Grammatical Analysis
Pacchājātapaccaya: [m.] Post-nascence condition; Condition of arising later. Formed by pacchā (after, later, behind) + jāta (born, arisen) + paccaya (condition).
Orthodox Definition
Pacchājāta-paccaya is the eleventh of the 24 Conditions. It is the exact opposite of the pre-nascence condition. It describes a situation where a mental phenomenon arises after a physical phenomenon, but the later-arising mind still supports and sustains the previously born physical body.
In Abhidhamma physics, the physical body of a living being is continuously generated by past kamma, but it requires the continuous arising of present consciousness (citta) to keep it alive and prevent it from decaying into a corpse. Even though the current body was born before the current thought, the current thought acts as a post-nascence support.
The classic commentarial simile is rainwater supporting existing vegetation. The trees were born long before the rain fell, but the later-arising rain sustains the pre-existing trees and keeps them green. Similarly, later-arising mind-moments sustain the pre-existing body.
Textual References
- Abhidhamma: Paṭṭhāna – “Post-nascent consciousness and mental factors are related to this pre-nascent body by post-nascence condition.”
- Commentary: Paṭṭhāna-aṭṭhakathā – Providing the simile of rainwater nourishing a pre-existing forest.