The 89 citta categorized according to jati are

21 kusala citta
12 akusala citta
36 vipaka-citta
20 kiriya-citta

Ordinary people have 4 jati of citta: kusala, akusala, vipaka and kiriya-citta.
The sotapanna have 4 jati of citta: kusala, akusala, vipaka and kiriya-citta.
The sakadagami have 4 jati of citta: kusala, akusala, vipaka and kiriya-citta.
The anagami have 4 jati of citta: kusala, akusala, vipaka and kiriya-citta.
The arahanta have 2 jati of citta: vipaka and kiriya-citta.

 However, not all kusala-vipaka-citta and akusala-vipaka-citta perform patisandhi-kicca.  Therefore, only kusala-vipaka-citta and akusala-vipaka-citta that do perform patisandhi-kicca are called "patisandhi-citta".

 Kusala-vipaka-citta and akusala-vipaka-citta that perform bhavanga-kicca are called "bhavanga-citta".

 Cakkhu-vinnana-citta is a vipaka-citta that cannot perform patisandhi-kicca, nor bhavanga-kicca.  It can only perform "dassana-kicca".  Called "cakkhu-vinnana-citta" because it clearly knows or sees arammana that appears through the eyes.  Thus citta is named according to the [six] kinds of citta that knows arammana through the [six] dvara also [as another category of citta].

Question:  Why are there 4 jati of citta, instead of 5?  There should be 1) kusala-citta-jati, 2) akusala-citta-jati, 3) kusala-vipaka-jati, 4) akusala-vipaka-jati, 5) kiriya-citta-jati, altogether 5 jati.

Answer:  You wonder why there are not 5 jati of citta when there are 2 jati of hetu being 1) akusala-hetu  2) kusala-hetu.  Therefore vipaka-citta should also have 2 jati being 1) akusala-vipaka-jati  2) kusala-vipaka-jati.  But there are only 4 because vipaka-citta cannot be said to be of a bad, intermediate or refined nature.  Contrarily, the citta that are akusala and kusala differ in several ways.  For example, they differ according to the intricacies of akusala-dhamma or kusala-dhamma of the moment through the eye, ear, nose, tongue, body sense and mind; through kamma of the levels of dana, sila, developing panna such as the stages of listening to or manifesting the dhamma, developing kusala which suppress kilesa through samatha-bhavana (development of calm), and developing sati-patthana, which is the development of vipassana-bhavana.  They also differ by way of dvara, for instance, by being physical, verbal or mental action.  Finally, they also differ by way of adhipati, or eminence or the reality that is predominant sampayutta-dhamma, or by way of the various cetasika that arise concurrently with them.

 It is evident that realities that are hetu or kusala and akusala are of several kinds.  But all these differentiations do not exist in vipaka-citta.  A vipaka-citta is only the result of a past kamma.  When kamma is ripe, it becomes paccaya causing vipaka-citta to arise and perform patisandhi-kicca, bhavanga-kicca or other functions that know arammana through eye, ear, nose, tongue, body sense or mind.

 This instant of seeing now is a cakkhu-vinnana-citta, which is a vipaka-citta, arisen with past kamma as paccaya.  But the vipaka-citta that sees cannot be the cause of another vipaka-citta in its turn.

 The instant one hears, the citta that is knowing sound is a vipaka-citta.  But the sota-vinnana-citta or the citta that hears sound cannot be hetu that causes vipaka-citta to arise.

 Since vipaka-citta cannot cause other vipaka-citta to arise, nor can it cause any actions, bodily or verbal, to arise, nor is vipaka-citta composed of other realities such as karuna-cetasika, mudita-cetasika or the three virati-cetasika (comprising samma-vaca, samma-kammanta, samma-ajiva), vipaka-citta cannot be said to be of a bad, intermediate or refined nature.  The vipaka of bad kamma is classified as bad, vipaka of an intermediate kamma is classified as intermediate, and vipaka of a refined kamma is classified as refined.

 Vipaka is only a reality that is the result of the hetu, which, in turn, is either kusala or akusala.  Vipaka itself cannot be said to be of a reality that is bad, intermediate or refined, nor can it cause other vipaka.  Therefore, all vipaka are collectively of one jati because they do not differ in any of the aspects that distinguish the realities that are hetu such as akusala and kusala which are separated into akusala-jati and kusala-jati.

 All vipaka-citta are results of past kamma.

  Cakkhu-vinnana-citta       is a vipaka-citta.
  Sampaticchanna-citta     is a vipaka-citta.
  Santirana-citta                   is a vipaka-citta.
  Tadalambana-citta            is a vipaka-citta.

 When one sees sight or colors that are pleasing, the cakkhu-vinnana that arises to see is a kusala-vipaka.  Sampaticchanna, santirana and tadalambana are also kusala-vipaka.  When the sight that appears through the eyes has fallen away and the vithi-citta through the eyes have fallen away, the bhavanga-citta would then arise in continuation until the next vithi-citta arises to know other arammana.  Therefore one should know that when one sees anything through the eyes, all the vipaka-citta that are vithi-citta of that process are the results of a past kamma.

 When we hear a pleasant or unpleasant sound, vipaka-citta would arise just an instant as vithi-citta and know the sound being heard, then it is completely gone.  But there are paccaya for akusala to arise and be pleased or displeased with different rupa that appear through the eye, ear, nose, tongue, body sense and mind innumerably.  Innumerably because each day we cannot help being pleased or displeased by objects appearing through the eye, ear, nose, tongue, body sense and mind.  Just the level of listening to the teachings of the Buddha cannot extinguish akusala.  Although at the instant of seeing we know it is only vipaka, the result of past kamma, we are still unable to repress pleasant feeling or lobha when we see pleasing things.

 Therefore, we should study to understand realities as they really are so as to develop panna unto the level that can fully realize that realities are not entities, people or the selves.  To study and examine the dhamma conscientiously would allow us to increasingly see the danger of akusala-dhamma and make us develop kusala more at every level because we know that not to do so would make us darker with kilesa.

 One believes that everything belongs to him only when the vithi-citta arises.  Whenever the vithi-citta does not arise, one does not see, hear, smell, taste.  Nor do we know what is in contact with the eye, ear, nose, tongue, body sense and mind, such as while we are sound asleep.  Even while we are not yet dead, when we are sound asleep, there is no caring, no regret, no attachment to anything.  There is no clinging even to the khandha that we used to take as us, the selves.  At that instant the vithi-citta do not arise so there is no knowing any arammana through the eye, ear, nose, tongue, body sense and mind.  While we are still alive but deep asleep, we would not be concerned with sight, sound, smell, taste, body sense contact or thoughts.  So why should we not develop panna to cut any ties and clinging to objects that appear to the eye, ear, nose, tongue, body sense and mind?  This would lessen our akusala when we realize that all realities appear only when the vithi-citta arise.  When a citta arises and falls away, that citta is really extinct.  Whatever rupa arises and falls away, that rupa is really gone.  The rupa that appears through the eyes a moment ago is now definitively gone.  The vithi-citta through the eyes a moment ago is really gone, and through the ears the hearing is really gone.  Each citta and rupa that arises really falls away.  But as long as we have not realized the arising and falling away of nama-dhamma and rupa-dhamma, we have not yet penetrated the meaning of "falling away" because we have not realized the falling away.  For example, we could say that cakkhu-vinnana-citta falls away, sampaticchanna-citta falls away, santirana-citta falls away, javana-citta falls away and tadalambana-citta falls away; but we still do not realize the falling away of any reality.  Therefore, one must develop panna until we are able to realize the actual arising and falling away of nama-dhamma and rupa-dhamma.  Although that level of panna has not yet been reached, listening to the dhamma and examining it to rightly understand it more minutely would be beneficial.  It would be paccaya by being sankhara-khandha, conditioning sati-patthana to arise and be mindful of the characteristics of realities that are arising and falling away; and panna will gradually turn towards, or study and examine until the knowledge in the characteristics of realities, as opposed to entity, person or the self, gradually grows.

 In the Atthasalini, Atitatika, explanation of atita-dhamma (1044), there is a passage on the characteristics of the dhamma that are past, stating,

 The word "past" is past three instants, the upada-khana or the instant it arises, thiti-khana or the instant it is existing, and bhanga-khana the instant of its falling away.

 Each citta lasts only an extremely short instant, just to arise, to exist and to fall away.  Each citta has three anu-khana comprising

Upada-khana is the arising, not the existing and falling away.
Thiti-khana is the existing, not the arising and falling away.
Bhanga-khana is the falling away, not the arising and existing.

When one has studied further about rupa, one would learn that rupa that is caused by kamma is kammaja-rupa, which arises at each sub-instant of citta at the upada-khana, thiti-khana and bhanga-khana of each citta except before the 17 instants of cuti-citta.  Therefore, the rupa that is caused by kamma would fall away with the cuti-citta, ending the state of being that person in that lifetime, of all five khandha.

The rupa that arises with citta as condition is a cittaja-rupa.  It arises at the moment of upada-khana of citta (excepting the patisandhi-citta, the 10 dvi-panca-vinnana-citta, the 4 arupavacara-vipaka-citta and the cuti-citta of the arahanta.)

The rupa arising from utu, or the right temperature, as condition, is the utuja-rupa.  It arises in the thiti-khana of the utuja-rupa, which is the base or condition.

The rupa arising from food is an aharaja-rupa, arising at the thiti-khana of oja-rupa in the food consumed after the nutrition has been absorbed.

Citta arises and falls away rapidly, therefore the three sub-instants fall away very rapidly too.  But the dhamma in the past, or "gone", is past all three sub-instants, neither the upada-khana, thiti-khana nor bhanga-khana is left.

 There is further explanation:

 The word "extinguished" means arrived at extinction like a fire that is extinguished, is there no more.

The word "disappeared" means arrived at disappearance, or being completely gone like a dead person that has disappeared, is gone, is no more.  That is the characteristic of extinction.

The word "changed" means arrived at change by deviating from the normal.  Normal is to be, while change by abandoning what is normal is not being.

The word "fallen away" means arrived at inability to remain, which is extinction.

"Abbhatthangata" translates as, arrived at complete extinction.  The Buddha added onto the word a prefix by not only using the word "extinguish" but added the prefix so one might know the state of complete extinction, with nothing remaining.  The term "to arise and disappear" is to have arisen and then disappear, not that there was none.  There was what arose but after arising it has disappeared, completely gone with nothing left. What dhamma are past?  They are rupa, vedana, sanna, sankhara and vinnana, which are sankhata-dhamma as well as the five khandha, as follows:

Rupa-khandha            All rupa arise and fall away.
Vedana-khandha       All feelings or vedana-cetasika arise and fall away.
Sanna-khandha         Memory or sanna-cetasika arises and falls away.
Sankhara-khandha   Comprising 50 kinds of composite cetasika such as lobha,  dosa, issa (envy), macchariya (stinginess), saddha (faith or confidence), viriya and panna, arise and fall away.
Vinnana-khandha      All citta arise and fall away.

 There can be no eradication of kilesa at the level of reading and listening.  Therefore one must study and gain understanding as sankhara-khandha to condition sati to be mindful, take notice and examine what one has heard and understood until there is full realization of the characteristics of realities that arise, appear and fall away.  Only then can the clinging to realities as entities, persons or the selves be abandoned.

 Every day we habitually like what appears through the eye, ear, nose, tongue, body sense and mind, taking them for us or ours or our properties.  In fact, everything appears only when there is vithi-citta.  Any reality that is vipaka is the result of kamma.  No matter how fine and beautiful the houses, belongings, clothing of all sorts are, the vipaka, the result of past kamma, can only arise to know the arammana that appears through the eye, ear, nose, tongue and body sense for an instant and then falls away, impermanent.  It arises and falls away repeatedly, without anyone knowing which kamma will bear fruit in the next moment.  Since everyone has done kusala-kamma and akusala-kamma in the past, when there is condition ready for a kamma to result as vipaka, that vipaka would arise merely to know the arammana that appears through the eye, ear, nose, tongue, body sense or mind.
 

 To study and examine the impermanence of realities would be viriyarambhakatha (that which induces perseverance in the development of right understanding), to make sati mindful of the characteristics of the realities that appear, study and examine until one knows that they are not the selves but only nama-dhamma and rupa-dhamma of different characteristics that are appearing through the eye, ear, nose, tongue, body sense or mind.

 When there is right understanding of the characteristics of realities, the javana-vithi that are kusala would increase.  If there were no listening and studying about realities, there would be no knowledge of instants of vipaka, which are results of past kamma, or moments that are javana-vithi-citta, that accumulate akusala or kusala latent tendencies.  Since one does not know one would not see the harm of akusala, nor would one develop kusala.  Samsara-vatta would then stretch on.  Which arises more in a day, akusala-citta or kusala-citta?  What results then lie ahead, more of kusala-vipaka, or akusala-vipaka?  Everyone might examine to know realities that arise in their actual daily life.
 

 There are 14 kicca (functions) of citta comprising:

 1. Patisandhi-kicca is the function of continuity after cuti-kicca.

The citta that can perform patisandhi-kicca are the 19 vipaka-citta, namely
  10 kamavacara-vipaka-citta
  5 rupavacara-vipaka-citta
  4 arupavacara-vipaka-citta

 3. Avajjana-kicca is the function of adverting to the arammana in contact with the dvara.
 It is the first vithi-citta to arise through one of the six dvara.  The citta that perform avajjana-kicca are the two kiriya-citta, namely:
  The panca-dvaravajjana-citta
  The mano-dvaravajjana-citta

 4. Dassana-kicca is the function of seeing.
 There are two vipaka-citta that perform dassana-kicca, namely
  The cakkhu-vinnana  akusala-vipaka-citta
  The cakkhu-vinnana  kusala-vipaka-citta

 5. Savana-kicca is the function of hearing.
 There are two vipaka-citta that perform savana-kicca, namely
  The sota-vinnana   akusala-vipaka-citta
  The sota-vinnana   kusala-vipaka-citta

 6. Ghayana-kicca is the function of smelling.
 There are two vipaka-citta that perform ghayana-kicca, namely
  The ghana-vinnana   akusala-vipaka-citta
  The ghana-vinnana   kusala-vipaka-citta

 7. Sayana-kicca is the function of tasting.
 There are two vipaka-citta that perform sayana-kicca, namely
  The jivha-vinnana   akusala-vipaka-citta
  The jivha-vinnana   kusala-vipaka-citta

 8. Phussana-kicca is the function of knowing body sense contact.
 There are two vipaka-citta that perform phussana-kicca, namely
  The kaya-vinnana   akusala-vipaka-citta
  The kaya-vinnana   kusala-vipaka-citta

 9. Sampaticchanna-kicca is the function of receiving arammana from the dvi-panca-vinnana
 There are two vipaka-citta that perform sampaticchanna-kicca, namely
  The sampaticchanna akusala-vipaka-citta
  The sampaticchanna kusala-vipaka-citta

 10. Santirana-kicca is the function of examining arammana appearing through the five dvara.
 There are three vipaka-citta that perform santirana-kicca, namely
The upekkha-santirana akusala-vipaka-citta
  The upekkha-santirana kusala-vipaka-citta
  The somanassa-santirana kusala-vipaka-citta

 11. Votthabbana-kicca is the function of determining the arammana to make one of the kinds of javana-citta arise through the panca-dvara.
 The citta that performs this function is the kiriya-citta, the mano-dvaravajjana-citta.

 12. Javana-kicca is the function of running through the arammana or absorbing the arammana.
There are 55 citta that perform javana-kicca, namely
12 akusala-citta
  1 ahetuka-citta (hasituppada-citta)
  8 kamavacara-kusala-citta
8 kamavacara-kiriya-citta
  5 rupavacara-kusala-citta
  5 rupavacara-kiriya-citta
  4 arupavacara-kusala-citta
  4 arupavacara-kiriya-citta
  8 lokuttara-citta

 13. Tadalambana-kicca is the function of knowing the arammana in continuation from the javana-citta.
 There are 11 vipaka-citta that perform tadalambana-kicca, namely
   3 santirana-citta
  8 kamavacara sahetuka kusala-vipaka-citta

 14. Cuti-kicca is the function of leaving that being, that lifetime.  When the cuti-citta that had arisen to do its duty of leaving that lifetime and fallen away, death occurs, completely ending the state of being that person.

The citta that perform cuti-kicca are the 19 vipaka-citta of the same kind as the patisandhi-citta and the bhavanga-citta.  When a certain kind of vipaka-citta had performed the patisandhi-kicca, that very same kind of vipaka-citta would perform the bhavanga-kicca and the cuti-kicca also.

Altogether 89 kinds of citta perform 14 kicca.

Patisandhi-citta assembles the nama-dhamma and rupa-dhamma for which there are paccaya to arise and evolve in a being, in a lifetime, according to the strength and type of the specific patisandhi-citta.

The citta that perform the function of patisandhi in the 11 kama-bhumi are the 10 vipaka-citta comprising
The upekkha-santirana  akusala-vipaka-citta
The upekkha-santirana  kusala-vipaka-citta
The 8 kamavacara sahetuka kusala-vipaka-citta (maha-vipaka)

The upekkha-santirana-akusala-vipaka-citta is the result of an akusala-kamma that performs the patisandhi-kicca in the four apaya-bhumi or birth in hell, birth as a peta, birth as an asurakaya, or birth as an animal.

The upekkha-santirana-kusala-vipaka-citta is the result of kusala-kamma of a weaker kind that performs the patisandhi-kicca in the human plane and the lowest plane of heaven, the Jatumaharajika, with the negative interference of akusala kamma, which causes innate disabilities, such as madness, muteness, blindness and deafness.

The 8 maha-vipaka-citta perform the function of patisandhi in the human and 6 heavenly planes according to the strength and sublimity of the specific kusala-kamma.

The 5 rupavacara-vipaka-citta perform the function of patisandhi in the 15 rupa-brahma planes according to the level of the specific rupa-vacara-kusala, which are the causes.

The 4 arupavacara-vipaka-citta perform the function of patisandhi in the 4 arupa-brahma planes according to the level of the specific arupa-vacara-kusala, which are the causes.

As to the 11 citta that perform tadalambana-kicca, they can only arise in the sequence of kama-javana-vithi in the kama-bhumi, never in a higher plane, such as the rupa-brahma- or the arupa-brahma-bhumi.

There are 2 kinds of citta, the upekkha-santirana-akusala-vipaka-citta and the upekkha-santirana-kusala-vipaka-citta, that can perform 5 functions.

There are 8 kinds of citta, the maha-vipaka-citta, which can perform 4 functions.

There are 9 kinds of citta, the 5 rupavacara-vipaka-citta and the 4 arupavacara-vipaka-citta, that can perform 3 functions.

There are 2 kinds of citta, the mano-dvaravajjana-citta and somanassa-santirana-kusala-vipaka-citta, that can perform 2 functions.

All the rest of the citta can only perform one specific function.

1.   What jati is the tadalambana-citta?  What kamma does it result from?
2.   When does the kammaja-rupa arise, and when does it not?
3.   When does the cittajarupa arise, and when does it not?
4.   What function does the akusala-citta perform?
5.   How many jati are the citta that perform javana-kicca?
6.   Can kusala-citta and kiriya-citta perform tadalambana-kicca?
7.   How many kicca can the upekkha-santirana-citta perform?   What are they?
8.   How many kicca can the somanassa-santirana-citta perform?   What are they?
9.   How many jati of citta does the arahanta have?
10. How many jati of citta do the ones who are not arahanta have?

Dec. 19, 1999
Revised May 7, 2001