Purāna and Nava Kamma – Sequence of Kamma Generation

A Paṭicca Samuppāda cycle starts at the “purāna kamma” stage. However, new and robust kamma (that could lead to rebirths in the future) is done in the “nava kamma” stage only if the mind starts generating vaci kamma consciously. 

January 11, 2024; rewritten March 15, 2025 

Kamma accumulation Stats With a Sensory Input

1. Kamma accumulation happens in two distinctive stages. 

  1. In the first “purāna kamma” stage, the mind of a puthujjana attaches automatically to sensory input (if the corresponding saṁyojana remain unbroken) based on the “distorted saññā” we discussed in recent posts. Only weak kammic energies are accumulated initially. That attachment is due to “saññā vipallāsa.” Thus, “saññā vipallāsa” arises ONLY IF “fooled by the distorted saññā”; see  “Fooled by Distorted Saññā (Sañjānāti) – Origin of Attachment (Taṇhā).”
  2.  If the mind becomes sufficiently interested in the sensory input, it will start the second “nava kamma” stage of kamma accumulation with javana cittās. Kamma accumulation occurs consciously in this second stage and produces kammic energies that can bring vipāka in the future. Even though we don’t have control over the above “purāna kamma” stage, we have control over the “nava kamma” stage.
  • Any sensory experience with at least (i) above will be registered as “pañcupādānakkhandha,” and a record of it (nāmagotta) will be preserved in viññāṇa dhātu (in the external world.) Note that those records DO NOT stay with the hadaya vatthu or gandhabba. The gandhabba (in a physical body) must retrieve memories from the viññāṇa dhātu via the brain. See “Where Are Memories Stored? – Viññāṇa Dhātu.” Only the defilements” (anusaya, saṁyojana, gati, etc. are associated with the hadaya vatthu/gandhabba.)

2. Consider the example of “seeing a beautiful woman” by a puthujjana and an Arahant.

  • Upon seeing the woman (like in one snapshot), both minds fall into the “kāma dhātu” stage, where both perceive the woman to be beautiful.
  • The Arahant‘s mind will not pursue that “seeing.” It will stay in the “kāma dhātu” stage.
  • However, since the puthujjana has “kāma rāga saṁyojana,” his mind will instantly get into “kama loka” with bahiddha viññāṇa. That happens because his mind has not comprehended (avijjā) that the woman’s “beauty ” was a “distorted saññā.” That led to automatic arising of saṅkappa: “avijjā paccayā saṅkhāra” in Paṭicca Samuppāda (PS). Since he perceives the woman to be beautiful, his mind feels that it is worthwhile to take another look; that is the next step of ajjhatta viññāna. That completes “saṅkhāra paccayā viññāna” step in PS. Then, depending on the conditions, kāma guna may come into play and his mind may go through the subsequent steps until “vēdanā paccayā taṇhā.” If taṇhā is sufficiently strong, it will get to the next step of “taṇhā paccayā upādāna” pulling the mind firmly to the sight of the woman. That is when he will start accumulating strong kammic energies via “taking actions” consciously.
  • Critical point: Up to the “taṇhā paccayā upādāna” is the “purāna kamma” stage and it could be over in a split second. That part can be discovered only by a Buddha. However, if the “nave kamma” stage is reached, the mind may spend a long time there, depending on the actions taken.
  • That is a basic overview of a sensory event, as explained via PS. You may want to reread this after going through (or while reading) the rest of the post.
Purāna and Nava Kamma Stages of a Sensory Event

3. Therefore, the first attachment stage ALWAYS happens at the “purāna kamma” stage. Kamma generation (with initial abhisaṅkhāra called saṅkappa) occurs in this stage but is not strong enough to bring vipāka in the future. Yet it initiates another round of pañca upādānakkhandha.

  • Therefore, a mind (sensory event) NEVER starts from the pañcakkhandha state for anyone below an Arahant. The pabhassara mind arises only after all ten saṁyojana are removed from the mind (i.e., hadaya vatthu) at the Arahant-phala moment.
  • If the second stage attachment (“nava kamma” stage) does not take place, no javana cittās will arise. Strong kamma that can bring future vipāka (including rebirth) will occur only if javana cittas arise within the “nava kamma” stage.

4. We have previously discussed the concepts of the following chart without using the terms “purāna kamma” and “nava kamma.“

Download/Print: “Purana and Nava Kamma – 1-Revised“

Kāma Dhātu Stage First

5. Upon receiving a sensory input, a mind (of anyone born a human, whether an Arahant or a puthujjana), falls in the “kāma dhātu” stage as shown in the charts above and below. “Distorted saññā” is experienced at this initial stage. Note that this “distorted saññā” is imparted via the physical body (and the brain.) Thus, an Arahant would also experience that “altered rupa” arising via “distorted saññā.”   However, an Arahant (or an Anāgāmi, also free of kāma loka) would not attach to it.

  • Thus, the mind of an Arahant/Anāgāmi will stop at the “kāma dhātu” stage and not even get into the “purāna kamma” stage, as indicated in the charts. They have eliminated the first five saṁyojana that bind one to the kāma loka.
  • In the charts, I have considered a “seeing event.” The “seeing event” for an Arahant/Anāgāmi will not get into the kāma loka. Unless the mind gets into kāma loka the “seeing event” is not called a cakkhu viññāṇa. It is called “diṭṭhe diṭṭhamattaṁ bhavissati” (implying “not attaching to what is seen”).
  • That is what the Buddha explained to Ven. Bāhiya in the “Bāhiya Sutta (Ud 1.10)” with the verse, “diṭṭhe diṭṭhamattaṁ bhavissati, sute sutamattaṁ bhavissati, mute mutamattaṁ bhavissati..” 
  • The Sutta Central translation in the link is: “In the seen will be merely seen; in the heard will be merely heard..” A better translation is: “seeing without rāga, dosa, moha arising in the mind.” The same holds for hearing, tasting, etc. Note: taste, smell, and touch are combined as “muta.”
  • The rest of the post is focused on how a puthujjana accumulates kamma via a series of steps in two distinct stages: “Purāna kamma” and “nava kamma” stages.
Purāna Kamma Stage

6. A Paṭicca Samuppāda (PS) process for a puthujjana always starts with an ārammaṇa, i.e., a sense input. The chart below shows how a “seeing event” begins with a rupa (visual) as a sensory input. A sensory event starts on the left at the “dhātu stage.” While the mind of an Arahant stops there, that of a puthujjana keeps evolving to the right, becoming increasingly defiled via many steps. Some of the steps are shown in the chart below.

Download/Print: “Purana and Nava Kamma -2-revision 2“

  • “Purāna kamma” can be translated as “initial kamma” or “base-level of kamma generation.” Purāna does not mean “old.”
  • That stage happens automatically based on attachment to the “distorted saññā.” 
  • Within the “purāna kamma” stage, a mind goes through several steps in Paṭicca Samuppāda. It starts with “avijjā paccayā saṅkhāra” where the mind first attaches to the sensory input; only weak saṅkhāra (saṅkappa) arise. Then the following steps also occur within the “purāna kamma” stage: saṅkhāra paccayā viññāna; viññāna paccayā nāmarūpa, nāmarūpa paccayā salāyatana, salāyatana paccayā phassō, phassa paccayā vēdanā, vēdanā paccayā taṇhā.
  • (I adopted the “cone representation” of the “expansion of viññāṇa” in the above chart from the Sinhala discourse series “බුදු දහම, මාර්ග ඵල සහ මග වැඩීම“; I highly recommend it for a Sinhala-speaking audience. I have modified it to a “two-cone structure” to represent the “purāna kamma” and “nava kamma” stages.)
Bahiddha and Ajjhatta Viññāṇa

7. Kamma viññāṇa of a puthujjana starts right after the kāma dhātu stage when the mind automatically attaches to the “distorted saññā” due to the “hidden defilements” (anusaya/saṁyojana)  and turn into “bahiddha viññāṇa“ and moves to the “purāna kamma” stage. That initial attachment happens automatically with saṅkappa (only mano saṅkhārā).

  • That first attachment is where the “altered rupa” with “distorted saññā” triggers the mind to generate the first stage of viññāṇa (bahiddha viññāṇa). This is when the mind enters kāma loka. 
  • In the next step, the mind attaches again with more saṅkappa (taking the bahiddha viññāṇa to be valuable), and gets to the “ajjhatta viññāṇa” stage. That leads to the use of cakkhu indriya as an āyatana; thus, from now on in the process, “cakkhu” refers to “cakkhu āyatana.” See both charts.
  • A critical point: An Arahant (or an Anāgāmi, also free of kāma loka) would not generate cakkhu, rūpa (except for the rupa in the kāma dhātu stage), or cakkhu viññāṇa as they appear in most suttās. All three can be stopped from arising (nirodha.)

8. “Kammanirodha Sutta (SN 35.146)“: “Cakkhu, bhikkhave, purāṇa kammaṁ abhisaṅkhataṁ abhisañcetayitaṁ vedaniyaṁ daṭṭhabbaṁ..

Translated: “Cakkhu arises via purāṇa kamma. It is to be understood (daṭṭhabbaṁ) to lead to abhisaṅkhāra (abhisaṅkhataṁ) and can lead to abhisañcetanā (abhisañcetayitaṁ) and leads to (mind-made) vedanā (vedaniyaṁ.)

  • When seeing an object, “cakkhu viññāṇa arises based on cakkhu and rūpa” OR “Cakkhuñca paṭicca rūpe ca uppajjati cakkhu viññāṇaṁ.” At this step, cakkhu viññāṇa is already at the “ajjhatta viññāṇa” stage.
  • Here, “cakkhu” does not mean “eyes;” it means defiled “cakkhu āyatana” (versus undefiled “cakkhu indriya” for an Arahant/Anāgāmi.) That is precisely what the above verse says: It has already been defiled when the mind got contaminated by the “distorted saññā” when it moved from the “kāma dhātu” stage to the “kāma bhava/loka.”  
  • This is depicted in the second chart above.
“Distorted Saññā” Arises in Anyone Born With a Human Body

9. Anyone born with a physical human body will automatically get the “distorted saññā.” Thus, the “rupa” that comes to mind does not accurately represent the external rupa. Therefore, even an Arahant/Anāgāmi would taste sugar to be sweet. This is not a “superficial trick” by a third-rate magician but a “sophisticated trick” that can be uncovered only by a Buddha. A human body is designed (by kammic influence) to provide that “attractive saññā” because those born humans had craved them in past lives. See the first two posts in “Worldview of the Buddha.”

  • The primary reason for our tendency to indulge in sensual pleasures is this “distorted and made-up saññā.” See “Kāma Rāga Arises Due to “Distorted Saññā” (Note: “distorted saññā” leads to “saññā vipallāsa” ONLY for those not comprehending how that “trick” plays out as explained in the first few posts in “Worldview of the Buddha”).
  • To break the kāma rāga saṁyojana, one MUST understand how kāma rāga arises via “distorted saññā” in the purāṇa kamma stage. Understanding this process will also help attain the Sotapanna stage.
  • Many people incorrectly think they must remove kāma rāga from their minds by willpower. That could make things worse by the generation of paṭigha in mind. On the other hand, once one comprehends that there is no intrinsic “sweetness in sugar” or “beauty of a woman,” it is much easier to get rid of kāma rāga. 
Root Cause of Attachment – “Distorted Saññā“

10. As we can see in the above chart, this “distorted saññā” is the root cause of our attachment to “attractive sensory inputs.” When we try to get “more of such made-up enjoyments,” we engage in akusala kamma that bring us “unintended harmful consequences (kamma vipāka),” including rebirth in suffering-filled realms (like the animal realm.)

  • Enjoying “sensory pleasures” is like watching a good magic show. That is why the Buddha called viññāṇa a “magician.” See “Pheṇapiṇḍūpama Sutta (SN 22.95).” However, the danger is that people tend to engage in akusala kamma for more such “pleasures.” That happens after the “taṇhā paccayā upādāna” step in Paṭicca Samuppāda, as indicated in the above charts.
  • I have emphasized this in many recent posts because it is a critical point: “Mūlapariyāya Sutta – The Root of All Things” and “Fooled by Distorted Saññā (Sañjānāti) – Origin of Attachment (Taṇhā).”
  • We accumulate such akusala kamma in two stages. The first “subtle stage” is the “purāna kamma stage,” when kamma accumulation starts at a subtle level that our minds are unaware of. 
  • If the mind sufficiently attaches to the sensory input, we consciously start accumulating new, strong kamma with speech and actions based on vaci and kāya saṅkhārā. As shown in the first chart above, that happens after the “taṇhā paccayā upādāna” step in the Paṭicca Samuppāda process. That is the “nava kamma” stage. However, subtle/weak kamma accumulation has already started in the “purāna kamma” stage.
Nava Kamma Stage

11. Once in the “nava kamma” stage, the rest of the steps in Paṭicca Samuppāda will follow: upādāna paccayā bhavō, bhava paccayā jāti, jāti paccayā jarā, marana, soka-paridēva-dukkha-dōmanassupāyasā sambhavan’ti”

  • Only the strong kamma generation in the step “upādāna paccayā bhavō” (culminating in kaya, vaci, and mano kamma generation is shown in the second chart above). 
  • The first chart shows all the steps of Paṭicca Samuppāda in the “nava kamma” stage.
  • Also see “Difference Between Tanhā and Upādāna” for some insights.

12. “Kammanirodha Sutta (SN 35.146)“: “Katamañca, bhikkhave, nava kammaṁ? Yaṁ kho, hikkhave, etarahi kammaṁ karoti kāyena vācāya manasā,..”

Translated: “What is a nava kamma? This is when one consciously accumulates kamma via body, speech, and the mind.”

  • The wider cone in the second chart above shows how a mind gets defiled in real-time by consciously and repeatedly attaching to a sensory input. This stage takes place only if the mind strongly attaches to the sensory input and starts the “taṇhā paccayā upādāna” step in the Paṭicca Samuppāda process.
  • In this “nava kamma” stage, the mind goes through several stages (kāmacchanda, kāma pariḷāha, kāma pariyesanā; see #11 below) where attachment becomes increasingly intense. It culminates in accumulating strong kamma done via the body, speech, and mind (kammaṁ karoti kāyena vācāya manasā.)
  • The mind of anyone born a human (including an Arahant) starts at the kāma dhātu stage. That physical body (and the brain) will automatically present to the mind an “altered rupa” instead of a “true representation of the external rupa.” That is why a “distorted saññā” (e.g., the sweetness of sugar) arises in an Arahant as well as for a puthujjana.
  • However, the mind of an Arahant would not attach to that “altered rupa” because that mind has fully grasped how that “trick” takes place, as explained in the above charts. 
General Attachment Sequence for Kāma Dhātu

13. The “Sanidāna Sutta (SN 14.12)“ points out the general sequence of steps involved in kamma accumulation based on any sensory input in kāma loka. We discussed that in the post “Upaya and Upādāna – Two Stages of Attachment.”

  • “Kāma dhātuṁ, bhikkhave, paṭicca uppajjati kāma saññā, kāma saññaṁ paṭicca uppajjati kāma saṅkappo, kāma saṅkappaṁ paṭicca uppajjati kāmacchando, kāmacchandaṁ paṭicca uppajjati kāma pariḷāho, kāma pariḷāhaṁ paṭicca uppajjati kāma pariyesanā.” OR “Attachment to kāma dhātu leads to kāma saññā, attachment to kāma saññā leads to kāma saṅkappa, attachment to kāma saṅkappa leads to kāmacchanda..and so on to kāma pariyesanā.“
  • The “nava kamma” stage starts with kāma saṅkappaṁ paṭicca uppajjati kāmacchando step in the above verse. This is also the “taṇhā paccayā upādāna” step in the Paṭicca Samuppāda process. The mind attaches (taṇhā) with kāmacchanda; then the mind desires to fulfill the desire quickly in the “kāma pariḷāha” stage; then it starts investigating ways to do that quickly (kāma pariyesanā), leading to potent kamma accumulation via the body, speech, and mind (kammaṁ karoti kāyena vācāya manasā.)
  • Also note that rupa paṭisaṁvedī for a seeing event or rasa paṭisaṁvedī for a tasting event occurs in the “kāma dhātu” stage for both an Arahant and a puthujjana; rūpa rāga paṭisaṁvedī or rasa rāga paṭisaṁvedī occurs in the purāna kamma stage when the bahiddha viññāṇa is generated only in a puthujjana. See #9, #10 in “Sandiṭṭhiko – What Does It Mean?.”

14. In the post “Contamination of a Human Mind – Detailed Analysis,” we discussed the following verse in the “Saññānānatta Sutta (SN 14.7),” which examines the six types of sensory inputs available in the kāma loka. Thus, it expanded the general statement in the above verse for a “seeing event”:

 “Rūpa dhātuṁ, bhikkhave, paṭicca uppajjati rūpa saññā, rūpa saññaṁ paṭicca uppajjati rūpa saṅkappo, rūpa saṅkappaṁ paṭicca uppajjati rūpacchando, rūpacchandaṁ paṭicca uppajjati rūpa pariḷāho, rūpa pariḷāhaṁ paṭicca uppajjati rūpa pariyesanā” OR “Rūpa dhātu gives rise to the perception of that sight (rūpa saññā.) That perception (if mind-attaching) gives rise to thoughts about it (rūpa saṅkappa.) Thoughts give rise to the desire for such sights (rūpacchanda.) The desire for sights gives rise to the passion for sights (rūpa pariḷāha.) The passion for sights gives rise to pursuing/investigating sights (rūpa pariyesanā.) In the last one, “pariyesanā” means “investigations;” when one becomes interested in something, one explores how to use it optimally.

  • Then the verse is repeated for all SIX senses ending with “dhamma dhātuṁ paṭicca uppajjati dhamma saññā, dhamma saññaṁ paṭicca uppajjati dhamma saṅkappo, dhamma saṅkappaṁ paṭicca uppajjati dhammacchando, dhammacchandaṁ paṭicca uppajjati dhamma pariḷāho, dhammapariḷāhaṁ paṭicca uppajjati dhamma pariyesanā.”
Broader View Including All Realms

15. The second chart above explains the effect of the “distorted saññā” on initiating the defilement of the mind (i.e., the growth of “kamma viññāṇa” or the “pañca upādānakkhandha“) in the kāma loka. 

  • A somewhat similar “distorted saññā” also arises in the 16 realms of the rupa loka (rupāvacara Brahma realms) and the four realms in the arupa loka (arupāvacara Brahma realms). However, strong “kamma accumulation” (that can bring rebirths) DOES NOT happen significantly in those realms. 
  • An anariya yogi born in any of those 20 realms will experience the “jhānic/samāpatti sukha” until the end of their lifetime there. Then, they will be reborn in the kāma loka due to kammic energies accumulated in previous lives.
  • An Ariya born in one of those realms will also experience the “jhānic/samāpatti sukha,” which ALSO arises from “distorted saññā.” However, they can again remove attachment to that “distorted saññā” and move to the “rupa dhatu” or “arupa dhatu” as shown in the chart below for an Arahant. 
  • Note again that the “nava kamma” stage is missing in rupa and arupa loka.
Sabbe Saṅkhārā Aniccā

Download/Print: “Loka and Aloka – Totally Separated“

16. A mind MUST first fall on one of the three dhātus (upon receiving an ārammaṇa.) Those in rupa or arupa loka cannot experience “sensual sensory inputs” (because they don’t have dense bodies), so their minds fall on either the “rupa dhātu” or the “arupa dhātu.”

  • For example, anariya Brahma in a “rupa loka Brahma realm” only receives the “distorted saññā” of “rupāvacara jhānic sukha” and will automatically attach to it with “saññā vipallāsa.” They do not accumulate more kamma but will return to kāma loka at the end of Brahma‘s life. Unlike in the kāma loka, there is no way to accumulate strong kamma (that can bring rebirths) while in the rupa or arupa Brahma realms.
  • An Anāgāmi in rupa loka will also get the “distorted saññā” of “rupāvacara jhānic sukha” but can see the “anicca nature” of that saññā and can stop attaching to it.
  • The above chart is discussed in “Pāth to Nibbāna – Learning Dhamma to Become a Sotapanna.”

17. Therefore, an anariya‘s mind can never move toward the “suffering-free pabhassara mind.” That is the crucial point to be seen from the above third chart. Upon receiving a sense input, it ALWAYS moves away from the pabhassara mind or Nibbāna (shown on the left).

  • In particular, ANY action, speech, or thought of a human puthujjana will ALWAYS move their minds   AWAY from the “suffering-free” pabhassara mind. That is a key reason why the abhisaṅkhāra generation (via “avijjā paccayā saṅkhārā“) is of the “anicca nature.” In other words, “sabbe saṅkhārā aniccā.”
  • That also means the mind of a puthujjana NEVER moves in the “parināmi” direction or “for the better.” It always moves in the “viparināmi” or “for the worse.”
  • That is discussed in “Aniccaṁ Vipariṇāmi Aññathābhāvi – A Critical Verse” and “Vipariṇāma – Two Meanings.”
Purāna and Nava Kamma Stages – Connection to Paṭicca Samuppāda

18. As you may be able to see, the purāna and nava kamma stages correspond to the Avyākata Paṭicca Samuppāda and Akusala-Mula Paṭicca Samuppāda processes we had discussed in old posts respectively. See, for example, “Paṭicca Samuppāda Cycles.”

  • In the Sutta Piṭaka, those two PS processes are not discussed separately, but treated as just “Paṭicca Samuppāda.” The separation into two distinct processes is seen only in the Commentaries.
  • Also see “Upaya and Upādāna – Two Stages of Attachment.”

19. I tried to include a wide variety of information in this rewritten version, which became a bit long. Hopefully, that will help get a good idea of the complete Paṭicca Samuppāda process. 

Print Friendly, PDF & Email