I thought the actual question was 'do arahants have cetanā like normal human beings/worldlings', that's why I said no.tiltbillings wrote:So they do not choose to act?
Bhikkhu Vimalo wrote:In the Anguttara-Nikaya (A I 254) the Buddha describes three kinds of defilements: coarse, medium, and subtle. The coarse ones are: wrong action (kaya-duccarita), wrong speech (vaci-duccarita) and wrong thinking (mano-duccarita); the medium ones are: sensual, hostile, and aggressive thoughts (kama-, byapada-, vihimsa-vitakka); the subtle defilements are: thinking about relatives, country, and not being despised (ñati-, janapada-, anavaññatti-patisamyutta vitakka).
It is not possible to get rid of these unhealthy inclinations without first making their driving forces conscious. Buddha called these driving forces (be they conscious or unconscious) cetana and said, “Intention, O monks, I call kamma” (cetana ’ham, bhikkhave, kammam vadami). (A III 415; S II 40) Cetana may be translated as will, volition, intention, inclination, drive, striving, direction, tendency, or motivation. In the Sutta-pitaka several types of cetana are distinguished, namely, the driving forces of our action (kaya-sañcetana), speech (vaci-sañcetana), and thought (mano-sañcetana); (S II 40; A II 158) rupa-, sadda-, gandha-, rasa-, photthabba-sañcetana, (S III 60) the reaction to sense-objects, or interest in them (Freud’s cathexis, i.e. the investing of an object with libido); and dhamma-sañcetana, (S III 60) the reaction to ideas, memories, imagination and their cathexis. Lastly there is our attitude towards ourselves (atta-sañcetana) and towards others (para-sañcetana). (D III 231; A II 159)
─ Peter Harvey, Personality, Consciousness and Nirvana in Early Buddhism