....
(1) The cycle of Dependent Origination is usually called the ‘wheel of becoming’ (bhava-cakka) or the ‘wheel of rebirth’ (saṁsāra-cakka), and it covers three distinct lifetimes: ignorance (avijjā) and volitional formations (saṅkhāra) comprise one lifespan; consciousness (viññāṇa) to becoming (bhava) comprise another lifespan; and birth (jāti) and aging & death (jarā-maraṇa; along with sorrow, lamentation, etc.) comprise a third lifespan. By determining the middle interval (consciousness to becoming) as the present life, the three stages (containing twelve factors) can be connected to three periods of time:

1. Past life = ignorance and volitional formations.

2. Present life = consciousness, mind & body, the six sense bases, contact, feeling, craving, grasping, and becoming.

3. Future life = birth and aging & death (with sorrow, lamentation, etc.).

(2) In this three-life division, the present life is considered the principal period of time. The relationship of the past to the present is only viewed in the light of causal factors; the results manifesting in the present are traced back to the causes in the past (past causes → present results). Similarly, the view to the future pertains to results; present causes are linked to future results (present causes → future results). Therefore, only the present contains both results and causes; this relationship of cause and effect can be depicted as four stages:

1. Past causes (atīta-hetu) = ignorance and volitional formations.

2. Present results (pacuppanna-phala) = consciousness, mind & body, the six sense bases, contact, and feeling.

3. Present causes (pacuppanna-hetu) = craving, grasping, and becoming.

4.Future results (anāgata-phala) = birth and aging & death (with sorrow, lamentation, etc.)



(.... above is an extract from Buddhadhamma by Prayudh Payutto (Robin P. Moore translation))