Reply To: Determinism

#50322
taryal
Participant

Billions of cittas (and associated cetasikas) collectively form the mind that can think, feel and perceive. The process of Paticca Sampudda includes intentional thoughts. By that, a sentient being capable of making its own decisions exists and in case of a human, it can train itself to the point that the suffering filled existence can be stopped i.e. cittas stop arising. It is true that there are many factors that can influence one’s actions, but a human does have the ability to perform intentional actions which will create causes that can bear their results, some earlier than others. To remove the instinctive (built in) desires for the 5 aggregates, one needs to make intentional efforts.