citta: The citta is the mind”s essential knowing nature, the fundamental quality of knowing that underlies all sentient existence. When associated with a physical body, it is referred to as “mind” or “heart”. Being corrupted by the defiling influence of fundamental ignorance (avijjã), its currents “flow out” to manifest as feelings (vedanã), memory (saññã), thoughts (sankhãra), and consciousness (viññãna), thus embroiling the citta in a web of self-deception. It is deceived about its own true nature. The true nature of the citta is that it simply “knows”. There is no subject, no object, no duality; it simply knows. The citta does not arise or pass away; it is never born and never dies.
Normally, the “knowing nature” of the citta is timeless, boundless, and radiant, but this true nature is obscured by the defilements (kilesa) within it. Through the power of fundamental ignorance, a focal point of the “knower” is created from which that knowing nature views the world outside. The establishment of that false center creates a “self” from whose perspective consciousness flows out to perceive the duality of the “knower” and the “known”. Thus the citta becomes entangled with things that are born, become ill, grow old, and die, and therefore, deeply involved it in a whole mass of suffering.
In this book the citta is often referred to as the heart; the two are synonymous. The heart forms the core within the body. It is the center, the substance, the primary essence within the body. It is the basic foundation. Conditions that arise from the citta, such as thoughts, arise there. Goodness, evil, happiness, and suffering all come together in the heart.
Samãdhi meditation provides confirmation of the heart”s significance. When the citta gathers all of its outflowing currents into one point, the calm, still state of samãdhi arises. From the meditator”s perspective, that experience is centered in the middle of the chest. The stillness, the brightness, and the awareness of this experience appear to emanate prominently from the region of the heart. The knowing nature of the citta is pronounced right there. Thus, the true seat of consciousness is in the heart; and it is wise, therefore, to avoid thinking of the “mind” as essentially cerebral and located in the head.
There is a strong tendency to think that consciousness results purely from complex interactions within the human brain, and that when the brain dies, consciousness ceases. This mechanistic view is wholly mistaken. While there is evidence that certain parts of the brain can be identified with certain mental functions, that does not mean that the brain produces consciousness. In essence, the brain is a complex processing organ. It receives and processes incoming data impulses that inform about feelings, memory, thoughts, and consciousness, but it does not generate these mental functions; nor does it generate conscious awareness. That is entirely the province of the citta. (for a more detailed discussion see the Appendix on page 95)
心(citta)：心(或譯作“質多”)是意識(mind)知道的根本特性，是一切生命知道功能的根本特征。當與身相對論時，它是指意識(mind)或一般稱謂的心(heart)。由于心受到根本的無明所染汙，它往外流顯現成受、想、行和識，結果導致它卷入自我欺騙的圈套中。它蒙蔽了自己真正的本性。心的本性是它只是“知道”。沒有能知、所知，沒有二元對立；它只是知道。心不會生起或滅去，它不受生死。通常，心“知道的特性”是超越時間、無垠和光明的，可是這真正內在的特性被煩惱所覆蓋。由于根本無明的力量，當觀察外在世間時，一個“能知者”形成這知道特質的中心。這個錯誤的中心創造了“我”，在意識往外流時就産生二元對立的“能知者”與“所知者”。結果導致心糾纏于生、老、病、死中，純大苦聚集因此而生。在本書中，心通常是指一般用法的心(heart)，兩者一樣。心形成身中的核心。它是身中的中心、本體、根本。它是最根本的基礎。從心生起的狀態，例如想，從這裏生起。善、惡、快樂、悲傷皆在心中。叁摩地的禅修讓行者確定心的意義，當心把它所有的外流彙集在一點時，就進入叁摩地的甯靜和定 的境界。從禅修者的角度而言，他會在胸口中心體驗到這彙集點。在這體驗中的定、光明和覺知都清楚地顯示在心口這部位。心知道的特質在這裏顯現。所以識位于心口這個部位。因此，應明智地避免認爲意識在腦子裏運作，主要只有思維作用。一般總是以爲意識純粹只是在人腦內複雜的運作産生出來的，所以當腦死，意識即消失。這種機械化的觀念是根本上的錯誤。當我們能證明某些心理功能與頭腦的某些部分有關，並不就表示頭腦産生意識。本質上，頭腦只是一具複雜的運算器官。它接受從受、想、行和識輸入的訊息，然後加以處理，可是它並不産生這些心理功能，也不産生意識覺知。那些全在心的領域之內。(詳細的談論請閱讀本書附錄)
《心(citta)》全文閱讀結束。