citta

Citta is a term used in Sanskrit and Pali to denote the mind or consciousness, often translated as "heart" in a broad sense. Etymologically, it derives from a root meaning to perceive or to know, and it appears across Indian philosophical and religious traditions.

In Buddhist sources, citta refers to the mind as the locus of experience and mental events. In Theravada Abhidhamma and later scholastic writings, cittas are momentary states of consciousness arising with sense contact and accompanied by affect, intention, and cognition. Citta can be wholesomely or unwholesomely oriented, and it is linked to cetana (volition) and to mental factors that accompany perception. Buddhist models often describe the mind as a stream of cittas that includes a background continuity (bhavanga) and various conditioned states.

In Yoga and Vedanta, citta denotes the broader field of consciousness or the total mental apparatus. In Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, citta is the universal mind-stuff whose fluctuations or vrittis disturb true awareness; the aim is to restrain these fluctuations through disciplined practice to realize pure awareness. The five classic vrittis identified are right knowledge (pramana), wrong knowledge (viparyaya), imagination (vikalpa), sleep (nidra), and memory (smriti).

Across traditions, citta often serves as the central reference point for discussions of perception, emotion, and cognition. In modern contemplative contexts, the term remains a common way to refer to the mind or heart in mindfulness and meditation teachings, reflecting its enduring role in Indian philosophy of mind.