Fanindra Kumar Neupane

2072 Batch

The theory of citta-vīthi is a comprehensive and systematic cognitive process depicted in the Theravāda school of Buddhism. This theory stands on the philosophical ground of Anātmavāda (the philosophy of Soullessness or Selfless) as opposed to the Upanishadic doctrine of permanent soul for its role in the process of cognizing a sense object. This theory clearly appears for the first time in the Pāli works like the Visuddhimagga, the Abhidhammāvatāra and the Abhidhamma commentarial literature that were rendered in the 6th century A.D.; the idea is further developed and elaborated in the literary works like the Visuddhimagga Mahā-ṭīkā, and the Abhidhamma Mūla-ṭīkā that were written during the 7th-8th century A.D.; it is again developed in the compendium of Abhidhamma, the Abhidhammatthasaṅgaha and its commentaries such as the Abhidhammatthavibhāvinī-ṭīkā that were composed during the time of 8th-12th century A.D.; and the concept appears in the final attempt along with its controversial ideas in the late Pāli texts like Paramatthadīpanī that was written during the 19th -20th century A.D. However, the concept of citta-vīthi is found implicit in the earlier canonical texts like Nikāya literature, the Abhidhamma canonical texts that were written before 2nd century B.C. and some para-canonical texts like the Paṭisambhidāmagga, Nettippakaraṇa, Peṭakopadesa and the Melindapañha that were written after the time of canonical texts and before the Buddhaghosa era i.e. during the period of the 2nd century B.C. to the 5th century A.D. In the early Nikāya literature, the concept of cognitive process is depicted as a process that originates from the contact of sense-faculty, the sense-object, and the sense viññāṇa and ends in yielding the proliferation about the sense-object according to its previous impression (papañcasaññāsaṅkhā). In an elaborative interpretation of the sense perception depicted in the Nikāya literature, every stage of viññāṇa is followed by the vedanā which is considered as the emotional aspect of the cognition and each stages of vedanā is taken as a base for the arising of saññā. At the stage of saññā, the perceiver further cognizes the sense-object according to his/her old memory regarding the subject. After the saññā, vitakka argues about the object which is succeeded by the process of i proliferation (papañceti). Then in the process, one starts to think about a lot of things with regards to the present, past, and future things related to the objects (papañcasaññāsaṅkhā). In the Abhidhamma canonical literature, the cognitive process is enumerated in terms of dhātu, viññāṇa, manodhātu, and monoviññāṇadhātu. As the process depicted in this literature, when a visible object (rūpa dhātu) impinges on the eye (cakkhu dhātu), the eye-consciousness (cakkhuviññāṇa dhātu) arises. In this process, the cakkhuviññāṇa dhātu is followed by the manodhātu and the monoviññāṇadhātu respectively. Cognitive stage of the sampaṭicchana consciousness is implicit in the Abhidhammic enumeration of the manodhātu and the succeeding stages like santiraṇa, voṭṭhabbana, javana and tadārammaṇa are represented by the terminology of monoviññāṇadhātu in the process. The concept of bhavaṅga consciousness which is the foundation for the formulation of the citta-vīthi appears in the Abhidhammic text like Paṭṭhāna and the para-canonical texts like Nettippakaraṇa, Peṭakopadesa and Milindapañha have developed can be cited for the interpretation of the concept of bhavaṅga (life-continuum) and javana which are the fundamental idea in enumeration of the doctrine of cognitive process (citta-vīthi). The Paṭisambhidāmagga further illustrates several basic cognitive factors as performing the function of āvajjana (adverting), viññāṇa (sense consciousness), vipāka-manodhātu (receiving consciousness), vipākamanoviññāṇadhātu (investigating consciousness etc). The theory of citta-vīthi is formulated during the commentarial phase as an incessant series of seventeen consciousnesses arising in the uniform order for a full-fledged physical sense-door cognitive process. This theory is further developed and elaborated during the sub-commentarial phase till the writings of Paramatthadīpanī that was written in 1897 A.D. This theory is fully enumerated in the Theravādin School of the Buddhism; however, the concept is influenced by the other contemporary Buddhist schools of thoughts