Grammatical Analysis
Vipākapaccaya: [m.] Kamma-result condition; Fruit condition. Formed by vipāka (result, ripening, fruit) + paccaya (condition).
Orthodox Definition
Vipāka-paccaya is the fourteenth of the 24 Conditions. While active kamma is full of effort, striving, and struggle, resultant states (vipāka) are characterized by absolute effortlessness and passivity.
When a resultant consciousness arises (like the pain of being burned or the pleasure of seeing a beautiful sight), all the mental factors arising alongside it are mutually supported by this effortless, passive quality. Because they are the quiet results of past actions, they do not have to struggle to perform their functions; they simply experience the fruit.
The commentaries use the simile of a cool breeze blowing through the shade of a large tree. Just as a person resting in that shade is completely free from the effort of walking in the hot sun, the mental states conditioned by vipāka-paccaya operate in a state of quiet, passive rest, devoid of karmic striving.
Textual References
- Abhidhamma: Paṭṭhāna – “Resultant indeterminate phenomena are related to [other] resultant indeterminate phenomena by result condition.”
- Commentary: Paṭṭhāna-aṭṭhakathā – Explaining that resultant states are uniquely peaceful (santi) because they lack the creative agitation of active volition.