Amazingly Fast Time Evolution of a Thought (Citta)
3. Those nine stages of contamination during the lifetime of the fundamental unit of cognition (within a billionth of a second) are citta, manō, mānasan, hadayaṃ, pandaran, manō manāyatanam, mana indriyam (or manindriyam), viññāna, viññānakkhandha. A Tipiṭaka reference is given in the post, “Pabhassara Citta, Radiant Mind, and Bhavaṅga.”
- Amazingly, these nine steps occur within a split second, and the Buddha said there are billions of citta arising within the blink of an eye. Each citta has three stages: uppāda, ṭhiti, and bhaṅga. Those nine steps occur before the bhaṅga or the termination stage.
- It may be hard to believe, but we can prove this true with the following example.
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I think this phrase is the reason why I came to see the 9-stage evolution of citta as occurring in a single citta.
This clearly conflicts with the idea that the 9-stage evolution occurs in a single citta vithi.
So, should I view the 9-stage evolution of citta vithi and the 9-stage evolution of citta as progressing separately?
