousness
is the earsense (sotappas¯ada-ru¯pa), the vatthu for smelling-consciousness the smelling-sense
(gh¯anappas¯ada-ru¯pa), the vatthu for tasting-consciousness the tasting-sense (jivh¯appas¯ada-
ru¯pa), the vatthu for body-consciousness the bodysense (k¯ayappas¯ada-ru¯pa).The bodysense
can arise all over the body. Any part of the body which has sensitivity can be vatthu for
the k¯aya-vin~n~¯an. a. Thus, the five kinds of pas¯ada-ru¯pa, the sense-organs, are the vatthus of
the pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. as.
There is a sixth vatthu which is not one of the pas¯ada-ru¯pas, sense- organs. This is
the ru¯pa which is the material support, the physical base for all cittas other than the
pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. as, the sense-cognitions of seeing, hearing, etc. This ru¯pa is called in the com-
mentaries the heart-base or hadaya-vatthu3. We should know its function, but there is no
need to specify its exact location. The hadaya-vatthu, heart-base, is different from the mind-
door. The mind-door is a citta, the bhavangupaccheda (arrest-bhavanga) which is the last
bhavanga-citta arising before the mind-door-adverting-consciousness (mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-
citta). The hadaya-vatthu is ru¯pa, not n¯ama.
When sound contacts the ear-sense, the five-door-adverting-consciousness (pan~ca-
dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta) which arises has as its place of origin the hadaya-vatthu, but the
hearing-consciousness has the earsense, the sotappas¯ada-ru¯pa, as its vatthu. All succeeding
cittas of that process, however, have the hadaya-vatthu as their place of origin. All cittas
of the mind-door process too have the hadaya-vatthu as their place of origin.
The pat.isandhi-citta, the bhavanga-citta and the cuti-citta are, as we have seen, “process-
free cittas” (v¯ıthi-mutta cittas), cittas which do not arise within a process and which ex-
perience an object without dependence on any door. The “process-free cittas” also need,
in the planes where there are both n¯ama and ru¯pa, a vatthu, a physical base. A new life
begins when the pat.isandhi-citta arises; however, there is not only n¯ama, there has to be
ru¯pa as well. The hadaya-vatthu is the ru¯pa which is the vatthu of the pat.isandhi-citta.
Also all bhavanga-cittas and the cuti-citta have the hadaya-vatthu as their physical base.
The vatthu is the place of origin not only of citta, but also of cetasikas arising together
with the citta. Thus, except in the planes of existence where there is only n¯ama there has to
be ru¯pakkhandha as well when the four n¯amakkhandhas, which include citta and cetasikas,
arise.
3 The name “heart-base” cannot be found in the scriptures. The “Book of Conditional Relations”, the
seventh book of the Abhidhamma, refers, under “support condition” (nissaya paccaya), to the heart-
base as “that ru¯pa” which is the material support for the “mind-element” and the “mind-consciousness
element”. These “elements” are the cittas other than the pan~ca-vin~n~¯an. as.
Chapter 17: Doors and Physical Bases of Citta 115
The sense-bases, citta and the objects experienced by citta can be classified as twelve
¯ayatanas, translated sometimes as “sense-fields” (Vis. XV, 1-17)4. There are six inward
¯ayatanas and six outward ¯ayatanas. They are classified as follows:
eyesense visible object
earsense sound
smelling-sense odour
tasting-sense taste
bodysense tangible object
mind-base (man¯ayatana) mind-object (dhamm¯ayatana)
Mind-base, man¯ayatana, includes all cittas; mind-object, dhamm¯ayatana, includes
cetasikas, subtle ru¯pas and nibb¯ana. When we see, hear or think we believe that a self
experiences objects, but in reality there is the association of the inward ¯ayatana and the
outward ¯ayatana, the objects “outside”. This classification can remind us that all our
experiences are dependent on conditions. We read in the Visuddhimagga (XV, 15), in the
section on the ¯ayatanas, about conditioned realities:
. . . they do not come from anywhere previous to their arising, nor do they go
anywhere after their falling away. On the contrary, before their arising they had
no individual essence, and after their falling away their individual essences are
completely dissolved. And they occur without power (being exercisable over
them)5 since they exist in dependence on conditions. . .
Likewise they should be regarded as incurious and uninterested. For it does not
occur to the eye and visible object, etc., “Ah, that consciousness might arise
from our concurrence”. And as door, physical basis, and object, they have no
curiosity about, or interest in, arousing consciousness. On the contrary, it is
the absolute rule that eye-consciousness, etc., come into being with the union
of eye with visible object, and so on. So they should be regarded as incurious
and uninterested. . .
It is useful to become familiar with different classifications of realities, such as the classi-
fication by way of kicca, function, ¯aramman. a, object, dv¯ara, doorway, vatthu, physical base,
¯ayatana, sensefield, and other classifications. In this way we will have a clearer understand-
ing of citta and of the conditions for its arising. We should, however, remember that this
kind of understanding is not yet the wisdom which eradicates lobha, dosa and moha. In the
Kindred Sayings (III, Khandha-vagga, Kindred Sayings about R¯adha, chapter I, paragraph
4, To be understood) we read:
At S¯avatth¯ı. . .
As the venerable R¯adha thus sat at one side the Exalted One addressed him
thus: −
“I will show you the things to be understood, and the understanding, and the
person who has understood. Do you listen to it.”
4 See also Book of Analysis, Vibhan˙nga, II, Analysis of Bases. Also in other parts of the scriptures,
including the suttas, there is reference to this classification.
5 There is no self who could control them.
116 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
The Exalted One thus spoke: “And what, R¯adha, are the things to be under-
stood? Body, R¯adha, is a thing to be understood; so is feeling, perception,
the activities (san˙ kh¯arakkhandha). Consciousness is a thing to be understood.
These, R¯adha, are the things to be understood.
And what, R¯adha, is understanding?
The destruction of lust, the destruction of hatred, the destruction of ignorance,
— this, Radh¯a, is called ‘understanding’.
And who, R¯adha, is the person who has understood?
‘Worthy’, should he be called, that venerable one of such and such a name, of
such and such a clan: − that, R¯adha, is the meaning of ‘the person who has
understood’.“
Sometimes the Buddha reminded people of the purpose of the teachings in a
longer discourse, sometimes in a shorter discourse, but one has to be often
reminded of the goal. What is the purpose of understanding if it does not lead
to the eradication of defilements?
Can citta know an object, ¯aramman. a, without being dependent on any doorway?
Through how many doors can citta know an ¯aramman. a?
Through how many doors does the five-door-adverting-consciousness (pan~ca-
dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta) experience an object?
Through how many doors does mind-door-adverting-consciousness mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-
citta) experience an object?
Through how many doors does hearing-consciousness (sota-vin~n~a¯n. a) experience an ob-
ject?
Through how many doors does sant¯ıran. a-citta perform the function of investigating,
sant¯ıran. a?
Does sant¯ıran. a-citta perform the function of pat.isandhi in dependence on a doorway?
Of how many cittas is the eye-base (cakkhu-vatthu) the place of origin?
Can the earsense (sotappas¯ada-ru¯pa) be door, dv¯ara, or base, vatthu, or both?
What are the respective functions of dv¯ara and vatthu?
Chapter 18: Elements 117
The Buddha spoke about realities as elements, dh¯atus1, in order to remind us that they
are non-self. When we speak about elements we usually think of elements in chemistry
or physics. In chemistry and physics matter is analysed into elements, but it may seem
strange to us to regard the eye or seeing as elements. We are not used to considering them
as elements because we are inclined to take them for self.
What we take for self are only n¯ama-elements and ru¯pa-elements which arise because of
their appropriate conditions and then fall away again. Eyesense is only an element which
has its own characteristic and is devoid of self; it is ru¯pa which arises because of conditions
and then falls away again. Seeing is only an element which has its own characteristic and
is devoid of self; it is n¯ama which arises because of conditions and falls away again.
In the Buddha’s teachings realities are classified as elements, dh¯atus, some of which
are ru¯pa and some of which are n¯ama. There are different ways of classifying realities as
elements. When they are classified as eighteen elements, they are as follows:
The five senses:
Eye-element (cakkhu-dh¯atu)
Ear-element (sota-dh¯atu)
Nose-element (gh¯ana-dh¯atu)
Tongue-element (jivh¯a-dh¯atu)
Body-element (k¯aya-dh¯atu, which is the bodysense)
The five objects (experienced through the five senses):
Visible object-element (ru¯pa-dh¯atu)
Sound-element (sadda-dh¯atu)
Smell-element (gandha-dh¯atu)
Taste-element (rasa-dh¯atu)
Element of tangible objects (phot.t.habba-dh¯atu), comprising the following three kinds
of ru¯pa: earth-element (solidity), appearing as hardness or softness, fire-element (tem-
perature), appearing as heat or cold, wind-element, appearing as motion or pressure
The dvi-pan~ca-vin~n~¯an. as (the “five pairs” of sense-cognitions, experiencing the five sense-
objects):
Seeing-consciousness-element (cakkhu-vin~n~a¯n. a-dh¯atu)
Hearing-consciousness-element (sota-vin~n~a¯n. a-dh¯atu)
Smelling-consciousness-element (gh¯ana-vin~n~a¯n. a-dh¯atu)
Tasting-consciousness-element (jivh¯a-vin~n~a¯n. a-dh¯atu)
Body-consciousness-element (k¯aya-vin~n~a¯n. a-dh¯atu)
In addition, there are three more elements:
Mind-element (mano-dh¯atu)
1 Dh¯atu is derived from dharati, to hold or to bear. Dh¯atu is that which bears its own intrinsic nature; it
is a reality which has its own characteristic.
118 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
Dhamma-dh¯atu
Mind-consciousness-element (mano-vin~n~a¯n. a-dh¯atu)
Thus, in this classification there are eighteen elements in all. The five elements which
are the five senses are ru¯pa and the five elements which are the sense objects experienced
through the sense-doors are ru¯pa as well. The five elements which are the dvi-pan~ca-
vin~n~a¯n. as, experiencing these objects, are n¯ama. There are two cittas which are seeing-
consciousness-element since seeing-consciousness is either kusala vip¯aka or akusala vip¯aka.
It is the same with the other pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. as. Thus there are five pairs of citta which are
collectively called the pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. a-dh¯atu.
The element which is mind-element or mano-dh¯atu is n¯ama. Mano-dh¯atu comprises
the pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta, five-door-adverting-consciousness, and the two types of
sampat.icchana-citta, receiving-consciousness, which are kusala vip¯aka and akusala vip¯aka.
Thus, three kinds of citta are mano-dh¯atu.
Dhamma-dh¯atu comprises cetasikas, the subtle ru¯pas (sukhuma ru¯pas) and nibb¯ana.
Thus, dhamma-dh¯atu comprises both n¯ama and ru¯pa. Dhamma-dh¯atu is not identical
with dhamm¯aramman. a, mind-objects. Cittas are included in dhamm¯aramman. a but not in
dhamma-dh¯atu. Cittas have been classified separately as different dh¯atus. Concepts, which
are included in dhamm¯aramman. a, are not classified as elements, because concepts are not
paramattha dhammas; only paramattha dhammas are classified as elements.
Mind-consciousness-element, the mano-vin~n~a¯n. a-dh¯atu, is n¯ama. Mind-consciousness-
element includes all cittas except the dvi-pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. as and the three kinds of cittas
classified as mind-element, mano-dh¯atu. For example, sant¯ıran. a-citta (the investigating-
consciousness), mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta (the mind-door-advertingconsciousness), and cit-
tas performing the function of javana2 such as lobha-mu¯la-citta and also bhavanga-citta are
included in mind-consciousness-element. Mind-element includes cittas which can experience
an object through one of the five sense-doors, whereas mind-consciousness-element includes
cittas which can experience an object through six doors as well as cittas which are not
dependent on any doorway3.
Vin~n~a¯n. a-dh¯atu is a collective name for all cittas. When cittas are classified as elements,
they are the seven classes of vin~n~a¯n. a-dh¯atu, namely:
pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. a-dh¯atu (which are five classes)
mano-dh¯atu, mind-element
mano-vin~n~a¯n. a-dh¯atu, mind-consciousness-element
It is important to remember this classification of cittas, because in the teachings and the
commentaries, and also in the Visuddhimagga, different types of cittas are often denoted
as the elements which are classified above. If we do not remember which cittas are mind-
element and which cittas are mind-consciousness-element, we will not know which citta is
referred to in the texts.
Sometimes the Buddha spoke about six elements; or he classified realities as two elements.
There are many different ways of classifying realities, but no matter in which way they are
classified, as khandhas, by way of objects, ¯aramman. as, as ¯ayatanas, as dh¯atus, or in any
2 See Chapter 14.
3 The rebirth-consciousness, the bhavanga-citta (life-continuum) and the dying-consciousness.
Chapter 18: Elements 119
other way, we should remember the purpose of classifying realities: understanding that
what we take for self are only n¯ama-elements and ru¯pa-elements.
In the Satipat.t.h¯ana-sutta (Discourse on the Applications of Mindfulness, Middle Length
Sayings I, no. 10) we read in the section on “mindfulness of the body”, that the Buddha
spoke about the body in terms of elements. The text states:
And again, monks, a monk reflects on this body according to how it is placed
or disposed in respect of the elements, thinking: “In this body there is the
element of extension4, the element of cohesion, the element of heat, the element
of motion.” Monks, even as a skilled cattle-butcher, or his apprentice, having
slaughtered a cow, might sit displaying its carcase at a cross-roads, even so,
monks, does a monk reflect on this body itself according to how it is placed
or disposed in respect of the elements, thinking: ”In this body there is the
element of extension, the element of cohesion, the element of heat, the ele-
ment of motion”. Thus he fares along contemplating the body in the body
internally and he fares along independently of and not grasping anything in
the world. It is thus too, monks, that a monk fares along contemplating the
body in the body. . .
The Visuddhimagga (XI, 30) states:
What is meant? Just as the butcher, while feeding the cow, bringing it to the
shambles, keeping it tied up after bringing it there, slaughtering it, and seeing
it slaughtered and dead, does not lose the perception “cow” so long as he has
not carved it up and divided it into parts; but when he has divided it up and is
sitting there, he loses the perception “cow” and the perception “meat” occurs;
he does not think “I am selling cow” or “They are carrying cow away”, but
rather he thinks “I am selling meat” or “They are carrying meat away”; so too
this bhikkhu, while still a foolish ordinary person − both formerly as a layman
and as one gone forth into homelessness − , does not lose the perception “living
being” or “man” or “person” so long as he does not, by resolution of the compact
into elements, review this body, however placed, however disposed, as consisting
of elements. But when he does review it as consisting of elements, he loses the
perception “living being” and his mind establishes itself upon elements. . .
It may not be appealing to see the body as elements. We think of people as “this man”
or “that woman”. We are not used to analysing what we take for a “person” just as we
analyse matter, for example, in physics. We might find it crude to think of a body which is
carved up and divided up into parts, just as a cow is carved up by a butcher. However, if
we consider the body as it is, there are only elements. Isn’t it true that there are solidity,
cohesion, temperature and motion? Are these realities “self”, or are they elements devoid
of “self”?
Do the four elements of solidity, cohesion, temperature and motion have anything to do
with our daily life? We can find out that these elements arise all the time. Temperature can
appear either as heat or cold; do we not feel heat or cold very often? When we are stung
by an insect we can experience the characteristic of heat. We can feel impact of hardness
or softness on our body when we are lying down, sitting, walking or standing. That is the
4 Solidity.
120 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
element of solidity appearing in our daily life. If we are mindful of the characteristics of the
elements more often, we will see things as they are.
The Buddha reminded people of the truth in many different ways. Sometimes he spoke
about the body as a corpse in different stages of dissolution. Or he spoke about the “parts
of the body” and he explained that the body is full of impurities, in order to remind people
that what they take for “my body” are only elements which are devoid of beauty, which are
impermanent, dukkha and not self.
We read in the Satipat.t.h¯ana-sutta, in the section on “mindfulness of the body”:
Monks, it is like a double-mouthed provision bag that is full of various kinds
of grain such as hill-paddy, paddy, kidney beans, peas, sesamum, rice; and a
keen-eyed man, pouring them out, were to reflect: “That’s hill-paddy, that’s
paddy, that’s kidney beans, that’s peas, that’s sesamum, that’s rice.” Even so,
monks, does a monk reflect on precisely this body itself, encased in skin and
full of various impurities, from the soles of the feet up and from the crown of
the head down. . .
Not only the body, but also the mind should be considered as elements. There is nothing
in our life which is not an element. Our past lives were only elements and our future lives
will only be elements. We are inclined to think of our future life and wish for a happy
rebirth. We should, however, realize that there is no self which in the future will have
another existence; there are and will be only elements. We have learnt to classify citta in
different ways and this can remind us that cittas are only elements. Not only cittas are
elements, but cetasikas too are elements. We are attached to happy feeling and we dislike
unpleasant feeling. Feelings, however, are only elements which arise because of conditions.
When we are tired or sick we take tiredness and sickness for self and we have aversion. Why
do we not accept unpleasant things as they come to us, since they are only elements? One
might not be inclined to see realities as elements, but it is the truth. One might not like
to remember that things are impermanent, that birth is followed by ageing, sickness and
death, but it is the truth. Why do we not want to see the truth?
In the Discourse on the Manifold Elements (Middle Length Sayings III, no. 115) we read
that the Buddha, while he was staying in the Jeta Grove, in An¯athapin. d. ika’s monastery,
said to the monks:
“Whatever fears arise, monks, all arise for the fool, not the wise man. Whatever
troubles arise, all arise for the fool, not the wise man. Whatever misfortunes
arise, all arise for the fool, not the wise man. . . Monks, there is not fear, trouble,
misfortune for the wise man. Wherefore, monks, thinking, ‘Investigating, we
will become wise’, this is how you must train yourselves, monks.”
When this had been said, the venerable A¯ nanda spoke thus to the Lord: “What
is the stage at which it suffices to say, revered sir: ‘Investigating, the monk is
wise’?”
“A¯ nanda, as soon as a monk is skilled in the elements and skilled in the sense-
fields (¯ayatanas) and skilled in conditioned genesis5 and skilled in the possible
and the impossible6, it is at this stage, A¯ nanda, that it suffices to say, ‘Investi-
gating, the monk is wise.’ “
5 Dependent Origination, the conditional arising of phenomena.
6 Right understanding of what is possible according to conditions and what is impossible.
Chapter 18: Elements 121
“But, revered sir, at what stage does it suffice to say, ‘The monk is skilled in
the elements’ ?”
“There are these eighteen elements, A¯ nanda: the element of eye, the element of
visible object, the element of visual consciousness; the element of ear, the ele-
ment of sound, the element of auditory consciousness; the element of nose, the
element of smell, the element of olfactory consciousness; the element of tongue,
the element of taste, the element of gustatory consciousness; the element of
body, the element of tangible object, the element of body-consciousness; the
element of mind, the element of mind-objects, the element of mental conscious-
ness. When, A¯ nanda, he knows and sees these eighteen elements, it is at this
stage that it suffices to say, ‘The monk is skilled in the elements. ‘ “
“Might there be another way also, revered sir, according to which it suffices to
say, ‘The monk is skilled in the elements’ ?”
“There might be, A¯ nanda. There are these six elements, A¯ nanda: the element of
extension, the element of cohesion, the element of radiation (heat), the element
of mobility, the element of space, the element of consciousness. When, A¯ nanda,
he knows and sees these six elements, it is at this stage that it suffices to say,
‘The monk is skilled in the elements.’ “
“Might there be another way also, revered sir, according to which it suffices to
say, ‘The monk is skilled in the elements’ ?”
“There might be, A¯ nanda. There are these six elements, A¯ nanda: the element
of happiness, the element of anguish, the element of gladness, the element of
sorrowing, the element of equanimity, the element of ignorance. When, A¯ nanda,
he knows and sees these six elements, it is at this stage that it suffices to say,
‘The monk is skilled in the elements’.”
The Buddha then explained still other ways of being skilled in the elements and further
on we read that A¯ nanda asked again:
“Might there be another way also, revered sir, according to which it suffices to
say, ‘The monk is skilled in the elements’ ?”
“There might be, A¯ nanda. There are these two elements, A¯ nanda: the element
that is constructed7 and the element that is unconstructed8. When, A¯ nanda,
he knows and sees these two elements, it is at this stage that it suffices to say,
‘The monk is skilled in the elements’.”
The element which is “constructed” (sankhata), is all conditioned realities (the five
khandhas), and the element which is “unconstructed” (asan˙ khata), is nibb¯ana. Also nibb¯ana
is an element, it is not a person, it is devoid of self, anatt¯a. We read in this sutta about the
monk who knows and sees the elements. Knowing and seeing the elements does not mean
only knowing them in theory and thinking about them. One knows and sees the elements
when there is pan~n~a¯ which realizes n¯ama and ru¯pa as they are: only elements, not self. This
knowledge will lead to the end of fears, troubles and misfortunes, to the end of dukkha.
7 san˙khata
8 asan˙khata
122 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
When realities are classified as eighteen elements, what element is cetasika?
Which paramattha dhammas are vin~n~a¯n. a-dh¯atu (consciousness-element)?
Is mind-consciousness-element (mano-vin~n~a¯n. a-dh¯atu) included in vin~n~a¯n. a-dh¯atu?
Through how many doors can mind-element (mano-dh¯atu) experience an object?
Why is also nibb¯ana an element?
Chapter 19: The Sobhana Cittas in our Life 123
There are many different types of citta which arise in our life and they can be classified
in different ways. When they are classified by way of four “j¯atis” (j¯ati means “birth” or
“nature”), they are:
Kusala cittas (wholesome cittas)
Akusala cittas (unwholesome cittas)
Vip¯akacittas (cittas which are result)
Kiriyacittas (cittas which are “inoperative”, neither cause nor result)
Another way of classifying cittas is as follows:
Sobhana cittas, cittas accompanied by sobhana (beautiful ) cetasikas
Asobhana cittas, cittas unaccompanied by sobhana cetasikas.
Akusala cittas and ahetuka cittas are asobhana cittas, they are not accompanied by
sobhana cetasikas. As we have seen, there are twelve types of akusala cittas. They are:
8 types of lobha-mu¯la-citta (cittas rooted in attachment)
2 types of dosa-mu¯la-citta (cittas rooted in aversion)
2 types of moha-mu¯la-citta (cittas rooted in ignorance)
Ahetuka cittas are cittas without roots and unaccompanied by sobhana cetasikas, and
thus they are asobhana. As we have seen, there are eighteen types of ahetuka cittas.
Summarising them, they are:
10 dvi-pan~ca-vin~n~a¯n. as, which are ahetuka vip¯akacittas (the five pairs of seeing, hearing,
etc.)
2 sampat.icchana-cittas, receiving-consciousness, which are ahetuka vip¯aka cittas (one
akusala vip¯aka and one kusala vip¯aka)
3 sant¯ıran. a-cittas, investigating-consciousness, which are ahetuka vip¯aka cittas (one
akusala vip¯aka, one kusala vip¯aka, accompanied by upekkh¯a, and one kusala vip¯aka,
accompanied by somanassa)
1 pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta, five-door-adverting-consciousness, which is ahetuka kiriy-
acitta
1 mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta, mind-door-adverting-consciousness, which is ahetuka kiriy-
acitta
1 hasitupp¯ada-citta, an ahetuka kiriyacitta which can produce the smile of an arahat
Thus, there are thirty asobhana cittas: twelve akusala cittas and eighteen ahetuka cittas.
There are also sobhana cittas arising in our life, cittas which are accompanied by sobhana
cetasikas. Three among the sobhana cetasikas are hetu, root. They are: alobha (non-
attachment), adosa (non-aversion) and amoha or pan~n~a¯, wisdom. Sobhana cittas are always
accompanied by the two sobhana hetus of alobha and adosa and they may or may not be
accompanied by pan~n~a¯. Thus, sobhana cittas are sahetuka, accompanied by hetus. When
we perform d¯ana (generosity), observe s¯ıla (morality) or apply ourselves to bh¯avan¯a (which
comprises samatha, vipassan¯a and the study or teaching of Dhamma), there are kusala
cittas, accompanied by sobhana cetasikas. Thus, kusala cittas are among the sobhana
cittas.
124 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
The kusala cittas which perform d¯ana, observe s¯ıla or apply themselves to bh¯avan¯a
are cittas belonging to the lowest plane of consciousness, the “sense sphere”; they are
k¯am¯avacara cittas. K¯am¯avacara cittas are the cittas we have in daily life, when, for exam-
ple, we are seeing, thinking or wishing for something. Sometimes k¯am¯avacara cittas arise
with sobhana hetus (beautiful roots), sometimes with akusala hetus, and sometimes with-
out any hetus. D¯ana, s¯ıla and bhavan¯a is performed by k¯am¯avacara kusala cittas; these
kinds of kusala kamma can be performed in daily life, where there are sense-impressions.
K¯am¯avacara kusala cittas are called mah¯a-kusala cittas (“mah¯a” means “many” or “great”).
For those who attain jh¯ana (absorption, developed in samatha, tranquil meditation)
there is at that moment no seeing, hearing or any other sense-impression; then the citta is
not k¯am¯avacara citta, but it is of a higher plane of consciousness. The jh¯anacittas can be
ru¯p¯avacara cittas (ru¯pa-jh¯anacittas) or aru¯p¯avacara cittas (aru¯pa jh¯anacittas). However,
while one is developing samatha the cittas are mah¯a-kusala cittas before one attains jh¯ana.
When enlightenment is attained and the citta experiences nibb¯ana, the citta is of the
lokuttara bhu¯mi, the “supramundane” plane of consciousness (bhu¯mi is plane). However,
lokuttara kusala cittas, magga-cittas, are preceded by mah¯a-kusala cittas in the process of
cittas during which enlightenment is attained.
We would like to have kusala cittas more often. We may think that the circumstances
of our life or other people hinder the arising of kusala citta, but this is not so. The real
cause that kusala cittas seldom arise is our lack of development of what is wholesome. If
we know the conditions for the development of kusala, there will be more kusala cittas in
our life. Through the study of the Dhamma we will learn how to develop kusala. If we
have not studied Dhamma we may think that we are performing kusala while we have,
on the contrary, akusala cittas. For example, we may think that when we give something
away, there are only kusala cittas. However, lobha-mu¯la-cittas may also arise. We may give
something to friends and expect them to be kind to us in return. This is not kusala but
lobha, attachment. When we study Dhamma we learn that the pure way of giving is giving
without expecting anything in return. When we perform wholesome deeds our aim should
be to have less selfishness, and this is beneficial both for ourselves and for others.
People have different accumulations and these are conditions for the arising of kusala
cittas and akusala cittas. For example, when people visit a temple and see others presenting
gifts to the monks, they may, because of their accumulations, react in different ways. Some
people may appreciate someone else’s good deeds; others may not be interested at all. If
one would know the value of kusala and realize that appreciating the good deeds of others
is a way of d¯ana, one would use more opportunities to develop kusala.
If the Buddha had not attained enlightenment and taught Dhamma we would not have
any means of knowing ourselves thoroughly; we would not have a precise knowledge of
our kusala cittas and akusala cittas and of the conditions for their arising. The Buddha
taught people how to develop wholesomeness and eradicate defilements, and therefore, living
according to the precepts and performing other kinds of wholesomeness is the way to pay
respect to him. We read in the Mah¯a-Parinibb¯ana-sutta (Dialogues of the Buddha II, no.
16, chapter V, 137,138) that before the Buddha passed away, the twin S¯ala trees, which
were full of flowers although it was not the season, dropped their flowers all over his body,
that heavenly Mand¯arava-flowers and sandalwood-powder descended on his body, and that
heavenly music sounded, out of reverence for him. The Buddha said to A¯ nanda:
Chapter 19: The Sobhana Cittas in our Life 125
Now it is not thus, A¯ nanda, that the Tath¯agata is rightly honoured, reverenced,
venerated, held sacred or revered. But the monk or the nun, the devout man
or the devout woman, who continually fulfils all the greater and lesser duties,
who is correct in life, walking according to the precepts −it is he who rightly
honours, reverences, venerates, holds sacred, and reveres the Tath¯agata with
the worthiest homage. Therefore, O A¯ nanda, be constant in the fulfilment of
the greater and of the lesser duties, and be correct in life, walking according to
the precepts; and thus, A¯ nanda, should it be taught.
We all have in our daily life opportunities for d¯ana and s¯ıla. As regards bh¯avan¯a, this
comprises samatha and vipassan¯a, and the studying of Dhamma or explaining it to others.
Not only the monks but also laypeople can study and teach Dhamma. We read in the
Mah¯a-Parinibb¯ana-sutta (chapter III, 112, 113) that the Buddha told A¯ nanda that M¯ara,
the Evil One, had said to the Buddha after his enlightenment that it was now the time for
him to pass away. The Buddha said:
And when he had thus spoken, A¯ nanda, I addressed M¯ara, the Evil One, and
said:- “I shall not pass away, O Evil One! Until not only the monks and nuns of
the Order, but also the laydisciples of either sex shall have become true hear-
ers, wise and well trained, ready and learned, carrying the teachings in their
memory, masters of the lesser corollaries that follow from the larger doctrine,
correct in life, walking according to the precepts−until they, having thus them-
selves learned the doctrine, shall be able to tell others of it, preach it, make it
known, establish it, open it, minutely explain it and make it clear−until they,
when others start vain doctrine easy to be refuted by the truth, shall be able in
refuting it to spread the wonder-working truth abroad! I shall not die until this
pure religion of mine shall have become successful, prosperous, widespread, and
popular in all its full extent−until, in a word, it shall have been well proclaimed
among men!”
The fact that we are able to perform wholesome deeds in our lives is due to conditions,
it is not due to a self. We read in the Dialogues of the Buddha (III, no. 34, Tenfold Series,
chapter IV, 276) about factors which are helpful conditions for kusala:
Four that help much:-four “wheels”1, to wit, the orbit of a favourable place of
residence, the orbit of association with the good, perfect adjustment of oneself,
the cycle of merit wrought in the past.
As regards a favourable place of residence, living in a Buddhist country can be a helpful
condition for kusala cittas. Then one has the opportunity to visit temples and listen to
the preaching of Dhamma. The Dhamma can change our life, it is the condition for the
performing of wholesome deeds, for d¯ana, s¯ıla and bh¯avan¯a.
As regards association with the good, this means association with the right friend in
Dhamma. If one, even though living in a Buddhist country, does not meet the right friend
in Dhamma who can help in the search for the truth, one lacks the condition which is most
helpful for the development of wisdom and the eradication of defilements.
Perfect adjustment of oneself is “adjusting oneself” with kusala, becoming established
in good qualities. There are many degrees of kusala. If one develops the wisdom of the
1 Wheel means here: vehicle or means of success.
126 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
eightfold Path in being mindful of n¯ama and ru¯pa, there will be less clinging to the concept
of self. If there is mindfulness of n¯ama and ru¯pa while performing wholesome deeds, one
will come to realize that no self, no person performs these deeds. In that way kusala kamma
will be purer and eventually defilements will be eradicated.
The accumulation of kusala in the past is the fourth factor which is helpful. The kusala
kammas which were accumulated in the past are the condition for us to go to the right
place and meet the right people. It is kamma which causes one to be born in a Buddhist
country or to live in a Buddhist country. The kusala accumulated in the past conditions
our study and practice of the Dhamma at the present time. If we consider the factors in
our life which are the conditions for kusala we will understand more clearly that it is not
self who performs good deeds.
In the Abhidhamma we learn that there are eight types of mah¯a-kusala cittas, kusala
cittas of the sensuous plane of consciousness. Why isn’t there only one type? The reason is
that each type has its own conditions for its arising. If we know about these different types
and if we can be aware of them when their characteristics present themselves, it will help us
not to take them for self. Four types of mah¯a-kusala cittas arise with somanassa (pleasant
feeling) and four types arise with upekkh¯a (indifferent feeling). We would like to have kusala
cittas with somanassa, because we cling to somanassa. However, we cannot force somanassa
to arise. Sometimes we perform d¯ana with somanassa, sometimes with upekkh¯a. It depends
on conditions whether somanassa or whether upekkh¯a arises with the mah¯a-kusala citta.
Four types are accompanied by wisdom; four types are not accompanied by wisdom. We
may, for example, help others without pan~n~a¯ or with pan~n~a¯. When we realize that helping is
kusala, or when we are aware of the n¯ama or ru¯pa appearing at that moment, there is pan~n~a¯
arising with the mah¯a-kusala citta. Four types are asan˙ kh¯arika (unprompted, spontaneous,
not induced by someone else or by one’s own consideration) and four types are sasan˙ kh¯arika
(prompted, by someone else or by oneself). The eight types of mah¯a-kusala cittas are the
following:
Accompanied by pleasant feeling, with wisdom, unprompted (Somanassa-sahagatam. ,
n~a¯n. a sampayuttam. , asan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. )
Accompanied by pleasant feeling, with wisdom, prompted (Somanassa-sahagatam. ,
n~a¯n. a-sampayuttam. , sasan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. )
Accompanied by pleasant feeling, without wisdom, unprompted (Somanassa-
sahagatam. , n~a¯n. a-vippayuttam. , asan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. )
Accompanied by pleasant feeling, without wisdom, prompted (Somanassa-sahagatam. ,
n~a¯n. a-vippayuttam. , sasan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. )
Accompanied by indifferent feeling, with wisdom, unprompted (Upekkh¯a-sahagatam. ,
n~a¯n. a-sampayuttam. , asan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. )
Accompanied by indifferent feeling, with wisdom, prompted (Upekkh¯a-sahagatam. ,
n~a¯n. a-sampayuttam. , sasan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. )
Accompanied by indifferent feeling, without wisdom, unprompted (Upekkh¯a-
sahagatam. , n~a¯n. a-vippayuttam. , asan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. )
Accompanied by indifferent feeling, without wisdom, prompted (Upekkh¯a-sahagatam. ,
n~a¯n. a-vippayuttam. , sasan˙ kh¯arikam ekam. )
Mah¯a-kusala cittas are not the only kind of k¯am¯avacara sobhana cittas (beautiful cittas
of the sensuous plane of consciousness). Mah¯a-kusala cittas are cittas which are cause; they
Chapter 19: The Sobhana Cittas in our Life 127
can motivate kusala kamma through body, speech or mind which is capable of producing
results. There are also mah¯a-vip¯akacittas, which are results of kusala kamma performed
with mah¯a-kusala cittas. Mah¯a-vip¯akacittas are sobhana cittas too, arising with sobhana
cetasikas. There are several types of mah¯a-vip¯akacittas because the kusala kammas which
produce them are of different kinds.
People’s deeds are not the same and thus the results cannot be the same. People are born
with different pat.isandhi-cittas (rebirth-consciousness). Pat.isandhi-cittas are vip¯akacittas;
they are the result of kamma. As we have seen before (in chapter 11), human beings can be
born with a pat.isandhi-citta which is ahetuka kusala vip¯aka (and in this case they are hand-
icapped from the first moment of life), or with a pat.isandhi-citta which is sahetuka vip¯aka,
accompanied by sobhana hetus. In the case of human beings, and of beings born in other
sensuous planes of existence, the pat.isandhi-citta which is sahetuka vip¯akacitta is mah¯a-
vip¯akacitta, the result of k¯am¯avacara kusala kamma (kamma performed by mah¯a-kusala
cittas, kusala cittas of the sensuous plane of consciousness). Apart from mah¯a-vip¯akacitta
there are other types of sahetuka vip¯akacitta which are not the result of k¯am¯avacara kusala
kamma but of kusala kamma of higher planes of consciousness. These types will be dealt
with later on.
There are eight types of mah¯a-vip¯akacittas. They can be accompanied by somanassa
or by upekkh¯a, they can be with pan~n~a¯ or without pan~n~a¯, they can be unprompted,
asan˙ kh¯arika, or prompted, sasan˙ kh¯arika. They are classified in the same way as the eight
types of mah¯a-kusala cittas mentioned above.
The bhavanga-citta (life-continuum) and the cuti-citta (dying-consciousness) are the
same type of citta as the first citta in one’s life, the pat.isandhi-citta. If the pat.isandhi-
citta is mah¯a-vip¯akacitta, the bhavanga-citta and the cuti-citta of that life are the same
type of mah¯a-vip¯akacitta. In that case the functions of pat.isandhi, bhavanga and cuti are
performed by mah¯a-vip¯akacitta.
When we see a beautiful visible object or experience pleasant objects through the other
sense-doors, the citta is kusala vip¯akacitta, the result of kusala kamma; however, that
kind of vip¯akacitta is ahetuka vipaka (arising without hetu), it is not mah¯a-vip¯aka. The
functions of seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting and experiencing tangible object through the
bodysense, and also the functions of sampat.icchana, receiving, and sant¯ıran. a, investigating,
cannot be performed by mah¯a-vip¯akacittas, they are performed by ahetuka vip¯akacittas.
Tad¯aramman. a-citta, a vip¯aka-citta which may arise after the javana-cittas and which per-
forms the function of tad¯aramman. a, registering or retention, can be ahetuka vip¯akacitta or
mah¯a-vip¯akacitta2.
There are still other kinds of kam¯avacara sobhana cittas: the mah¯a-kiriyacittas3. The
arahat has mah¯a-kiriyacittas instead of mah¯a-kusala cittas. Since he has no conditions
for rebirth he does not accumulate any more kamma. He has mah¯a-kiriyacittas (inoper-
ative cittas) which perform the function of javana in the sense-door process and in the
mind-door process. When we experience a pleasant object lobha may arise and when we
experience an unpleasant object dosa may arise. The arahat has equanimity towards pleas-
ant objects and unpleasant objects, he has no more defilements. The arahat can have
2 See chapter 15. Tad¯aramman. a-citta is either ahetuka or sahetuka, accompanied by hetus. Tadaramman. a-
citta which is sahetuka is called mah¯a-vipakacitta, since it belongs to the sense sphere.
3 Mah¯a-kusala cittas, mah¯a-vip¯akacittas and mah¯a-kiriya cittas are always k¯amavacara cittas, cittas of
the sensuous plane of consciousness.
128 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
mah¯a-kiriyacittas which are n~a¯n. a-vippayutta, not accompanied by wisdom. Arahats can
have mah¯a-kiriyacittas which are n~a¯n. a-vippayutta, because pan~n~a¯ does not necessarily ac-
company the mah¯a-kiriyacittas when they are not preaching or discussing Dhamma.
The arahat has kiriyacittas which are sobhana cittas and also kiriyacittas which are
asobhana cittas. The five sense-door-adverting consciousness, pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta, the
mind-door-adverting consciousness, mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta, the hasitupp¯ada-citta, smile
producing consciousness of the arahat which can perform the function of javana, are asob-
hana kiriyacittas. These types of citta are not accompanied by sobhana cetasikas, they are
ahetuka.
There are eight types of mah¯a-kiriyacittas in all. They are accompanied by somanassa
or by upekkh¯a, they are accompanied by pan~n~a¯ or not accompanied by pan~n~a¯, they are
asan˙ kh¯arika or sasan˙ kh¯arika. They are classified in the same way as the eight types of
mah¯a-kusala cittas.
Altogether there are fifty-four cittas which are k¯ama-bhu¯mi4, or k¯am¯avacara cittas, cittas
of the sensuous plane of consciousness. They are:
12 akusala cittas 8 mah¯a-vip¯akacittas
18 ahetuka cittas 8 mah¯a-kusalacittas
8 mah¯a-kiriyacittas
Thus, there are thirty asobhana cittas and twenty-four k¯ama-sobhana cittas (sobhana
cittas of the sensuous plane of consciousness).
There are also sobhana cittas which are not k¯ama-sobhana cittas, namely:
the sobhana cittas which are ru¯pa-bhu¯mi (ru¯p¯avacara cittas, for those who attain ru¯pa-
jh¯ana)
the sobhana cittas which are aru¯pa-bhu¯mi (aru¯p¯avacara cittas, for those who attain
aru¯pa-jh¯ana)
the sobhana cittas which are lokuttara bhu¯mi, (lokuttara cittas for those who attain
enlightenment)
Only k¯am¯avacara cittas can include both sobhana cittas and asobhana cittas. Cittas
which are ru¯pa-bhu¯mi, aru¯pa-bhu¯mi and lokuttara bhu¯mi can only be sobhana cittas.
Those who do not attain jh¯ana or attain enlightenment cannot know the cittas of other
bhu¯mis, but they can verify the truth of the Buddha’s teachings as regards the k¯ama-bhu¯mi,
the cittas of the sensuous plane of consciousness. We can find out for ourselves whether
it is beneficial to perform d¯ana, observe s¯ıla and apply ourselves to bh¯avan¯a. We can find
out whether the development of these ways of kusala helps us to have less akusala cittas.
Sometimes it is the right moment for d¯ana, sometimes for s¯ıla or for bh¯avan¯a. Vipassan¯a,
right understanding of realities, can be developed at any time, no matter whether we perform
d¯ana, observe s¯ıla, study or teach Dhamma. Right understanding can also be developed
4 Bhu¯mi is plane; in this case, plane of citta, not plane of existence. The difference between plane of citta
and plane of existence will be explained in chapter 20.
Chapter 19: The Sobhana Cittas in our Life 129
when there is no opportunity for d¯ana, s¯ıla or other ways of kusala. Through mindfulness
of n¯ama and ru¯pa we come to know the different types of cittas which arise, also akusala
cittas and eventually there will be less attachment to the concept of self. In being mindful
we can verify the truth of the Buddha’s teachings.
We read in the Gradual Sayings (Book of the Sevens, chapter VIII, paragraph 9, The
message):
Now the venerable Up¯ali came to the Exalted One, saluted and sat down at
one side. So seated, he said: “Well were it for me, lord, if the Exalted One
were to expound Dhamma briefly to me, so that, having heard it, I might abide
resolute, alone, secluded, earnest and zealous.”
“The doctrines, Up¯ali, of which you may know: ‘These doctrines lead one not
to complete weariness (of the world), nor to dispassion, nor to ending, nor
to calm, nor to knowledge, nor to awakening, nor to the cool’-regard them
definitely as not Dhamma, not the discipline, not the word of the Teacher. But
the doctrines of which you may know: ‘These doctrines lead one to complete
weariness, dispassion, ending, calm, knowledge, the awakening, the cool’-regard
them unreservedly as Dhamma, the discipline, the word of the Teacher.”
The Commentary to this sutta, the “Manorathapu¯ran. i”, explains the word “knowledge”
as the penetration of the three characteristics of conditioned realities, namely, imperma-
nence, dukkha and anatt¯a. The “awakening” refers to the attainment of enlightenment and
the “cool” to nibb¯ana.
Which cittas are ahetuka (without hetu)? Are they always asobhana?
Do arahats have asobhana cittas?
Why is the jh¯anacitta not k¯am¯avacara citta?
Are mah¯a-kusala cittas always accompanied by somanassa (pleasant feeling)?
Can vip¯akacitta be sobhana citta?
Can kiriyacitta be sobhana citta?
Why has the arahat mah¯a-kiriyacittas instead of mah¯a-kusala cittas?
How many types of k¯am¯avacara cittas are there?
Chapter 20: Planes of Existence 131
We are born, we die and then we are born again. It is beyond control in which plane of
existence we will be reborn; it depends on the kamma which produces the pat.isandhi-citta
(rebirth-consciousness) after the cuti-citta (dying-consciousness) has fallen away.
At this moment we are living in the human plane. Human life, however, is very short.
When this life is over we do not know in which plane we will be reborn. Most people do
not like to think of the shortness of human life; they are absorbed in what they experience
through the sense-doors and on account of these experiences they are happy or unhappy.
However, we should realize that happiness and unhappiness are only mental phenomena
which arise because of conditions and fall away again. Our whole life is a sequence of
phenomena which arise and fall away again.
Many religions teach about heaven and hell. In what respect are the Buddhist teachings
different? Do we just have to believe in heaven and hell? Through the Buddhist teachings
we learn to study realities, to study cause and effect in life. Each cause brings about its
appropriate result. People perform good and bad deeds and these deeds bring different
results; they can cause birth in different planes of existence. A plane of existence is the
place where one is born. Birth in a woeful plane is the result of a bad deed and birth in a
happy plane is the result of a good deed. Since the deeds of beings are of many different
degrees of kusala and akusala, the results are of many different degrees as well. There are
different woeful planes and different happy planes of existence.
The animal world is a woeful plane. We can see how animals devour one another and we
find that nature is cruel. The animal world is not the only woeful plane. There are different
hell planes. The akusala vip¯aka in hell is more intense than the sufferings which can be
experienced in the human plane. The descriptions of hells in the Buddhist teachings are
not merely allegories; the experience of unpleasant things through eyes, ears, nose, tongue
and bodysense is akusala vip¯aka and akusala vip¯aka is reality. Life in a hell plane is not
permanent; when one’s lifespan in a hell plane is over there can be rebirth in another plane.
Apart from the animal plane and the hell planes, there are other woeful planes. Birth
in the plane of petas (ghosts) is the result of akusala kamma. Beings in that plane have a
deformed figure and they are always hungry and thirsty.
Furthermore, there is the plane of asuras (demons). The objects which are experienced
in the asura plane are not as enjoyable as the objects which can be experienced in the
human plane. There are four classes of woeful planes in all.
Birth as a human being is a happy rebirth. In the human plane there is opportunity for
the development of kusala. One can study Dhamma and learn to develop the way leading
to the end of defilements, to the end of birth and death. Birth in the human plane is kusala
vip¯aka, but during one’s lifespan in this plane there are both kusala vip¯aka and akusala
vip¯aka. Each person experiences different results in life: there are gain and loss, honour and
dishonour, praise and blame, happiness and misery. It is due to kamma whether someone
is born into pleasant or unpleasant surroundings, whether he belongs to a family which is
well-to-do or which is poor. The experience of pleasant and unpleasant things through eyes,
ears, nose, tongue and bodysense are the results of kamma.
Other happy planes, apart from the human plane, are the heavenly planes. In the
heavenly planes there is more kusala vip¯aka than in the human plane and less akusala
132 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
vip¯aka. There are several heavenly planes and although life in a heavenly plane lasts a very
long time, it is not permanent. The woeful planes, the human plane and the six heavenly
planes which are deva planes, are sensuous planes of existence. Sensuous planes of existence
are planes where there is seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, the experience of tangible object
through the bodysense and other kam¯avacara cittas (cittas which are of the sensuous plane
of consciousness). There are eleven classes of sensuous planes of existence in all.
Those who see the disadvantages of sense-impressions may cultivate jh¯ana; they can be
reborn in higher heavenly planes which are not sensuous planes. Those who attain ru¯pa-
jh¯ana can be reborn in ru¯pa-brahma-planes where there are less sense-impressions. There
are sixteen ru¯pa-brahma planes in all. One of them is the asan~n~a-satta plane1 where there
is only ru¯pa, not n¯ama. Those who have attained the highest stage of ru¯pa-jh¯ana and who
wish to have no consciousness at all, can be reborn without citta; for them there is only
a body. These beings have seen the disadvantages of consciousness; even happiness is a
disadvantage, since it does not last.
Those who see the disadvantages of ru¯pa cultivate aru¯pa-jh¯ana. If they attain aru¯pa-
jh¯ana they can be reborn in aru¯pa-brahma planes where there is no ru¯pa. There are four
classes of aru¯pa-brahma planes. Beings born in these planes have only n¯ama, not ru¯pa. One
may wonder how there can be beings which only have ru¯pa or beings which only have n¯ama.
When right understanding of n¯ama and ru¯pa has been developed realities will be seen as
only elements which arise because of conditions, not a being, not a person, no self. One
will come to understand that, under the appropriate conditions, there can be ru¯pa without
n¯ama and n¯ama without ru¯pa.
There are thirty-one classes of planes of existence in all, namely:
4 woeful planes
1 human plane
6 deva planes
The above are 11 sensuous planes
16 ru¯pa-brahma planes
4 aru¯pa-brahma planes
We read in the Gradual Sayings (Book of the Sevens, chapter VI, paragraph 9a, Amity)
about the value of wholesome deeds. They can bring pleasant results for a long time and
cause birth in different happy planes. We read that the Buddha told the monks about his
births in different happy planes. The Buddha said:
Monks, be not afraid of deeds of merit. It is a name for happiness, that is, meritorious
deeds. For well I know, monks, that deeds of merit done for a long time have a ripening, a
blossoming, which is pleasing, joyous and lovely for a long time.
For seven years I fostered thoughts of amity, and then for seven ages of the world’s
rolling on and rolling back I came not again to this world. Then when the world rolled
on, I reached the sphere of Radiance; then when the world rolled back, I won to Brahm¯a’s
empty palace. Then, monks, I became Brahm¯a, great Brahm¯a, the conqueror, unconquered,
all-seeing, all-powerful. Thirty-six times I was Sakka, the deva-king. Many times seven was
1 Asan~n~a means: without san~n~¯a, perception or remembrance, and satta means: being.
Chapter 20: Planes of Existence 133
I a Wheel-turning rajah, just, righteous, conquering the four ends of the earth, bringing
stability to the country, possessing the seven gems. . .
As we have seen, the fact that beings are born in different planes of existence is due to
their accumulated kamma. Plane of existence is the place or world where one is born. Plane
of existence is not the same as plane of citta. There are different planes of citta depending
on the object (¯aramman. a) the citta experiences. There are four different planes of citta
which are the following:
k¯am¯avacara cittas (sensuous plane of citta or k¯ama-bhu¯mi)
ru¯p¯avacara cittas (plane of ru¯pa-jh¯anacittas)
aru¯p¯avacara cittas (plane of aru¯pa-jh¯anacittas)
lokuttara cittas (plane of supramundane cittas experiencing nibb¯ana)
K¯am¯avacara cittas can be classified as asobhana cittas (cittas not accompanied by sob-
hana cetasikas) and as k¯ama-sobhana cittas (cittas of the sensuous plane of consciousness,
accompanied by sobhana cetasikas).
K¯am¯avacara cittas arise in thirty planes of existence; they do not arise in the asan~n~a-
satta plane, where there is no n¯ama, only ru¯pa. Even in the aru¯pa-brahma-planes there are
k¯am¯avacara cittas.
As regards k¯ama-sobhana cittas, they can arise even in woeful planes. Furthermore, they
arise in the human plane, in the deva planes, in the ru¯pa-brahma planes and in the aru¯pa-
brahma planes. They arise in thirty planes of existence, the asan~n~a-satta plane excepted.
Not all types, however, arise in all planes of existence.
As regards asobhana cittas, they can arise in thirty planes of existence, but not all
types arise in all planes. Lobha-mu¯la-cittas (cittas rooted in attachment) can arise in thirty
planes; even in the ru¯pa-brahma planes and aru¯pa-brahma planes lobha-mu¯la-cittas can
arise. Dosa-mu¯la-cittas (cittas rooted in aversion) arise in the eleven sensuous planes of
existence. It is clinging to sense objects which conditions dosa; when one does not obtain
the pleasant object one likes, one has aversion. Dosa-mu¯la-cittas do not arise in the ru¯pa-
brahma planes or in the aru¯pa-brahma planes. So long as beings live in the ru¯pa-brahma
planes and in the aru¯pa-brahma planes there are no conditions for dosa. Moha-mu¯la-cittas
(cittas rooted in ignorance) arise in thirty planes of existence; all those who are not arahats
have moha and thus moha-mu¯la-cittas arise in all planes of existence, except in the asan~n~a-
satta plane.
As we have seen, not only akusala cittas, but also ahetuka cittas are asobhana cittas
(cittas which are not accompanied by sobhana cetasikas). As regards the asobhana cittas
which are ahetuka, the ahetuka cittas which arise in a process of cittas experiencing an
object through one of the sense-doors, can arise only in the planes of existence where there
are sense impressions. Seeing-consciousness and hearing-consciousness arise in the eleven
sensuous planes of existence (the four woeful planes, the human being plane and the six
heavenly planes which are sensuous planes, the deva planes), and they arise also in fifteen
ru¯pa-brahma planes, thus, they arise in twenty-six planes of existence. They do not arise
in the aru¯pa-brahma planes where there is no ru¯pa.
Smelling-consciousness, tasting-consciousness and body-consciousness arise only in the
eleven sensuous planes of existence. Thus, they do not arise in the ru¯pa-brahma planes and
in the aru¯pa-brahma planes.
134 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
Pan~ca-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta (five-door-adverting-consciousness), sampat.icchana-citta
(receiving-consciousness) and sant¯ıran. a-citta (investigating-consciousness) arise in all
planes where there are sense-impressions, thus, they arise in twenty-six planes: in the
eleven sensuous planes and in fifteen ru¯pa-brahma planes; the asan~n~a-satta plane is
excepted.
The mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta (mind-door-adverting-consciousness) arises in all planes
where there is n¯ama, thus, it arises in thirty planes.
People are inclined to speculate about the place where they will be reborn. Would we
like to be reborn in the human plane? We cling to life in the human plane and we do not
always realize the many moments of akusala vip¯aka we are bound to receive in this world:
we are threatened by calamities such as war and hunger; we are subject to old age, sickness
and death. Some people would like to be reborn in a heavenly plane; they like to experience
pleasant things through the senses. One may wish for rebirth in a heavenly plane, but
whether or not this will happen depends on one’s kamma. Birth is result, it does not take
place without cause. If one performs many good deeds one cultivates the cause which will
bring a pleasant result but there is no way to know when the result will take place, this is
beyond control.
Are we afraid of death? Most people want to prolong their lives. They fear death because
they feel uncertain of the future. If one is not an ariyan (a noble person who has attained
enlightenment) there may be rebirth in hell. We do not like to think of rebirth in a woeful
plane, but there may be deeds performed in the past which can cause rebirth in hell. Even
the Buddha was in one of his former lives born in hell2. It is useless to think of hell with
aversion and fear, but the thought of hell is beneficial when it reminds us to develop kusala
at this moment, instead of akusala.
We read in the Kindred Sayings (V, Mah¯a-vagga, Kindred Sayings on Streamwinning,
chapter VI, paragraph 4, Visiting the sick) that while the Buddha was staying among the
Sakyans at Kapilavatthu, in Banyan Park, Mah¯an¯ama asked him how a wise lay-follower
who is sick should be admonished by another wise lay-follower. The Buddha said:
A wise lay-disciple, Mah¯an¯ama, who is sick. . . should be admonished by another
wise lay-disciple with the four comfortable assurances, thus: “Take comfort,
dear sir, in your unwavering loyalty to the Buddha, saying: He is the Exalted
One, Arahat, fully enlightened One. . . Teacher of devas and mankind, a Bud-
dha, an Exalted One. Take comfort, dear sir, in your unwavering loyalty to the
Dhamma, thus: Well proclaimed is the Dhamma. . . Take comfort, dear sir, in
your unwavering loyalty to the Sangha. . . Take comfort, dear sir, in your pos-
session of the virtues dear to the Ariyans. . . ” A wise lay-disciple, Mah¯an¯ama,
who is sick. . . should be admonished by another wise lay-disciple with these
four comfortable assurances.
Then, supposing he has longing for his parents, he should thus be spoken to:
If he say: ”I have longing for my parents”, the other should reply: “But, my
dear sir, you are subject to death. Whether you feel longing for your parents
or not, you will have to die. It were just as well for you to abandon the longing
you have for your parents.”
2 This has been referred to in the “Mu¯ga-Pakkha-Jataka”,VI, no. 538.
Chapter 20: Planes of Existence 135
If he should say: “That longing for my parents is now abandoned,” the other
should reply: “Yet, my dear sir, you still have longing for your children. As
you must die in any case, it were just as well for you to abandon that longing
for your children.”
If he should say: “That longing for my children is now abandoned,” the other
should reply: “Yet, my dear sir, you still have longing for the five human
pleasures of sense.”
Then, if he say, “That longing for the five human pleasures of sense is now
abandoned,” the other should reply: “My friend, the heavenly delights are
more excellent than the five human pleasures of sense. It were well for you,
worthy sir, to remove your thoughts from them and fix them upon the Four
Deva Kings.”
Suppose the sick man say, “My thoughts are removed from human pleasures
of sense and fixed upon the Four Deva Kings,” then let the other say: “More
excellent than the Four Deva Kings and more choice are the Suite of the Thirty-
three. . . the Yama Devas, the Devas of Delight, the Creative Devas the Devas
who rejoice in the work of other devas the latter are more excellent and choice
than the former so it were better for you to fix your thoughts on the Brahma
World.”
Then if the sick man’s thoughts are so fixed, let the other say: “My friend, even
the Brahma World is impermanent, not lasting, prisoned in a person. Well
for you, friend, if you raise your mind above the Brahma World and fix it on
cessation from the person pack3.
And if the sick man say he has done so, then, Mah¯an¯ama, I declare that there
is no difference between the lay-disciple who thus avers and the monk whose
heart is freed from the ¯asavas, that is, between the release of the one and the
release of the other.
Being subject to birth is dangerous. No rebirth at all in any plane of existence is better
than birth even in the highest heavenly plane. If one wants to have no more rebirth right
understanding of realities should be developed in order to realize the four ariyan (noble)
Truths. Then one is on the way leading to the end of rebirth.
The first ariyan Truth is the truth of dukkha. If we could experience, for instance, that
seeing at this moment, hearing, attachment or any other n¯ama or ru¯pa which appears now
is only an element which arises and falls away, we would have more understanding of the
truth of dukkha. What arises and falls away cannot give satisfaction, it is dukkha. The
second ariyan Truth is the truth of the origin of dukkha. Craving is the origin of dukkha.
Through the development of the eightfold Path there will be less craving, less clinging to
n¯ama and ru¯pa. When there finally is no more craving, there will be an end to rebirth,
and this is the end of dukkha. The third ariyan Truth is the extinction of dukkha, which
is nibb¯ana, and the fourth ariyan Truth is the Path leading to the extinction of dukkha,
which is the eightfold Path.
We read in the Mah¯a-parinibb¯ana-sutta (Dialogues of the Buddha II, no. 16, chapter II,
1-4):
3 The five khandhas of clinging.
136 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
. . . The Exalted One proceeded with a great company of the monks to
Kotig¯ama; and there he stayed in the village itself.
And at that place the Exalted One addressed the monks, and said: “It is
through not understanding and grasping four Ariyan Truths, O monks, that we
have had to run so long, to wander so long in this weary path of rebirth, both
you and I!”
“And what are these four?”
“The Ariyan truth about dukkha; the Ariyan truth about the cause of dukkha;
the Ariyan truth about the cessation of dukkha; and the Ariyan truth about the
path that leads to that cessation. But when these Ariyan truths are grasped
and known the craving for future life is rooted out, that which leads to renewed
becoming is destroyed, and then there is no more birth!”
Why do the Buddha’s teachings speak about hell?
What is a plane of existence?
What is the difference between “plane of citta” and “plane of existence”?
The human plane is a sensuous plane of existence. Are there in the human plane only
cittas which are k¯am¯avacara cittas (cittas of the sensuous plane of citta)?
The ru¯pa-brahma planes are not sensuous planes of existence. Can there be k¯am¯avacara
cittas in the ru¯pa-brahma planes? If so, all types?
Chapter 21: Samatha 137
We would like to have more wholesomeness in life, but often we are unable to do wholesome
deeds, to speak in a wholesome way or to think wholesome thoughts. Our accumulated
defilements hinder us in the performing of kusala. We learn from the Buddhist teachings
that there are “hindrances” (n¯ıvaran. a), which are akusala cetasikas arising with akusala
cittas. The hindrances arise time and again in daily life. They are:
sensuous desire, in P¯ali: k¯amacchandha
ill-will, in P¯ali: vy¯ap¯ada
torpor and languor, in P¯ali: th¯ına and middha
restlessness and worry, in P¯ali: uddhacca and kukkucca
doubt, in P¯ali: vicikicch¯a
K¯amacchandha or sensuous desire is the cetasika which is lobha (attachment). It is
attachment to the objects we can experience through the sense-doors and the mind-door.
We all have k¯amacchandha in different forms and intensities. Because of economic progress
and technical inventions there is more prosperity in life. One can afford more things which
make life pleasant and comfortable. This, however, does not bring contentedness; on the
contrary, we are not satisfied with what we have and we are forever looking for more
enjoyment and happiness. There is k¯amacchandha with our deeds, words and thoughts.
Even when we think that we are doing good deeds and helping others, k¯amacchandha can
arise. K¯amacchandha makes us restless and unhappy.
Vy¯ap¯ada or ill-will is the cetasika which is dosa. Vy¯ap¯ada can trouble us many times
a day; we feel irritated about other people or about things which happen in life. Vy¯ap¯ada
prevents us from kusala. When there is vy¯ap¯ada we cannot have loving kindness and
compassion for other people.
Th¯ına and middha are translated as “torpor” and “languor”, or as “sloth” and “torpor”.
Th¯ına and middha cause us to have lack of energy for kusala. The Visuddhimagga (XIV,
167) states concerning th¯ına and middha:
. . . Herein, stiffness (th¯ına) has the characteristic of lack of driving power. Its
function is to remove energy. It is manifested as subsiding. Torpor (middha) has
the characteristic of unwieldiness. Its function is to smother. It is manifested
as laziness, or it is manifested as nodding and sleep. The proximate cause of
both is unwise attention to boredom, sloth, and so on.
Don’t we all have moments in a day when there is laziness and lack of energy to perform
kusala? When, for example, we are listening to the preaching of Dhamma or reading the
scriptures, there are opportunities for kusala cittas. Instead, we may feel bored and we lack
energy for kusala. It may happen that we see someone else who needs our help, but we are
lazy and do not move. Time and again we are hindered by th¯ına and middha. Th¯ına and
middha make the mind unwieldy1.
Uddhacca is translated as “agitation” or “excitement” and kukkucca as “worry” or
“regret”. Uddhacca arises with each and every type of akusala citta. It prevents the citta
1 See Visuddhimagga IV, 105, where the hindrances are mentioned as being specifically obstructive to
jh¯ana.
138 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
from wholesomeness. As regards kukkucca, worry or regret, the Visuddhimagga (XIV, 174)
states:
. . . It has subsequent regret as its characteristic. Its function is to sorrow about
what has and what has not been done. It is manifested as remorse. Its proxi-
mate cause is what has and what has not been done. It should be regarded as
slavery.
When we have done something wrong or we have not done the good deed we should have
done, we might be inclined to think about it again and again. We may ask ourselves why
we acted in the way we did, but we cannot change what is past already. While we worry
we have akusala cittas; worry makes us enslaved. Uddhacca and kukkucca prevent us from
being tranquil.
As regards vicikicch¯a, doubt, there are many kinds of doubt. One may have doubt about
the Buddha, the Dhamma and the Sangha, or doubt about the eightfold Path. Doubt is
akusala and a hindrance to the performing of kusala.
All of the hindrances are obstructions to the performing of kusala. Is there a way to
eliminate them? Samatha or the development of calm is a way to temporarily eliminate the
hindrances. The calm which is developed in samatha has to be wholesome calm, it cannot
arise with akusala citta. There is a degree of calm with each kusala citta but it is hard to
know the characteristic of calm precisely, because there are bound to be akusala cittas very
shortly after the kusala cittas. In order to develop the calm which is temporary freedom
from the hindrances right understanding, pan~n~a¯, is indispensable. If one merely tries to
concentrate on a meditation subject without right understanding of kusala and akusala
and of the characteristic of calm, calm cannot grow. The pan~n~a¯ of the level of samatha
does not eradicate defilements, but it knows the characteristic of calm and it knows how
it can be developed by means of a suitable meditation subject. Akusala citta is likely to
arise time and again, even when one tries to develop samatha. One may be attached to
silence and then there is akusala citta instead of the calm of samatha. Or one may think,
when there is no pleasant feeling nor unpleasant feeling but indifferent feeling, that there
is calm. However, indifferent feeling can arise with kusala citta as well as with akusala
citta; lobha-mu¯la-citta can be accompanied by indifferent feeling and moha-mu¯la-citta is
invariably accompanied by indifferent feeling. Thus, when there is indifferent feeling it may
seem that one is calm, but there is not necessarily the wholesome calm of samatha. The
pan~n~a¯ of samatha must be very keen so as to be able to recognize even the more subtle
defilements which arise.
We read in the scriptures about people who could attain jh¯ana if they cultivated the
right conditions for it. Before the Buddha’s enlightenment, jh¯ana was the highest form
of kusala people could attain. Jh¯ana, which is sometimes translated as absorption2, is a
high degree of calm. At the moment of jh¯anacitta one is free from sense-impressions and
from the defilements which are bound up with them. The attainment of jh¯ana is extremely
difficult, not everybody who applies himself to samatha can attain jh¯ana. However, even
if one has no intention to cultivate jh¯ana there can be conditions for moments of calm in
daily life; but one must have right understanding of the characteristic of calm and of the
way to develop it.
2 In the suttas we also come across translations of jh¯ana as “trance” or “musing”. Trance, however, gives
a wrong association of meaning.
Chapter 21: Samatha 139
When one applies oneself to samatha one should develop five cetasikas which can elimi-
nate the hindrances; they are the jh¯ana-factors. The first jh¯ana-factor is vitakka, which is
translated into English as “applied thinking”. Vitakka is a mental factor, a cetasika, which
arises with many kinds of citta; it can arise with kusala citta as well as with akusala citta.
The wholesome kind of vitakka which is developed in samatha is one of the jh¯ana-factors.
The Visuddhimagga (IV, 88) states concerning vitakka:
. . . Herein, applied thinking (vitakkana) is applied thought (vitakka); hitting
upon, is what is meant. It has the characteristic of directing the mind onto
an object (mounting the mind on its object). Its function is to strike at and
thresh − for the meditator is said, in virtue of it, to have the object struck at by
applied thought, threshed by applied thought. It is manifested as the leading
of the mind onto an object. . .
Vitakka, when it is a jh¯ana-factor, is opposed to th¯ına and middha (sloth and torpor). In
“thinking” of the meditation subject vitakka helps to inhibit th¯ına and middha temporarily3.
Another jh¯ana-factor is vic¯ara, which is translated as “sustained thinking”. This cetasika
arises with different kinds of citta, but when it is developed in samatha, it is a jh¯ana-factor.
The Visuddhimagga (IV, 88) states concerning vic¯ara:
. . . Sustained thinking (vicaran. a) is sustained thought (vic¯ara); continued sus-
tainment (anusan~caran. a), is what is meant. It has the characteristic of contin-
ued pressure on (occupation with) the object. Its function is to keep conascent
(mental) states (occupied) with that. It is manifested as keeping consciousness
anchored (on that object).
In samatha, vic¯ara keeps the citta anchored on the meditation subject. When we continue
to think of wholesome subjects such as the Buddha’s virtues or his teachings there is no
vicikicch¯a or doubt. Vic¯ara helps to inhibit doubt.
Another jh¯ana-factor is p¯ıti, translated as “rapture”, “enthusiasm” or “happiness”. P¯ıti
can also arise with lobha-mu¯la-citta and then it is akusala. The wholesome kind of p¯ıti, aris-
ing with kusala citta, which is developed in samatha is a jh¯ana-factor. The Visuddhimagga
(IV, 94) states concerning p¯ıti:
. . . It refreshes (p¯ın. ayati), thus it is happiness (p¯ıti). It has the characteristic of
endearing (sampiy¯ana). Its function is to refresh the body and the mind; or its
function is to pervade (thrill with rapture). It is manifested as elation. But it
is of five kinds as minor happiness, momentary happiness, showering happiness,
uplifting happiness, and pervading (rapturous) happiness.
According to the Visuddhimagga (IV, 99) the jh¯ana-factor p¯ıti is the “pervading hap-
piness” which is the “root of absorption”. When p¯ıti is developed in samatha it inhibits
the hindrance which is ill-will (vyap¯ada). However, keen understanding is needed in order
to know whether there is akusala p¯ıti which arises with attachment or kusala p¯ıti. Even
when one thinks that one has wholesome enthusiasm about a meditation subject, there
may be clinging. The jh¯ana-factor p¯ıti takes an interest in the meditation subject without
clinging. Wholesome p¯ıti which delights in the Buddha, the Dhamma and the Sangha or in
another meditation subject refreshes the mind and then there is no aversion, no boredom
as to kusala.
3 See also the Atthas¯alin¯ı, “The Expositor ”, Part V, chapter I, 165.
140 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
Another jh¯ana-factor is sukha, happy feeling. This jh¯ana-factor is not pleasant bodily
feeling, but it is happy mental feeling or somanassa. Sukha which is developed in samatha
is happy feeling about a meditation subject. However, as we know, happy feeling arises also
with attachment. Pan~n~a¯ should know precisely when happy feeling is akusala and when
it is kusala. The jh¯ana-factor which is wholesome sukha inhibits the hindrances which are
restlessness and regret (uddhacca and kukkucca). When there is wholesome happy feeling
about a meditation subject, restlessness and regret do not arise.
P¯ıti and sukha are not the same. Sukha, which is translated as happiness, bliss, ease or
joy, is happy feeling. P¯ıti, which is translated as joy, rapture, zest, and sometimes also as
happiness, is not feeling; it is not vedan¯akkhandha, but san˙ kh¯arakkhandha (the khandha
which is all cetasikas, except vedan¯a and san~n~a¯4). When reading the English translations,
we have to find out from the context which cetasika is referred to, p¯ıti or sukha.
The Visuddhimagga (IV, 100) states concerning the difference between happiness (p¯ıti)
and bliss (sukha):
And whenever the two are associated, happiness (p¯ıti) is the contentedness at
getting a desirable object, and bliss (sukha) is the actual experiencing of it
when got. Where there is happiness there is bliss (pleasure); but where there
is bliss there is not necessarily happiness. Happiness is included in the forma-
tions aggregate (san˙ kh¯arakkhandha) ; bliss is included in the feeling aggregate
(vedan¯akkhandha). If a man exhausted in a desert saw or heard about a pond
on the edge of a wood, he would have happiness; if he went into the wood’s
shade and used the water, he would have bliss. . .
The jh¯ana-factor sam¯adhi or concentration is the cetasika which is ekaggat¯a cetasika.
This cetasika arises with every citta and its function is to focus on an object. Each citta
can experience only one object and ekaggat¯a cetasika focuses on that one object. Ekaggat¯a
cetasika or sam¯adhi can be kusala as well as akusala. Sam¯adhi when it is developed in
samatha is wholesome concentration on a meditation subject. Together with sam¯adhi there
must be right understanding which knows precisely when the citta is kusala citta and when
akusala citta and which knows how to develop calm, otherwise the right concentration
of samatha will not grow. If one tries very hard to concentrate but right understanding
is lacking, there may be attachment to one’s effort to become concentrated, or, if one
cannot become concentrated, aversion may arise. Then calm cannot grow. If there is right
understanding there are conditions for sam¯adhi to develop. The Visuddhimagga (XIV, 139)
states concerning sam¯adhi:
It puts (¯adhiyati) consciousness evenly (samam˙ ) on the object, or it puts it
rightly (samm¯a) on it, or it is just the mere collecting (sam¯adh¯ana) of the
mind, thus it is concentration (sam¯adhi). Its characteristic is non-wandering,
or its characteristic is non-distraction. Its function is to conglomerate conascent
states as water does bath powder. It is manifested as peace. Usually its prox-
imate cause is bliss. It should be regarded as steadiness of the mind, like the
steadiness of a lamp’s flame when there is no draught.
Samadhi inhibits k¯amacchandha (sensuous desire). When there is right concentration on
a wholesome subject of meditation, one is at that moment not hindered by k¯amacchandha.
4 See chapter 2.
Chapter 21: Samatha 141
Summarising the five jh¯ana-factors, necessary for the attainment of the first stage of
jh¯ana, they are:
vitakka, applied thinking
vic¯ara, sustained thinking
p¯ıti, enthusiasm, rapture or happiness
sukha, happy feeling or bliss
sam¯adhi, concentration
The Atthas¯alin¯ı (Expositor I, Book I, Part V, chapter I, 165) states concerning the
jh¯ana-factors which inhibit the hindrances:
. . . For it is said that the Hindrances are opposed to the jh¯ana-factors, which
are hostile to them and dispel and destroy them. Likewise it is said, in the
“Pet.akopadesa”, that concentration is opposed to sensuous desire, rapture (p¯ıti)
to ill-will, initial application of mind (vitakka) to sloth and torpor, bliss (sukha)
to flurry and worry (uddhacca and kukkucca), sustained application of mind
(vic¯ara) to perplexity (vicikicch¯a, doubt). . .
The jh¯ana-factors have to be developed in order to temporarily eliminate the hindrances.
For the person who wants to develop the jh¯ana-factors and attain jh¯ana a great deal of
preparation is required. We read in the Visuddhimagga (II, 1 and III, 1) that the person
who wants to cultivate samatha should be well established in s¯ıla (morality), which is
purified by such qualities as fewness of wishes, contentment, effacement, seclusion, energy
and modest needs. S¯ıla will become more perfected by the observation of ascetic practices
(as described in Ch II of the Visuddhimagga), which pertain mostly to the monk with regard
to the use of his robes, his almsfood and his place of dwelling.
In the Buddha’s time laypeople too could attain jh¯ana, if they had accumulated the
inclination and skill to develop it and if they would lead a life which was compatible with
its development5. One should lead a secluded life and many conditions have to be fulfilled.
Jh¯ana is quite incompatible with sense desires. One has to be “quite secluded from sense
desires. . . ” in order to attain jh¯ana, as we read in many suttas6.
The Visuddhimagga (IV, 81) explains that sense-desires are incompatible with the at-
tainment of jh¯ana. The development of jh¯ana is not for everyone. Jh¯ana cannot be attained
if one leads a “worldly life”, full of sense-pleasures, instead of a life of “fewness of wishes,
seclusion, modest needs”.
The Visuddhimagga (III, 129) states that one should sever anything which can be an
impediment to the development of samatha. Impediments are, for example, travelling and
sickness, and also the place where one lives can be an impediment. One should avoid living
in a monastery which, for various reasons, is unfavourable to the development of samatha.
Thus, even before one begins to develop samatha, many conditions have to be fulfilled.
For the development of samatha one has to apply oneself to a suitable subject of med-
itation. There are forty meditation subjects which can condition calm and these are the
following:
5 An example is Nanda’s mother, about whom we read in the Gradual Sayings, Book of the Sevens, chapter
V, paragraph 10.
6 For example, in the “Middle Length Sayings” I, no. 21, Discourse on Fear and Dread.
142 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
10 kasina exercises, which are, for example, kasinas (disks) of particular colours, the
earth kasina or the kasina of light.
10 loathsome subjects (in P¯ali: asubha), the “cemetery meditations”.
10 recollections, comprising the recollection of the Buddha, the Dhamma, the Sangha,
virtue, generosty, deities, and also the recollections which are: mindfulness of death,
mindfulness of the body, mindfulness of breathing and the recollection of peace
(nibb¯ana).
1 The perception of repulsiveness in nutriment.
1 The definition of the four elements (earth, water, fire and wind).
4 brahma-vih¯aras (divine abidings), comprising: loving kindness (mett¯a), compassion
(karun. ¯a), altruistic joy (mudit¯a) and equanimity (upekkh¯a, which in this case is not
upekkh¯a vedan¯a or indifferent feeling, but the wholesome cetasika which is tatrama-
jjhattat¯a).
4 meditation subjects for the development of aru¯pa-jh¯anas (immaterial jh¯anas), which
will be dealt with later on.
Not all subjects are suitable for everybody, it depends on the individual which subject is
a means for him to develop calm. If there is right understanding of the way to become calm
by means of a suitable meditation subject, calm can grow, even in our daily life. Loving
kindness and compassion, for instance, can and should be developed in our daily life, when
we are in the company of other people, and then there are kusala cittas instead of akusala
cittas. Recollection of the Dhamma includes also reflection on the teachings and this is
beneficial for everybody; it helps one to begin to understand life. While we reflect with
kusala citta on the teachings or on one of the other meditation subjects, moments of calm
can arise if we do not cling to calm.
In the Visuddhimagga it is explained how one can develop higher degrees of calm by
means of a meditation subject. It is explained (Vis. III, 119) that meditation subjects
are learned by sight, by touch and by hearsay (words), depending on the nature of the
subject. As regards the subjects which are learned by sight (such as coloured kasinas and
the cemetery meditations), the Visuddhimagga (IV, 31) states that in the beginning one
has to look closely at the meditation subject, and that later on one acquires a mental image
(“sign”, in P¯ali: nimitta) of it; one no longer needs to look at the original object. At first
the mental image is still unsteady and unclear, but later on it appears “a hundred times, a
thousand times more purified. . . ” The original object, for example a coloured kasina or the
earth kasina, could have flaws, but the perfected mental image which is acquired when one
is more advanced, does not have the imperfections of the original object one was looking at
in the beginning. This perfected image is called the counterpart sign (pat.ibh¯aga nimitta).
At the moment the “counterpart sign” appears there is a higher degree of calm and con-
centration is more developed. This stage is called “access-concentration” (upac¯ara sam¯adhi).
The citta is not jh¯anacitta, it is still k¯am¯avacara citta (of the sense sphere), but the hin-
drances do not arise at the moment of “access concentration”. However, the jh¯ana-factors
are not developed enough yet to attain jh¯ana, and moreover, there are still other conditions
needed to attain it. One has to “guard the sign” (nimitta) in order not to lose the perfected
mental image one has developed. “Access concentration” is already very difficult to attain,
but “guarding the sign” which is necessary in order to attain jh¯ana is also very difficult.
The conditions for guarding the sign are, among others, the right dwelling place, suitable
Chapter 21: Samatha 143
food, and avoidance of aimless talk. One should “balance” the five “spiritual faculties”
(indriyas) which are the following cetasikas:
saddh¯a (confidence in wholesomeness)
viriya (energy)
sati (mindfulness)
sam¯adhi (concentration)
pan~n~a¯ (wisdom)
Confidence should be balanced with wisdom so that one has not confidence uncritically
and groundlessly. Concentration should be balanced with energy, because if there is con-
centration but not enough energy there will be idleness and jh¯ana cannot be attained. Too
much energy and not enough concentration leads to agitation and then one cannot attain
jh¯ana either. All five indriyas should be balanced.
From the foregoing examples we see that samatha cannot be cultivated without a basic
understanding and careful consideration of the realities taught in the Abhidhamma which
are in fact the realities of daily life. One should know precisely when the citta is kusala
citta and when it is akusala citta. One should know which realities the jh¯ana-factors are
and one should realize as regards oneself whether or not the jh¯ana-factors are developed.
One should know whether or not the cetasikas which are the five indriyas (faculties) are
developed, whether or not they are balanced. If one does not have right understanding of all
these different factors and conditions necessary for the attainment of “access concentration”
and of jh¯ana, one is in danger of taking for “access concentration” what is not “access
concentration” and taking for jh¯ana what is not jh¯ana. Neither “access concentration” nor
jh¯ana can be attained without having cultivated the right conditions.
Not all meditation subjects lead to jh¯ana, some have only “access concentration” as
their result, such as the recollections of the Buddha, the Dhamma and the Sangha. Some
meditation subjects lead only to the first stage of ru¯pa-jh¯ana7, some to all stages of ru¯pa-
jh¯ana. The meditation subject which is mindfulness of breathing can lead to all stages of
ru¯pa-jhana. This meditation subject which is considered by many to be relatively easy, is
one of the most difficult. One has to be mindful of one’s in-breath and out-breath where they
touch the tip of the nose or the upper-lip. This meditation subject is not learnt by sight,
but by touch: the in-breath and out-breath are the “sign” (nimitta) one has continuously
to give attention to. We read in the Visuddhimagga (VIII, 208):
For while other meditation subjects become clearer at each higher stage, this
one does not: in fact, as he goes on developing it, it becomes more subtle for
him at each higher stage, and it even comes to the point at which it is no longer
manifest.
Further on (VIII, 211) we read:
Although any meditation subject, no matter what, is successful only in one
who is mindful and fully aware, yet any meditation subject other than this one
gets more evident as he goes on giving it his attention. But this mindfulness
of breathing is difficult, difficult to develop, a field in which only the minds of
7 Both ru¯pa-jh¯ana (“material jh¯ana”) and aru¯pa-jh¯ana (“immaterial jh¯ana”, for which the meditation
subject is no longer dependent on materiality) are developed in different stages of jh¯ana. Aru¯pa-jh¯ana
is more refined than ru¯pa-jh¯ana.
144 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
Buddhas, Pacceka Buddhas8, and Buddhas’s sons are at home. It is no trivial
matter, nor can it be cultivated by trivial persons. In proportion as continued
attention is given to it, it becomes more peaceful and more subtle. So strong
mindfulness and understanding are necessary here.
Mindfulness of breathing is most difficult, “it is no trivial matter”, as the Vi-
suddhimagga stated. The Buddha and his great disciples were endowed with
great wisdom and other excellent qualities and thus, for them it was a “field”
in which their minds were at home.
When one continues to be mindful of breathing, the in-breaths and out-breaths become
more and more subtle and thus harder to notice. We just read in the quotation that
strong mindfulness and understanding are necessary here. Not only in vipassan¯a, but also
in samatha, mindfulness, sati, and understanding, pan~n~a¯, are necessary, but the object of
awareness in samatha is different from the object of awareness in vipassan¯a. In samatha
the object of awareness is one among the forty meditation subjects and the aim is the
development of calm. In vipassan¯a the object of awareness is any n¯ama or ru¯pa which
appears at the present moment through one of the six doors, and the aim is to eradicate
the wrong view of self and eventually all defilements. Through samatha defilements can
be temporarily subdued, but the latent tendencies of defilements are not eradicated; when
there are conditions for akusala cittas they arise again. We read in the Gradual Sayings
(Book of the Sixes, chapter VI, paragraph 6, Citta Hatthis¯ariputta) that even the monk
who can attain jh¯ana may “disavow the training” and return to the layman’s life. We read
that when the Buddha was staying near V¯ar¯anasi, in the Deer Park at Isipatana, a number
of “elders” were having a conversation on Abhidhamma. Citta Hatthis¯ariputta interrupted
their talk from time to time. Maha¯
Kot.t.hita said to him:
“Let not the venerable Citta Hatthis¯ariputta constantly interrupt the elders’
Abhidhamma talk; the venerable Citta should wait until the talk is over!”
And when he had thus spoken, Citta’s friends said: “The venerable Mah¯a
Kot.t.hita should not censure the venerable Citta Hatthis¯ariputta. A wise man
is the venerable Citta and able to talk to the elders on Abhidhamma.”
“It is a hard thing, sirs, for those who know not another person’s ways of
thought. Consider, sirs, a person who, so long as he lives near the Master or a
fellow-teacher in the holy life, is the most humble of the humble, the meekest
of the meek, the quietest of the quiet; and who, when he leaves the Master
or his fellow-teachers, keeps company with monks, nuns, lay-disciples, men
and women, rajahs, their ministers, course-setters or their disciples. Living in
company, untrammelled, rude, given over to gossip, passion corrupts his heart;
and with his heart corrupted by passion, he disavows the training and returns
to the lower life. . .
Consider again a person who, aloof from sensuous appetites. . . enters and
abides in the first jh¯ana. Thinking: ‘I have won to the first jh¯ana’, he keeps
company. . . Living in company, untrammelled, rude, given over to gossip,
8 A Pacceka Buddha is a “Silent Buddha” who has attained enlightenment without the help of a teacher,
but who has not accumulated wisdom and the other excellent qualities, the “perfections”, to the extent
that he is able to teach others the eightfold Path.
Chapter 21: Samatha 145
passion corrupts his heart; and with his heart corrupted by passion, he
disavows the training and returns to the lower life ”
The same is said about the other stages of jh¯ana. We then read that Citta
Hatthis¯ariputta disavowed the training and returned to the lower life. But not long after
that he “went forth” (became a monk) again. We read:
And the venerable Citta Hatthis¯ariputta, living alone, secluded, earnest, ardent,
resolved, not long after, entered and abode in that aim above all of the holy
life − realizing it here and now by his own knowledge − for the sake of which
clansmen rightly go forth from home to the homeless life; and he knew: “Birth
is destroyed, the holy life is lived, done is what was to be done, there is no more
of this.”
And the venerable Citta Hatthis¯ariputta was numbered among the arahats.
Even if one can attain the highest stage of jh¯ana, one’s heart can still become “corrupted
by passion”, as we read in the sutta. When Citta Hatthis¯ariputta had attained arahatship,
he had realized the “aim above all of the holy life”. The “hindrances” could not arise any
more.
Through vipassan¯a, hindrances are eradicated in the successive stages of enlightenment.
The sot¯apanna (who has attained the first stage of enlightenment) has eradicated the hin-
drance which is doubt (vicikicch¯a); the an¯ag¯am¯ı (who has attained the third stage of en-
lightenment) has eradicated sensuous desire (k¯amacchandha), ill-will (vy¯ap¯ada) and regret
(kukkucca); the arahat has eradicated sloth and torpor (th¯ına and middha) and restlessness
(uddhacca), he has eradicated all defilements.
Which paramattha dhamma are the jh¯ana-factors?
Which khandha is the jh¯ana-factor which is p¯ıti (rapture)?
Which khandha is the jh¯ana-factor which is sukha (happy feeling)?
When seeing now, is there ekaggat¯a cetasika? What is ts function?
What is the function of ekaggat¯a cetasika which arises with the jh¯ana-citta? What is
its object?
Why is mindfulness of breathing one of the most difficult subjects of meditation?
What is the difference between samm¯a-sati (right mindfulness) in samatha and samm¯a-
sati in vipassan¯a? What are their respective objects of awareness?
If one only develops samatha and not vipassan¯a, why can the hindrances not be erad-
icated?
Chapter 22: Jh¯anacittas 147
There are many different cittas arising in our daily life which experience objects through
the five sense-doors and through the mind-door. Both in the sense-door process and in the
mind-door process of cittas there are javana-cittas which are, in the case of the non-arahat,
either kusala cittas or akusala cittas. The javana-cittas are most of the time akusala cittas
because we cling to all objects which are experienced through the sense-doors and through
the mind-door. We cling to visible object and seeing, to sound and hearing, to all the objects
we experience. We cling to life, we want to go on living and receiving sense-impressions. We
may not notice when there is clinging after seeing or hearing, especially when we do not feel
particularly glad about what was seen or heard. But there may be lobha-mu¯la-cittas with
indifferent feeling. There are likely to be many moments of clinging which pass unnoticed,
both in the sense-door processes and in the mind-door processes. Time and again an object
is experienced through one of the sense-doors and then through the mind-door and there
are also mind-door processes of cittas which think of concepts such as people, animals or
things. Clinging to concepts is likely to arise very often and thus we think most of the time
with akusala citta. When we do not apply ourselves to d¯ana, s¯ıla or bh¯avan¯a, thinking is
done with akusala citta. Even when we perform good deeds there are bound to be akusala
cittas shortly after the kusala cittas. Seeing and hearing arise time and again, and after
seeing or hearing attachment or aversion on account of what we experience may arise. The
cittas which experience sense-objects, the kusala cittas and akusala cittas, all the cittas
which arise in our daily life are of the “sensuous plane of consciousness”, or k¯am¯avacara
cittas.
On account of the experience of sense-objects defilements tend to arise. Therefore wise
people, even those who lived before the Buddha’s time, who saw the disadvantages of
sense-impressions, developed jh¯ana in order to be temporarily freed from sense-impressions.
Jh¯ana-cittas are not k¯am¯avacara cittas, they are of another plane of consciousness; these
cittas experience with absorption a meditation subject through the mind-door. At the mo-
ment of jh¯ana one is freed from sense-impressions and from the defilements which are bound
up with them. Jh¯anacittas comprise ru¯p¯avacara cittas (ru¯pa-jh¯anacittas) and aru¯p¯avacara
cittas (aru¯pa-jh¯anacittas). Aru¯pa-jh¯ana (immaterial jh¯ana) is more refined than ru¯pa-jh¯ana
(fine-material jh¯ana), since the meditation subjects of aru¯pa-jh¯ana are no longer dependent
on materiality. Later on I will deal with their difference.
Apart from the planes of citta which are k¯am¯avacara cittas, ru¯p¯avacara cittas and
aru¯p¯avacara cittas, there is still another plane of citta: the lokuttara cittas (translated
as “supramundane cittas”) which have nibb¯ana as their object. Those who attain enlight-
enment have lokuttara cittas, experiencing nibb¯ana.
Now I shall deal first with jh¯anacitta. Jh¯anacittas do not have as their object visible
object, sound, or any other sense-object. Jh¯anacittas arise in a process of cittas experiencing
a meditation subject through the mind-door. In this process there are first k¯am¯avacara
cittas which experience the meditation subject and then, in that same process, the jh¯anacitta
arises.
The process is as follows:
mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta or mind-door adverting-consciousness
parikamma or preparatory consciousness
148 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
upac¯ara, which means: proximity or access
anuloma or adaptation cittas
gotrabhu¯, which means: that which overcomes the sense-sphere, or “change of lineage”
jh¯anacitta, appan¯a or absorption (the moment of citta which attains jh¯ana)
For some, “parikamma” (preparatory consciousness) is not necessary, and in this case
there are, after the mind-door-adverting-consciousness, only three k¯am¯avacara cittas arising,
instead of four, before the jh¯anacitta arises. Gotrabhu¯ (which “overcomes” the sense-sphere)
is the last citta in that process which is k¯am¯avacara citta.
In the Visuddhimagga (IV, 74) we can read about the process of cittas in which jh¯ana
occurs for the first time. The Visuddhimagga (IV, 78) states that in that case only one single
moment of jh¯anacitta arises, which is then succeeded by the bhavanga-citta (life-continuum).
After that there is a process of k¯am¯avacara cittas, reviewing through the mind-door the
jh¯ana which has just occurred. For that person the ability to attain jh¯ana is still weak, he
has to continue to purify himself of the hindrances in developing the jh¯ana-factors until these
have become stronger. Further on (Vis. IV, 123 and following) we read that absorption can
“last” only when it is absolutely purified of states which obstruct concentration. One must
first completely suppress lust by reviewing the dangers of sense-desires and also suppress the
other “hindrances”. When someone has become more accomplished there can be jh¯anacittas
succeeding one another, even for a long time. We read (Vis. IV, 125):
But when he enters upon a jh¯ana after (first) completely purifying his mind of
states that obstruct concentration, then he remains in the attainment even for
a whole day, like a bee that has gone into a completely purified hive. . .
Jh¯anacittas are kusala kamma of a high degree. When jh¯ana has been attained the
hindrances of sensuous desire, ill-will, sloth, torpor, restlessness, regret and doubt are tem-
porarily eliminated. Thus one is truly calm, at least at that moment.
As we have seen in the preceding chapter, the person who wants to develop samatha so
as to be able to attain jh¯ana, has to develop the five jh¯ana-factors which can inhibit the
hindrances, namely:
applied thinking (vitakka)
sustained thinking (vic¯ara)
rapture (p¯ıti)
happy feeling (sukha)
concentration (sam¯adhi)
Jh¯ana is developed in stages, with each succeeding stage being more refined than the
preceding one. There are five stages of ru¯pa-jh¯ana (fine-material jh¯ana) in all. For the first
stage of ru¯pa-jh¯ana it is still necessary that all five jh¯ana-factors arise with the jh¯anacitta,
but at each higher stage, when one has become more advanced, jh¯ana-factors are successively
abandoned. When one attains to the ru¯pa-jh¯ana of the second stage, one does not need the
jh¯ana-factor which is vitakka, applied thinking. At this point the jh¯anacitta can experience
the meditation subject without vitakka, which has the characteristic of directing the mind
unto an object and the function of “touching” the object. The other four jh¯ana-factors still
arise with the jh¯anacitta of the second stage.
At the third stage of ru¯pa-jhana vic¯ara, sustained thinking, is abandoned. At this
stage one does not need vitakka nor vic¯ara any longer in order to become absorbed in the
Chapter 22: Jh¯anacittas 149
meditation subject. Now three factors remain: p¯ıti, rapture, sukha, happy feeling, and
sam¯adhi, concentration. At the fourth stage p¯ıti is abandoned. There is still sukha, happy
feeling, accompanying the jh¯ana-citta, but p¯ıti does not arise. Without p¯ıti the jh¯anacitta
is more quiet, more refined. At the fifth stage sukha, happy feeling, too is abandoned and
indifferent feeling (upekkh¯a vedan¯a) accompanies the jh¯anacitta instead. At this stage one
is no longer attached to happy feeling. The jh¯ana-factor which is sam¯adhi, concentration,
remains.
Some people can, at the second stage of jh¯ana, abandon both vitakka, applied thinking,
and vicara, sustained thinking. Consequently, they can, in the third stage, abandon p¯ıti,
rapture, and in the fourth stage sukha, happy feeling. Thus for them there are only four
stages of jh¯ana instead of five. That is the reason why ru¯pa-jh¯anas can be counted as four
stages or as five stages (as the fourfold system or the five-fold system). When we read in
the suttas about four stages of jh¯ana, it is the fourfold system which is referred to.
There can be up to five stages of ru¯pa-jh¯ana in all and thus there are five types of
ru¯p¯avacara kusala cittas (ru¯pa-jh¯ana kusala cittas). Jh¯anacitta is kusala kamma of a high
degree and thus its result is kusala vip¯aka of a high degree. Jh¯anacittas do not produce
vip¯aka in the same lifespan: their result is rebirth in higher planes of existence. The result
of ru¯p¯avacara kusala cittas is rebirth in ru¯pa-brahma planes. Ru¯p¯avacara kusala citta can
produce result only if one’s ability to attain jh¯ana does not decline and jh¯anacittas arise
shortly before dying. If ru¯p¯avacara kusala citta is to produce the next rebirth, ru¯p¯avacara
kusala cittas arise shortly before the cuti-citta, dying-consciousness. The pat.isandhi-citta
of the next life is ru¯p¯avacara vip¯akacitta and this arises in the appropriate ru¯pa-brahma
plane. It experiences the same meditation subject as the ru¯p¯avacara kusala cittas arising
shortly before the cuti-citta of the preceding life. The five types of ru¯p¯avacara kusala cittas
are able to produce five types of ru¯p¯avacara vip¯akacittas.
When one is born with a pat.isandhi-citta which is ru¯p¯avacara vip¯akacitta, all bhavanga-
cittas and the cuti-citta of that life are of the same type of citta as the pat.isandhi-citta.
Ru¯p¯avacara vip¯akacitta can only perform the functions of pat.isandhi, bhavanga and cuti.
There are five types of ru¯p¯avacara kiriyacittas which are the cittas of the arahat who
attains ru¯pa-jh¯ana. He does not have kusala cittas but he has kiriyacittas instead. Thus,
there are fifteen ru¯p¯avacara cittas in all. Summarising them, they are:
5 ru¯p¯avacara kusala cittas
5 ru¯p¯avacara vip¯akacittas
5 ru¯p¯avacara kiriyacittas
Those who have attained the highest stage of ru¯pa-jh¯ana and see the disadvantages of
ru¯pa-jh¯ana which is still dependent on materiality1, might want to cultivate aru¯pa-jh¯ana
or “immaterial jh¯ana”. The meditation subjects of aru¯pa-jh¯ana are not connected with
materiality. There are four stages of aru¯pa-jh¯ana. The first stage of aru¯pa-jh¯ana is the
“Sphere of Boundless Space”2 (¯ak¯as¯anan~c¯ayatana). In order to attain this stage of aru¯pa-
jh¯ana one has to attain first the highest stage of ru¯pa-jh¯ana in any one of the kasina
meditations (excepting the “kasina of limited space”) and achieve mastery in it. We read
in the Visuddhimagga (X, 6):
1 The meditation subjects of ru¯pa-jh¯ana are connected with materiality, they are learnt by sight, touch or
hearsay.
2 The fourth ru¯pa-jh¯ana. Here the counting is according to the “fourfold system”.
150 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
When he has seen the danger in that (fine-material fourth jh¯ana3) in this way
and has ended his attachment to it, he gives attention to the “Base consisting
of Boundless Space” as peaceful. Then, when he has spread out the kasina
to the limit of the world-sphere, or as far as he likes, he removes the kasina
(materiality) by giving his attention to the space touched by it, (regarding
that) as “space” or “boundless space”.
As regards the “Sphere of Boundless Space”, the Visuddhimagga (X, 8) explains about
the “removing” of the kasina:
And when the kasina is being removed, it does not roll up or roll away. It is
simply that it is called “removed” on account of his non-attention to it, his
attention being given to “space, space”. This is conceptualized as the mere
space left by the removal of the kasina (materiality). . .
In this way he can surmount the materiality of the kasina and attain the first aru¯pa-
jh¯ana, the “Sphere of Boundless Space”. There are three more stages of aru¯pa-jh¯ana, and
each one of these is more subtle and more peaceful than the preceding one. The second
stage of aru¯pa-jh¯ana is: the “Sphere of Boundless Consciousness” (vin~n~a¯n. an~c¯ayatana). The
meditation subject of this stage of aru¯pa-jh¯ana is the consciousness which is the first aru¯pa-
jh¯anacitta. This citta had as its object “Boundless Space”. The person who wants to attain
the second stage of aru¯pa-jh¯ana should first achieve “mastery” in the “Sphere of Boundless
Space”; he should see the disadvantages of this stage and end his attachment to it. We read
in the Visuddhimagga (X, 25):
. . . So having ended his attachment to that, he should give his attention to
the base consisting of boundless consciousness as peaceful, adverting again and
again as “Consciousness, consciousness”, to the consciousness that occurred
pervading that space (as its object). . .
The third stage of aru¯pa-jh¯ana is the “Sphere of Nothingness” (¯akin~can~n~a¯yatana). We
read in the Visuddhimagga (X, 32) that the person who wants to attain this stage should
give his attention to the present non-existence of the past consciousness which pervaded
the “boundless space” and which was the object of the second stage of aru¯pa-jh¯ana, the
“Sphere of Boundless Consciousness”. We read (X, 33):
Without giving (further) attention to that consciousness, he should (now) ad-
vert again and again in this way, “There is not, there is not”, or “Void, void”,
or “Secluded, secluded”, and give his attention to it, review it, and strike at it
with thought and applied thought.
Further on (X, 35) we read:
. . . he dwells seeing only its non-existence, in other words its departedness when
this consciousness has arisen in absorption.
The fourth aru¯pa-jh¯ana is the “Sphere of Neither Perception Nor Non-Perception”
(n’eva-san~n~a¯-n’¯asan~n~a¯yatana). The object of this jh¯ana is the four n¯amakkhandhas (citta
and the accompanying cetasikas) which attained the Sphere of Nothingness,(at the third
stage of aru¯pa-jh¯ana.) We read in the Visuddhimagga (X, 49):
The word meaning here is this: that jh¯ana with its associated states neither has
perception nor has no perception because of the absence of gross perception and
3 The Sphere of Boundless Space, a¯k¯asanan~c¯ayatana.
Chapter 22: Jh¯anacittas 151
presence of subtle perception, thus it is “neither perception nor non-perception”
(n’eva-san~n~a¯-n’¯asan~n~am. ).
Further on (X, 50) we read:
. . . Or alternatively: the perception here is neither perception, since it is inca-
pable of performing the decisive function of perception, nor yet non-perception,
since it is present in a subtle state as a residual formation, thus it is “neither-
perception-nor-non-perception”. . .
It is also explained that the feeling arising with this jh¯anacitta is “neither-feeling-nor-
non-feeling” (since it is present in a subtle state as a residual formation); the same applies
to consciousness, contact (phassa) and the other cetasikas arising with the jh¯anacitta.
Since there are four stages of aru¯pa-jh¯ana, there are four types of aru¯p¯avacara kusala cit-
tas. They can produce vip¯aka in the form of rebirth in the happy planes of existence which
are the aru¯pa-brahma planes. The four types of aru¯p¯avacara kusala cittas produce four
types of aru¯p¯avacara vip¯akacittas. When the pat.isandhi-citta is aru¯p¯avacara vip¯akacitta,
all bhavanga-cittas and the cuti-citta of that life are of the same type of aru¯p¯avacara
vip¯akacitta. Aru¯p¯avacara vip¯akacitta can only perform the functions of pat.isandhi, bha-
vanga and cuti4.
There are four types of aru¯p¯avacara kiriyacittas which are the cittas of the arahat who
attains aru¯pa-jh¯ana. Thus, there are twelve aru¯p¯avacara cittas in all. Summarising them,
they are:
4 aru¯p¯avacara kusala cittas
4 aru¯p¯avacara vip¯akacittas
4 aru¯p¯avacara kiriyacittas
Those who have cultivated jh¯ana can develop the various types of “direct knowledge”
(abhin~n~a¯)5. They should attain the highest stage of ru¯pa-jh¯ana (the fourth according to the
fourfold system and the fifth according to the fivefold system) in the kasina meditations,
and they should exercise “complete mind-control in fourteen ways” (described in the Visud-
dhimagga, chapter XII). For example, they should, with the different kasina meditations,
be able to attain the subsequent stages of ru¯pa-jh¯ana in order and in reverse order. In
developing the kinds of “direct knowledge” or “supernormal powers”, one’s concentration
will become more advanced. The “supernormal powers” (abhin~n~¯a) are the following:
Magical powers such as passing through walls, walking on water, travelling through the
air.
Divine ear, by which one hears sounds both heavenly and human, far and near.
Knowledge of the minds of other people.
Divine Eye, by which one sees the deceasing and rebirth of beings.
Remembrance of one’s former lives.
These are the five “mundane supernormal powers”. However, there is a sixth power,
which is realized by lokuttara citta, namely, the eradication of all defilements, when ara-
hatship is attained. The sixth power is the greatest and in order to realize it insight has to
be fully developed.
4 Just as in the case of ru¯p¯avacara kusala citta, aru¯p¯avacara kusala citta cannot produce vip¯aka in the
same lifespan. Therefore it performs only the functions of pat.isandhi, bhavanga and cuti.
5 Also translated as “supernormal powers” or “higher intellectual powers”.
152 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
Those who have cultivated the right conditions can achieve “marvels”. In the Gradual
Sayings (Book of the Threes, chapter VI, paragraph 60, III, Sang¯arava) we read about the
greatest “marvel”. The Buddha asked the br¯ahmin Sang¯arava about the topic of conver-
sation of the royal party, when they were together in the palace. The br¯ahmin Sang¯arava
answered that they were talking about the fact that in former times the monks were fewer
in number, but those possessed of supernormal powers were more numerous, and that now
it was just the opposite. The Buddha said to him:
“Now as to that, br¯ahmin, there are these three marvels. What three?
The marvel of more-power, the marvel of thought-reading, the marvel of teach-
ing. And what, br¯ahmin, is the marvel of more-power?
In this case a certain one enjoys sorts of more-power in various ways. From
being one he becomes many, from being many he becomes one; manifest or
invisible he goes unhindered through a wall, through a rampart, through a
mountain, as if through the air; he plunges into the earth and shoots up again
as if in water; he walks upon the water without parting it as if on solid ground;
he travels through the air sitting cross-legged, like a bird upon the wing; even
this moon and sun, though of such mighty power and majesty, − he handles
them and strokes them with his hand; even as far as the Brahma world he has
power with his body. This, br¯ahmin, is called ‘the marvel of more-power’.
And what, br¯ahmin, is the marvel of thought-reading? In this case a certain
one can declare by means of a sign ‘Thus is your mind. Such and such is your
mind. Thus is your consciousness’. . . ”
The Buddha explained more about mind-reading, and then he said:
“And what, br¯ahmin, is the marvel of teaching? In this case a certain one
teaches thus: ‘Reason thus, not thus. Apply your mind thus, not thus. Abandon
this state, acquire that state and abide therein.’ This, br¯ahmin, is called ‘the
marvel of teaching’. So these are the three marvels. Now of these three marvels,
which appeals to you as the more wonderful and excellent?”
“Of these marvels, Master Gotama, the marvel of more-power. . . seems to me
to be of the nature of an illusion. Then again as to the marvel of thought-
reading. . . this also, master Gotama, seems to me of the nature of an illusion.
But as to the marvel of teaching. . . of these three marvels this one appeals to
me as the more wonderful and excellent.”
Sang¯arava then asked the Buddha whether he possessed all three marvels and the Buddha
told him that he did. Sang¯arava also asked whether any other monk possessed them and
the Buddha answered:
“Yes, indeed, br¯ahmin. The monks possessed of these three marvellous powers
are not just one or two or three, four, or five hundred, but much more than
that in number.”
Sang¯arava then expressed his confidence in taking refuge in the Buddha, the Dhamma
and the Sangha, and he asked to be accepted as a lay-follower.
In the Buddha’s time many monks had cultivated conditions for “marvellous powers”.
The greatest “marvel” of these, however, is the “marvel of teaching” since it can lead to
the eradication of all defilements, to the end of all sorrow.
Chapter 22: Jh¯anacittas 153
For those who have accumulations for jh¯ana there are many benefits since jh¯ana is kusala
kamma of a high degree. One of the benefits is a happy rebirth, even for those who can attain
only “access-concentration” or upac¯ara sam¯adhi (Vis. XI, 123). However, even rebirth in
a happy plane of existence is dukkha, because life in a happy plane may be followed by
rebirth in an unhappy plane. Therefore, no birth at all is to be preferred to any kind of
rebirth. This can be realized only by developing the wisdom which eradicates defilements.
Jh¯ana is called in the teachings an “abiding in ease, here, now” (for example, in the
“Discourse on Expunging”, Middle Length Sayings I, no. 8). Those who have become ad-
vanced in the development of calm can have many jh¯anacittas in succession, since they have
cultivated conditions for this. They truly are “abiding in ease, here, now”. However, the
Buddha would point out that “abiding in ease” is not the same as “expunging” (eradica-
tion). We read in the Discourse on Expunging that the Buddha said to Cunda with regard
to the monk who could attain ru¯pa-jh¯ana:
The situation occurs, Cunda, when a monk here, aloof from pleasures of the
senses, aloof from unskilled states of mind, may enter on and abide in the first
jh¯ana which is accompanied by initial thought (vitakka) and discursive thought
(vic¯ara), is born of aloofness, and is rapturous and joyful. It may occur to him:
“I fare along by expunging”. But these, Cunda, are not called expungings in
the discipline for an ariyan. These are called “abidings in ease, here, now” in
the discipline for an ariyan.
The Buddha said the same with regard to the attainment of the other stages of ru¯pa-
jh¯ana. With regard to the monk who could attain aru¯pa-jh¯ana, he said:
. . . It may occur to him: “I fare along by expunging”. But these, Cunda, are not
called “expungings” in the discipline for an ariyan; these are called “abidings
that are peaceful” in the discipline for an ariyan. . .
Those who have accumulated great skill for jh¯ana and have developed vipassan¯a can
attain enlightenment with lokuttara jh¯anacittas, that is, lokuttara cittas accompanied by
jh¯ana-factors of the different stages of jh¯ana, according to their accumulations6. Instead of
a meditation subject of samatha, nibb¯ana is the object which is experienced with absorp-
tion by the lokuttara jh¯anacitta. In the process during which enlightenment is attained
the magga-citta (path-consciousness, lokuttara kusala citta) is immediately followed by the
phala-citta (fruition-consciousness, the result of the magga-citta). When the phala-cittas
have fallen away that process of cittas is over. The magga-citta of that stage of enlighten-
ment cannot arise again, but for those who have developed jh¯ana and attained enlightenment
with lokuttara jh¯anacitta, the phala-citta can arise again, having nibb¯ana as object, even
many times in life.
Those who have attained the fourth stage of aru¯pa-jh¯ana, the “Sphere of Neither Per-
ception Nor Non-Perception”, and have also realized the third stage of enlightenment, the
stage of the an¯ag¯am¯ı or who have realized the stage of the arahat, can attain “cessation”
(nirodha-sam¯apatti) which is the temporary ceasing of bodily and mental activities.
The person who has attained “cessation” (“the stopping of perception and feeling”) is
different from a corpse. We read in the Greater Discourse of the Miscellany (Middle Length
Sayings I, no. 43) that Mah¯a-Kot.t.hita asked S¯ariputta a number of questions. He also
6 This will be further explained in chapter 23.
154 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
asked questions about the dead body and about the difference between the dead body and
the monk who has attained cessation. We read that Mah¯a-Kot.t.hita asked:
“In regard to this body, your reverence, when how many things are got rid of,
does this body lie cast away, flung aside like unto a senseless log of wood?”
“In regard to this body, your reverence, when three things are got rid of: vitality,
heat and consciousness, then does this body lie cast away, flung aside like unto
a senseless log of wood.”
“What is the difference, your reverence, between that dead thing, passed away,
and that monk who has attained to the stopping of perception and feeling?”
“Your reverence, the bodily activities of that dead thing, passed away, have
been stopped, have subsided, the vocal activities have been stopped, have sub-
sided, the mental activities have been stopped, have subsided, the vitality is
entirely destroyed, the heat allayed, the sense-organs are entirely broken asun-
der. But that monk who has attained to the stopping of perception and feeling,
although his bodily activities have been stopped, have subsided, although his
vocal activities have been stopped, have subsided, although his mental activi-
ties have been stopped, have subsided, his vitality is not entirely destroyed, his
heat is not allayed, his sense-organs are purified. This, your reverence, is the
difference between a dead thing, passed away, and that monk who has attained
to the stopping of perception and feeling.”
For those who emerge from cessation, the first citta which arises is a phala-citta (lokut-
tara vip¯akacitta), having nibb¯ana as its object. In the case of the an¯ag¯am¯ı it is the phala-
citta of the stage of the an¯ag¯am¯ı and in the case of the arahat it is the phala-citta of the
arahat. The Visuddhimagga (XXIII, 50) states that their minds tend towards nibb¯ana. We
read:
Towards what does the mind of one who has emerged tend? It tends towards
nibb¯ana. For this is said: “When a bhikkhu has emerged from the attainment
of the cessation of perception and feeling, friend Vis¯akha, his consciousness
inclines to seclusion, leans to seclusion, tends to seclusion” (Middle Length
Sayings I, no. 44, 302).
In the Lesser Discourse in Gosin˙ ga (Middle Length Sayings I, no. 31) we read that
the Buddha came to see Anuruddha, Nandiya and Kimbila when they were staying in the
Gosin˙ ga s¯al-wood. The Buddha asked them about their life in the forest. They could attain
all stages of ru¯pa-jh¯ana and aru¯pa-jh¯ana and they could “abide” in them for as long as they
liked. The Buddha said:
“It is good, Anuruddhas, it is good. But did you, Anuruddhas, by passing quite
beyond this abiding, by allaying this abiding, reach another state of further-
men, an excellent knowledge and vision befitting the ariyans, an abiding in
comfort?”
“How could this not be, Lord? Here we, Lord, for as long as we like, by passing
quite beyond the plane of neither perception-nor-non-perception, entering on
the stopping of perception and feeling, abide in it, and having seen through
intuitive wisdom, our cankers come to be utterly destroyed. By passing quite
beyond that abiding, Lord, by allaying that abiding, another state of further-
men, an excellent knowledge and vision befitting the ariyans, an abiding in
Chapter 22: Jh¯anacittas 155
comfort is reached. But we, Lord, do not behold another abiding in comfort
that is higher or more excellent than this abiding in comfort.”
“It is good, Anuruddhas, it is good. There is no other abiding in comfort that
is higher or more excellent than this abiding in comfort.”
What is the advantage of aru¯pa-jh¯ana, compared to ru¯pa-jh¯ana?
What is the difference between the fourth stage of aru¯pa-jh¯ana, the “Sphere of neither
perception nor non-perception”, and “cessation”?
Can anybody who has developed the fourth stage of aru¯pa-jh¯ana attain cessation?
What is the purpose of the “supernormal powers” (abhin~n~a¯s)?
When six abhin~n~a¯s are mentioned, which of those is the greatest?
What benefit is there for those who develop both jh¯ana and vipassan¯a and attain
enlightenment?
What is the object of citta at the moment of jh¯ana?
Through which door can the jh¯anacitta experience an object?
What is the object of lokuttara jh¯anacitta?
Chapter 23: Lokuttara Cittas 157
The Abhidhamma teaches us about different kinds of wholesome cittas. There
are k¯am¯avacara kusala cittas (kusala cittas of the sensuous plane of consciousness,
mah¯a-kusala cittas), ru¯p¯avacara kusala cittas (ru¯pa-jh¯anacittas) and aru¯p¯avacara kusala
cittas (aru¯pa-jh¯anacittas). All these types of citta are kusala, but they do not eradicate the
latent tendencies of defilements. Only lokuttara kusala cittas, magga-cittas1, eradicate the
latent tendencies of defilements. When all defilements are eradicated completely there will
be an end to the cycle of birth and death. We may wonder whether lokuttara kusala cittas
really eradicate defilements so that they never arise again. There are many defilements.
We are full of lobha, dosa and moha. We have avarice, jealousy, worry, doubt, conceit and
many other defilements. The clinging to the self is deeply rooted: we take our mind and
our body for self. It is hard to understand how all these defilements can be eradicated.
Defilements can be eradicated and there is a Path leading to it, but we have accumulated
defilements to such an extent that they cannot be eradicated all at once. Dit.t.hi, wrong
view, has to be eradicated first; so long as we take realities for self there cannot be
eradication of any defilement. There are four stages of enlightenment: the stages of the
sot¯apanna (streamwinner), the sakad¯ag¯am¯ı (once-returner), the an¯ag¯am¯ı (no-returner)
and the arahat. At each of these stages the lokuttara kusala citta, the magga-citta, arises
which experiences nibb¯ana and eradicates defilements. The sot¯apanna, the ariyan who has
attained the first stage of enlightenment, has eradicated dit.t.hi completely, so that it can
never arise again, but he has not eradicated all defilements. Defilements are eradicated
stage by stage and only when arahatship has been attained all defilements have been
eradicated.
People may wonder how one can know that one has attained enlightenment. The lokut-
tara citta is accompanied by pan~n~a¯ (wisdom) which has been developed in vipassan¯a. One
does not attain enlightenment without having developed insight-wisdom, vipassan¯a. There
are several stages of insight-wisdom. First, doubt about the difference between n¯ama and
ru¯pa is eliminated. It may be understood in theory that n¯ama is the reality which experi-
ences an object and ru¯pa is the reality which does not know anything. However, theoretical
understanding, understanding of the level of thinking, is not the same as direct understand-
ing which realizes n¯ama as n¯ama and ru¯pa as ru¯pa. When there is, for example, sound,
which is ru¯pa, there is also hearing, which is n¯ama, and these realities have different char-
acteristics. There can be mindfulness of only one characteristic at a time and at such a
moment right understanding of the reality which presents itself can develop. So long as
there is not right mindfulness of one reality at the time there will be doubt as to the differ-
ence between n¯ama and ru¯pa. There has to be mindfulness of the different kinds of n¯ama
and ru¯pa which appear in daily life in order to eliminate doubt. When the first stage of
insight, which is only a beginning stage, is attained, there is no doubt as to the difference
between the characteristics of n¯ama and ru¯pa. The characteristics of n¯ama and ru¯pa have to
be investigated over and over again until they are clearly understood as they are and there
is no more wrong view about them. The realization of the arising and falling away of n¯ama
and ru¯pa is a higher stage of insight which cannot be attained so long as the characteristic
of n¯ama cannot be distinguished from the characteristic of ru¯pa. All the different stages
1 Magga means path. The lokuttara kusala citta is called magga-citta or path-consciousness.
158 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
of insight have to be attained in the right order2. Pan~n~a¯ should continue to investigate
the characteristics of realities as they appear through the six doors so that the three char-
acteristics of conditioned realities, namely: impermanence (anicca), dukkha and non-self
(anatt¯a), can be penetrated more and more. When pan~n~a¯ has clearly understood these
three characteristics enlightenment can be attained; pan~n~¯a can then experience nibb¯ana,
the unconditioned reality. When pan~n~a¯ has been developed to that degree there cannot be
any doubt as to whether one has attained enlightenment or not.
The English word enlightenment can have different meanings and therefore it may create
confusion. The P¯ali term for enlightenment is “bodhi”. Bodhi literally means knowledge
or understanding. The attainment of enlightenment in the context of the Buddhist teach-
ings refers to pan~n~a¯ which has been developed to the degree that it has become lokuttara
pan~n~a¯, “supramundane pan~n~a¯”, which accompanies lokuttara cittas experiencing nibb¯ana.
Enlightenment is actually a few moments of lokuttara cittas which do not last. Nibb¯ana
does not arise and fall away, but the lokuttara cittas which experience nibb¯ana fall away
and are followed by cittas of the sense-sphere; in the case of the ariyans who have not yet
attained the fourth stage of enlightenment, also akusala cittas are bound to arise again.
However, the defilements which have been eradicated at the attainment of enlightenment
do not arise anymore.
Only the right Path, the eightfold Path, can lead to enlightenment. If one develops
the wrong path the goal cannot be attained. When the wrong path is developed one has
dit.t.hi, wrong view. In the Abhidhamma defilements are classified in different ways and also
different kinds of wrong view are classified in various ways. For example, different kinds
of wrong view are classified under the group of defilements which is clinging (up¯ad¯ana).
Three of the four kinds of clinging mentioned in this group are clinging to various forms
of dit.t.hi; these three kinds of clinging have been completely eradicated by the sot¯apanna.
One of them is: “clinging to rules and ritual” (s¯ılabbatup¯ad¯ana), which includes the wrong
practice of vipassan¯a. Some people think that they can attain enlightenment by following
some path other than the eightfold Path but this is an illusion. There are no other ways
leading to enlightenment.
The eightfold Path is developed by being mindful of the n¯ama and ru¯pa which appear
in daily life, such as seeing, visible object, hearing, sound, thinking, feeling, attachment,
anger or the other defilements which arise. If the eightfold Path is not developed by being
mindful of all realities which appear in one’s daily life, wrong view cannot be eradicated and
thus not even the first stage of enlightenment, the stage of the sot¯apanna, can be attained.
Therefore, there is no way leading to enlightenment other than the development of right
understanding of realities, which is the wisdom (pan~n~a¯) of the eightfold Path.
What is right understanding? The answer is: seeing n¯ama and ru¯pa as they are: im-
permanent, dukkha and non-self. Right understanding can be developed. When we still
have wrong view, we take realities for self: we take seeing for self, we take visible object for
self, we take feeling for self, we take san~n~a¯ (remembrance or “perception”) for self, we take
thinking for self, we take defilements for self, we also take good qualities such as mindfulness
and wisdom for self. In being mindful of the characteristics of n¯ama and ru¯pa which appear,
right understanding can develop and the wrong view of self can be eliminated.
2 See Visuddhimagga chapter XX and XXI and “Path of Discrimination” I, Treatise on Knowledge, chap-
ters V-X.
Chapter 23: Lokuttara Cittas 159
So long as one has not become a sot¯apanna one may deviate from the right Path, there
can be wrong practice. There is wrong practice, for example, when one thinks that there
should be awareness only of particular kinds of n¯ama and ru¯pa, instead of being aware of
whatever kind of n¯ama or ru¯pa appears. People may for example believe that lobha, dosa
and moha should not or cannot be objects of mindfulness. However, akusala cittas are
realities which arise because of their appropriate conditions, they are part of one’s daily
life. If one selects the objects of awareness, one will continue to cling to a concept of self
who could exert control over one’s life. Some people believe that vipassan¯a can only be
developed when sitting in a quiet place, but then they set rules for the practice, and thus,
they will not be able to see that mindfulness too is anatt¯a.
The sot¯apanna has, apart from dit.t.hi, also eradicated other defilements. He has eradi-
cated doubt or vicikicch¯a. Doubt is classified as one of the “hindrances”; it prevents us from
performing kusala. We may doubt about the Buddha, the Dhamma, the Sangha, about the
right practice. The sot¯apanna has no more doubt.
Another akusala cetasika, eradicated by the sot¯apanna, is stinginess, macchariya. The
Visuddhimagga (XXII, 52) mentions five kinds of avarice:
The kinds of avarice are the five, namely, avarice about dwellings, families, gain, Dhamma
and praise, which occur as inability to bear sharing with others any of these things beginning
with dwellings.
The Atthas¯alin¯ı (Expositor, Book II, part II, chapter II, 374, 375) gives an explanation
of these five kinds of avarice concerning the monk’s dwelling-place, the family he is used
to visiting in order to receive the four requisites (robes, food, shelter and medicines), the
four requisites themselves (mentioned as “gain”), knowledge of the Dhamma and praise
(concerning personal beauty or virtues).
It is explained that there is stinginess if one does not want to share any of these things
with others. However, there is no stinginess if one does not want to share these things with
someone who is a bad person or someone who would abuse these things. For instance, if one
does not teach Dhamma to someone who will abuse Dhamma, there is no stinginess as to
Dhamma. Thus we see that the eradication of stinginess does not mean sharing everything
one has with anybody. The sot¯apanna has eradicated stinginess; the five kinds of stinginess
just mentioned do not arise anymore.
Furthermore, the sot¯apanna has eradicated envy, iss¯a. Envy can arise with dosa-mu¯la-
citta (citta rooted in aversion). The Visuddhimagga (XIV, 172) states concerning envy:
Envying is envy. It has the characteristic of being jealous of others’ success.
Its function is to be dissatisfied with that. It is manifested as averseness from
that. Its proximate cause is another’s success. . .
The sot¯apanna is an ariyan, a “noble person”, although not all defilements are eradicated
by him. He is an ariyan, because at the moment of enlightenment, when the magga-citta
arose, he became a different person; he is no longer a “worldling”, puthujjana. There are
no more latent tendencies of wrong view, dit.t.hi, and doubt, vicikicch¯a, accumulated in the
citta, and there are no more inclinations to stinginess, macchariya, or envy, iss¯a.
What is a latent tendency? When we desire something we have lobha. When the lobha-
mu¯la-cittas have fallen away, there are other kinds of citta which are not accompanied by
lobha. However, the lobha which arose before has been accumulated, it remains latent.
When there are conditions for its arising, it can arise again with the akusala citta. Latent
160 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
tendencies lie dormant in every citta, even in the bhavanga-citta (life-continuum) which
does not experience an object through one of the sense-doors or the mind-door.
The question may occur whether the latent tendency of dit.t.hi is eradicated gradually
or all at once. The answer is that in the course of the development of right understanding
dit.t.hi is gradually eliminated until the latent tendency of dit.t.hi is completely eradicated
at the attainment of enlightenment. One cannot attain enlightenment without having cul-
tivated the right conditions. We see that in the Buddha’s time some people could attain
enlightenment quickly, even during a discourse; some could attain enlightenment after a
more detailed explanation of the truth, whereas others had to develop the eightfold Path
for a longer time before they could attain enlightenment. It all depends on how much
wisdom has already been accumulated, also during previous lives. As to the attainment of
enlightenment in the present time, the right conditions have to be cultivated; enlightenment
cannot occur all of a sudden. If there is awareness of all kinds of n¯ama and ru¯pa appearing
in daily life, pan~n~a¯ can investigate their characteristics and in this way it can gradually
develop. We cannot expect a great deal of sati and pan~n~a¯ in the beginning. However, each
moment of right awareness is fruitful, because it can condition further moments of aware-
ness and thus it can be accumulated. Through the development of right understanding of
n¯ama and ru¯pa, wrong view will gradually become less, until finally the latent tendency of
dit.t.hi is completely eradicated by the magga-citta (lokuttara kusala citta) of the sot¯apanna.
Then dit.t.hi will never arise again.
The sot¯apanna has not eradicated all defilements. One may wonder whether he can still
talk in an unpleasant way to others. Of the ten kinds of akusala kamma-patha (unwholesome
courses of action) there are four akusala kamma-patha through speech which are: lying,
slandering, rude speech and idle, useless talk. The sot¯apanna has eradicated lying. He can
still speak in an unfriendly way to others or use harsh speech, but not to the extent that it
would lead to rebirth in a woeful plane. The sot¯apanna cannot be reborn in a woeful plane
anymore.
Useless talk is speech which has not as objective d¯ana, s¯ıla or bh¯avan¯a. This is not
eradicated by the sot¯apanna, it can only be eradicated by the arahat.
The question may arise whether it is necessary to classify defilements in such a detailed
way. The purpose of the study of the Abhidhamma is right understanding of realities. If
one does not study at all one will not be able to judge what is the right Path and what
the wrong Path. We do not live in the Buddha’s time; since we cannot hear the teachings
directly from him, we are dependent on the teachings as they come to us through the
scriptures. Therefore, it is beneficial to study the scriptures and also the Abhidhamma.
It depends on one’s personal inclination to what extent one will study the details about
realities. Learning about the different ways of classifying defilements helps us to see their
different aspects. For instance, dit.t.hi is classified under the group of defilements known as
the latent tendencies or proclivities (anusayas) and it is also classified as one of the ¯asavas,
“cankers” or “influxes”, which is another group of defilements. Furthermore, defilements are
classified as ways of clinging (up¯ad¯anas); as we have seen, three classes of dit.t.hi are classified
under this group of defilements. Defilements are also classified as “bonds” (ganthas), as
“hindrances” (n¯ıvaran. as), and in several other ways. Each way of classifying shows us
a different aspect of defilements and thus we understand better how deeply accumulated
defilements are and how difficult it is to eradicate them. Only magga-cittas (lokuttara
kusala cittas) can eradicate them. Not all defilements can be eradicated by the magga-citta
Chapter 23: Lokuttara Cittas 161
of the first stage of enlightenment. As we have seen, there are four stages of enlightenment
(the stages of the sot¯apanna, the sakad¯ag¯am¯ı, the an¯ag¯am¯ı and the arahat), and for each of
these stages there is a magga-citta which experiences nibb¯ana and eradicates defilements.
Defilements are progressively eradicated by the magga-citta at each of the four stages of
enlightenment. Thus, there are four types of magga-citta. There are four types of phala-
citta (lokuttara vip¯akacitta or “fruition-consciousness”) which are the results of the four
magga-cittas. Only the magga-citta eradicates defilements; the phala-citta, which also
experiences nibb¯ana, is vip¯aka, result of the magga-citta.
At the moment of enlightenment nibb¯ana is the object which is experienced by the
lokuttara citta. Some people think that nibb¯ana is a place which one can reach, a plane of
life. In order to have more understanding of what nibb¯ana is, we have to consider what our
life now is: n¯ama and ru¯pa arising and falling away. Our life is dukkha, because what arises
and falls away is unsatisfactory. If nibb¯ana would be a plane where we would continue to
live, there would be no end to the arising and falling away of n¯ama and ru¯pa, no end to
dukkha. Nibb¯ana, however, is the unconditioned dhamma, it does not arise and fall away.
Nibb¯ana is therefore the end of the arising and falling away of n¯ama and ru¯pa, the end of
birth, old age, sickness and death. Nibb¯ana is the end to dukkha. When one has attained
the first stage of enlightenment, the stage of the sot¯apanna, it is certain that there will
eventually be an end to the cycle of birth and death, an end to dukkha.
When the person who is not an arahat dies, the last citta of his life, the cuti-citta (dying-
consciousness) is succeeded by the pat.isandhi-citta (rebirth-consciousness) of the next life
and thus life goes on. So long as there are defilements life has to continue. The fact that
we are here in the human plane is conditioned by defilements. Even if there is birth in a
heavenly plane, in a ru¯pa-brahma plane or in an aru¯pa-brahma plane, it is conditioned by
defilements.
The arahat has no more defilements, he does not have to be reborn in any plane. The
arahat has to die, because he was born and birth has to be followed by death. However,
for him the cuti-citta will not be succeeded by a pat.isandhi-citta. Thus, for him there will
not be the arising of n¯ama and ru¯pa in a new life any more, and this means the end to the
cycle of birth and death.
For some people this would seem to be the annihilation of life, something which is
frightening. We can make ourselves believe that life is good and that it should continue
forever, but if we develop insight we will see more and more that life is n¯ama-elements
and ru¯pa-elements which arise because of their own conditions and then have to fall away;
they are beyond control, nobody can cause them to remain. We cannot cause the arising
of happy feeling, if it arises it does so because of its own conditions. It is only present for
an extremely short while and then there may be unhappy feeling. The ideas we used to
have about life and happiness will gradually be changed. If one still clings to the “self”
one is anxious about what will happen to the “self” after one’s death. For the arahat the
question of what will happen after his death does not occur; he has no more defilements
and thus no more clinging to life. The ariyan knows that what the non-ariyan takes for
happiness is dukkha; the non-ariyan takes for misery what the ariyan knows as happiness.
The development of wisdom brings a kind of happiness which is different from what one
used to take for happiness. Our defilements are the real cause of disturbance, worry and
restlessness, they are the cause of all sorrow. Nibb¯ana is the end of lobha, dosa and moha,
and thus the end of all sorrow.
162 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
When one is not an ariyan one cannot really understand what nibb¯ana is. If we cannot
experience yet the true nature of the conditioned dhammas which arise and fall away, we
cannot experience the unconditioned dhamma, the dhamma which does not arise and fall
away.
As we have seen, there are four paramattha dhammas: citta, cetasika, ru¯pa and nibb¯ana.
Citta, cetasika and ru¯pa are realities which arise and fall away, they are conditioned dham-
mas and thus dukkha. Nibb¯ana does not arise and fall away; it has no conditions through
which it arises, it is an unconditioned dhamma. Nibb¯ana is the end to dukkha. If there
were no cessation of dukkha the Buddha would not have taught the Path leading to the
cessation of dukkha. However, since there is the cessation of dukkha, the Buddha taught
the Path leading to it. We read in the Verses of Uplift (Ud¯ana, chapter VIII, 3, Khuddaka
Nik¯aya) that the Buddha, while he was staying in An¯athapin. d. ika’s Park, said to the monks:
Monks, there is a not-born, a not-become, a not-made, a not-compounded3.
Monks, if that unborn, not-become, not-made, not-compounded were not, there
would be apparent no escape from this here that is born, become, made,
compounded4.
But since, monks, there is an unborn. . . therefore the escape from this here that
is born, become. . . is apparent.
Nibb¯ana can be experienced at the attainment of enlightenment, but enlightenment
cannot be attained unless pan~n~a¯ has been developed to the degree that it can experience
the conditioned dhammas as they are: impermanent, dukkha and non-self (anatt¯a).
At the attainment of enlightenment the magga-citta (lokuttara kusala citta) directly
experiences nibb¯ana. When the magga-citta has fallen away, it is succeeded immediately
by the phala-citta (lokuttara vip¯akacitta) which experiences the same object. K¯am¯avacara
kusala kamma may produce vip¯aka in the same lifespan but never in the same process.
Ru¯p¯avacara kusala citta and aru¯p¯avacara kusala citta produce vip¯aka only in a next life
as rebirth-consciousness and bhavangacitta. It is different in the case of the magga-citta
which is followed immediately, in the same process, by the phala-cittas, which are two or
three moments of vip¯akacitta, depending on the individual.
When someone attains enlightenment of the stage of the sot¯apanna, the magga-citta and
the phala-cittas of the sot¯apanna arise. The magga-citta of the sot¯apanna eradicates the
defilements which are to be eradicated at that stage, and this is once and for all. Thus, the
magga-citta of the sot¯apanna can arise only once in the cycle of birth and death.
The phala-citta can arise again in other processes of citta if enlightenment has been
attained with lokuttara jh¯anacitta. Someone who has developed jh¯ana and acquired “mas-
tery” in jh¯ana (Vis. IV, 131) and also develops insight can attain enlightenment with
lokuttara jh¯anacitta, lokuttara citta accompanied by jh¯anafactors of one of the stages of
jh¯ana. It is extremely difficult to acquire “mastery” in jh¯ana; one should be able, for ex-
ample, to determine when one enters jh¯ana and when one emerges from jh¯ana. Only if
mastery has been acquired, jh¯ana can be a “base” for insight, that is, an object of mindful-
ness in vipassan¯a. In that way the clinging to a self who attains jh¯ana can be eliminated.
3 asan˙khata, unconditioned, not proceeding from conditions.
4 san˙khata, conditioned. This is translated into English as “compounded” or “constructed”. It is that
which has been “put together ” (sankharoti), produced, by the association of different conditions.
Chapter 23: Lokuttara Cittas 163
Those who attain enlightenment have different accumulations and according to one’s accu-
mulations the lokuttara jh¯anacittas are accompanied by jh¯ana-factors of different stages of
jh¯ana. The phala-citta which is accompanied by jh¯ana-factors can arise many times again,
experiencing nibb¯ana5.
Cittas can be counted as eighty-nine or as hundred and twenty-one. When cittas are
counted as hundred and twenty-one, there are, instead of eight lokuttara cittas6, forty
lokuttara cittas, and these are lokuttara cittas accompanied by the jh¯ana-factors of the
different stages of jh¯ana. As we have seen, there are five stages of ru¯pa-jh¯ana and at each
stage jh¯ana-factors are successively abandoned7, until at the fifth stage (or at the fourth
stage of the fourfold system) there are the remaining factors of sam¯adhi (concentration)
and upekkh¯a (indifferent feeling) which arises instead of sukha (pleasant feeling). Lokuttara
cittas can be accompanied by jh¯ana-factors of each of the five stages of jh¯ana. For example,
when lokuttara cittas are accompanied by jh¯ana-factors of the fifth stage of ru¯pa-jh¯ana, it
means that they are accompanied by sam¯adhi and upekkh¯a.
As regards aru¯pa-jh¯anacittas, they have meditation subjects which are different from the
meditation subjects for ru¯pa-jh¯ana, but the jh¯ana-factors which accompany them are the
same as the jh¯ana-factors of the fifth stage of ru¯pa-jh¯ana, namely sam¯adhi and upekkh¯a.
Thus, the jh¯ana-factors of the five types of ru¯pa-jh¯ana have to be taken into account when we
classify lokuttara jh¯anacittas, lokuttara cittas accompanied by jh¯ana-factors of the different
stages of ru¯pa-jh¯ana and aru¯pa-jh¯ana. Consequently, each one of the eight lokuttara cittas
can be reckoned as fivefold and then there are forty lokuttara cittas.
When cittas are counted as eighty-nine, they can be summarised as follows:
12 akusala cittas
18 ahetuka cittas
8 mah¯a-kusala cittas
8 mah¯a-vip¯akacittas
8 mah¯a-kiriyacittas
Above are 54 k¯am¯avacara cittas (cittas of the sensuous plane of consciousness)
15 ru¯p¯avacara cittas
12 aru¯p¯avacara cittas
8 lokuttara cittas
When cittas are counted as 121, there are, instead of 8 lokuttara cittas, 40 lokuttara
cittas.
The way to nibb¯ana seems to be extremely long and we may wonder how we could
ever reach the goal. We should not be impatient and wish for a result that is far off.
Instead, we should consider what has to be done at the present moment: the development
of right understanding of the n¯ama and ru¯pa appearing right now. In this way there will
be conditions eventually to attain nibb¯ana.
5 This attainment is called phala sam¯apatti, attainment of fruition.
6 A magga-citta, lokuttara kusala citta, and a phala-citta, lokuttara vip¯akacitta, at each of the four stages
of enlightenment.
7 See chapter 22.
Chapter 24: Enlightenment 165
One cannot attain enlightenment without having cultivated the right conditions. We read in
the Kindred Sayings (V, Mah¯a-vagga, Book XI, Kindred Sayings on Streamwinning, chapter
I, paragraph 5, S¯ariputta) about four conditions for becoming a sot¯apanna (streamwinner).
The sutta states:
Now the venerable S¯ariputta went to see the Exalted One, and on coming to
him saluted him and sat down at one side. To the venerable S¯ariputta so seated
the Exalted One said this:
“ ‘A limb of stream-winning! A limb of stream-winning!’ is the saying,
Sariputta. Tell me, S¯ariputta, of what sort is a limb of stream-winning.”
“Lord, association with the upright is a limb of stream-winning. Hearing the
good Dhamma is a limb of stream-winning. Applying the mind is a limb of
stream-winning. Conforming to the Dhamma is a limb of stream-winning.”
“Well said, S¯ariputta! Well said, S¯ariputta! Indeed these are limbs of stream-
winning.
Now again, S¯ariputta, they say: ‘The stream! The stream!’ Of what sort is the
stream, S¯ariputta?”
“The stream, lord, is just this ariyan eightfold way, to wit: Right view, right
thought, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindful-
ness, right concentration.”
“Well said, S¯ariputta! Well said, S¯ariputta! The stream is just this ariyan
eightfold way.
Now again, S¯ariputta, they say, ‘Streamwinner! Streamwinner!’ Of what sort
is a streamwinner, S¯ariputta?”
“Whosoever, lord, is blessed with this ariyan eightfold way − such an one of
such a name, of such and such a clan, is called
‘Streamwinner’.”
The first condition, association with the righteous person, is most important. It would
not be possible to find the right path by oneself. Only Buddhas have accumulated such
wisdom that they can find the Path by themselves, without the help of a teacher. Other
people, however, need the teachings of a Buddha in order to find the right path, because
ignorance has been accumulated for an endlessly long time. We need association with the
right person, the good friend in Dhamma, who can point out to us the right path, because
our defilements prevent us from finding the right path. Our friend in Dhamma can encourage
us to develop right understanding of n¯ama and ru¯pa.
The question may arise what one should do if one is not able to find the right friend in
Dhamma. Is reading the scriptures not a condition to find the path leading to enlighten-
ment? It is true that reading the scriptures is also very helpful since they can encourage us
to be mindful of n¯ama and ru¯pa in daily life. We might, however, interpret the teachings
in the wrong way. It depends on conditions whether we come into contact with the right
person who can help us to understand the teachings as well as the practice in accordance
with the teachings. Accumulated kusala kamma can be the condition for us to meet the
right person.
166 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
When we have heard the Dhamma from the right person, we should “apply the mind”;
this is the third condition. We should not blindly follow the person who teaches us Dhamma,
but we should investigate the scriptures ourselves, ponder over the Dhamma, and consider
it carefully, in order to test the truth.
The real test of the truth is the practice itself. Therefore, the fourth condition is “con-
forming to the Dhamma”, which is the development of the eightfold Path. By being mindful
of the phenomena appearing through the six doors we can find out ourselves whether it is
true that these phenomena are only n¯ama and ru¯pa, arising because of conditions. We
can investigate ourselves whether they are impermanent or permanent, whether they are
dukkha or happiness, whether they are non-self, anatt¯a, or “self”. We can find out through
the practice itself whether we really understand the teachings. If we practise in the wrong
way we may eventually find out that this does not lead to right understanding of the re-
alities of our daily life. Through the development of the eightfold Path we will have more
confidence (saddh¯a) in the Buddha’s teachings. We will have more confidence when we
experience that through right understanding of n¯ama and ru¯pa in daily life there will be
less clinging to “self”.
Lokuttara cittas cannot arise without the cultivation of the right conditions. Some
people wish for an end to dukkha but they do not develop understanding in daily life. They
hope that one day lokuttara cittas will arise. The Buddha pointed out that the realization
of the four noble Truths is difficult, and he said this, not in order to discourage people, but
in order to remind them not to be heedless.
We read in the Kindred Sayings (V, Mah¯a-vagga, Book XII, Kindred Sayings about the
Truths, chapter V, paragraph 5, The keyhole) that, when the Buddha was staying at Ves¯al¯ı
in Great Grove, A¯ nanda went into Ves¯al¯ı on his rounds for almsfood. In Ves¯al¯ı he saw the
Licchavi youths practising archery. He then went to see the Buddha and said:
“Here, lord, robing myself in the forenoon and taking bowl and outer robe I set
out for Ves¯al¯ı on my begging rounds. Then, lord, I saw a number of Licchavi
youths in the gymnasium making practice at archery, shooting even from a
distance through a very small keyhole, and splitting an arrow, shot after shot,
with never a miss. And I said to myself, lord: ‘Practised shots are these Licchavi
youths! Well practised shots indeed are these Licchavi youths, to be able even
at a distance to splinter an arrow through a very small keyhole, shot after shot,
with never a miss!’ ”
“Now what think you, A¯ nanda? Which is the harder, which is the harder task
to compass: To shoot like that or to pierce one strand of hair, seven times
divided, with another strand?”
“Why, lord, of course to split a hair in such a way is the harder, much the
harder task.”
“Just so, A¯ nanda, they who penetrate the meaning of: This is dukkha, this is
the arising of dukkha, this is the ceasing of dukkha, this is the practice that
leads to the ceasing of dukkha, pierce through something much harder to pierce.
Wherefore, A¯ nanda, you must make an effort to realize: This is dukkha. This
is the arising of dukkha. This is the ceasing of dukkha. This is the practice
that leads to the ceasing of dukkha.”
Chapter 24: Enlightenment 167
One might feel discouraged when reading this sutta; it would seem that it is impossible
to attain enlightenment. However, if one develops the right Path, not the wrong Path, one
will realize the four noble Truths; one will attain enlightenment. The way to realize the four
noble Truths is to be mindful of the realities which appear now: seeing, visible object, lobha,
dosa or any other reality. We should not be discouraged when we do not seem to make
rapid progress. Most people cling to a result and they become impatient when they do not
notice an immediate result; clinging to a result, however, is not helpful for the development
of wisdom, it is akusala.
Some people feel that the development of samatha can give a more immediate result.
Samatha, when it has been developed in the right way, has tranquillity as its result. When
jh¯ana is attained, lobha, dosa and moha are temporarily eliminated. However, the attain-
ment of jh¯ana is extremely difficult and many conditions have to be cultivated. When one
is developing samatha, the hindrances may still arise: there will be sensuous desire, ill-will,
sloth and torpor, restlessness, worry and doubt, until “access-concentration” or jh¯ana has
been attained.
The aim of vipassan¯a is not tranquillity, but the eradication of wrong view and eventually
of all defilements. This goal may seem far off, but each short moment of right awareness
of n¯ama and ru¯pa is very fruitful; it will help to eliminate clinging to the concept of self.
While one is mindful, there are no lobha, dosa or moha. Although tranquillity is not the
aim of vipassan¯a, at the moment of right mindfulness there is kusala citta, and kusala citta
is accompanied by calm.
Vipassan¯a or insight is the development of right understanding of all n¯amas and ru¯pas
which present themselves in daily life. Insight is developed in different stages and in the
course of its development the characteristics of n¯ama and ru¯pa will be understood more
clearly, and their arising and falling away will be known through direct experience. When
insight has been developed stage by stage, the n¯ama and ru¯pa which present themselves
through the six doors can be clearly seen as impermanent, dukkha and non-self, anatt¯a.
When pan~n~¯a has been developed to the degree that enlightenment can be attained, the
unconditioned reality, nibb¯ana, is directly experienced. The direct experience of nibb¯ana is
different from thinking about nibbana. Nibb¯ana is directly experienced during a mind-door
process of cittas. Nibb¯ana cannot be experienced through any of the five senses, it can be
experienced only through the mind-door.
In the process during which enlightenment is attained, the manodv¯ar¯avajjana-citta (the
mind-door-adverting-consciousness) takes as its object one of the three characteristics of
reality: impermanence, dukkha or anatt¯a. This means that the reality presenting itself at
that moment is seen either as impermanent, or as dukkha or as anatt¯a. Anicca, dukkha
and anatt¯a are three aspects of the truth of conditioned realities. Thus, if one sees one
aspect, one also sees the other aspects. However, the three characteristics cannot be expe-
rienced at the same time, since citta can experience only one object at a time. It depends
on one’s accumulations which of the three characteristics is realized in the process of cittas
during which enlightenment is attained: one person views the reality appearing at that
moment as impermanent, another as dukkha, and another again as non-self, anatt¯a. The
mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta, mind-door-adverting-consciousness, of that process adverts to one
of these three characteristics and is then succeeded by three or four cittas which are not
yet lokuttara cittas, but mah¯a-kusala cittas (kusala cittas of the sense-sphere) accompa-
168 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
nied by pan~n~a¯1. The first mah¯a-kusala citta, which is called parikamma or preparatory
consciousness, still has the same object as the mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta. Whichever of the
three characteristics of conditioned realities the mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta adverted to, the
parikamma realizes that characteristic. The parikamma is succeeded by the upac¯ara or
proximity consciousness which still has the same object as the mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana citta.
This citta, the second mah¯a-kusala citta in that process, is nearer to the moment the lokut-
tara cittas will arise. The upac¯ara is succeeded by the anuloma, which means conformity or
adaptation. This citta still has the same object as the mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta. Anuloma is
succeeded by gotrabhu¯ which is sometimes translated as change of lineage. This citta is the
last k¯am¯avacara citta in that process. Gotrabhu¯ is the last k¯am¯avacara citta in a process
before a citta of another plane of consciousness arises. The other plane of consciousness
may be ru¯p¯avacara, aru¯p¯avacara or lokuttara. In samatha, gotrabhu¯ is the last k¯am¯avacara
citta before the ru¯pa-jh¯anacitta or the aru¯pa-jh¯anacitta arises. In vipassan¯a, gotrabhu¯ is
the last k¯am¯avacara citta of the non-ariyan before the lokuttara citta arises and he becomes
an ariyan. The object of the gotrabhu¯ arising before the lokuttara cittas is different from
the object of gotrabhu¯ in samatha; the gotrabhu¯ preceding the lokuttara cittas experiences
nibb¯ana. It is the first citta in that process which experiences nibb¯ana, but it is not lokut-
tara citta. At the moment of gotrabhu¯ the person who is about to attain enlightenment is
still a non-ariyan. Gotrabhu¯ does not eradicate defilements. Gotrabhu¯ is succeeded by the
magga-citta which eradicates the defilements that are to be eradicated at the stage of the
sot¯apanna. The magga-citta is the first lokuttara citta in that process of cittas. When it
has fallen away it is succeeded by two (or three) phala-cittas (fruition-consciousness) which
are the result of the magga-citta and which still have nibb¯ana as the object. As we have
seen, the magga-citta is succeeded immediately by its result, in the same process of citta2.
The magga-citta cannot produce vip¯aka in the form of rebirth, such as the kusala citta of
the other planes of consciousness. The phala-cittas are succeeded by bhavanga-cittas3.
Some people do not need the moment of parikamma (preparatory consciousness) and in
that case three moments of phala-citta arise instead of two moments.
Summarising the cittas in the process during which enlightenment is attained, they are
the following:
mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta
parikamma (preparatory consciousness; for some people not necessary)
upac¯ara (proximity consciousness)
1 See Visuddhimagga, chapter XXI, 129-136, and also “The Path of Discrimination” (Pat.isambhid¯amagga)
I, Treatise on Knowledge, chapter VI-chapter X.
2 See chapter 23
3 The names of the cittas arising in the process during which enlightenment occurs are not only in the
commentaries but also in the scriptures, in the Path of Discrimination and in the Book of Conditional
Relations, the Pat.t.h¯ana. In the Pat.t.h¯ana, the “Feeling Triplet”, under Proximity Condition, are men-
tioned: anuloma, gotrabhu¯, magga-citta and two phala-cittas. Since different names are given to these
javana-cittas we can know their number. The names parikamma and upac¯ara do not occur, but the
Visuddhimagga (XXI, 130) states that the three first mah¯a-kusala cittas in that process can be called
by one name: they can be called repetition or preliminary work (parikamma), access (upacara), or con-
formity (anuloma). The process where enlightenment occurs is not an ordinary process; it is a process
with different types of citta performing the function of javana. Still, this example makes it clearer that
the commentaries, when they stated that there are usually 7 javana-cittas in a process, based this on
the canonical tradition (see chapter 14).
Chapter 24: Enlightenment 169
anuloma (conformity or adaptation)
gotrabhu¯ (change of lineage)
magga-citta
phala-citta (two or three moments, depending on the individual)
Nibb¯ana can be the object of k¯am¯avacara cittas which arise after the lokuttara cittas
have fallen away. Before someone becomes an ariyan there can only be speculation about
nibb¯ana. For the ariyan, however, it is different. Since he has directly experienced nibb¯ana,
he can review his experience afterwards. We read in the Visuddhimagga (XXII, 19) that
the person who attained enlightenment reviews, after the lokuttara cittas have fallen away,
the path, the fruition, the defilements which have been abandoned, the defilements which
are still remaining and nibb¯ana. He reviews these things in different mind-door processes
of citta.
Some people think that enlightenment could not occur in daily life, they believe that it is
necessary to be in a solitary place in order to attain nibb¯ana. The development of vipassan¯a
is the development of right understanding of all realities occurring in daily life. When
pan~n~a¯ has been developed to the degree that enlightenment can be attained, enlightenment
can occur in the middle of one’s daily activities. As we have seen, the attainment of
enlightenment is only a few moments of citta which arise and fall away within split seconds.
We read in the Discourse to D¯ıghanakha (Middle Length Sayings II, no. 74) that the
Buddha taught Dhamma to the wanderer D¯ıghanaka on Vulture’s Peak near R¯ajagaha. He
taught him about the getting rid of wrong views and about the impermanence of conditioned
realities. S¯ariputta, who was an ariyan but had not yet attained arahatship, was also present
at the time of that discourse. We read:
Now at that time the venerable S¯ariputta was standing behind the Lord, fanning
the Lord. Then it occurred to the venerable S¯ariputta:
“The Lord speaks to us of getting rid of these things and those by means
of super-knowledge, the Well-farer speaks to us of casting out these things
and those by means of superknowledge”. While the venerable S¯ariputta was
reflecting on this, his mind was freed from the cankers without clinging. But to
the wanderer D¯ıghanakha there arose the stainless, spotless vision of dhamma,
that whatever is of the nature to arise all that is of the nature to stop. . .
S¯ariputta attained arahatship, but he did not go into solitude in order to attain it; he was
fanning the Buddha. D¯ıghanakha listened to the Buddha and then became a sot¯apanna.
We read in the Kindred Sayings (III, Khandh¯a-vagga, Middle Fifty, chapter 4, paragraph
89, Khema) that Khemaka, who was an an¯ag¯am¯ı, attained arahatship while he was preaching
and monks who were listening attained arahatship as well. We read:
Now when this teaching was thus expounded the hearts of as many as sixty
monks were utterly set free from the ¯asavas, and so was it also with the heart
of the venerable Khemaka. . .
If one is on the right Path, pan~n~a¯ can be developed, no matter what the circumstances
are, even to the degree of enlightenment. People may wonder whether it would be possible
to notice it when a person attains nibb¯ana. But can one see whether someone else is mindful
or not mindful? Who knows the cittas of other people? We cannot know when someone
else is mindful of n¯ama and ru¯pa or when he attains nibb¯ana.
170 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
The question may arise whether all four stages of enlightenment (the stages of the
sot¯apanna, the sakad¯ag¯am¯ı, the an¯ag¯am¯ı and the arahat) can be attained in the course
of one life. We read in the suttas about disciples of the Buddha who attained the ariyan
state but not yet arahatship and realized arahatship later on in life. A¯ nanda, for example,
did not attain arahatship during the Buddha’s life, but he became an arahat after the Bud-
dha had passed away, the evening before the first great council was to start (the “Illustrator
of Ultimate meaning”, commentary to the “Mangala-sutta” or “Good Omen Discourse”,
Minor Readings, Khuddaka Nik¯aya).
The arahat has eradicated all defilements and thus he has reached the end of the cycle of
birth, old age, sickness and death; he has realized the end of dukkha. The arahat will not be
reborn, but he still has to die and therefore one may ask whether he really has attained the
end of dukkha at the moment he realizes arahatship. Even the arahat is subject to death,
since he was born. He can also experience unpleasant results of akusala kamma committed
before he became an arahat. However, he has no more defilements and cannot accumulate
any more kamma which might produce vip¯aka, he is really free from dukkha.
In As it was said (Itivuttaka, The Twos, chapter II, paragraph 7, Khuddaka Nik¯aya)
two “conditions4 of nibb¯ana” are explained. In this sutta Sa-up¯adi-sesa-nibb¯ana5, one
“condition” of nibb¯ana, pertains to the arahat who has eradicated all defilements but for
whom the five khandhas are still remaining. For the arahat who has not finally passed away
yet, there are still citta, cetasika and ru¯pa arising and falling away. An-up¯adi-sesa-nibb¯ana6,
the other “condition” of nibb¯ana, pertains to the arahat who has finally passed away; for
him there are no khandhas remaining, there are no longer citta, cetasika and ru¯pa arising
and falling away.
We read in the verse of this sutta, after the explanation:
These two nibb¯ana-states are shown by him
Who sees, who is such and unattached.
One state is that in this same life possessed
With base remaining, though becoming’s stream
Be cut off. While the state without a base
Belongs to the future, wherein all
Becomings utterly do come to cease.
They who, by knowing this state uncompounded7
Have heart’s release, by cutting off the stream,
They who have reached the core of dhamma, glad
To end, such have abandoned all becomings.
When someone has become an arahat there will be no more rebirth for him. When
someone has attained enlightenment to the stage of the sot¯apanna, he has become an
ariyan, but he has not reached the end of rebirth. The sot¯apanna will be reborn, but not
4 dh¯atu, which literally means element.
5 Up¯adi: substratum of life, the five khandhas. Sa: with, sesa: remaining.
6 An-up¯adi-sesa: without the khandhas remaining.
7 asan˙khata, the
unconditioned reality.
Chapter 24: Enlightenment 171
more than seven times; thus, eventually there will be an end to rebirth for him. If we do not
develop vipassan¯a, the number of rebirths will be endless. It was out of compassion that
the Buddha spoke about the dangers of rebirth; he wanted to encourage people to develop
right understanding. We read in the Kindred Sayings (V, Mah¯a-vagga, Book XII, Kindred
Sayings about the Truths, chapter V, paragraph 6, Gross darkness) that the Buddha said
to the monks:
“Monks, there is a darkness of interstellar space, impenetrable gloom, such a
murk of darkness as cannot enjoy the splendour of this moon and sun, though
they be of such mighty magic power and majesty.”
At these words a certain monk said to the Exalted One:
“Lord, that must be a mighty darkness, a mighty darkness indeed! Pray, lord,
is there any other darkness greater and more fearsome than that?”
“There is indeed, monk, another darkness, greater and more fearsome. And
what is that other darkness?
Monk, whatsoever recluses or brahmins understand not, as it really is, the
meaning of: This is dukkha, this is the arising of dukkha, this is the ceasing
of dukkha, this is the practice that leads to the ceasing of dukkha, such take
delight in the activities which conduce to rebirth. Thus taking delight they
compose a compound of activities which conduce to rebirth. Thus composing
a compound of activities they fall down into the darkness of rebirth, into the
darkness of old age and death, of sorrow, grief, woe, lamentation and despair.
They are not released from birth, old age and death, from sorrow, grief, woe,
lamentation and despair. They are not released from dukkha, I declare.
But, monk, those recluses or brahmins who do understand as it really is, the
meaning of: This is dukkha, this is the arising of dukkha, this is the ceasing
of dukkha, this is the practice that leads to the ceasing of dukkha, such take
not delight in the activities which conduce to rebirth They are released from
dukkha, I declare.
Wherefore, monk, an effort must be made to realize: This is dukkha. This is
the arising of dukkha. This is the ceasing of dukkha. This is the practice that
leads to the ceasing of dukkha.”
Glossary 173
abhidhamma
the higher teachings of Buddhism, teachings on ultimate realities.
Abhidhammattha Sangaha
an Encyclopedia of the Abhidhamma, written by Anuruddha between the 8th
and the 12th century A.D.
abhi~n~n¯a supernormal powers.
adosa non aversion.
ahetuka cittas
not accompanied by “beautiful roots” or unwholesome roots.
¯ak¯as¯ana~nc¯ayatana
sphere of boundless space, the meditation subject of the first immaterial
jh¯anacitta.
aki~nca~n~n¯ayatana
sphere of nothingness, the meditation subject of the third immaterial jh¯anacitta.
akusala unwholesome, unskilful.
alobha non attachment, generosity.
amoha wisdom or understanding.
an¯ag¯am¯ı non-returner, person who has reached the third stage of enlightenment, he has
no aversion (dosa).
anatt¯a not self.
anicca impermanence.
anuloma conformity or adaptation.
anusaya latent tendency or proclivity.
anup¯adisesa nibb¯ana
final nibb¯ana, without the khandhas (aggregates or groups of existence) remain-
ing, at the death of an arahat.
apo-dh¯atu
element of water or cohesion.
appan¯a absorption.
arahat noble person who has attained the fourth and last stage of enlightenment.
¯aramma
a object which is known by consciousness.
ariyan noble person who has attained enlightenment.
ar¯upa-bh¯umi
plane of aru¯pa jh¯anacitta.
174 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
ar¯upa-brahma
plane plane of existence attained as a result of aru¯pa-jh¯ana. There are no sense
impressions, no ru¯pa experienced in this realm.
ar¯upa-jh¯ana
immaterial absorption.
asa_nkh¯arika
unprompted, not induced, either by oneself or by someone else.
asa_nkhata dhamma
unconditioned reality, nibb¯ana.
¯asavas influxes or intoxicants, group of defilements .
asobhana not beautiful, not accompanied by beautiful roots.
asubha foul.
asura demon, being of one of the unhappy planes of existence.
at¯ıta-bhavanga
past life-continuum, arising and falling away shortly before the start of a process
of cittas experiencing an object through one of the sense-doors.
Atthas¯alin¯ı
The Expositor, a commentary to the first book of the Abhidhamma Pit.aka.
¯avajjana adverting of consciousness to the object which has impinged on one of the six
doors.
avijj¯a ignorance.
ayoniso manasik¯ara
unwise attention to an object.
bh¯avan¯a mental development, comprising the development of calm and the development
of insight.
bhavanga life-continuum.
bhavanga calana
vibrating bhavanga arising shortly before a process of cittas experiencing an
object through one of the six doors.
bhavangupaccheda
arrest bhavanga, last bhavanga-citta before a process of cittas starts.
bhikkhu monk.
bhikkhun¯ı
nun.
bh¯umi plane of existence or plane of citta.
brahma-vih¯aras
the four divine abidings, meditation subjects which are: loving kindness, com-
passion, sympathetic joy, equanimity.
Glossary 175
Buddha a fully enlightened person who has discovered the truth all by himself, without
the aid of a teacher and can proclaim Dhamma to the world.
Buddhaghosa
commentator on the Tipit.aka, author of the Visuddhimagga in 5 A.D.
cakkhu eye.
cakkhu-dh¯atu
eye element.
cakkhu-dv¯ara
eyedoor.
cakkhu-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta
eye-door-adverting-consciousness.
cakkhuppas¯ada r¯upa
ru¯pa which is the organ of eyesense, capable of receiving visible object.
cakkhu-vi~n~n¯an.a
seeing-consciousness.
cetan¯a volition or intention.
cetasika mental factor arising with consciousness.
citta consciousness, the reality which knows or cognizes an object.
cuti-citta
dying-consciousness.
d¯ana generosity, giving.
dassana-kicca
function of seeing.
dhamma reality, truth, the teachings.
dhamma-dh¯atu
element of dhammas, realities, comprising cetasikas, subtle ru¯pas, nibb¯ana.
dhamm¯aramman.a
all objects other than the sense objects which can be experienced through the
five sense-doors, thus, objects which can be experienced only through the mind-
door.
Dhammasangan.i
the first book of the Abhidhamma Pit.aka.
Dh¯atukath¯a
Discussion on the Elements, the third book of the Abhidhamma.
dit.t.hi wrong view, distorted view of realities.
dit.t.higata sampayutta
accompanied by wrong view.
176 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
domanassa
unpleasant feeling.
dosa aversion or ill will.
dosa-m¯ula-citta
citta (consciousness) rooted in aversion.
dukkha suffering, unsatisfactoriness of conditioned realities.
dukkha vedan¯a
painful feeling or unpleasant feeling.
dv¯ara doorway through which an object is experienced, the five sense-doors or the
mind door.
dvi-pa~nca-vi~n~n¯an.a
the five pairs of sense-cognitions, which are seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting
and body-consciousness. Of each pair one is kusala vip¯aka and one akusala
vip¯aka.
ekaggat¯a concentration, one-pointedness, a cetasika which has the function to focus on
one object.
ganthas bonds, a group of defilements.
gh¯ana-dh¯atu
nose element.
gh¯anappas¯ada r¯upa
ru¯pa which is the organ of smelling sense, capable of receiving odour.
gh¯ana-vi~n~n¯an.a
smelling-consciousness.
gh¯ayana-kicca
function of smelling.
gotrabh¯u change of lineage, the last citta of the sense-sphere before jh¯ana, absorption, is
attained, or enlightenment is attained.
hadaya-vatthu
heart-base, ru¯pa which is the plane of origin of the cittas other than the sense-
cognitions.
hasitupp¯ada-citta
smile producing consciousness of an arahat.
hetu root, which conditions citta to be “beautiful” or unwholesome.
indriya faculty. Some are ru¯pas such as the sense organs, some are n¯amas such as feeling.
Five ’spiritual faculties’ are wholesome faculties which should be cultivated,
namely: confidence, energy, awareness, concentration and wisdom.
iss¯a envy.
j¯ati birth, nature, class (of cittas).
Glossary 177
javana-citta
cittas which ’run through the object’, kusala citta or akusala citta in the case
of non-arahats.
jh¯ana absorption which can be attained through the development of calm.
jh¯ana-factors
cetasikas which have to be cultivated for the attainment of jh¯ana: vitakka,
vic¯ara, p¯ıti, sukha, sam¯adhi.
jivh¯a-dh¯atu
tongue element.
jivh¯appas¯ada r¯upa
ru¯pa which is the organ of tasting sense, capable of receiving flavour.
jivh¯a-vi~n~n¯an.a
tasting-consciousness.
k¯ama sensual enjoyment or the five sense objects.
k¯ama-bh¯umi
sensuous plane of existence.
k¯amacchandha
sensuous desire.
k¯ama-sobhana cittas
beautiful cittas of the sense sphere.
k¯am¯avacara cittas
cittas of the sense sphere.
kamma intention or volition; deed motivated by volition.
kammapatha
course of action performed through body, speech or mind which can be whole-
some or unwholesome.
karun.¯a compassion.
kasin.a disk, used as an object for the development of calm.
k¯aya body. It can also stand for the “mental body”, the cetasikas.
k¯aya dh¯atu
the element of bodysense.
k¯ayappas¯ada r¯upa
bodysense, the ru¯pa which is capable of receiving tangible object. It is all over
the body, inside or outside.
k¯aya-vi~n~natti
bodily intimation, such as gestures, facial expression, etc.
k¯aya-vi~n~n¯an.a
body-consciousness.
178 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
khandhas aggregates of conditioned realities classified as five groups: physical phenomena,
feelings, perception or remembrance, activities or formations (cetasikas other
than feeling or perception), consciousness.
kicca function.
kilesa defilements.
kiriya citta
inoperative citta, neither cause nor result.
kukkucca regret or worry.
kusala citta
wholesome consciousness.
kusala kamma
a good deed.
kusala wholesome, skillful.
lobha attachment, greed.
lobha-m¯ula-citta
consciousness rooted in attachment.
lokiya citta
citta which is mundane, not experiencing nibb¯ana.
lokuttara citta
supramundane citta which experiences nibb¯ana.
lokuttara dhammas
the unconditioned dhamma which is nibb¯ana and the cittas which experience
nibb¯ana.
macchariya
stinginess.
magga path (eightfold Path).
magga-citta
path consciousness, supramundane citta which experiences nibb¯ana and eradi-
cates defilements.
mah¯a-bh¯uta-r¯upas
the ru¯pas which are the four great elements of “earth” or solidity, “water ” or
cohesion, “fire” or temperature, and “wind” or motion.
mah¯a-kiriyacitta
inoperative sense-sphere citta of the arahat, accompanied by “beautiful” roots.
mah¯a-kusala citta
wholesome citta of the sense sphere.
mah¯a-vip¯akacitta
citta of the sense sphere which is result, accompanied by “beautiful” roots.
Glossary 179
man¯ayatana
mind-base, including all cittas.
mano mind, citta, consciousness.
mano-dh¯atu
mind-element, comprising the five-sense-door adverting- consciousness, and the
two types of receiving-consciousness.
mano-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta
mind-door-adverting-consciousness.
mano-dv¯ara-v¯ıthi-cittas
cittas arising in a mind-door process.
mano-vi~n~n¯an.a-dh¯atu
mind-consciousness element, comprising all cittas other than the
sense-cognitions (seeing, etc.) and mind-element.
m¯ara “the evil one”—all that leads to dukkha
mett¯a loving kindness.
middha torpor or languor.
moha ignorance. moha-mu¯la-citta citta rooted in ignorance.
mudit¯a sympathetic joy.
n¯ama mental phenomena, including those which are conditioned and also the uncon-
ditioned n¯ama which is nibb¯ana.
natthika dit.t.hi
wrong view of annihilation, assumption that there is no result of kamma.
n’eva-sa~n~n¯a-n’¯asa~n~n¯ayatana
sphere of neither perception nor non-perception, the meditation subject of the
fourth immaterial jh¯ana.
nibb¯ana the unconditioned reality, the reality which does not arise and fall away.The
destruction of lust, hatred and delusion. The deathless. The end of suffering.
nimitta mental image one can acquire of a meditation subject in tranquil meditation.
nirodha-sam¯apatti
attainment of cessation of consciousness.
n¯ıvara
a hindrances, a group of defilements.
~n¯an.a wisdom, insight.
oj¯a the ru¯pa which is nutrition.
ol.¯arika r¯upas
gross ru¯pas (sense objects and sense organs).
Pacceka Buddha
Silent Buddha, an enlightened one who has found the truth by himself but does
not proclaim Dhamma to the world.
180 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
pat.ibh¯aga nimitta
counterpart image, more perfected mental image of a meditation subject, ac-
quired in tranquil meditation.
pat.igha aversion or ill will.
Pat.t.h¯ana Conditional Relations, the seventh book of the Abhidhamma.
pat.isandhi citta
rebirth consciousness.
P¯ali the language of the Buddhist teachings.
pa~ncadv¯ar¯avajjana-citta
five-sense-door-adverting-consciousness.
pa~ncavi~n~n¯an.a
(or dvi-pan~cavin~n~a¯n. a), the sense cognitions (seeing etc.) of which there are five
pairs.
pa~n~n¯a wisdom or understanding.
pa~n~natti concepts, conventional terms.
paramattha dhamma
truth in the absolute sense: mental and physical phenomena, each with their
own characteristic.
parikamma
preparatory consciousness, the first javana citta arising in the process during
which absorption or enlightenment is attained.
pas¯ada-r¯upas
ru¯pas which are capable of receiving sense-objects such as visible object, sound,
taste, etc. peta ghost.
phala-citta
fruition consciousness experiencing nibb¯ana. It is result of magga- citta, path-
consciousness.
phassa contact.
phot.t.habb¯aramman.a
tangible object, experienced through bodysense.
phusanakicca
function of experiencing tangible object.
p¯ıti joy, rapture, enthusiasm.
Puggalapa~n~natti
Designation of Human Types, the fourth book of the Abhidhamma.
puthujjana
“worldling”, a person who has not attained enlightenment.
R¯ahula the Buddha’s son.
Glossary 181
ras¯aramman.a
object of flavour.
r¯up¯aramman.a
visible object.
r¯upa physical phenomena, realities which do not experience anything.
r¯upa-brahma
plane ru¯pa-bhu¯mi, fine material realm of existence attained as a result of ru¯pa-
jh¯ana.
r¯upa-jh¯ana
fine material absorption, developed with a meditation subject which is still
dependant on materiality.
r¯upa-khandha
aggregate or group of all physical phenomena (ru¯pas).
r¯up¯avacara cittas
ru¯pa-jh¯anacittas, consciousness of the fine-material sphere.
sadd¯aramman.a
sound.
saddh¯a confidence.
sahagata accompanied by.
sahetuka accompanied by roots.
sakad¯ag¯am¯ı
once-returner, a noble person who has attained the second stage of enlighten-
ment.
sam¯adhi concentration or one-pointedness, ekaggat¯a cetasika.
samatha the development of calm.
samm¯a right.
sampat.icchana-citta
receiving-consciousness.
sampayutta
associated with.
Sangha community of monks and nuns. As one of the triple Gems it means the com-
munity of those people who have attained enlightenment.
sa_nkh¯ara dhammas
conditioned dhammas that arise together depending on each other.
sa_nkhata dhamma
what has arisen because of conditions.
sa_nkh¯ara-kkhandha
all cetasikas (mental factors) except feeling and memory.
182 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
sa~n~n¯a memory, remembrance or “perception”.
sa~n~n¯a-kkhandha
memory classified as one of the five khandhas.
sant¯ıran.a-citta
investigating-consciousness.
S¯ariputta
chief disciple of Buddha.
sasa_nkh¯arika
prompted, induced, instigated, either by oneself or someone else.
sati mindfulness or awareness: non-forgetfulness of what is wholesome, or non-
forgetfulness of realities which appear.
satipa
satipa
t.h¯ana sutta
Middle Length Sayings 1, number 10, also D¯ıgha Nik¯aya, Dialogues, no. 22.
t.h¯ana
applications of mindfulness. It can mean the cetasika sati which is aware of
realities or the objects of mindfulness which are classified as four applications
of mindfulness: Body, Feeling Citta, Dhamma. Or it can mean the development
of direct understanding of realities through awareness.
sa-upadi-sesa nibb¯ana
the attainment of nibb¯ana with the khandhas remaining by the arahat, thus
not final nibb¯ana at death of an arahat.
s¯ayana-kicca
function of tasting.
savana-kicca
function of hearing.
s¯ıla morality in action or speech, virtue.
s¯ılabbatup¯ad¯ana
wrong practice, which is clinging to certain rules (“rites and rituals”) in one’s
practice.
sobhana-hetus
beautiful roots.
sobhana kiriya cittas
kiriyacittas accompanied by sobhana (beautiful) roots.
sobhana(citta and cetasika)
beautiful, accompanied by beautiful roots.
somanassa
sota-dh¯atu
happy feeling.
element of earsense.
Glossary 183
sota-dv¯ar¯avajjana-citta
ear-door-adverting-consciousness.
sota-dv¯ara-v¯ıthi-cittas
ear-door process cittas.
sot¯apanna
person who has attained the first stage of enlightenment, and who has eradi-
cated wrong view of realities.
sota-vi~n~n¯an.a
hearing-consciousness.
sukha happy, pleasant.
sukha-vedan¯a
pleasant feeling.
sukhuma subtle.
sutta part of the scriptures containing dialogues at different places on different occa-
sions.
suttanta a sutta text.
tad¯alambana
retention or registering, last citta of a complete process of the sense-sphere.
tad¯aramman.a
as above.
Tath¯agata
literally “thus gone”, epithet of the Buddha.
tatramajjhattat¯a
equanimity or evenmindedness.
tejo-dh¯atu
element of fire or heat.
Therav¯ada Buddhism
‘Doctrine of the Elders’, the oldest tradition of Buddhism.
th¯ına sloth.
Tipit.aka the teachings of the Buddha contained in the Vinaya, the Suttanta and the
Abhidhamma.
uddhacca restlessness.
Ud¯ana Verses of Uplift from the Minor Anthologies.
upac¯ara access or proximity consciousness, the second javana-citta in the process in
which absorption or enlightenment is attained.
upac¯ara-sam¯adhi
access-concentration.
184 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
up¯ad¯a-r¯upa
“derived ru¯pas” the ru¯pas other than the four Great Elements.
up¯ad¯ana clinging.
up¯ad¯ana-kkhandhas
khandhas of clinging.
upekkh¯a indifferent feeling. It can stand for evenmindedness or equanimity and then it
is not feeling.
vac¯ıvi~n~natti
the ru¯pa which is speech intimation.
vatthu base, physical base of citta.
v¯ayo-dh¯atu
element of wind or motion.
vedan¯a feeling.
vedan¯a-kkhandha
group of all feelings.
Vibha_nga “Book of Analysis”, second book of the Abhidhamma.
vic¯ara sustained thinking or discursive thinking.
vicikicch¯a
doubt.
vinaya Book of Discipline for the monks.
vi~n~n¯an.a consciousness, citta.
vi~n~n¯an.a-dh¯atu
element of consciousness, comprising all cittas.
vi~n~n¯an.a-kkhandha
group of all cittas (consciousness).
vi~n~n¯an.a~nc¯ayatana
sphere of boundless consciousness, meditation subject for the second stage of
immaterial jh¯ana.
vip¯akacitta
citta which is the result of a wholesome deed (kusala kamma) or an unwholesome
deed (akusala kamma). It can arise as rebirth- consciousness, or during life as
the experience of pleasant or unpleasant objects through the senses, such as
seeing, hearing, etc.
vipassan¯a
vippayutta
wisdom which sees realities as they are.
dissociated from.
viriya energy.
Glossary 185
visan.k¯ara dhamma
unconditioned dhamma, nibb¯ana.
Visuddhimagga
an Encyclopaedia of the Buddha’s teachings, written by Buddhaghosa in the
fifth century A.D.
vitakka applied thinking.
v¯ıthi-cittas
cittas arising in a process.
v¯ıthimutta-cittas
process freed cittas, cittas which do not arise within a process.
votthapana-citta
determining consciousness.
vy¯ap¯ada ill-will.
Yamaka the Book of Pairs, the sixth book of the Abhidhamma.
yoniso manasik¯ara
wise attention to the object.
Books 187
The Buddha’s Path An Introduction to the doctrine of Theravada Buddhism for those
who have no previous knowledge. The four noble Truths - suffering - the origin of
suffering - the cessation of suffering - and the way leading to the end of suffering - are
explained as a philosophy and a practical guide which can be followed in today’s world.
Buddhism in Daily Life A general introduction to the main ideas of Theravada Bud-
dhism.The purpose of this book is to help the reader gain insight into the Buddhist
scriptures and the way in which the teachings can be used to benefit both ourselves
and others in everyday life.
The World in the Buddhist Sense The purpose of this book is to show that the Buddha’s
Path to true understanding has to be developed in daily life.
Cetasikas Cetasika means ’belonging to the mind’. It is a mental factor which accom-
panies consciousness (citta) and experiences an object. There are 52 cetasikas. This
book gives an outline of each of these 52 cetasikas and shows the relationship they have
with each other.
The Buddhist Teaching on Physical Phenomena A general introduction to physical
phenomena and the way they are related to each other and to mental phenomena. The
purpose of this book is to show that the study of both mental phenomena and physical
phenomena is indispensable for the development of the eightfold Path.
The Conditionality of Life By Nina van Gorkom
This book is an introduction to the seventh book of the Abhidhamma, that deals with
the conditionality of life. It explains the deep underlying motives for all actions through
body, speech and mind and shows that these are dependent on conditions and cannot
be controlled by a ‘self’. This book is suitable for those who have already made a study
of the Buddha’s teachings.
Mett¯a: Loving kindness in Buddhism by Sujin Boriharnwanaket. An introduction to
the basic Buddhist teachings of mett¯a, loving kindness, and its practical application in
todays world.
Taking Refuge in Buddhism by Sujin Boriharnwanaket. Taking Refuge in Buddhism is
an introduction to the development of insight meditation.
A Survey of Paramattha Dhammas by Sujin Boriharnwanaket. A Survey of Paramattha
Dhammas is a guide to the development of the Buddha’s path of wisdom, covering all
aspects of human life and human behaviour, good and bad. This study explains that
right understanding is indispensable for mental development, the development of calm
as well as the development of insight.
The Perfections Leading to Enlightenment by Sujin Boriharnwanaket. The Perfections
is a study of the ten good qualities: generosity, morality, renunciation, wisdom, energy,
patience, truthfulness, determination, loving-kindness, and equanimity.
188 Abhidhamma in Daily Life
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