<< Click to Display Table of Contents >> Navigation:  Tables and Summaries > The 89 (121) Types of Citta

Revised: October 29, 2015; August 31, 2017; June 3, 2018; July 31, 2018; August 28, 2022; May 16, 2023 (#7-#10)

Citta for Kāmaloka (in the 11 sense realms) - 54 in all

1. There are three main types of citta here: The differentiation is based on whether they have immoral roots (lobha, dosa, moha), kammically moral roots (alobha, adosa, amoha), or are kammically neutral, i.e., no roots.

▪12 immoral citta: 8 with lobha roots; 2 with dosa roots, and 2 with moha roots. All ten immoral acts (dasa akusala) are done with these 12 types of cittā. Because of the 12 immoral cittā, seven rootless (ahetuka) vipāka cittā can arise in the future. Thus, altogether there are 19 cittā in this category.

▪Eight moral cittā: four with all three moral roots and 4 with two moral roots (lacking in wisdom). They can give rise to two types of vipāka citta: eight vipāka cittā with no roots and eight vipāka citta with moral roots (four of them have all three moral roots, and the other four are lacking in wisdom). Thus 24 types of citta are mentioned here, of which 16 have moral roots, and eight are rootless (ahetuka).

▪When these same eight moral citta arise in Arahants, they are called kiriya citta or functional citta. They have the same moral roots as the eight moral citta mentioned above but do not have any kammic potential or kammic consequences.

▪All those citta with moral roots (8 kiriya cittā for Arahants and 16 for others) are called sobhana (beautiful) citta.

▪Finally, three types of kiriya citta arise in citta vīthi: they are neither kamma nor kamma vipāka. These are the htree kiriya citta without any roots, and thus are rootless (ahetuka) citta. Two of these perform functions of (i) five-sense-door adverting consciousness (pañcadvārāvajjana citta) and the votthapana citta, and (ii) mind-door-adverting consciousness (manodvārāvajjana citta). (iii)The third one arises in only Arahants (when they smile about sense-sphere phenomena).

▪Note that none of the seven akusala vipāka citta has roots. Also, eight kusala vipāka citta associated with pavutti vipāka (i.e, not giving rise to rebirth) do not have any roots. Those 15 cittā and the three ahetuka kiriya cittā are involved in the vipāka phase of a given citta vīthi. They do not have any sobhana or asobhana cetasika other than the 7 universal cetasika and the 6 pakiṇṇaka (particualrs) cetasika; see, “Cetasika – Connection to Gati” for various types of cetasika. Those 18 cittā are listed on p. 112 of Ref.1 under the second group below the group of akusala citta.

2, The 54 kāmaloka cittā can be categorized in different ways.

 

Citta for Rūpaloka (in the 16 Rūpa realms) - 15 in all

3. There are only 15 cittā that are predominantly present in the Rūpaloka. Five are jhānic moral citta, and five are vipāka cittā due to those.

4. The five jhānic moral cittā can be experienced by humans when they develop samādhi and attain these (first through fifth) jhānā. However, they can only experience the corresponding five vipāka cittā when they are born in Rūpalokas.

5. The five jhānic states are characterized by five jhāna factors or mental concomitants: vitakka (initial application), vicāra (sustained application), pīti (zest), sukha (happiness), and ekaggatā (one-pointedness). All five factors are present in the first jhāna, and as one moves to higher jhānā, these factors are lost one by one, and in the fifth jhāna, only ekaggatā is left.

Pīti (zest) is the happiness in the mind, and sukha (happiness) is the tranquility of the body.

6. There are five more jhānic kiriya cittā experienced by Arahants when they attain these jhānā.

Thus there are 15 cittā in all that predominantly belong to the Rūpaloka.

Citta for Arūpaloka (in the 4 Arūpa realms)- 12 in all

7. There are only 12 cittā that are predominantly present in the Arūpaloka. These are not jhānās but “arupāvacara samāpatti.” Four are kusala cittā (that one cultivates,) and four are vipāka citta due to those.

8. The four kusala cittā can be experienced by humans when they attain the arūpāvacara samāpatti. However, they can only experience the corresponding four vipāka cittā when they are born in Arūpa loka.

9. The first of the four arūpāvacara samāpatti is the attainment of the base of infinite space (Ākāsānancāyatana). A human must master the highest rūpāvacara jhāna to attain this arūpāvacara samāpatti.

The second is the base of infinite consciousness (Viññāṇañcāyatana). The third is the base of nothingness (Ākiñcaññāayatana), and the fourth is the base of neither-perception-nor-non-perception (Nevasaññānāsaññāyatana). In this last type of consciousness, the perception factor (saññā) is so subtle that it can no longer perform the function of perception, i.e., one is unaware of the “world.” Yet perception is not altogether absent. This is another reason why the ancient yogis erroneously assumed this eighth jhāna to be Nibbāna.

10. There are four more arūpāvacara samāpatti kiriya cittā experienced by Arahants when they attain these samāpatti.

Thus there are 12 cittā in all predominantly belong to the Arūpa loka.

Lokuttara (Supermundane) Citta – 8 in all

11. These pertain to the four stages of Nibbānic attainment: Sotāpanna, Sakadāgāmī, Anāgāmī, and Arahant.

12. Each stage involves two types of citta: path consciousness (magga citta), and fruition consciousness (phala citta). The magga citta has the function of eradicating or permanently attenuating defilements.

▪The phala citta has the function of experiencing the degree of liberation made possible by the magga citta.

13. Each magga citta arises only once and endures for one thought-moment. It is never repeated. The corresponding phala citta (which corresponds to a vipāka citta but is not called a vipāka citta) arises immediately after the magga citta. This contrasts mundane vipāka cittā, which can occur even many lifetimes after the corresponding kusala or akusala citta.

14. The phala citta can be repeated after one attains it. With practice, it can be sustained for long times, up to 7 days for an Arahant.

Thus, there are 54 + 15 + 12 + 8 = 89 cittā in all.

How 121 Types of Citta are Possible

15. It is possible to further analyze the types of citta by refining the above method by considering that each magga phala can be reached from the vicinity of each anāriya jhānic state.

▪One can attain Nibbānic states via the vicinity of each of the five rūpa loka jhānic states (here, the Abhidhamma method of 5 jhānā is used, instead of the four mentioned in the suttā, where the first two jhāna in Abhidhamma categorization are taken to be one jhāna; in the Abhidhamma analysis vitakka and vicāra are removed in two steps, whereas in the sutta analysis it is assumed that they are removed in one step).

▪Therefore, the five jhānic states can lead to the four magga cittā and four phala cittā.

▪Thus here, there are 40 ways to attain lokuttara cittā. Therefore, in this case, the total number of cittā would be 121 (= 54 + 15 + 12 +40) instead of 89.

16. Therefore, magga phala (including the Arahant stage) can be reached through any of the jhānic states or without going through any jhānic state.

▪ Of course, the eight lokuttara cittā (i.e., the four stages of Nibbāna) arrived are the same, regardless of whether they arrived via jhāna.

▪To attain the first Ariya jhāna, one must be at least an Anāgāmi. See #6 of “Samādhi, Jhāna, Magga Phala – Introduction.”

 

Important Conclusion Regarding Jhāna and Magga Phala

17. From the above it is clear that magga phala can be attained without jhāna (89 cittā analysis applicable). Magga phala can also be attained via each of the five jhānic states (in the Abhidhamma method), which correspond to the four jhānā discussed in the suttā; here the 121 cittā analysis is applicable.

▪Furthermore, these jhānic states can be reached via either anāriya jhāna or Ariya jhāna. The experience seems to be the same.

▪The only difference is that while kāma rāga is suppressed (vikkhambhana pahāna) in anāriya jhāna, it is REMOVED (samuccheda pahāna) in Ariya jhāna.

▪For details, see, “Samādhi, Jhāna (Dhyāna), Magga Phala.”

 

REFERENCE

1. “A Comprehensive Manual of Abhidhamma,” by Bhikkhu Bodhi (2000).