Audio link, 3min Frankk note: The narrative portion is abridged, but the 10 thorns and some of the technical meditation points retain accuracy and nuance faithful to the pāḷi source text. AN 10.72 abridged translation In those days, the Blessed One dwelt at Vesālī in the Great Forest, in the Hall with the Peaked Roof, accompanied by several distinguished elder disciples—the venerables Cāla, Upacāla, Kukkuṭa, Kalimbha, Nikaṭa, and Kaṭissaha, along with other renowned senior monks. At that time, a number of prominent Licchavis arrived at the Great Forest in magnificent carriages, approaching with loud and boisterous commotion to see the Blessed One. Then this thought arose among those venerable elders: "These celebrated Licchavis come with their splendid vehicles, creating such clamor and disturbance to visit the Blessed One. Yet the Blessed One has taught that noise is a thorn to four jhānas. Perhaps we should withdraw to the Gosiṅga Sāla Grove, where we might dwell in quietu...
This is what the sutta is describing. Many well known monks, many elder monks, obviously skilled in all 4 jhānas (the sutta uses jhānā plural, so it's not only talking about first jhāna) are bothered by the loud noises of royal carriages, horses, royals yelling, WHILE they are in the 4 jhānas meditating, and the Buddha agrees they were right to leave the noise and go somewhere quieter. It's significant the sutta mentions MANY skilled, well known, and elder monks, to emphasize this isn't just a weak isolated outlier monk who has poor jhāna skill. In other words, it's expected that even skilled experienced jhāna meditators are bothered by especially loud noises, because you can hear sounds in jhāna. Heretical redefinition of "jhāna" that contradicts Buddha's Jhāna above The next video clip is showing a monk doing Visuddhimagga and Ajahn Brahm's heretical redefinition of "jhāna", where it's not possible to hear sounds, not possible to thin...