Prepared by
Evelin Halls, DipFLC
Abhidhamma Class No. 53, 24 June 2003
Different combinations of cetasika with different citta
We will commence to write the Pali words with diacritical marks following the conventions of “The Pali Text Society’s Pali-English Dictionary”.
â: a cap over a vowel indicates that the a is the result of a syncope a + a (e.g. khuddânukhudda), whereas a represents the proper a, either pure or contracted with a preceding a (khinasava = khina + asava).
º represents the head-word either as first (º -) or second (- º) part of a compound;
sometimes also an easily supplemented part of a word.
(from the Pali Text Society’s Pali-English Dictionary, XIII, 3. Typographical)
For Abhidhamma class 53, we will study the Cetasika Chart on Sangaha method, i.e. Chart No. 3 at the back of Dr Mehm Tin Mon's book "The Essence of Buddha Abhidhamma". The readings of the chart are described on pp. 98 to 110.
"The name of each citta in pali should be consulted before enumerating the concomitants associated with the particular citta" (Mon: 1995, p. 98).
Chart 3 shows the concomitants of the following: akusala citta, ahetuka citta, mahakusala citta, mahavipaka citta, mahakiriya citta, mahaggata citta, lokuttara citta.
Dr Mon writes (pp. 105 to 106) that of the 52 cetasikas, 41 are called niyata-yogis (fixed cetasika) and the remaining 11 are called aniyatta-yogis (unfixed cetasika).
Niyata-yogis invariably associate with the citta with which they are known to associate. Aniyatta-yogis do not always associate with the citta they are known to associate; they arise only when they should.
The 11 aniyata-yogi cetasika are: issa, macchariya, kukkucca, mana, thina, middha, three virati and two appamanna.
Though it is mentioned in Chart No. 3, that issa, macchariya and kukkucca associate with the two dosa-mula citta, they do not arise whenever dosa-mula citta arises.
Some examples are: (Mon: 1995, pp. 107, 108)
A man is angry because the food served by his wife is not good. What is the type of this man's citta and what are the cetasikas that associate with that citta?
Since the man is angry, he is having dosa-mula citta. The name of this citta is "Domanassa-sahagatam patigha-sampayuttam asankharika citta".
The cetasikas that associate with this citta are 12 annasamana cetasikas (piti being excepted), 4 akusala-sadharana cetasikas and dosa. Issa, macchariya and kukkucca do not associate with this citta.
One feels bad because another person gets a better job than oneself. What is the type of this citta and what are its concomitants?
The name of the citta is the same as above. But now one is envying another’s success, so issa will also associate with the citta in addition to the 17 cetasikas mentioned above.
A lady is paying homage to a pagoda with joy and with knowledge of kamma. What are her citta and the concomitants associated with it?
Her citta is ‘somanassa-sahagatam nana-sampayutam asankharika maha-kusala citta’.
The cetasikas associated with the citta are 13 annasamana cetasikas, 19 sobhana-sâdhârana cetasikas and pannindriya. (viratis and appamannas do not associate with this citta.)
Citta is an ultimate entity with the characteristic of awareness of an object. The 52 cetasikas are also different ultimate entities with different characteristics. By the various but systematic combinations of cetasikas with citta, 89 types of consciousness in brief or 121 types of consciousness in broad total come into existence.
For further Abhidhamma studies, you can also study the canonical Abhidhamma books.
There are seven canonical Abhidhamma books:
The Dhammasangani, the "Enumeration of Phenomena"
The Vibhanga, the "Book of Analysis"
The Dhatukatha, the "Discourse on Elements"
The Puggalapannatti, "Concepts of Individuals"
The Kathavatthu, "Points of Controversy"
The Yamaka, the "Book of Pairs"
The Patthana, the "Book of Conditional Relations"
Some important Abhidhamma commentaries are:
The Atthasalini, "The Expositor", the commentary to the Dhammasangani; the Sammohavinodani, "The Dispeller of Delusion", the commentary to the Vibhanga; and the Pancappakarana Atthakatha, the combined commentary to the other five treatises. To this same stratum of literature also belongs the Visuddhimagga, "The Path of Purification", composed by Buddhaghosa. Each commentary in turn has its subcommentary (mulatika), by an elder of Sri Lanka named Acariya Ananda, and these in turn each have a sub-subcommentary (anutika), by Ananda's pupil Dhammapala (who is to be distinguished from the great Acariya Dhammapala, author of the tikas to Buddhaghosa's works). (cited from "A Comprehensive Manual of Abhidhamma", edited by Bhikkhu Bodhi, 1995).
References
Bhikkhu Bodhi, (general editor), “A Comprehensive Manual of Abhidhamma”, at URL http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/bps/misc/aghiman.html, accessed 24 June 2003.
Mon, Dr. Mehm Tin (1995), “The Essence of Buddha Abhidhamma”, publisher Mehm Tay Zar Mon, Yangon.
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