''Pīti'' in Pali (

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominalization, nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cul ...

: ''Prīti'') is a mental factor (Pali:''cetasika'', Sanskrit: ''caitasika'') associated with the development of ''

jhāna In the oldest texts of Buddhism, ''dhyāna'' () or ''jhāna'' () is a component of the training of the mind (''bhavana''), commonly translated as meditation, to withdraw the mind from the automatic responses to sense-impressions, "burn up" the ...

'' (Sanskrit: ''dhyāna'') in

Buddhist meditation Buddhist meditation is the practice of meditation in Buddhism. The closest words for meditation in the classical languages of Buddhism are ''bhāvanā'' ("mental development") and '' jhāna/dhyāna'' (mental training resulting in a calm and l ...

. According to

Buddhadasa Bhikkhu Phra Dharmakosācārya (Nguam Indapañño) ( th, พระธรรมโกศาจารย์ (เงื่อม อินฺทปญฺโญ); ), also known as Buddhadāsa Bhikkhu ( th, พุทธทาสภิกขุ; , 27 May 1906 � ...

, ''piti'' is a stimulating, exciting and energizing quality, as opposed to the calmness of ''sukha''.

Definition

Piti is a joyful

saṅkhāra (Pali; सङ्खार; Sanskrit: संस्कार or ) is a term figuring prominently in Buddhism. The word means 'formations' or 'that which has been put together' and 'that which puts together'. In the first (passive) sense, ' refer ...

(formation) associated with no object, so the practitioner is not attaining it by desire. It is often translated into the English word "rapture" and is distinguished from the longer-lasting meditative "joy" or "happiness" (Pali, Sanskrit: '' sukha'') which is a subtler feeling which arises alongside ''pīti''.

Mental factor in meditation

In the commentarial tradition on

, the development of ''jhāna'' (Sanskrit: ''dhyāna'') is described as the development of five

mental factors Mental factors ( sa, चैतसिक, caitasika or ''chitta samskara'' ; pi, cetasika; Tibetan: སེམས་བྱུང ''sems byung''), in Buddhism, are identified within the teachings of the Abhidhamma (Buddhist psychology). They are d ...

(''cetasika'') that counteract the

five hindrances In the Buddhist tradition, the five hindrances ( Sinhala: ''පඤ්ච නීවරණ pañca nīvaraṇa''; Pali: ') are identified as mental factors that hinder progress in meditation and in our daily lives. In the Theravada tradition, these ...

: # '' vitakka'' ("applied thought") counteracts sloth and torpor (lethargy and drowsiness) # '' vicāra'' ("sustained thought") counteracts doubt (uncertainty) # ''pīti'' (rapture) counteracts ill-will (malice) # '' sukha'' (non-sensual pleasure") counteracts restlessness-worry (excitation and anxiety) # ''

ekaggata Ekaggatā (Pali; Sanskrit: '' ekāgratā'', एकाग्रता, "one-pointedness") is a Pali Buddhist term, meaning tranquility of mind or one-pointedness, but also "unification of mind." According to the Theravada-tradition, in their reint ...

'' (one-pointedness) counteracts sensory desire Both ''pīti'' and ''sukha'' are born of bodily seclusion and mental quietude in first ''jhāna'', then are born of focused concentration (''samādhi'') in the second ''jhāna'' but only ''sukha'' is sustained in the third ''jhāna'' while ''pīti'' fades away in the course of cultivating pure, mindful

equanimity Equanimity (Latin: ''æquanimitas'', having an even mind; ''aequus'' even; ''animus'' mind/soul) is a state of psychological stability and composure which is undisturbed by experience of or exposure to emotions, pain, or other phenomena that may ...

(''upekkhāsatipārisuddhi''). The 5th century CE '' Visuddhimagga'' distinguishes between ''pīti'' and ''sukha'' in the following experiential manner: :And wherever the two are associated, happiness ere, Ñāamoli's translation of ''pīti''is the contentedness at getting a desirable object, and bliss 'sukha''is the actual experiencing of it when got. Where there is happiness 'pīti''there is bliss (pleasure) 'sukha'' but where there is bliss 'sukha''there is not necessarily happiness 'pīti'' Happiness is included in the formations

aggregate Aggregate or aggregates may refer to: Computing and mathematics * collection of objects that are bound together by a root entity, otherwise known as an aggregate root. The aggregate root guarantees the consistency of changes being made within the ...

; bliss is included in the

feeling Feelings are subjective self-contained phenomenal experiences. According to the ''APA Dictionary of Psychology'', a feeling is "a self-contained phenomenal experience"; and feelings are "subjective, evaluative, and independent of the sensations ...

aggregate. If a man exhausted in a desert saw or heard about a pond on the edge of a wood, he would have happiness; if he went into the wood's shade and used the water, he would have bliss....

Fivefold classification

As the meditator experiences tranquillity (''

samatha ''Samatha'' ( Pāli; sa, शमथ ''śamatha''; ), "calm," "serenity," "tranquillity of awareness," and ''vipassanā'' ( Pāli; Sanskrit ''vipaśyanā''), literally "special, super (''vi-''), seeing (''-passanā'')", are two qualities of t ...

''), one of five kinds of physical pleasure (''piti'') will arise. These are: *Weak rapture only causes piloerection. *Short rapture evocates some thunder "from time to time". *Going down rapture explodes inside the body, like waves. *Exalting rapture "makes the body jump to the sky". *Fulfilling rapture seems to be a huge flood of a mountain stream. Note that only the last two are considered piti, specifically. The first four are a preparation for the final stage, which is the jhanic factor. Vsm. IV, 94-99 (Ñāamoli, 1999, pp. 141-2).

Definition

Mental factor in meditation

Fivefold classification

See also

Notes

References

Further reading