vicikicchā
Doubt
[ vee-chee-KICH-chaa ]
Seeing it in life
Vicikicchā cannot determine the object as ‘thus.’ It is the fifth hindrance and uprooted at stream-entry.
In short
Spiritual indecision about the Buddha, Dhamma, Sangha, training.
The analysis
Vicikicchā cannot settle the mind on its object as 'thus' — a specific inability to determine, distinct from ordinary intellectual questioning. It's one of the five hindrances and one of the ten fetters, uprooted entirely at stream-entry — its removal is part of what defines that stage.
Where it sits
Vicikicchā's direct opposite is adhimokkha, decision — where adhimokkha settles the mind as 'thus,' vicikicchā prevents that settling.
The specific paralysis of not being able to commit to trying a new way of relating to a difficult feeling, not from weighing evidence and finding it wanting, but from an unsettled wavering that won't resolve, is vicikicchā.
Commonly mistaken for
Healthy skepticism or careful inquiry. Genuine investigation, held with curiosity, is different from the specific unsettled wavering vicikicchā names.
A permanent trait of an uncertain personality. It's uprooted entirely at stream-entry, not a fixed disposition.
Abhidhammattha Saṅgaha II; Nīvaraṇa Saṃyutta (SN 46).
Related terms