01 Meditation Panel Preface.indd - United Nations Day of Vesak 2013

Conference
In his book on the Pahna and vipassan, Mohnyin Sayadaw explains the Paccayaniddesa
section of the Pahna in plain Burmese so that wider lay audience can understand the Pahna.
Moreover, he writes how a specic condition of the 24 conditions can be used when practicing
vipassan. Since he is an bhidhammika, learned in Abhidhamma, his writing on vipassan in relation
to the Pahna is highly technical and detailed. Therefore, I shall cover an important concept in
the Abhidhamma, namely, the cognitive process (cittavthi), before turning to specic examples of
how 24 conditions are related to vipassan practice.
According to the Abhidhamma, a cognitive process that occurs through eye-door
(cakkhudvravthi) for example consists of seventeen mind-moments (cittakkhaa) as outlined in
the chart below.
1 Past life-continuum, attabhavaga
2 Vibrational life-continuum, bhavagacalana
3 Arrest life-continuum, bhavagupaccheda
4 Five-door adverting, pañcadvrvajjana
5 Eye-consciousness, cakkhuviñña
6 Receiving consciousness, sapaicchana
7 Investigating consciousness, santraa
8 Determining consciousness, votthapana
9-15 7 Javana
16 Registration, tadrammaa
17 Registration, tadrammaa
kammically neutral:
indeterminate, abykata
kammically active or neutral: wholesome, kusala or
unwholesome, akusala or indeterminate, abykata
kammically neutral: indeterminate, abykata
Here, if a visible form as object, having passed one mind-moment (1), enters
the avenue of the eye, the life-continuum 34 vibrates for two mind-moments and is arrested
(2 and 3). Then, a ve-door adverting consciousness arises and ceases adverting to that same
visible form as object (4). Immediately after that, the following consciousnesses arise and
cease: eye-consciousness 35 sees that visible form (5), receiving consciousness receives it
(6), investigating consciousness investigates it (7) and determining consciousness determines
it (8). Following this, javana, i.e. active phase of the cognitive process, occurs for seven
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Bhavaga or life-continuum is the function of consciousness by which the continuity of the individual is preserved.
Bhavagacittas arise and pass away every moment during life when there is no active cognitive process taking place.
Arising and perishing at every moment during this passive phase of consciousness, the bhavaga ows on like a stream,
without remaining static for two consecutive moments. Thus, it is called ‘life-continuum’. (Bodhi 2000: 122-123)
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There are six types of consciousness, namely, eye-consciousness (cakkhuviñña), ear-consciousness (sataviñña),
nose-consciousness (ghnaviñña), tongue-consciousness (jivhviñña), body-consciousness (kyaviñña) and mindconsciousness
(manoviññna). Each of the consciousness has corresponding bases (vatthu) and objects (rammaa).
For example, for an eye-consciousness to arise visible form (rprammaa) must come in contact with eye-sensitivity
(cakkhuppasda). See Bodhi 2000: 150-152 on the six types of cognitive processes.
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