cetanā team

from intention to action

cetanā = coordinating action, actualizing goals

• Cetanā [f. abstr. fr. cet, see cinteti ("think, perceive")] state of ceto (mind/heart) in action, thinking as active thought, intention, purpose, will.

  • The commentarial compendium Visuddhimagga (463) says that abhisandahati is the meaning of cetanā ("abhisandahatīti attho").

  • Abhisandahati [abhi + sandahati of saŋ + dhā (to put, place)] to put together, to make ready.

• "Cetanā, from the same root as citta, is the mental factor that is concerned with the actualization of a goal, that is, the conative or volitional aspect of cognition. Thus it is rendered volition. The Commentaries explain that cetanā organizes its associated mental factors in acting upon the object. Its characteristic is the state of willing, its function is to accumulate (kamma), and its manifestation is coordination. Its proximate cause is the associated states. Just as a chief pupil recites his own lesson and also makes the other pupils recite their lessons, so when volition starts to work on its object, it sets the associated states to do their own tasks as well. Volition is the most significant mental factor in generating kamma, since it is volition that determines the ethical quality of the action." (Bhikkhu Bodhi, trans. A Comprehensive Manual of Abhidhamma, 1993, p.80)

• Tasks:

  • decisions about the outward face of org, including

    • overall website presentation

  • decide on teams required and structure of the organization

    • including decisions about which questions are to be answered by which teams

  • ensure teams are in place and working in a timely, coordinated manner on:

    • Collaboration: guidelines for collaboration & feedback

    • Community: with wisdom from practitioners in a variety of age groups and cultural backgrounds

    • Inquiry: laying an intellectual foundation to go forward confidently with practice

    • Quiet: planning small retreats that are easy to support, and supportive of quiet, continuous, wholehearted cultivation

    • Guidance: recruiting & supporting teachers