Sotthi everyone, I recently started studying the Abhidhamma. And one thing makes me wonder, how should we understand what Tanha means? We know that Chanda is one of Cetasikas but Tanha is not, only Lobha is a mental factor.
Does chanda always arises with lobhamula citta? And if that’s so is it appropriate to say that tanha is basically the chanda that arises in a lobhamula citta?
Hi Plum,
This chapter gives a basic overview on chanda.
Tanha is a synonym of lobha…
Yes it arises with all lobha cittas, but it also arises with kusala citta.
Hi Robert, thanks for the answer! The link is very helpful, though it made me have some additional questions.
They say that (wholesome) cetana is diffrent from (wholesome) chanda but I don’t understand how their explanation. They say that cetana is karuna (“Kusala cetana is the wholesome intention, karuna, which”) in the text it’s also confusing because as far as I know karuna and cetana are separate cetasikas. Also in general what is the diffrence between cetana and chanda and why cetana must be a universal mental factor while chanda doesn’t.
How can Chanda be Vipaka? Could you give some example to that? Like when we have sobhana vipaka cittas for example, how that can have Chanda there?
Lobha is one of the words that mean the same thing but used in different context.
Maya
In some cases, tanha-lobha is also called maya. Therefore, the nature of maya will be explained herein. Maya is like a magician, a conjurer. Just as the magician picks up a stone and makes the audience believe it to be a gold nugget; just so does maya conceal one’s faults. It means one who exercises maya pretends to be flawless though one is not.
Woman’s Maya
Once there was a professor and his student. The student’s wife used to do wrong with another man. On the day of doing wrong she waited upon her husband more tenderly than ever. But, on the day of doing no wrong, she treated him as a slave. The student was unable to understand the peculiar mood of his wife. He was confused and related his experience to his professor. The professor had to expound to him the nature of women.
There are six cetasikas which are hetu or root. Three of these hetus are akusala; they are : lobha (attachment), dosa (aversion) and moha (ignorance). Three hetus are sobhana (beautiful); they are: alobha (greedlessness or generosity), adosa (non-hate or lovingkindness) and amoha (paññā or wisdom). The citta or cetasika which is accompanied by a hetu is sahetuka(‘‘sa’’ means ‘‘with’’). For example, dosa-mūla-citta is sahetuka; moha and dosa are the hetus which arise with dosa-mūla-citta.
[Ahetuka Cittas - Eighteen types of ahetuka cittas]
There are six cetasikas which are hetu or ‘root’. Three of these hetus are akusala; they are : lobha (attachment), dosa (aversion) and moha (ignorance). Three hetus are sobhana (beautiful); they are: alobha (greedlessness or generosity), adosa (non-hate or lovingkindness) and amoha (panna or wisdom). The citta or cetasika which is accompanied by a hetu is sahetuka.
[Nina Van Gorkom - Abhidhamma in daily life - 08 - BuddhaSasana - Anson]
yes these are difficult points.
Let’s look at cetana . It is sabbacitta-sadharana, a universal that arises with every citta. It is of course more evident and of more strength during kusala or akusala moment: Nina writes “When we intend to steal or when we make the resolution not to kill, it is evident that there is cetana.”.
She quotes the Atthasalini (I, Part , Chapter I, 111) :
… There is no such thing as volition in the four planes of existence without the characteristic of coordinating: all volition has it. But the function of ‘willing’ is only in moral (kusala) and immoral (akusala) states... It has directing as manifestation. It arises directing associated states, like the chief disciple, the chief carpenter. etc. who fulfil their own and others’ duties.
So cetana coodinates but only in kusala and akusla does it perform the function of ‘willing’. Thus there is a difference in kiriya and vipaka cittas - jatis matter.
I will add more later.
karunā - compassion’，is one of the 4 sublime abodes （brahma-vihāra，q．v．）．
cetanā - cetanā：‘volition’，will，is one of the seven mental factors （cetasika，q．v．） inseparably bound up with all consciousness，namely sensorial or mental impression （phassa），feeling （vedanā），perception （saññā），volition （cetanā），concentration （samādhi），vitality （jīvita），advertence （manasikāra）．Cf．Tab．II，III．
With regard to kammical volition （i．e．wholesome or unwholesome kamma）…
chanda - intention，desire，will.
Chanda depends on what it is put for - either for wholesome or unwholesome.
You can also look at characteristic, function, manifestation, proximate cause.
TPR search is easy to find things.. but you have to ask it the right question. I happen to know this section of the vsm exists.
Link is here:
471. chandoti kattukāmatāyetaṃ adhivacanaṃ.
471. Chando (intention) is a designation for the desire to act.
tasmā so kattukāmatālakkhaṇo chando, ārammaṇapariyesanaraso, ārammaṇena atthikatāpaccupaṭṭhāno, tadevassa padaṭṭhānaṃ.
Therefore, this chando has the characteristic of the desire to act, its function is seeking the object, it appears as being interested in the object, and that very object is its proximate cause.
ārammaṇaggahaṇe ayaṃ cetaso hatthappasāraṇaṃ viya daṭṭhabbo.
In grasping an object, it should be seen as the mind’s stretching out its hand.
479. lubbhanti tena, sayaṃ vā lubbhati, lubbhanamattameva vā tanti lobho.
That by which (beings) are greedy, or that which itself is greedy, or merely the state of being greedy—this is greed (lobha).
muyhanti tena, sayaṃ vā muyhati, muyhanamattameva vā tanti moho.
That by which (beings) are deluded, or that which itself is deluded, or merely the state of being deluded—this is delusion (moha).
tesu lobho ārammaṇaggahaṇalakkhaṇo makkaṭālepo viya, abhisaṅgaraso tattakapāle khittamaṃsapesi viya.
Among these, greed has the characteristic of clinging to an object, like monkey glue; its function is attachment, like a piece of meat thrown on a hot plate.
apariccāgapaccupaṭṭhāno telañjanarāgo viya.
It appears as non-relinquishment, like an oil stain.
saṃyojaniyadhammesu assādadassanapadaṭṭhāno.
Its proximate cause is seeing enjoyment in things that bind.
taṇhānadībhāvena vaḍḍhamāno sīghasotā nadī iva mahāsamuddaṃ apāyameva gahetvā gacchatīti daṭṭhabbo.
It should be understood that, growing in the manner of the river of craving (taṇhā), it carries beings to the states of woe (apāya) just as a swiftly flowing river carries anything that falls into it to the great ocean.
You also asked about cetanā.
These are direct sources so you can understand the Classical Theravāda method for understanding.
460. cetayatīti cetanā.
Volition (cetanā) means “it wills.”
abhisandahatīti attho.
The meaning is “it coordinates.”
sā cetanābhāvalakkhaṇā, āyūhanarasā, saṃvidahanapaccupaṭṭhānā sakiccaparakiccasādhikā jeṭṭhasissamahāvaḍḍhakīādayo viya.
This volition is characterized by the nature of willing; its function is striving; its manifestation is arranging, like a chief pupil or a master builder, accomplishing its own and others’ tasks.
accāyikakammānussaraṇādīsu ca panāyaṃ sampayuttānaṃ ussahanabhāvena pavattamānā pākaṭā hoti.
Furthermore, this becomes evident by moving its concomitants to exert themselves in recalling urgent tasks and so on.
yathāca te sakuṇādayo pakkhe viyūhitvā antarā apatamānā rukkhato rukkhaṃ vanato vanaṃ vicaritvā attānaṃ yāpenti.
Just as those birds, etc., spreading their wings, without falling midway, wander from tree to tree, from forest to forest, and sustain themselves.
pakkhesu asantesu gamanaṃ asampādentā patitvā maranti.
If they had no wings, being unable to travel, they would fall and die.
evamevaṃ ime sattā āyūhanalakkhaṇāya cetanāya cetayitvā kammasamaṅgitaṃ sampādetvā bhavato bhavaṃ vicaritvā yāvajjatanā vaṭṭe saṃsaranti.
Even so, these beings, having willed with volition (cetanā), which is characterized by exertion, attain union with kamma, wander from existence to existence, and transmigrate in the round up to the present day.
yadi hi cetanānāma na siyā, kammavaṭṭassa abhāvo.
For if there were no volition (cetanā), there would be no round of kamma.
Paramatthadīpanī p. 349
Nina explains in the appendix:
43.1 The cittas accompanied by chanda, zeal or wish-to-do
Chanda can be of all four jātis, but as regards the jāti which is vipāka, chanda accompanies only mahā-vipākacittas, not ahetuka vipākacittas; as regards the jāti which is kiriya, chanda accompanies only mahā-kiriyacittas, not ahetuka kiriyacittas.
Out of the eighty-nine cittas, twenty cittas are not accompanied by chanda: the two types of moha-mūla-citta and the eighteen ahetuka cittas.
Summarizing the cittas which are accompanied by chanda, they are the following, when cittas are counted as eighty-nine:
- 10 akusala cittas
- 24 kāmāvacara sobhana cittas
- 15 rūpāvacara cittas
- 12 arūpāvacara cittas
- 8 lokuttara cittas
—altogether: 69 cittas
When lokuttara cittas accompanied by the jhāna-factors of the different stages of jhāna are taken into account, there are forty lokuttara cittas instead of eight. In that case there are hundred-and-one cittas accompanied by chanda.
Cetasikas.pdf (1.0 MB)
So everyday vipaka like seeing , hearing , touching do not have any chanda. What does have chanda are the bhavanga cittas (also vipaka) but they are very different as you know.