The samanantara-pratyaya is one of the catvārah pratyayāh regarding the arising of consciousness. Although the samanantara-pratyaya is not identified in the sutras, it has been discussed controversially in the Abhidharma. From the Abhidharma, the samanantara-pratyaya is the last concept that has been established within the scope of catvārah pratyayāh. It has the function of giving way and inducing the next consciousness and is of great significance in proving the doctrine of saṃsāra. Since different Buddhist schools have different explanations on whether the citta and caitta are corresponding, whether all the consciousnesses can arise together, and whether visual consciousness can be guided by mental consciousness, etc., the interpretation and overall meaning of the concept of samanantara-pratyaya are not identical among various schools.