The meaning of “condition”

People have different accumulations. They are conditioned in many ways. We have used the word “condition” several times already. Could you explain the meaning of this term?

I will give an example from daily life. My husband comes home from his office, feeling tired and somewhat irritated. I tell him something amusing which has happened and he laughs and feels happy again. Thus o­ne can notice that there are different cittas, and that each citta has its own conditions. The amount of work at the office is a condition for my husband’s tiredness and irritation. Afterwards there is another condition which makes him feel happy again.

Cittas are conditioned and each citta accumulates a new experience, which will condition cittas in the future. Everybody accumulates different tastes, abilities, likes and dislikes. o­ne cannot always know the conditions which make people behave in this or in that way, but sometimes it is possible to know. For instance, people are addicted to different things, some of which are very harmful, others less so. o­ne’s education and the surroundings in which o­ne is living can be a condition for these addictions.

In some countries or regions it is the custom to drink an enormous amount of coffee the whole day and people even give coffee to very small children. Thus o­ne acquires the taste for coffee from o­ne’s youth. As regards attachment to alcoholic drinks, there must be a condition for that as well. o­ne starts with a little drink every day and gradually o­ne’s attachment increases. Everybody should find out for himself how much attachment he accumulates and whether this brings him happiness or sorrow.