Overview
Together with the 7 Universals, the Six Occasional Mental Factors (Pakiṇṇaka) constitute the ethically variable group (aññasamānā). They are called “occasionals” because, unlike the universals, they do not arise in every consciousness. Instead, they drop into the consciousness stream sporadically, depending on the specific type of focus, and they can combine with either wholesome, unwholesome, or indeterminate states of mind.
The List
- Vitakka - Applied Thought: The mental factor that mounts or directs the mind onto the object, lifting it out of the bhavaṅga passive stream. It serves as the first factor of jhāna.
- Vicāra - Sustained Thought: The mental factor that keeps the mind anchored, stroking, and examining the object that vitakka has mounted. It serves as the second factor of jhāna.
- Adhimokkha - Decision / Resolution: The factor that locks onto the object with certainty, acting like a judge who chooses a verdict, overcoming indecision.
- Viriya - Energy / Effort: The heroic, supportive force that drives and sustains mental application, preventing the mind from collapsing into laziness.
- Pīti - Rapture / Zest: The mental thrill, interest, and joy generated by encountering a desirable object or achieving a meditative anchor.
- Chanda - Desire to act / Conation: The raw, ethically neutral will or aspiration to perform an action or reach an object. When wholesome, it serves as the basis for spiritual power (iddhipāda).
Textual References
- Abhidhamma: Dhammasaṅgaṇī – Details how these six alternate across the sense-sphere, fine-material, and supramundane states of consciousness.