CHAPTER 3

CITTA CONCEIVED THROUGH ITS ORDINARY STATES

This chapter and the next one will explore for their data into the Sutta Piṭaka as surveyed in the previous chapter. They are an attempt at depicting the concept of citta through the systematic presentation of the variant cittas that are used in combination with the respective distinct groups of modifying elements. the presentation would make it apparent that the core of the concept of citta as depicted in the Sutta Piṭaka however does not differ basically. When put into the textual circumstances it is subject to variation and suggestive of new shades of meaning. Therefore, examination of the concept of citta in isolation anyhow is impracticable.

the four subheadings in this chapter and five subheadings in the next one include in their contents the passages selected according to the subjects that the subheadings state. With the view to make a vivid presentation the descriptions of situational contexts are added which usually introduce the succinct story, letting it be known where, when and how the excerpted words occurred. Sometimes the doctrinal segments, closely related to the word under question, are given to make it clearer and more comprehensive. For facilitating any quick consultative inquiry into the very original source, the Pāli passages are usually recited in the footnote areas. There are also added to the main text the careful elaboration on the meanings of the Pāli words which are used in combination with the term citta as its modifiers. This, of course, would help in grasping the connotations the original words may have but the renderings somehow may fail to suggest.

1. Citta as general state of sentient being.

(a) Sensational and Emotional Citta:

The 'general state of sentient being' is usually suggestive of something substantial and static that has much to do with the basic or original personality free from any disturbance or stimuli, but that suggestion is not meant here because it tends to presuppose some kind of entity or substance which is considered as well nigh insignificant in the Early Buddhist system. Being freed from such a suggestion the main concern in this segment is the citta as general state of sentient being in terms of sensation and emotion. In this meaning citta is usually rendered as 'heart', and sometimes as 'thought'. The sense of citta in terms of sensation and emotion would have much to do with the six basic senses (indriyāni, or āyatana) in Buddhist system. They are:

(1) Eye (cakkhāyatana), or visual organ for visible object;
(2) Ear (sotāyatana), or auditory organ for sound, or audible object;
(3) Nose (ghānāyatana), or olfactory organ for odour, or olfactory object;
(4) Tongue (jivhāyatana), or gustatory organ for taste, or gustatory object;
(5) Body (kāyāyatana), or tactile organ for body-impression, or tactile object; and
(6) Mind-base (manāyatana) or consciousness for mind-object.

The visual organ (cakkhāyatana) can be explained as the sensitive part of the eye (cakkhu-pasāda) built up of the four elements, responding to the visible stimuli. The remaining four physical sense organs should be explained in the same pattern. Mind-base (manāyatana) is the collective term for all consciousness whatever, and therefore should not be confounded with the mind-element (mano-dhātu) which performs only the functions of adverting to, and receiving, the sense object [1].

It is noticeable that in Buddhist system mano (usually rendered as mind) is ranged among the five psychophysical senses. This implicitly shows that mano almost shares the same footing with the remaining senses, and suggests the non-metaphysical position of Buddhist psychology. In which the concept of a healthy emotional heart does not come from any divine blessing but would be resulted from the control over the senses, and signaled by a steadfast and constrained citta which has undergone proper tameness.

(b) Citta as state of mind to be safeguarded:

The idea of surveillance over the citta is vividly uttered in verse by the devas of the Pure Abodes, i.e. the supreme heaven of the Rūpa-loka, the Brahmā world being its lowest. The deva's verse runs[2]:

The brethren have made straight their hearts
(cittaṃ attano ujukaṃ akaṃsu),
wrought up to concentration rapt.
wisely their faculties they guard
(indriyāni rakkhanti paṇḍitā),
as driver keeping grip on rein[3].

Here the citta as his general character is subject to the act of straightening which is the measure employed to keep at bay the surreptitious crookedness of citta. In another case the Buddha declares that he himself does not see any other dhamma that produces more benefit than the citta being tamed does. In the same pattern the Buddha replaces 'tamed' by the following words: controlled, guarded and restrained. The text can be abridged and presented as follows[4]: "Monks, I know not of any other single thing that brings such bliss as the mind that is cultivated, made much of (yaṃ evaṃ dantaṃ mahato anatthāya saṃvattati yathayidaṃ cittaṃ). Such a mind indeed brings great bliss. Monks, the mind that is tamed (dantaṃ), controlled (guttaṃ), guarded (rakkhitaṃ) and restrained (saṃvutaṃ) conduces to great profit[5].

danta (p.p. of dāmyati) means tamed, controlled, restrained. gutta (p.p. of gopeti): guarded, protected, watchful, and constrained. rakkhita (p.p. of rakkhati): to protect, to shelter, to save, to preserve; to observe, to guard, to take care of, to control. saṃvuta (p.p. of saṃvarati): closed, tied up, restrained, governed, self-control, guarded. All the four words share the same meaning of putting something including itself into some boundary. their range of meaning may extent from one extreme of affectionateness with 'to protect' to the other extreme characterized by governance with 'to govern'.

That the citta, which can be roughly considered as one's character, is acted upon by these verbs would produce great gains is assured by the Buddha and is the main concern of the early Buddhist doctrine as reflected in the Pāli canon. In consideration of the chronology of the canonical texts we can make the remark: though the following passage in the Saḷāyatana Saṃyutta is among many other contexts to record the Buddha's words about the above idea, but the noteworthy difference in terms of textual authoritativeness is that this passage possibly belongs to the early stage, it is observed by G. C. Pande, in the process of composition and edition which the Pāli canon underwent[6]. It reads[7]: "In him, brethren, who dwells with the faculty of sight controlled, the heart is not corrupted by objects cognizable by the eye (cittaṃ na vyāsiñcati cakkhuviññeyyesu rūpesu). In him whose heart is not corrupted delight is born (tassa avyāsitta-cittassa pāmujjaṃ jāyati). In one delighted joy is born. When one is joyful the body is calmed. He whose body is calmed feels at ease. Composed is he heart of him who is at ease (sukhino cittaṃ samādhiyati). When the heart is composed one's ideas are clear (samāhite citte dhammā pātubhavanti). Through having clear ideas one is reckoned as one who dwells earnest. And it is the same in regard to the faculty of taste and touch | Thus, brethren, is one a dweller in earnestness"[8].

Through the above passage it is apparent that the state of one's citta which can be regarded as one's general mood or feelings has close relation with the control over his sense-organs and sense-faculties (including mano in the forms of manindriya and manoviññāna, the sixth ones of the two geneva). The better the control is done, the more positive the general state is. This control at its accomplishment is resulted in the citta characterized by peace and tranquility.

(c) Citta as Mental State Subject to Downfall and Seizure:

In Kassapa-Saṃyutta the Buddha reveals his idea about the social relation of his Saṁgha, admonishing the Bhikkhus to get to and fro among the families with cautious mind. In an artistic manner the Buddha employs the poetic figure of the moon which figuratively goes among the families with smooth and full dignity; its coming and going are free from mundane affection. The Saṃyutta Nikāya records: "Be ye comparable to the moon, brethren, when ye go among the families, drawing back in both heart and demeanour (apakasseva kāyam apakassa cittaṃ), ever as new-comers unobtrusive among the families, drawing back in both heart and demeanour, even so be ye among the families[9]"

The admonishment continues with thrilling scenes which give the impressive warning against the downfall, the seizure, or the manacle that the citta might undergo: With the circumspection as if they were at the cliff-hanging brim of a decayed well or a precipice or a river-swamp, the bhikkhus should accouter themselves with proper prudence when getting into among the families. Waving his hand in the air the Buddha vividly prescribed that the heart of a monk should be freed from any attachment to the families, saying[10]:"Just as this hand, brethren, does not sink down in space, nor is seized, nor bound (pāṇi na sajjati na gayhati na bajjhati), even so that brother, whose heart when he goes among the families does not sink down, or get seized or bound (cittaṃ na sajjati na gayhati na bajjhati)"[11].

Sajjati, gayhati, and bajjhati mean to cling to, to be seized, and to be bound, respectively. So citta can be committed by such the actions which the verbs express.

(d) Ethically Conducted Citta:

The citta in general should be kept away from all kinds of evil actions and channeled in earnest into good direction. The first verse of the Pāpa Vagga in the Dhammapada says:

Make ye good haste in lovely (deed);
from evil (deed) repel the mind
(pāpā cittaṃ nivāraye);
for when a man slow does what's good,
dallies his thought with what is bad
(pāpasmiṁ ramati mano)[12].

Pāpa, evil, is that which defiles one's mind; puñña, merit is that which cleanses the mind, kusala is another term for puñña; abhittharetha: to hasten. Another passage from the Dhammapada explains the pleasant freedom from Māra of the man who checks his citta from evil:

The mind far-going, lone faring,
not of the body, of hidden lair
whoso will keep under control
from Māra's jail they'll be set free[13].

In some cases citta should be rendered as thought because it suggests the idea of thinking or the objects of thinking rather than feeling or liking. For example, in the imperative sentence: 'Māpāpakaṃ akusalaṃ cittaṃ cinteyyātha'[14], 'cittaṃ' as the direct object of the verb cinteti (to think), and cinteti is but a member of the family of derivatives from cit. Both 'cittaṃ' as the object of the verb and 'cinteti' as the very verb are cognate with each other because they are from the same root cit. Citta hereby means a thought in general which may be kusala or akusala, whatever accordingly.

(e) Citta as Normal/Abnormal State of mind:

We go a little further to note the unhinged state of citta as mentioned in the Dhammapada[15]:

He may have cruel suffering,
loss (of wealth), injury of the body,
heavy afflictions (gurukaṁ vāpi ābādhaṁ)
or loss of mind (cittakkhepaṁ).

Cittakkhepaṁ means loss of mind or perplexity. Citta free from khepa, on the other hand, connotes the normal distinctness in one's thought.

Another case of unhinged state of citta is found in the Saṃyutta Nikāya whose Tatiyo Vaggo relates the story about the attack the three daughters of Māra imposed onto the Buddha with a view that the Exalted One would be badly affected in both the aspects: mental derangement and its disastrous aftermath on body. The text runs[16]: "For if we had approached after this fashion any recluse or brahmin who had not extirpated lust, either his heart would have cleft asunder, or hot blood had flowed from this mouth, or he had become crazy, or have lost his mental balance (cittavikkhepaṃ), as a green reed that has been reaped dries up and wilts away and wither"[17].

vikkhepa [vi+khepa], when alone, means disturbance or derangement, perplexity or confusion. when used in combination with citta or cetaso, vikkhepa will denote 'upset of mind' or 'unbalanced mind' or 'mental derangement'. In all the above cases citta on its own is denoting the general state of the thought rather than that of the heart.

2. Citta as a lustful heart

(a) Citta Subject to Kāma:

The citta especially that of human beings and the devas in the kāma-loka is frequently prone to be colored by 'kāma' which is the most prominent of the genus on account of the frequency of its literary appearance throughout the canonical texts, and of being the basis, ethically speaking, of negative forces which may hinder one from the attainment of Nibbāna. The term kāma may denote subjective sensuality or objective sensuality. As subjective sensuality, it indicates (a) the enjoyment and pleasure on occasion of sense, and (b) sense-desire; as objective sensuality, the term indicates pleasantness, pleasure giving, and an object of sensual enjoyment.

In cosmological parlance, kāma - as sense-desire and enjoyment plus objects of enjoyment - is a collective name for all the very higher or refined conditions of sensual life: kāma-loka. The kāma-loka includes four or five modes of existence and part of the fifth or deva-loka.

Kāma as sense desire is the adverting toward all five sense-objects, and is frequently in the following combinations and expressions:

(1) Kāma-rāga (sensuous lust), one of the ten fetters (saṁyojana).

(2) Kāma-vitakka (sensuous thought), one of the three wrong thoughts (micchā-sankappa).

(3) kāma-taṇhā (sensuous craving) is the first of the three cravings (taṇhā) which is said to be the chief root of sufferings and of the ever-continuing cycle of rebirths.

(4) kāma-cchanda (sensuous desire) is the first of the five hindrances or obstacles (nīvaraṇāni).

(5) Kāma is on the top of many genera: it is the first of the four āsava or yogas (cankers or intoxicants of mind), of the four upādāna (clingings or attachments), of the three esanā (longings or seekings), and of the four oghas (floods of worldly turbulence).

In the line, kāma stands first on the list of the six factors of existence: kāma, vedanā, saññā, āsavā, kamma and dukkha, whose origin, difference, consequences, destruction and remedy are discussed in the Mahā-Vagga of the Aṅguttara Nikāya[18].

In fine, in almost all the enumerations of obstacles that prevent perfection, or of general divisions and definitions of mental conditions, kāma occupies the leading position.

The list of its synonyms can be given as this:

(1) Chanda: impulse;
(2) Rāga: excitement;
(3) Nandī: enjoyment;
(4) Taṇhā: thirst;
(5) Sineha: love;
(6) Pipāsā: thirst;
(7) Parilāha: consuming passion;
(8) Gedha: greed;
(9) Mucchā: swoon; and,
(10) Ajjhosāna: hanging on, or attachment.

In a sermon given to the new-ordained Bhikkhus, the Exalted One was warning them with the story about an aspirant of Bhikkhuhood whose goal was to get rid of all the sufferings caused by the five attached khandhas. He left his home and his wealth, going on searching the truth. But because his citta was stained by the kāma and other unwholesome states, he could neither achieve the holy goal perfectly, nor maintain the already possessed home and wealth. He is prone to lose both the worldly and supra-mundane desirables. The Bhikkhu should be always aware of such kind of the citta and its imminent sway. The text runs[19]: "Thus, brethren, a clansman leaves the world, and covetous is he in his desires, fierce in his longing, malevolent of heart, of mind corrupt, careless and unrestrained, not quieted, but scatter-brained, and thoughtless (abhijjālu kāmesu tibbasārāgo vyāpannacitto paduṭṭhamanasaṅkappo muṭṭhassati asampajāno asamāhito vibbhantacitto pākatindriyo). Just as, brethren, a torch from a funeral pyre, lit at both ends, and in the middle smeared with dung, kindled no fuel either in village or in forest, using such a figure do I describe unto you this man, for he has lost his home and wealth, nor yet does he fulfil the duties of a recluse"[20].

The citta featured by kāma should not be seen without shrewd sagaciousness. They could be arranged into the ascending order in terms of the objects of desire (kāma) that are longed for. The Sotāpatti-Saṃyutta of the Saṃyutta Nikāya tells us a story about the Sakya Mahānāma who was requesting the Buddha how to advise a person in his deathbed. The Enlightened One presented a successive series of cases in the order from the lowest to the highest states of mental elevations which corresponding to the kinds of kāma which his citta had just been free from, and prescribed one each the proper admonition. Here only one of such the admonitions is singled out for illustration, that is[21]: 'Suppose the sick man say, "My thoughts are removed from human pleasures of sense (mānussakehi kāmehi cittaṃ vuṭṭhitaṃ) 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... so 'twere better for you to fix your thoughts on the Thirty-three devas (tāvatiṃsesu devesu cittamadhimocehī)"'[22].

There are other canonical passages in accordance with the citta under question:

'kāmā mathenti cittaṃ'[23] (citta disturbed by the cravings);

'nass uḷārānaṃ pañcannaṃ kāmaguṇānaṃ  bhogāya cittaṃ  namati'[24] (he inclines his heart to denying himself the  excellent pleasures of his five-sense desires).

'Jhāya, bhikkhu, mā ca pamādo | mā te kāmaguṇe bhamassu cittaṃ'[25] (Meditate, O bhikkhu! Be not heedless. Do not let your mind whirl on sensual pleasures);

'kāmesu citta na pakkhandati na pasīdati na sanṭhati'[26] (my heart does not leap, sit or stand in cravings).

(b) Citta Subject to Rāga:

As we have already mentioned the family of terms in which kāma keeps the leading position on account of its frequency in combination with citta, colourizing the citta in bad direction. The second word just after kāma is rāga that is usually rendered as defilement.

Rāga's aptness to harass the citta could be exemplified by the following incident which ever occurred to Thera Vaṅgīsa recorded in the Saṃyutta Nikāya: On having seen a big number of 'gaily adorned' women coming to temple Aggāḷava at Ālavi, Vaṅgīsa, the young Thera who stayed thereat felt a lack of self-composedness, his citta was harried (anuddhaṃseti). The text says, "Then a number of women, gaily adorned, came into the pleasance to see the Vihāra. And seeing those women, disaffection in consequence arose in the venerable Vaṅgīsa, and lust harassed his heart"[27]. Citta here is the object being harassed by rāga which is meant by lust.

Citta can combine with sāratta and viratta to express the opposite states of heart (Sāratta means impassioned, enamoured; viratta: dispassionate, unattached to). The compounds would be sārattacitto[28] and virattacitta[29]. The first compound means the citta falling into love with someone or something; the second one means the citta being freed from passion or being displeased with, e.g. the phrases: 'rūpadhātuyā cittaṃ virattaṃ vimuttaṃ'[30]; 'chandarāga viratta'[31]. Chandarāga denotes exciting desire.

In the Saḷāyatana Saṃyutta, the Buddha admonishes his Bhikkhus in the relative manner, saying neither all the monks have to strive for the restraint in regard to six āyatanas, nor all the monks have not to. The exception implied in the first proposition is the Arahants, and that implied in the latter is strongly possible to be the lower ariyas or Noble Individuals. Both of the categories of ariyas can be classified differently, the most popular classification, however, is in the descending order of four levels[32]:

(1) Arahant or the Holy One;
(2) Anāgāmī or the Non-Returner;
(3) Sakakāgāmī or the Once-Returner; and
(4) Sotāpanna or the Stream-Winner.

the Buddha, in order to describe the serene mental state that is just the opposite of the citta characterized by the freedom from pariyādāya. The respective passage says[33], "Brethren, there are objects cognizable by the eye, objects delightful or repulsive. Though they touch the heart again and again, yet they cannot altogether lay hold of it and so persist (tyāssa phussaphussa cittaṃ na pariyādāya tiṭṭhanti). By their failure to lay hold of the heart comes strenuous energy unquailing. Mindfulness is set up untroubled. The body is calmed, not perturbed. The heart is collected, one-pointed. Seeing this fruit of earnestness, brethren, I declare that such brothers do need to strike earnestly in respect of the sixfold sphere of sense"[34].

Pariyādāya means grasping, it is derived from the verb pariyādāti which stands for to take up in an excessive degree. The sentence 'rūpā tyāssa phussaphussa cittaṃ na pariyādāya tiṭhanti' could be rendered 'the forms, though striking against the citta over and over again cannot sway over it', and it is inferable that otherwise the citta would be subject to 'pariyādāya', that is, taking hold of.

The citta in such a submissive state is prone to be defiled by desire-and-lust in all and any spot along the flux of being: (1) in the eye; (2) in the material form; (3) in the eye-consciousness; (4) in the eye-contact; (5) in the feeling born of the eye contact; (ear, nose, tongue, body, and mano being dealt in the same way of 1-5); in the consciousness of visible shape, sound, scent, savor, tangibles and things; in the will concerning visible shape, sound, scent, savor, tangibles and things; by the desire-and-lust for visible shape, sound, scent, savor, tangibles and things; by desire-and-lust for the element of earth, water, heat, air, space and consciousness.

The diligent efforts, which gets strong approval from the Buddha, to get the freedom from all the above-mentioned desire-and-lust would make it salubrious for the citta to be sophisticated. The Buddha says[35]: "That desire-and-lust, brethren, for visible shape, - that is a corruption of the heart (rūpasmiṃ chandarāgo cittasseso uppakileso). That desire-and-lust for the other factors of feeling and in consciousness, - that is a corruption of the heart (viññāṇasmiṃ chandarāgo cittasseso uppakkileso). But when, brethren, in a brother the heart's corruption in these six points is put away, and his heart is bent on renunciation, then, compassed about with renunciation, his heart is seen to be liable for the penetrating of those things that are to be realized"[36].

3. Citta as Evil Heart.

(a) Paduṭṭha Citta:

Micchā-diṭṭhi (wrong or evil views) are observed to be utterly rejectable for being a source of wrong and evil aspirations and conduct, and liable at times to lead man to the deepest abysses of depravity. It is said in the Aṅguttara Nikāya that "no other thing than evil views do I know, O monks, whereby to such an extent the unwholesome things not yet arisen arise, and the unwholesome things already arisen are brought to growth and fulness. No other thing than evil views do I know, whereby to such an extent the wholesome things not yet arisen are hindered in their arising, and the wholesome things already arisen disappeared. No other thing than evil views do I know, whereby to such an extent human beings at the dissolution of the body, at death are passing to a way of suffering, into a world of woe, into hell"[37].

In the time of the Buddha, as we know, there are 62 evil views which are classified and described in the Brahmājala Sutta of the Dīgha Nikāya. The 62 false views comprise all conceivable wrong views and speculations about man and world. The Buddha's explanation recorded in the Dīgha Nikāya about how can a number of Samaṇas and Brahmās hold partly eternalism and partly nihilism throws light on the citta under question and gives support to the following convictions:

It is the state of citta that supplies the background for the establishing of the above wrong views.

The evil states of citta afflicts negatively on the whole individual.

One's envy towards others would make his heart or mental state be evil in form of ill-disposition which in turn afflicts negatively on the physical body.

And such afflictions culminate in rebirth in a lower sphere where the individual concerned is destined to.

The Dīgha Nikāya passage in line with the above conviction reads: "There are brethren, certain gods called 'the Debauched in Mind' (mano-padosikā nāma deva). They burn continually with envy one against another, and being thus irritated, their hearts become ill-disposed towards each other, and being debauched (paduṭṭha-cittā), their bodies become feeble, and their minds imbecile. And those gods fall from that state"[38].

paduṭṭha (p.p. of padussati) means made bad, spoilt, corrupt, wicked; antonymous to appaduṭṭha. So that in this case paduṭṭha-cittā is rendered as the debauched mind. And ironically the devas in possession of such a mind is named after it: the 'Debauched in Mind' devas. In the foregoing passage the devas named 'Manopadosikā', by way of burning themselves, figuratively speaking, with envy and its attendant irritation, have got their citta ill-disposed and debauched. The citta in such mood in turn would impose wearisomeness on their body.

The issue of mind-body relation has a long history from the classical Greek up to the modern systematic psychology. Attempts have been made to throw light on the relationship between body and mind. Plato views dualistically that they are separate substances with no interaction between them; Descartes from the interactionistic viewpoint posites that mind and body, though separate, interact somehow; the psychophysical parallelists say anything that influences mind is reflected by a parallel influence in the body and vice versa. Isomorphism holds that there is point-for-point correspondence between conscious experience and the physical situation but not an identity. So what about the traditional Buddhist system?

The Dīgha Nikāya as being impregnated in all with a tendency toward analyzing ethics points out that the citta attributed with certain attitude has affection accordingly to that attitude on one's physical and mental states. For example, it is said as a rule that if the citta exerts ill-will, the mind and the body are tired. In consequence, it is likely to get to the corollary that if the former exerts beneficially, the latter will go healthy.

With such a paduṭṭha-cittaṃ one cannot discern properly what is beneficial, and, on the other hand what is pernicious, for himself, for others, or for both sides. The Buddha figuratively explains this point by comparing it with one disturbed pool of water: "Suppose, monks, a pool of water, turbid, stirred up and muddied. Then a man who has eyes to see stands upon the bank. He could not see the oysters and the shells, the pebbles and the gravel as they lie, or the shoals of fish that dart about. Why not? Because of the turbid state of the water"[39].

On the other hand, the pasanna cittaṃ is compared with the serene water: "But suppose, monks, a pool of water, pellucid, tranquil and unstirred. Then a man who has eyes to see, while standing on the bank, could see the oysters and the shells, the pebbles and the gravel as they lie, and the shoals of fish that dart about. Why so? Because of the untroubled nature of the water, monks"[40]. The following passage expresses that the paduṭṭha-cittaṃ begets heavy punishment of going into the debased realms after death[41]: "Now here, monks, with my own thought embracing his, I am aware of a monk whose mind is corrupt. If at this very time he were to make an end, he would be put into Purgatory according to his deserts. Why so? Because of his corrupt mind. In like manner, monks, it is owing to a corrupt mind that some beings in this world, when body breaks up, after death are reborn in the Waste, the Woefull Way, the Downfall, in Purgatory"[42].

It is regrettable to contemplate that at the beginning the citta is pure in nature but because of the disturbance it becomes stained and resulted in being born into the undesirable. Ethically speaking, the Buddhists, by the way, could be supposed to believe in the original purity of the citta.

In another case, the paduṭṭha-cittaṃ is an inducive root that originates the attitude which an indecent wife treats her husband with. The greatest upāsaka during the time of the Buddha, Anāthapiṇḍika by name, who purchased a piece of land from the Prince Jeta at the hardly imaginable price and built the famous Jetavana monasteries for the use of the Buddhist Saṁgha. Unfortunately, he had got a hard-necked daughter-in-law who was as stubborn as a mule. On witnessing by chance her obstinacy the Buddha gave her an advice in form of analytical classification which was beaded with the following verse[43]:

Whose is pitiless,
corrupt in mind (paduṭṭha cittā),
Neglecting husband and unamiable,
Inflamed by other men, a prostitute,
On murder bent.
Let her be called: a slayer and a wife![44].

The first kind of wife was named 'a slayer and a wife', and described as having 'Paduṭṭhacittā' (the corrupt mind). The last kind of wife was 'a handmaid and a wife'. Finally, the daughter-in-law was tamed into 'a handmaid and a wife' which would be supposedly the best for her as analyzed by the Buddha in his discourse addressed especially to her. In fine, this citta has much to do with the ethical conduct of one's personality. In this case the citta stands for a dispositional attitude one can adopt as the way to conduct oneself socially towards the surroundings, particularly other members in the family.

(b) Vyāpanna Citta:

the citta being warped foreshadows the warpage of one's bodily, speech and mental actions. It should be reminded here that bodily, verbal and mental activities comprise all the kamma that one can create. Generally speaking, kamma denotes the wholesome and unwholesome volitions (kusala and akusala cetanā) and their concomitant factors that cause rebirth and shape the destiny of beings. So the citta here stands for the agent that pushes up one's kamma in either ways wholesome or unwholesome, in this case the latter. As a rule, those whose bodily, speech and mental karmic actions are swayed by the warped citta would be overwhelmed by lust and become corrupted. In consequence, they would take last breath inauspiciously. The wicked chain of cause and effect rolling ominously toward the tragic ending is depicted in the Aṅguttara Nikāya as follows[45]:

"As Anāthapiṇḍika the housefather sat down at one side the Exalted One said this to him: Housefather, when the thought (citte vyāpanne) is warped, bodily action, speech and mental action are also warped. In him whose bodily action, speech and mental action are warped they are saturated with lust. When these are thus saturated with lust they are rotten. When they are rotten one's death is not auspicious; one has no happy ending"[46].

Vyāpanna (p.p. of vyāpajjati) means spoilt, disagreeing, gone wrong. The combination of vyāpanna and citta would mean a corrupted heart or a malevolent intention. That is the reason why this corrupt citta creates one's kamma which, being defined as intentional actions, manifest through three doors: body, speech and mind. We can sum up the foregoing passage into the chain of causes and effects as follows,

warpage of the citta
→ warpage of the three-door actions
→ their lustfulness
→ their rottenness
→ one's doleful death.

It is transparent that the citta plays the role of the starting point if it is unwholesome as 'citte vyāpanne' all the successive links in the chain will be sharing the same unwholesome characteristic. So the starting point is factually decisive of one's kamma in terms of which direction he would adopt: wholesome or unwholesome.

In stead of being rendered as corrupt heart in the following passage the vyāpannacitto is rendered as malicious heart.It is no longer the starting point but one of the sinful features characterizing an unworthy person. As we have mentioned above one's body, speech and mind are the three doors through which one commits volitional actions (actions which entail kammic effect). through the three doors one can build one's kamma by doing the ten misdeeds which are described by the Aṅguttara Nikāya[47] like this: "And of what sort is the unworthy man? | Herein a certain person takes life,steals, is wrong-doer in sense-desires, is a liar; is of slanderous, bitter speech, and an idle babbler; is covetous, of a malicious heart, and has wrong view. This one is called 'asappuriso' (the unworthy man)"[48].The ten misdeeds as above described are but the opponents to the three-fold training that the Buddha's disciple is supposed to undergo. That is:

(1) Training in Higher Morality (adhisīla-sikkha);
(2) Training in Higher Mentality (adhicitta-sikkha); and,
(3) Training in Higher Wisdom (adhipañña-sikkha).

Here 'vyāpannacitto' (malicious heart) plays the less important role as one of the ten constituent features which characterize an unworthy person.

With his citta being well imbeded with desirable qualities the bhikkhu applies or directs it to others' citta and knows what are going on thereat, whether they are wholesome with vīta-rāgaṃ, vīta-dosaṃ, vīta-mohaṃ, and so forth; or unwholesome with sa-rāgaṃ, sa-dosaṃ, sa-mohaṃ, and so forth. It is notable that the citta being well cultivated would equipped with many feasible qualities especially the penetrating and discerning ability that helps in reading the citta of others. This ability in its full-fledged development forms one of the six abhiññās of the Buddhist highest sainthood, Arahantship. The respective passage reads[49]: "Penetrating with his own heart the hearts of other beings, of other men, he knows them. He discerns:

The passionate mind to be
passionate, and the calm mind calm;
The angry mind to be angry,
and the peaceful mind peaceful;
The dull mind to be dull,
and the alert mind alert;
The attentive mind to be attentive,
and the wandering mind wandering"[50].

4. Citta as Purposed Heart.

(a) Appossukkatayā Citta:

Buddhist devotees should be somehow thankful for the Sahampati's entreaty. Had the Sahampati not insisted on his request they might have not been in possession of the great Buddhist heritage. The historic event happened just when the Buddha got enlightenment. The Enlightened One hesitated to propagate what he just attained because the discipline of his Dhamma was squarely contrary to the current ideas which enrooted so long and so deep in the mind of the contemporaries. It was strongly possible that he would get bored with and then tired of propagating the doctrine of renunciation from sensuous desires among those who were engulfed and complacent themselves with the very desires and their attendant troops, namely, profit and fame, wealth and power and the like. And, in the case someone on hearing his noble doctrine looked down upon it as being condemnable or awkward his chance of spiritual progress would be more obstructed than ever before. The Buddha expressed this in verse:

This that thro'many toils I've won,

Enough! Why should I make it known?
By folk with lust and hate consumed
Not this a Norm that can be grasped.
Against the stream [of common thought],
Deep, subtle, fine, and hard to see,
Unseen't will be by passion's slaves,
Cloaked in the murk [of ignorance].

The story told noticeably that the Brahmā-Sahampati could read the mind of the Exalted One and entreated Him to give up such a mind, which was turning towards passive mood, and to open the gate of deathlessness; the Brahmā-Saṃyuttam records[51]: "In such wise, pondering over the matter, did the heart (citta) of the Exalted One incline to be averse from exertion and not towards preaching the Norm. | Thereupon to Brahmā-Sahampati, becoming aware in thought of the thoughts of the Exalted One, was this revealed: 'Woe, woe! now will the world perish! Woe! Now will the world utterly perish, in that the heart of the Tathāgata, Arahant, Buddha Supreme inclines to be averse from exertion (appossukkatāya cittaṃ namati) and not towards preaching the Norm!"[52].

Here, it is noticeable that the citta of the Omnipotent One could incline divergently to quite opposite opinions, as the Saṃyutta says, the 'appossukkatāya' which means inaction, reluctance, carelessness, indifference. It is, however, impossible, if not totally wrong, to abruptly conclude that the citta of the Exalted One was tainted with the passive inclination. That he spent all the remaining of his lifetime in ardently disseminating the sublime doctrine, during which no single complaint about the harshness of the holy task was recorded, is apparent. It is explainable that the Buddha just pretended the reluctance in order to precaution those who have the chance to hear about the doctrine. Such a pretense was necessarily employed to adjust their habitual attitude, preconditioning their mind for proper comprehension of the lofty ideas.

(b) Nekkhammaninna Citta:

The following passage tells us the disinclination of a Bhikkhu's citta towards the secular desires and the sharpness the citta may gain as resulted from such an attitude[53]: "That desire-and-lust, brethren, that is in eye-consciousness is a corruption of heart (cittasseso upakkileso). Likewise that which is in consciousness that comes by ear, nose, tongue, body and mind. But, brethren, when in a brother the heart's corruption in these 6 points is put away and his heart is bent on renunciation, then, compassed about with renunciation (nekkhammaninnaṃ cassa cittaṃ nekkhammaparibhāvitaṃ cittaṃ), his heart is seen to be pliable for the penetrating of those things that are to be realized"[54].

'Upakkileso' means that which spoils or obstructs, a minor stain, impurity, defilement, depravity. The damage inflicted by upakkileso should be less severe than the damage, by dūsana and duṭṭhatta. So 'upakkileso of the citta' would be a little more highlighted when being rendered as 'corruption of heart'. A person whose citta is thus corrupted or stained would be veiled from seeing things exactly; his understanding is hardly freed from illusion and cannot penetrate deep into the nature of objects he sees. The immunization of one's citta from the contamination of desire-and-lust which come 'by ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind (manoviññāṇa)' is recommended by the Buddha as the only way by which one can purpose the citta to renunciation, and to make it keen and strong so as it may be able to break into the nature of things. How beneficial for the pungency of one's insight the citta bending on renunciation can render should be remarkable.

(c) Viveka-ninna Citta:

The Dasuttara Sutta, the last sutta of the Dīgha Nikāya delivered by venerable Sāriputta expounds the 'Seven to be realized', in which the 'citta purposed to detachment' is impressively emphasized by investing it with 'one of his powers'[55]: "Herein, friends, for a brother who is Arahant, his heart is inclined to, set upon detachment (viveka-ninnaṃ cittaṃ); he has made detachment its mountain-cave, its object; his heart loves renunciation, and has become entirely non-existent for all opportunities of incoming intoxicants. This is one of his powers, on account of which he recognizes that for him the 'Intoxicants' are destroyed"[56].

The citta here is modified by it a series of synonymous phrases all denoting its inclination toward detachment or seclusion (viveka-ninnaṃ, viveka-poṇaṃ, viveka-pabbhāraṃ, and vivekaṭṭhaṃ). The citta thus modified is symbolized by the mountain-cave that suggests the safe shelter from the miseries of life. Moreover as we already mentioned above the citta as power by which the bhikkhus can eliminate all āsavas.

'Āsavas', this term will be analyzed further in the fifth chapter, denotes that which intoxicates the citta, muddles it, and foozles it, so that it cannot rise to higher things. Āsava literally means influxes; in canonical context it is usually rendered as cankers, corruptions, or intoxicants. The following is a list of four āsavas:

(1) Kāmāsava: canker of sense-desire;
(2) Bhavāsava: canker of (desiring eternal) existence;
(3) Diṭṭhāsava: canker of (wrong) view; and
(4) Avijjāsava: canker of ignorance.

If the three-fold āsava is mentioned, the Diṭṭhāsava is omitting. In this case it can be explained that the Diṭṭhāsava is included into the Avijjāsava.

Through the Path of Stream-entry, the Canker of View is destroyed; through that of Non-returning, the Canker of Sense-desire; through that of Arahantship, the Canker of Existence and Ignorance. These are the paths that all sincere aspirants should go along; so in traditional Buddhism, the fight for the extinction of these āsavas forms the main duty of bhikkhus and freedom from the āsavas constitutes Arahantship.

The following passage excerpted from the Aṅguttara Nikāya reveals the same ideas[57]: "Again, sir, the thoughts of such a monk flow towards seclusion, slide and tend to seclusion, come to rest in seclusion, take delight in seclusion (vivekaninnaṃ cittaṃ hoti vivekapoṇaṃ vivekapabbhāraṃ vivekaṭṭhaṃ), come utterly to cease in all conditions that may give rise to cankers. This, sir, is power of such a monk, by means of which power he comes to know: Destroyed in me are the cankers[58]".

Whereas the foregoing paragraphs discuss the citta of detachment and its effect on the distinction of āsava, the coming paragraph will reveal the social attitude that an ardent bhikkhu should adopt for his communicating with the laity or friends in dhamma. This attitude is established again on the citta of detachment with the same modifiers: vivekaninnena, vivekapoṇena, vivekapabbhārena, and vivekaṭṭhena. The only difference recognizable is the grammatical case that the citta is inflected into. Instead of the nominative case as used in the previous paragraphs, the instrumental case is employed[59]. The passage runs: "...Then the monk, with heart inclined towards seclusion, learning towards seclusion, bending towards seclusion, abiding in seclusion and delighting in renunciation (vivekaninnena cittena vivekapoṇena viveka pabbhārena vivekaṭṭhena nekkhammābhiratena), entirely confines his talk to the subject of going apart. Monks: This Dhamma is for the secluded, this Dhamma is not for one who is fond of society so, what is said, is said on that account"[60].

The ardent bhikkhu whose citta is properly purposed to the emancipation should confines his speech to the topics carefully selected, lest his speech would roam about the secular ones, and in consequence his citta is distracted from the Path. Possibly, with a view to preventing the distraction of the citta, the Buddha sets out of himself an example as he was debating with Prince Abhaya. We can tabulate the Lord's statement recorded in the respective Abhayarājakumāra Sutta as follows:

Table 8:

Roughly speaking from the tabulation, the Buddha did not pay much attention to whether his speech is liked or not. In his standpoint, 'well-purposed' plays the decisive role: the two cases (3) and (6) where the 'well-purposed' is satisfied both receive "X" i.e. 'speakable'. The former case is a little hindered by the dislike of the hearers so it should be 'well-timed' and for its acceptance the selection of words should be well done. It is noticeable that not all the true or factual are speakable unless they all satisfy the decisive condition of 'well-purposed'. The veto of the 'true/factual', however, is strong enough to make the well-purposed speech unspeakable even when they are liked by hearers.

The great courage on the side of the Buddha manifests apparently in the two notices: Firstly, though the (3) is being disliked, it is still speakable with the only compromise that the speech should be 'well-timed'. Secondly, the (4), (5), and (6) which are all liked by hearers but only the (6) is speakable; the reason for that is much more on account of its satisfying the two other conditions than whether its being liked or not.

(d) Citta of Action with 'Pahadati' and 'Paggaṇhāti':

In regard to the four supreme efforts, one of the prominent doctrines in Buddhist system, we also find out the impact of the citta as a decisive force that a bhikkhu should manipulate upon the striving for the attainment of each of the efforts. The text runs[61]: "Four supreme efforts, to wit: Herein, friends, a brother, in order that unrisen wrong and wicked ideas may not arise, generates will, endeavors, stirs up energy, makes firm his mind (cittaṃ paggaṇhāti padahati), struggles; in order that wrong and wicked ideas if arisen, may be put away, generates will, endeavors, stirs up energy, makes firm his mind, struggles; in order that unrisen good ideas may arise, generates will, endeavors, stirs up energy, makes firm his mind, struggles; in order that good ideas, if arisen, may persist, may be clarified, multiplied, expanded, developed, perfected, generates will, endeavors, stirs up energy, makes firm his mind, struggles[62]".

'padahati' as mentioned below means to strive, to exert, or to confront; it also share the meaning 'to take up' with 'pagga ṇhāti'. In the foregoing excerpt both paggaṇhāti and padahati are predicates, emphasizing the idea to make up his mind (citta) in the struggle for the 'four supreme efforts'. It should be suggestible that the attaining or the understanding in highest sense in Buddhist discipline implies the unification of the agent that is acting and the things to be acted upon. Here the citta when in the attainment of supreme effort is possibly said to be supreme effort somehow.

It should be remarkable that the four supreme efforts (cattāro sammappadhānā) partake in almost all steps along the path leading to emancipation. They appear in all and each of the divisions of the 37 Bodhipakkhiya-Dhammas also known as 'Things Pertaining to Enlightenment', or 'Requisites of Enlightenment'. In traditional Buddhism the 37 Bodhipakkhiya-Dhammas stand for all the doctrines of the Buddha in terms that they systematically summed up the Buddha's teachings into seven divisions. We can present them in relation with padhāna into the following list:

(1) Satipaṭṭhāna (Four Foundations of Mindfulness) is the unique division where padhāna does not function directly as a constituent.

(2) Samma-ppadhāna (Four Right Efforts) is the padhāna per se which is doctrinally codified and incorporated into the Buddhist system.

(3) Iddhi-pāda (Four Roads to Power): Padhāna functions in the second Road, namely, Concentration of Energy Accompanied by Effort of Will (viriya-samādhi padhāna-sankhāra-samannāgata).

(4) Indriya (Five Spiritual Faculties): Padhāna functions in the second faculty (viriya-indriya).

(5) Bala (Five Mental Powers): Padhāna functions in the second Power (viriya-bala).

(6) Bojjhaṅga (Seven Factors of Enlightenment): Padhāna functions in the second Factor (viriya-bojjhaṅga).

(7) Sammā-Magga (Eightfold Path): Padhāna functions under the name samma-vāyāma, namely, the sixth Fold.

On looking into the foregoing list we see that the (3), (4), (5), and (6) the padhāna is always keeping the second position. The (1) and the (2) are opposite in terms that in the former padhāna seems to have nothing to do with whereas in the latter nothing else but padhāna is. exclusively, in the (7) padhāna functions at the sixth position. The (3) iddhi-pāda is presented in connection with 'cittaṃ nissāya', 'cittassa ekaggatam' and 'citta-samādhi' by the Iddhipāda-Saṃyuttam as follows[63]:

"Now, monk, if by emphasizing thought (cittaṃ nissāya) a monk lays hold of concentration, lays hold of one-pointedness of mind (cittassa ekaggatam), this act is called 'thought-concentration' (citta-samādhi). He generates desire for the non-arising of ill, unprofitable states not yet arisen: he makes an effort, sets going energy, he lays hold of and exerts his mind to this end... | These are called 'the co-factors of struggling' | Thus, monks, this (work of) thought and this thought-concentration and these co-factors of concentration and struggling are called (in one word) 'the basis of psychic power, the features of which are thought, together with the co-factors of concentration and struggle'"[64].

The relying on citta (cittaṃ nissāya) i.e. the taking citta as basis can set the bhikkhu up to 'cittassa ekaggatam' and 'citta-samādhi'. With such a concentration and one-pointedness the four Samma-ppadhāna (Right Efforts) would be in effect and named 'iddhi-pāda' or the 'the co-factors of struggling'. All this is the explanation for what is called  'cittasamādhi padhānasaṅkhāra samannāgato iddhipādo' which was translated clumsily as 'the basis of psychic power, the features of which are thought (citta), together with the co-factors of concentration and struggle.' It is quite apparent that citta in the above case takes up two roles simultaneously: the means (citta as the basis) and the gains (the concentration and the one-pointedness of citta). In the remaining cases the citta as the means is substituted by chanda (intention), viriya (energy), and vimaṁsa (investigation); and the result brought about by such the means is the same: 'cittassa ekaggatam' and 'citta-samādhi'. By the way, we can notice that the factors whether citta or the remaining ones: chanda, viriya or vimaṁsa are the distinct features of the four 'padhānasaṅkhāra samannāgato iddhipādo'. Unless they are referred to, each of the four 'padhānasaṅkhāra samannāgato iddhipādo' are not specifically distinguishable.

(e) How to Purpose the Citta in Contemplation:

In the Bhikkhuṇīvāsako the Buddha explains to Ananda how to purpose the citta. This how-to can be applicable and helpful in practicing the Satipaṭṭhāna or the Four Foundations of Mindfulness. The practice of Satipaṭṭhāna, which has been considered the only way leading to the overcoming of  sorrow and lamentation, to the end of pain and grief, to the entering of the right path and to the realization of Nibbāna, consists of four contemplations:

(1) Kāyānupassanā (Contemplation of the Body): by the following exercises:

(a) Ānapānasati: Mindfulness with regard to In- and Out-breathing;
(b) Iriyāpatha: Considering the four postures;
(c) Sati-sampajañña: Mindfulness and Clarity of Consciousness;
(d) Sati-Kāyagatāsati and asubha: Reflection on the 32 parts of the body;
(e) Dhātu-vavatthāna: Analysis of the four physical elements; and
(f) Sīvathika: Cemetery  Meditation.

(2) Vedanānupassanā (Contemplation of the Feelings): All feelings that arise in the monk, he clearly perceives and understanding, namely, agreeable, disagreeable and indifferent feeling of body and mind, sensual and super-sensual feeling.

(3) Cittānupassanā (Contemplation of Mind): He further clearly perceive and understands any state of consciousness, or mind, whether it is greedy or not, hateful or not, deluded or not, cramped or distracted, developed or undeveloped, surpassable or unsurpassable, concentrated or non-concentrated, liberated or non-liberated.

(4) Dhammānupassanā (Contemplation of Mind-object): Concerning the mind-object he knows, whether one of the five hindrances (nīvarana) is present in him or not knows how it arises, how it is overcome, and how in future it does no more arise. He knows the nature of each of the five groups (khandha), how they arise, how they are dissolved. He knows the twelve bases of all mental activities (āyatana), and the fetters (samyojana) based on them, knows how they arise, how they are overcome, and how in future they do not arise. He knows whether one of the seven factors of enlightenment (bojjhaṅga) is present in him or not, knows how it arises, how it comes to full development. he understand each of the four Noble Truths according to reality.

In the commitment of such a strenuous task of guarding the citta from distraction the Buddha suggests a tactical measure in the Saṃyutta Nikāya as follows[65]: "Herein, Ānanda, a monk dwells in body contemplating body (as transient), ardent, composed and mindful, by restraining the dejection in the world that arises from coveting. As he thus abides in body contemplating body, either some bodily object arises, or bodily discomfort or drowsiness of mind scatters his thoughts abroad to externals. Thereupon, Ānanda, his attention should be directed to some pleasurable object of thought. As he thus directs it to some pleasurable object of thought, delight springs up in him. In him, thus delighted, arises zest. Full of zest his body is calmed down. With body so calmed he experiences ease. The mind of one at ease is concentrated. He thus reflects: the aim on which I set my mind I have attained. Come, let me withdraw my mind (from the pleasurable object of thought). So he withdraws his mind therefrom, and neither starts nor carries on thought-process. Thus he is fully conscious: I am without thought initial or sustained. I am inwardly mindful. I am at ease"[66].

When in practicing the contemplations expounded above the bhikkhu's citta may be disturbed or distracted because of the arising of either some bodily object (kāyārammano), or bodily discomfort (kāyasmim pariḷāho), or drowsiness of mind (cetaso vā līnattam). The method suggested to deal with such a disturbance or distraction is rather temporary and tactical in character: The bhikkhu should direct his citta (attention) to some 'pleasurable object of thought' so that the successive desirable effects may arise: delight springs up → zest arises → body is calmed → ease is experienced → the citta is concentrated. When the concentration of citta is attained, the tactic, which is maneuvered to direct the citta toward pleasurable object, is to be dropped away.

It should be noticed here that the citta could be conceived by the two aspects: the heading and the subordinate to the heading. in contemplation,when the citta as heading is disturbed it is also the citta as its subordinate in the form of attention power is manipulated to support the heading.We should conclude the segment by excerpting verses 42 and 43 from the Dhammapada which will help us put into highlight the meaning of the citta being well-purposed or ill-purposed[67]:"A misdirected mind (micchāpaṇihitaṁ cittaṁ) will do to us greater harm than what a hater may do to a hater or an enemy to an enemy. Neither a mother nor a father nor any other relative can do as much as a well directed mind (sammāpaṇihitaṁ cittaṁ) can do to a man".

In regard to the matter of directing the citta, we should be noticed that the citta can adapt itself to both the opposite tendencies: calm vs passionate, peaceful vs angry, and alert vs dull; any of the latter is undesirable and should be ruled out.

So the directional injunction that we impose on the citta would be the pivotal matter that decides either of the opposites presented above is in effect, and the elimination of its counterpart ensues. The presentation in next chapter will depict the citta conceived of through the desirable states that are resulted from the proper direction and cultivation along the Buddhist path.

-ooOoo-

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