Overview
The seventh triad of the Abhidhamma Mātikā refines the analysis of feeling. Rather than just pleasant/painful, it categorizes consciousness based on its association with specific meditative and positive emotional states: Joy/Rapture (Pīti), Bliss/Pleasure (Sukha), and Equanimity (Upekkhā).
The List
- Pītisahagatā dhammā - States accompanied by joy: Consciousness where there is active mental thrill, zest, and rapture (includes the lower jhānas and joyful sense-sphere states).
- Sukhasahagatā dhammā - States accompanied by pleasure: Consciousness where there is bliss, but the active thrill of joy has faded (e.g., the Third Jhāna, which is peaceful and blissful but completely free of rapture).
- Upekkhāsahagatā dhammā - States accompanied by equanimity: Consciousness characterized by perfect neutrality and balanced feeling (includes the highest jhānas and neutral sense-sphere states).
Textual References
- Abhidhamma: Dhammasaṅgaṇī (Mātikā 7) – Used extensively to classify the higher meditative absorptions where the coarse feeling of rapture is abandoned for refined bliss, which is then abandoned for supreme equanimity.