The Pali word Citta can be translated to Heart or Mind. There are two different words in Pali that get used for what we think of as mind, Citta and Manas. Manas pertains more to the intellectual aspect of the mind, while Citta has more to do with the emotive and feeling quality of the mind. For this reason, the English word Heart is a more appropriate translation for Citta than the word Mind.
The Citta is empty. Meaning, you can’t see it, measure it, or find it in space and time. Because it is empty, the Citta is very open and receptive. It takes on the qualities of that which it is connecting with. For example, if you had a container of water and poured green dye into it, the water would turn green—red dye, and the water would turn red. The water is clear, but takes on the quality of the dye. The Citta is clear and empty, but for better or worse, takes on, or is shaped by the qualities of that which it is knowing.
For this reason, it is important to be mindful of what qualities the Citta is getting imbued with in any given moment. This is why the Buddha stressed the importance of keeping the company of wise and kind people. Like a young child who takes on the qualities of the children they play with frequently, the Citta responds to the nature of the people we spend consistent time with. Even though the Citta is empty, it gets shaped by the flavors and currents of what it is coming into contact with. This happens for better or for worse. We all know people who display certain characteristics in a consistent way. Anger, kindness, generosity, jealousy, etc. This is because their Citta has been shaped or habituated by these qualities.
A very helpful and important way to cultivate the Citta in a wholesome way is to cultivate embodied awareness. The Buddha stressed mindfulness of the body often. The Citta and the somatic aspect of the body are very sympathetic to one another. As we meditate and cultivate embodied awareness, calm and steadiness in the body, the Citta, being empty and receptive, begins to take on these same qualities. It begins to come to rest, at home in the body. It’s not rushing out into the world looking to be fulfilled, and eating the junk food of sense-contact. We literally feed the Citta good food and give it a good home when our awareness is embodied.
Furthermore, when the Citta is not impassioned and rushing out into sense-contact, it can access one of its most important qualities. That is, to be able to reflect on how it feels. It can know it’s filled with anger, and additionally know, “how is this?” It can know it is filled with generosity and know, “how is this?” This is how we learn about what leads to suffering and what doesn’t. We learn through our own direct, somatic experience of the body. Remember, the Citta and the body are extremely sympathetic to one another. When the Citta is inflamed by wanting and not wanting, it will be felt somatically in the body. When the Citta is experiencing the calm and cool of equanimity, this too will be felt.
The reflective quality of the Citta to know, “how is this?” is crucial to the process of awakening. Yet, we need to give the Citta the good home and good food of being embodied for it to be able to access this capacity. In turn, we experience “how is this?” through the somatic bodily experience. We experientially know, this is suffering, this is not. Thus, embodied awareness plays a crucial role in helping the Citta to be present and calm, as well as being an instrument for experiencing what the Citta is feeling.