"WHAT THE JHĀNAS ACTUALLY ARE" by Bhikkhu Anīgha

[Sasha_A]

WHAT THE JHĀNAS ACTUALLY ARE by Bhikkhu Anīgha
(EPUB)

One of the most notable differences among today’s Buddhist teachers and traditions is their interpretation of the jhānas, as well as the practices that they assert are the way to achieve them. The mutual gaps between these views are particularly wide when it comes to the first jhāna, due to varying ideas of what the Pali term vitakkavicāra refers to, the characteristic factor of the initial and arguably most crucial establishment of mind, given that all the subsequent jhānas are, in a manner of speaking, successive refinements of the first. The first jhāna that the Suttas describe is also perfectly sufficient for Arahantship (MN 64 & AN 9.36).

The foremost, generally unquestioned assumption about the practice of jhāna (and mental cultivation in general) is that one or another form of continuous attention upon one object is necessary, and this itself rests on the idea samādhi is a state of focused attention. For this reason, the term jhāna has frequently been interpreted as meaning “absorption”. The reality is, however, that not even a concept of “absorption” is discussed, let alone encouraged, anywhere in the Suttas, nor does it correspond to any Pali term in the early texts, and is invariably being read into them and justified heuristically, if at all. In fact, the word jhāna has a very unambiguous meaning both in Pali and Sanskrit: thinking, contemplating, reflecting—meditating.1

The average person who is told to “meditate” would instead proceed to try to “empty their mind”, become hyper-aware of bodily sensations, and breathe deeply to achieve a bodily relaxation akin to what a massage provides. The more serious teachers and practices would then expand upon this, often in meticulous detail and with various nuances, slap Buddhist concepts and terminology into it after the fact, and present the final product as the core of the way towards Nibbāna.

I would just add that Venerable Anigha, the author of the article, is actively participating in the discussions in r/HillsideHermitage on Reddit. His presentation of the article in the subreddit can be found here: New Essay: What the Jhānas Actually Are

[Ceisiwr]

...

Bhante seems to suggest that vitakka-vicāra are present right up until the cessation of perception & feeling. If I recall this was also a Sarvāstivāda-Vaibhāṣika position, but I see little support for it.

These distorted ideas have come about due to the fact that what is widely thought of today as Buddhist meditation is, at best, for those who label themselves Early Buddhists, the result of rejecting only some parts of the overall framework put forth by later Buddhist Schools, the Theravada Commentaries and the Visuddhimagga, often unaware that the largest of all the elephants remains in the room. At worst, some base their views on later interpretations without a second thought. In either case, the premise that the gist of mental cultivation is concentration upon objects is rarely challenged, despite the critical Western attitude often being willing to strip basically everything else away from Buddhism.2

The problem I have with this is that it suggests that the early sangha just didn't know what it was doing when it comes to, not only the translation of words, but also the practice of meditation. The Sarvāstivāda-Vaibhāṣika defined samādhi as an "application of a pure mind onto a single object". The Sautrāntika also accepted this definition. The Mahīśāsaka and Pudgalavādins also defined it in a similar way. Did all these masters and schools get it wrong? Did they all fall to Brahmin yogic practices? Did they badly misunderstand the languages they were dealing with? I don't think they did. Whilst samādhi means collected, it also means concentrated. Your mind is collected and concentrated upon a single thing or theme, without the distractions of the hindrances.

Only then can one start to realize the gratification and danger in those phenomena while they persist, without which any apparent escape will be illusory. When the mind is taken by desire, one should, instead of cowering away by focusing on something else7, interpret that as a symptom of the mind not having sufficient clarity and confidence regarding the nature of pleasant experiences—which is what is being overlooked whenever one delights in them—and then get to work with developing that clarity and address the problem at its root8. This clarity/confidence being referred to is precisely what elevates the mind to the level of the first jhāna, not a meticulous manipulation of what objects and thoughts arise.

What Bhante forgets here is that the Buddha also recommended not giving attention to a hindrance, or substituting it with its opposite.

[mario92]

The jhanas are the most plausurable experience, but as layman one need merit and right conditions to attain them. The last time i attained jhana was like 1 year ago, and it was only 1st jhana. Seems more easy when i have less financial stress.

[Ceisiwr]

The jhanas are the most plausurable experience, but as layman one need merit and right conditions to attain them. The last time i attained jhana was like 1 year ago, and it was only 1st jhana. Seems more easy when i have less financial stress.

Are you sure it was Jhana?

[mario92]

I was with a Big smile in My face very strong i cannot hold it SO much and at the same time, thinking very quickly i was thinking in dhamma concepts. Before i sensed My mind in upacara Samadhi (calm state) and then meditated a little bit more, and then it happened.

[Ceisiwr]

I was with a Big smile in My face very strong i cannot hold it SO much and at the same time, thinking very quickly i was thinking in dhamma concepts. Before i sensed My mind in upacara Samadhi (calm state) and then meditated a little bit more, and then it happened.

What was the experience like exactly? What were you meditating on?

[mario92]

I was just feeling the smile i had, before i was doing breath meditation, but You need sexual abstinence For some time, which i couldnt hold it more, i was dwelling in Nature also, Maybe that helped also.

[mario92]

I was with a Big smile in My face very strong i cannot hold it SO much and at the same time, thinking very quickly i was thinking in dhamma concepts. Before i sensed My mind in upacara Samadhi (calm state) and then meditated a little bit more, and then it happened.

What was the experience like exactly? What were you meditating on?

The experience, i was doing it then My father called me and i had to stop. But mm it was just a little refreshing For the mind.

[pegembara]

Bhante seems to suggest that vitakka-vicāra are present right up until the cessation of perception & feeling. If I recall this was also a Sarvāstivāda-Vaibhāṣika position, but I see little support for it.

This is how it is presented in the Cullavedala.

"In-&-out breaths are bodily; these are things tied up with the body. That's why in-&-out breaths are bodily fabrications. Having first directed one's thoughts and made an evaluation, one then breaks out into speech. That's why directed thought & evaluation are verbal fabrications. Perceptions & feelings are mental; these are things tied up with the mind. That's why perceptions & feelings are mental fabrications."

"Now, lady, how does the attainment of the cessation of perception & feeling come about?"

"The thought does not occur to a monk as he is attaining the cessation of perception & feeling that 'I am about to attain the cessation of perception & feeling' or that 'I am attaining the cessation of perception & feeling' or that 'I have attained the cessation of perception & feeling.' Instead, the way his mind has previously been developed leads him to that state."

"But when a monk is attaining the cessation of perception & feeling, which things cease first: bodily fabrications, verbal fabrications, or mental fabrications?"

"When a monk is attaining the cessation of perception & feeling, friend Visakha, verbal fabrications cease first, then bodily fabrications, then mental fabrications."

[Ceisiwr]

"When a monk is attaining the cessation of perception & feeling, friend Visakha, verbal fabrications cease first, then bodily fabrications, then mental fabrications."

Indeed. And notice the following:

Verbal fabrications cease first- 2nd Jhana

Then bodily fabrications - 4th Jhana

Then mental fabrications - Cessation of Perception & Feeling

A progression through the attainments.

[pegembara]

"When a monk is attaining the cessation of perception & feeling, friend Visakha, verbal fabrications cease first, then bodily fabrications, then mental fabrications."

Indeed. And notice the following:

Verbal fabrications cease first- 2nd Jhana

Then bodily fabrications - 4th Jhana

Then mental fabrications - Cessation of Perception & Feeling

A progression through the attainments.

Then comes the interesting part- the reverse process and the resultant.

"But when a monk is emerging from the cessation of perception & feeling, which things arise first: bodily fabrications, verbal fabrications, or mental fabrications?"

"When a monk is emerging from the cessation of perception & feeling, friend Visakha, mental fabrications arise first, then bodily fabrications, then verbal fabrications."

"When a monk has emerged from the cessation of perception & feeling, lady, how many contacts make contact?"

"When a monk has emerged from the cessation of perception & feeling, friend Visakha, three contacts make contact: contact with emptiness, contact with the signless, & contact with the undirected."[2]

"When a monk has emerged from the cessation of perception & feeling, lady, to what does his mind lean, to what does it tend, to what does it incline?"

"When a monk has emerged from the cessation of perception & feeling, friend Visakha, his mind leans to seclusion, tends to seclusion, inclines to seclusion."

[ManiPutta]

One of the most notable differences among today’s Buddhist teachers and traditions is their interpretation of the jhānas, as well as the practices that they assert are the way to achieve them.

This subject sounds interesting. It is more interesting when an author starts with an extreme generalization, when saying: "today’s Buddhist teachers".

The mutual gaps between these views are particularly wide when it comes to the first jhāna, due to varying ideas of what the Pali term vitakkavicāra refers to, the characteristic factor of the initial and arguably most crucial establishment of mind

I have read about these things. This author again starts with an explicit assumption by saying vitakkavicāra is "most crucial establishment of mind". This is an assumption because even this is not agreed upon. Why would a state of developed concentration require "establishment" when it is expected it would already be established?

The first jhāna that the Suttas describe is also perfectly sufficient for Arahantship (MN 64 & AN 9.36).

I read about the noble eightfold path with four jhanas. If one jhana was perfectly sufficient for the path, why would the path teach about four jhanas? To add, if vitakkavicāra is "most crucial [for] establishment of mind", how can a mind not yet established reach full enlightenment? If the author can only find two suttas from thousands with an unconventional teaching it sounds wise to question these two unconventional teachings.

"The foremost, generally unquestioned assumption about the practice of jhāna (and mental cultivation in general) is that one or another form of continuous attention upon one object is necessary, and this itself rests on the idea samādhi is a state of focused attention. For this reason, the term jhāna has frequently been interpreted as meaning “absorption”.

I have read & heard about this.

The average person who is told to “meditate” would instead proceed to try to “empty their mind”

I have been taught his at meditation courses & retreats.

become hyper-aware of bodily sensations

Hyper aware can occur when the mind is empty.

and breathe deeply to achieve a bodily relaxation akin to what a massage provides.

This comment sounds strange. I have never heard silent meditation compared to massage. I read the Majjhima Nikaya and experiencing the whole body of breath & tranquillising the bodily formation is part of the instruction.

[zerotime]

Monks, these are the four developments of concentration. Which four? There is the development of concentration that, when developed & pursued, leads to a pleasant abiding in the here & now. There is the development of concentration that, when developed & pursued, leads to the attainment of knowledge & vision. There is the development of concentration that, when developed & pursued, leads to mindfulness & alertness. There is the development of concentration that, when developed & pursued, leads to the ending of the effluents.

First development (Jhana): "And what is the development of concentration that, when developed & pursued, leads to a pleasant abiding in the here & now? There is the case where a monk — quite withdrawn from sensuality, withdrawn from unskillful qualities — enters & remains in the first jhana: rapture & pleasure born from withdrawal, accompanied by directed thought & evaluation. With the stilling of directed thoughts & evaluations, he enters & remains in the second jhana: rapture & pleasure born of composure, unification of awareness free from directed thought & evaluation — internal assurance. With the fading of rapture, he remains equanimous, mindful, & alert, and senses pleasure with the body. He enters & remains in the third jhana, of which the Noble Ones declare, 'Equanimous & mindful, he has a pleasant abiding.' With the abandoning of pleasure & pain — as with the earlier disappearance of elation & distress — he enters & remains in the fourth jhana: purity of equanimity & mindfulness, neither pleasure nor pain. This is the development of concentration that, when developed & pursued, leads to a pleasant abiding in the here & now.

Second development (perception of light):"And what is the development of concentration that, when developed & pursued, leads to the attainment of knowledge & vision? There is the case where a monk attends to the perception of light and is resolved on the perception of daytime [at any hour of the day]. Day [for him] is the same as night, night is the same as day. By means of an awareness open & unhampered, he develops a brightened mind. This is the development of concentration that, when developed & pursued, leads to the attainment of knowledge & vision.

Third development (mindfullness):"And what is the development of concentration that, when developed & pursued, leads to mindfulness & alertness? There is the case where feelings are known to the monk as they arise, known as they persist, known as they subside. Perceptions are known to him as they arise, known as they persist, known as they subside. Thoughts are known to him as they arise, known as they persist, known as they subside. This is the development of concentration that, when developed & pursued, leads to mindfulness & alertness.

Fourth development (discernment on 4 aggregates):"And what is the development of concentration that, when developed & pursued, leads to the ending of the effluents? There is the case where a monk remains focused on arising & falling away with reference to the five clinging-aggregates: 'Such is form, such its origination, such its passing away. Such is feeling, such its origination, such its passing away. Such is perception, such its origination, such its passing away. Such are fabrications, such their origination, such their passing away. Such is consciousness, such its origination, such its disappearance.' This is the development of concentration that, when developed & pursued, leads to the ending of the effluents.

"These are the four developments of concentration.

https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitak ... .than.html

"samadhibhavana" is the pali term used for these 4 trainings/developments.

IMHO what is he is doing is expanding the meaning of the word jhana to embrace other types. This is necessary in practical terms, because like the AN 4.41 shows, the establishment in jhanas according what many people understand, it is just one of these 4 types of trainings in samadhi. And as we are reading this is unable by itself for nibbana and to subdue all defilements

His investigation sounds good in practical terms, specially for people engaged in a training of jhanas.

Words are like a dead thing, just are sounds. We influx the meanings by means understanding. However, similar to what happens with the deceased, the world request a social respect for the memory of the deceased. Then we are requested to use the exact word despite this is like a dress. There is many people using exact words without any experience of what lies behind. While other people can use words in a non-orthodox way and there is a real knowledge of what lies behind.

In that expansion of the jhana meaning he is requesting a new reading and understanding of the article written by Bhikkhu Bodhi. IMHO this is not necessary for practical purposes, and logically it can be a source of contradictions. Because B.Bodhi and other translators takes care to not challenge the textual orthodoxy. And any attempt to show a key word redefinition will become very problematic and contradictory with many Suttas. Then one can fall in a land to defence the words while the issue is the contents of the words.

If something works in practical terms, the world approval is quite secondary. We have seen in the Past similar problems of textual orthodoxy with the use of "citta" by some forest bhikkhus. These problems with the words doesn't mean nothing in practical terms, always depends of what lies behind. Although when a new use for a key word is leaved to the world, probably few people will agree. Only those engaged in that approach would be able to catch what lies behind the words.

[zerotime]

typo error -> Fourth development (discernment on 5 aggregates)