Pali cetasika | Japanese 心所(rōmaji: shinjo) | |
English mental factorsmental eventsmental states Sanskrit caitasika, caitika, caitta Chinese 心所 (T) / 心所 (S)心所法 (T) / 心所法 (S) Korean 심소, 심소법,마음작용(RR: simso, simsobeob,maeumjakyong) |
Mental factors (Sanskrit: caitasika; Pali: cetasika; Tibetan Wylie: sems byung), in Buddhism, are identified within the teachings of the Abhidharma (Buddhist psychology). They are defined as aspects of the mind that apprehend the quality of an object, and that have the ability to color the mind. Within the Abhidharma, the mental factors are categorized as formations (Sanskrit: saṅkhāra) concurrent with mind (Sanskrit: citta). Alternate translations for mental factors include "mental states", "mental events", and "concomitants of consciousness".
Contents
- Introduction
- Lists of mental factors
- Sthaviravda Sarvastivada tradition
- Ten mah bhmika
- Ten kuala mah bhmikdharm
- Six klea mah bhmika
- Theravda Abhidharma tradition
- Seven universal mental factors
- Six occasional mental factors
- Fourteen unwholesome mental factors
- Twenty five beautiful mental factors
- Mahayana Abhidharma tradition
- Five universal mental factors
- Five object determining mental factors
- Eleven virtuous mental factors
- Six root unwholesome factors
- Twenty secondary unwholesome factors
- Four changeable mental factors
- Alternate translations
- References
Introduction
Mental factors are aspects of the mind that apprehend the quality of an object and have the ability to color the mind. Geshe Tashi Tsering explains:
The Tibetan for mental factors, semlay jungwa chö (Skt. chaitasika dharma), means phenomena arising from the mind, suggesting that the mental factors are not primary to the mind but arise within a larger framework. A mental factor, again, is defined as the aspect of the mind that apprehends a particular quality of an object. Because it is characterized by the qualities of activity and non-neutrality, it has the ability to color the mind in dependence on the way it manifests. Hence, a feeling of desire from seeing what is conceived as a beautiful object affects the other mental factors that are present at that time, and this colors the whole mind.The relationship between the main mind (Sanskrit: citta) and the mental factors can be described by the following metaphors:
Traleg Rinpoche states that the main distinction between the mind and mental factors is that the mind apprehends an object as a whole, whereas mental factors apprehend an object in its particulars.
Lists of mental factors
Within Buddhism, there are many different systems of abhidharma (commonly referred to as Buddhist psychology), and each system contains its own list of the most significant mental factors. These lists vary from system to system both in the number of mental factors listed, and in the definitions that are given for each mental factor. These lists are not considered to be exhaustive; rather they present significant categories and mental factors that are useful to study in order to understand how the mind functions.
Some of the main commentaries on the Abhidharma systems that are studied today include:
Sthaviravāda Sarvastivada tradition
In Mahavibhasa and Abhidharma-kosa, 46 mental factors have been listed as below:
Ten mahā-bhūmika
The ten mahā-bhūmika are common to all consciousness.
Ten kuśala-mahā-bhūmikādharmāḥ
The ten kuśala-mahā-bhūmikādharmāḥ accompany the wholesome consciousnesses (kusala citta).
Six kleśa-mahā-bhūmika
These six one would accompany with kleśa.
Theravāda Abhidharma tradition
Within the Theravāda tradition, the Abhidhammattha-sangaha enumerates the fifty-two mental factors listed below:
Note that this list is not exhaustive; there are other mental factors mentioned in the Theravada teachings. This list identifies fifty-two important factors that help to understand how the mind functions.
Seven universal mental factors
The seven universal mental factors (sabbacittasādhāraṇa cetasikas) are common (sādhāraṇa) to all consciousness (sabbacitta). Bhikkhu Bodhi states: "These factors perform the most rudimentary and essential cognitive functions, without which consciousness of an object would be utterly impossible."
These seven factors are:
Six occasional mental factors
The six occasional or particular mental factors (pakiṇṇaka cetasikas) are ethically variable mental factors found only in certain consciousnesses. They are:
Fourteen unwholesome mental factors
The unwholesome mental factors (akusala cetasikas) accompany the unwholesome consciousnesses (akusala citta).
Bhikkhu Bodhi states:
Unwholesome consciousness (akusalacitta) is consciousness accompanied by one or another of the three unwholesome roots—greed, hatred, and delusion. Such consciousness is called unwholesome because it is mentally unhealthy, morally blameworthy, and productive of painful results.The fourteen unwholesome mental factors are:
Twenty-five beautiful mental factors
The beautiful mental factors (sobhana cetasikas) accompany the wholesome consciousnesses (kusala citta).
Bhikkhu Bodhi states:
Wholesome consciousness (kusalacitta) is consciousness accompanied by the wholesome roots—non-greed or generosity, non-hatred or loving-kindness, and non-delusion or wisdom. Such consciousness is mentally healthy, morally blameless, and productive of pleasant results.The twenty-five beautiful mental factors (sobhana cetasikas) are:
Mahayana Abhidharma tradition
Abhidharma studies in the Mahayana tradition are based on the Sanskrit Sarvāstivāda abhidharma system. Within this system, the Abhidharma-samuccaya identifies fifty-one mental factors:
Five universal mental factors
The five universal mental factors (sarvatraga) are:
- Sparśa - contact, contacting awareness, sense impression, touch
- Vedanā - feeling, sensation
- Saṃjñā - perception
- Cetanā - volition, intention
- Manasikara - attention
These five mental factors are referred to as universal or omnipresent because they operate in the wake of every mind situation. If any one of these factors is missing, then the experience of the object is incomplete. For example:
Five object-determining mental factors
The five object-determining mental factors (viṣayaniyata) are:
- Chanda - desire (to act), intention, interest
- Adhimoksha - decision, interest, firm conviction
- Smṛti - mindfulness
- Prajñā - wisdom
- Samādhi - concentration
The five factors are referred to as object-determining is because these factors each grasp the specification of the object. When they are steady, there is certainty concerning each object.
Eleven virtuous mental factors
The eleven virtuous (kuśala) mental factors are:
- Sraddhā - faith
- Hrī - self-respect, conscientiousness, sense of shame
- Apatrāpya - decorum, regard for consequence
- Alobha - non-attachment
- Adveṣa - non-aggression, equanimity, lack of hatred
- Amoha - non-bewilderment
- Vīrya - diligence, effort
- Praśrabdhi - pliancy
- Apramāda - conscientiousness
- Upekṣa - equanimity
- Ahiṃsā - nonharmfulness
Six root unwholesome factors
The six root unwholesome factors (mūlakleśa) are:
- Raga - attachment
- Pratigha - anger
- Avidya - ignorance
- Māna - pride, conceit
- Vicikitsa - doubt
- Dṛiṣṭi - wrong view
Twenty secondary unwholesome factors
The twenty secondary unwholesome factors (upakleśa) are:
- Krodha - rage, fury
- Upanāha - resentment
- Mrakśa - concealment, slyness-concealment
- Pradāśa - spitefulness
- Irshya - envy, jealousy
- Mātsarya - stinginess, avarice, miserliness
- Māyā - pretense, deceit
- Śāṭhya - hypocrisy, dishonesty
- Mada - self-infatuation, mental inflation, self-satisfaction
- Vihiṃsā - malice, hostility, cruelty, intention to harm
- Āhrīkya - lack of shame, lack of conscience, shamelessness
- Anapatrāpya - lack of propriety, disregard, shamelessness
- Styāna - lethargy, gloominess
- Auddhatya - excitement, ebullience
- Āśraddhya - lack of faith, lack of trust
- Kausīdya - laziness, slothfulness
- Pramāda - heedlessness, carelessness, unconcern
- Muṣitasmṛtitā - forgetfulness
- Asaṃprajanya - non-alertness, inattentiveness
- Vikṣepa - distraction, desultoriness
Four changeable mental factors
The four changeable mental factors (aniyata) are:
- Kaukṛitya - regret, worry,
- Middha - sleep, drowsiness
- Vitarka - conception, selectiveness, examination
- Vicāra - discernment, discursiveness, analysis
Alternate translations
Alternate translations for the term mental factors (Sanskrit: caitasika) include: