Ahetuka Cittas which are Unknown in Daily Life - Three ahetuka kiriyacittas

Thus, of the eighteen ahetuka cittas, fifteen are ahetuka vipākacittas and three are ahetuka kiriyācittas. The ahetuka kiriyācittas are:

                 1. Pañca-dvārāvajjana-citta (five-door-adverting

                     consciousness)

                 2. Mano-dvārāvajjana-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. Hasituppāda-citta (smile-producing-consciousness)

 

Those who are not arahats can have only seventeen of the eighteen ahetuka

cittas. These seventeen types of ahetuka citta arise in our daily life. When an

object impinges on one of  the five senses, the pañca-dvārāvajjana-citta (the

five-door-adverting consciousness) turns towards the object through that

sense-door. This citta is followed by pañca-viññāna (one of the ten cittas

which are the ''five pairs'') which experiences the object, by sampaticchana-

citta which receives it, by santīrana-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-dvārāvajjana-citta

adverts to the object through the mind-door and is then followed by akusala

cittas or kusala cittas. There is 'unwise attention' (ayoniso manasikāra) to the

object which is experienced if akusala cittas arise, and there is 'wise

attention' (yoniso manasikāra) to the object if kusala cittas arise. For

example, when we see insects there may be dislike and then there are dosa-

mūla-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

Dhamma and develops vipassanā, insight, it is a condition that there is more

often wise attention. When we are mindful of the nāma or rūpa which

appears through one of the sense-doors or through the mind-door, there is

wise attention at that moment.


Topic 182