Buddha Abhidhamma - Ultimate Science - BuddhaNet

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Three types of Bhavaïga Cittas
In the present life the bhavaïga cittas take the maranàsannanimitta
of the immediate past life as their object. As this object
is not the new external object that appears in one of the sense
doors in the present life that gives rise to a cognitive series of
consciousness, we are not aware of it. So when we are asleep
or when we do not know anything, these bhavaïga-cittas will
be arising and dissolving at a tremendous speed of more than
a thousand billion (10 12 ) times per eye-wink.
Now suppose that a sense-object appears at one of the
sense-doors. It is necessary to know this new object so that we
can react to it as the need arises. In order to turn the stream of
consciousness towards this new object, the stream of bhavaïgacittas
must be arrested or cut off first.
The bhavaïga-stream cannot be arrested suddenly as soon
as the new sense object appears in one of the sense-doors. As
a man, running very fast, cannot stop suddenly at a point and
at least a few steps must be allowed before he comes to rest, so
also two bhavaïga-cittas must pass after the appearance of the
sense-object before the bhavaïga-stream can be arrested.
These two bhavaïga-cittas, in trying to give away the old
maranàsanna-nimitta and take the new sense-object, vibrate
somewhat from their normal situation. So they are known as
vibrating life-continuum (bhavaïga-calàna). But, as the bhavaïgastream
is arrested or cut off after the second bhavaïga-calàna,
this citta is renamed as bhavaïgupaccheda.
Now the five physical sense-objects do not appear or
become distinct at the sense-doors as soon as they are in contact
with the sense-doors. Even the object of very great intensity
(atimahantà-rammaõa) takes one conscious-moment (cittakkhaõa)