Vitarka-vicāra
In Buddhism, vitarka (Sanskrit (वितर्क); Pali: "vitakka"; ), "applied thought," "attention," and vicāra (Sanskrit (विचार) and Pali; ), "discernment," "sustained thinking," are qualities or elements of the first "dhyāna" or "jhāna". In the Pali canon, "Vitakka-vicāra" form one expression, referring to "the normal process of discursive thought," which is quieted through absorption in the second "jhāna". The Buddhist commentarial tradition, as represented by the contemporary Theravāda, interprets "vitarka" and "vicāra" as the initial and sustained application of attention to a meditational object, which culminates in the stilling of the mind. Etymology. "Vitarka" (Sanskrit: वितर्क ), "thoughts," "applied thought," "applied attention ." its roots are: "Vitarka" may refer to mental activities that are manifest both in normal consciousness and in the first stage of "dhyana". In general, it means "thought," "applied thought," or "distracted thoughts." According to Bhikkhu Bodhi, "In the Suttas, the word Vittaka is often used in the loose sense of thought, but in the Abhidhamma it is used in a precise technical sense to mean the mental factor that mounts or directs the mind towards an object." "Vicāra" (Sanskrit: विचार) means "thought" or "idea." Its roots are: "Vitarka" investigates things roughly, while "vicāra" investigates things exactly. Mental factors in  meditation. "Vitarka" and "vicāra" are two of the mental factors ("cetasika") present during the first "dhyāna" (Pali: "jhāna"), and which are absent in the higher jhanas. According to Roderick S. Bucknell, ""vitakka-vicāra", the factor that particularly characterizes the first jhāna, is probably nothing other than the normal process of discursive thought, the familiar but usually unnoticed stream of mental imagery and verbalization". Martin Stuart-Fox explains, referring to Rhys Davids and Stede, when "vitarka-vicāra" are mentioned in tandem, they are one expression, "to cover "all" varieties of thinking, including sustained and focused thought. It is thinking in this  inclusive sense that the meditator suppresses through concentration when he attains one-ness of mind and thus moves from first to second "jhāna"". Ulrich Timme Kragh explains vitarka (discernment) and vicāra (discursiveness), as understood by the "Yogācārabhūmi-Śāstra," thus: Discernment is "the cognitive operation that is responsible for ascertaining what is perceived by the senses by initially labeling it with a name", while Discursiveness is "the subsequent conceptual operation of deciding whether the perceived sense-object is desirable and what course of action one might want to take in relation to it". According to Polak, in the Pali Canon "vitarka  and vicāra" are mostly related to thinking about the sense-impressions, which give rise to further egoistical thought and action. The stilling of this thinking fits into the Buddhist training of sense-withdrawal and right effort, culminating in the equanimity and mindfulness of "dhyana"-practice. According to Stuart-Fox, the Abhidhamma separated "vitarka" from "vicāra", and "ekaggatā" (onepointedness) was added to the description first "jhāna" to give an equal number of five hindrances and five antidotes. The commentarial tradition regards the qualities of the first "jhāna" to be antidotes to the five hindrances, and "ekaggatā" may have been added to the  first "jhāna" to give exactly five anti-dotes for the five hindrances. While initially simply referring to thought, which is present at the onset of "dhyāna", the terms "vitarka" and "vicāra" were re-interpreted by the developing Abhidharma and commentarial tradition. In Theravāda, "vitarka" is one of the mental factors that apprehend the quality of an object. It is the "initial application of attention" or the mind to its object, while "vicāra" is the sustained application of the mind on an object. "Vitarka" is regarded in the Theravāda tradition as an antidote for "thina-middha" (sloth and torpor), one of  the five hindrances. The Yogacara term "manas" means both "intentionality" or 'self-centered thinking', and "discriminative thinking" ("vikalpa"). The process of meditation aims at "non-thinking," stopping both these cognitive processes. Vitarka Mudrā. The "Vitarka mudrā", "mudra of discussion," expresses "vitarka," joining the tips of the thumb and the index together, and keeping the other fingers straight. This mudra has a great number of variants in Mahāyāna Buddhism, and is also known as "" and "Vyākhyāna mudrā" ("mudra of explanation"). External links. Mahāyāna tradition: Theravāda tradition: