Friday, February 8, 2019

AN 9.41 Ajahn Brahm's wrong view of jhāna evident here

Like SN 40.1 - 40.9, AN 9.41 also shows that an impure jhana is still called "jhana".
https://notesonthedhamma.blogspot.com/2019/02/sn-401-impure-jhana-is-still-jhana.html

The difficulty of first jhana, is training your mind to find pleasure in renunciation from sensual pleasures (such as sex, drugs, rock and roll, food), rather than indulging in it like a worldly person. Even the Buddha had to struggle with that once, as you see in this sutta.

So the next step to first jhana, is training your mind to think thoughts of renunciation, rather than thoughts connected to sensual pleasure and the 5 hindrances.

Ajahn Brahm's wrong view of jhana, is a completely different kind of samadhi training, and adds several very difficult requirements on top of renunciation from sensual pleasures. There is no support for his wrong view in any EBT sutta. At all.  I've looked at every single passage that references first jhana in the EBT suttas, many times. I made a log of it here so you can verify for yourself if you have any doubts.
http://lucid24.org/sted/8aam/8samadhi/smd1/index.html

The way Vism. and Abhidhamma go about redefining jhana, is criminal. They redefine important terms like kāya (body), sukha-indriya (to be only mental, not physical), vitakka & vicara (as "placing the mind" & "keeping it connected").

A full pali+english audit with explanation of how they commit these crime here:
http://lucid24.org/sted/8aam/8samadhi/ebt-vs-vism/index.html

If Vism.'s redefinition of jhana is criminal, Ajahn Brahm's redefinition is arguably worse, because it compromises the sanctity of the EBT, and casts doubt on anything and everything in the suttas. When you can't rely on conventional understandings of important basic terms like "body", "thinking", etc., you don't have confidence of what anything means in the EBT.  He tries to redefine kaya by reinterpreting what kāma  means in the first jhana formula.

This sutta makes it very clear the Buddha is talking about sensual pleasures (like food, sex, music), not going into an arupa samadhi where the body disappears (you can't feel mosquitoes biting you, you can't hear sounds, you can't feel leg pain). In the gradual 9 samadhi tranining of the EBT,  the body disappearing doesn't happen until after fourth jhana.

If the the body disappeared before entering the first jhana, then the buddha would not need to describe that happening again after the fourth. And he certainly would need to mention it in this sutta as a precondition to first jhana.


excerpt from AN 9.41 

“Mayaṃ, bhante ānanda, gihī kāmabhogino kāmārāmā kāmaratā kāmasammuditā.
“Sir, Ānanda, we are laypeople who enjoy sensual pleasures. We like sensual pleasures, we love them and take joy in them.
Tesaṃ no, bhante, amhākaṃ gihīnaṃ kāmabhogīnaṃ kāmārāmānaṃ kāmaratānaṃ kāmasammuditānaṃ papāto viya khāyati, yadidaṃ nekkhammaṃ.
But renunciation seems like an abyss.
Sutaṃ metaṃ, bhante, ‘imasmiṃ dhammavinaye daharānaṃ daharānaṃ bhikkhūnaṃ nekkhamme cittaṃ pakkhandati pasīdati santiṭṭhati vimuccati etaṃ santanti passato’.
I have heard that in this teaching and training there are very young monks whose minds are eager for renunciation; they’re confident, settled, and decided about it. They see it as peaceful.
Tayidaṃ, bhante, imasmiṃ dhammavinaye bhikkhūnaṃ bahunā janena visabhāgo, yadidaṃ nekkhamman”ti.
Renunciation is the dividing line between between the multitude and the monks in this teaching and training.”
“Atthi kho etaṃ, gahapati, kathāpābhataṃ bhagavantaṃ dassanāya.
“Householder, we should see the Buddha about this matter.
Āyāma, gahapati, yena bhagavā tenupasaṅkamissāma; upasaṅkamitvā bhagavato etamatthaṃ ārocessāma.
Come, let’s go to the Buddha and inform him about this.
Yathā no bhagavā byākarissati tathā naṃ dhāressāmā”ti.
As he answers, so we’ll remember it.”
“Evaṃ, bhante”ti kho tapusso gahapati āyasmato ānandassa paccassosi.
“Yes, sir,” replied Tapussa.
Atha kho āyasmā ānando tapussena gahapatinā saddhiṃ yena bhagavā tenupasaṅkami; upasaṅkamitvā bhagavantaṃ abhivādetvā ekamantaṃ nisīdi. Ekamantaṃ nisinno kho āyasmā ānando bhagavantaṃ etadavoca:
Then Ānanda together with Tapussa went to the Buddha, bowed, and sat down to one side. Ānanda told him what had happened.
“Evametaṃ, ānanda, evametaṃ, ānanda.
“That’s so true, Ānanda! That’s so true!
Mayhampi kho, ānanda, pubbeva sambodhā anabhisambuddhassa bodhisattasseva sato etadahosi:
Before my awakening—when I was still unawakened but intent on awakening—I too thought:
‘sādhu nekkhammaṃ, sādhu paviveko’ti.
Renunciation is good! Seclusion is good!’
Tassa mayhaṃ, ānanda, nekkhamme cittaṃ na pakkhandati nappasīdati na santiṭṭhati na vimuccati etaṃ santanti passato.
But my mind wasn’t eager for renunciation; it wasn’t confident, settled, and decided about it. I didn’t see it as peaceful.
Tassa mayhaṃ, ānanda, etadahosi:
Then I thought:
‘ko nu kho hetu ko paccayo, yena me nekkhamme cittaṃ na pakkhandati nappasīdati na santiṭṭhati na vimuccati etaṃ santanti passato’?
‘What is the cause, what is the reason why my mind isn’t eager for renunciation, and not confident, settled, and decided about it? Why don’t I see it as peaceful?’
Tassa mayhaṃ, ānanda, etadahosi:
Then I thought:
kāmesu kho me ādīnavo adiṭṭho, so ca me abahulīkato, nekkhamme ca ānisaṃso anadhigato, so ca me anāsevito.
‘I haven’t seen the drawbacks of sensual pleasures, and so I haven’t cultivated that. I haven’t realized the benefits of renunciation, and so I haven’t developed that.
Tasmā me nekkhamme cittaṃ na pakkhandati nappasīdati na santiṭṭhati na vimuccati etaṃ santanti passato’.
That’s why my mind isn’t eager for renunciation, and not confident, settled, and decided about it. And it’s why I don’t see it as peaceful.’
Tassa mayhaṃ, ānanda, etadahosi:
Then I thought:
‘sace kho ahaṃ kāmesu ādīnavaṃ disvā taṃ bahulaṃ kareyyaṃ, nekkhamme ānisaṃsaṃ adhigamma tamāseveyyaṃ,
‘Suppose that, seeing the drawbacks of sensual pleasures, I were to cultivate that. And suppose that, realizing the benefits of renunciation, I were to develop that. {Notice the Buddha doesn't say, "if I go into a hypnotic trance where my body disappears, I don't think any thoughts, then I can escape sensual pleasures. Instead he trains himself to  SEE DANGER & THINK thoughts of renunciation instead of SENSUAL PLEASURES}
ṭhānaṃ kho panetaṃ vijjati yaṃ me nekkhamme cittaṃ pakkhandeyya pasīdeyya santiṭṭheyya vimucceyya etaṃ santanti passato’.
It’s possible that my mind would be eager for renunciation; it would be confident, settled, and decided about it. And I would see it as peaceful.’
So kho ahaṃ, ānanda, aparena samayena kāmesu ādīnavaṃ disvā taṃ bahulamakāsiṃ, nekkhamme ānisaṃsaṃ adhigamma tamāseviṃ.
And so, after some time, I saw the drawbacks of sensual pleasures and cultivated that, and I realized the benefits of renunciation and developed that.
Tassa mayhaṃ, ānanda, nekkhamme cittaṃ pakkhandati pasīdati santiṭṭhati vimuccati etaṃ santanti passato.
Then my mind was eager for renunciation; it was confident, settled, and decided about it. I saw it as peaceful.
So kho ahaṃ, ānanda, vivicceva kāmehi vivicca akusalehi dhammehi savitakkaṃ savicāraṃ vivekajaṃ pītisukhaṃ paṭhamaṃ jhānaṃ upasampajja viharāmi.
And so, quite secluded from sensual pleasures, secluded from unskillful qualities, I entered and remained in the first jhāna, which has the rapture and pleasure born of seclusion, while directing-thought and evaluation.

(impure first jhāna: interrupted by impure perceptions)

Tassa mayhaṃ, ānanda, iminā vihārena viharato kāmasahagatā saññāmanasikārā samudācaranti. Svassa me hoti ābādho.
While I was in that meditation, perceptions and attentions accompanied by sensual pleasures beset me, and that was an affliction for me.
Seyyathāpi, ānanda, sukhino dukkhaṃ uppajjeyya yāvadeva ābādhāya;
Suppose a happy person were to experience pain; that would be an affliction for them.
evamevassa me kāmasahagatā saññāmanasikārā samudācaranti. Svassa me hoti ābādho.
In the same way, when perceptions and attentions accompanied by sensual pleasures beset me, that was an affliction for me.
Tassa mayhaṃ, ānanda, etadahosi:
Then I thought:
‘yannūnāhaṃ vitakkavicārānaṃ vūpasamā … pe … dutiyaṃ jhānaṃ upasampajja vihareyyan’ti.
‘Why don’t I, as the directed-thought and evaluation are stilled … enter and remain in the second jhāna?’
Tassa mayhaṃ, ānanda, avitakke cittaṃ na pakkhandati nappasīdati na santiṭṭhati na vimuccati etaṃ santanti passato.
But my mind wasn’t eager to stop thinking; it wasn’t confident, settled, and decided about it. I didn’t see it as peaceful.
Tassa mayhaṃ, ānanda, etadahosi:
Then I thought:
‘ko nu kho hetu ko paccayo, yena me avitakke cittaṃ na pakkhandati nappasīdati na santiṭṭhati na vimuccati etaṃ santanti passato’?
‘What is the cause, what is the reason why my mind isn’t eager to stop thinking, and not confident, settled, and decided about it? Why don’t I see it as peaceful?’
Tassa mayhaṃ, ānanda, etadahosi:
Then I thought:
‘vitakkesu kho me ādīnavo adiṭṭho, so ca me abahulīkato, avitakke ca ānisaṃso anadhigato, so ca me anāsevito.
‘I haven’t seen the drawbacks of thinking, and so I haven’t cultivated that. I haven’t realized the benefits of not thinking, and so I haven’t developed that.
Tasmā me avitakke cittaṃ na pakkhandati nappasīdati na santiṭṭhati na vimuccati etaṃ santanti passato’.
That’s why my mind isn’t eager to stop thinking, and not confident, settled, and decided about it. And it’s why I don’t see it as peaceful.’
Tassa mayhaṃ, ānanda, etadahosi:
Then I thought:
‘sace kho ahaṃ vitakkesu ādīnavaṃ disvā taṃ bahulaṃ kareyyaṃ, avitakke ānisaṃsaṃ adhigamma tamāseveyyaṃ, ṭhānaṃ kho panetaṃ vijjati yaṃ me avitakke cittaṃ pakkhandeyya pasīdeyya santiṭṭheyya vimucceyya etaṃ santanti passato’.
‘Suppose that, seeing the drawbacks of thinking, I were to cultivate that. And suppose that, realizing the benefits of not thinking, I were to develop that. It’s possible that my mind would be eager to stop thinking; it would be confident, settled, and decided about it. And I would see it as peaceful.’
So kho ahaṃ, ānanda, aparena samayena vitakkesu ādīnavaṃ disvā taṃ bahulamakāsiṃ, avitakke ānisaṃsaṃ adhigamma tamāseviṃ.
And so, after some time, I saw the drawbacks of thinking and cultivated that, and I realized the benefits of not thinking and developed that.
Tassa mayhaṃ, ānanda, avitakke cittaṃ pakkhandati pasīdati santiṭṭhati vimuccati etaṃ santanti passato.
Then my mind was eager to stop thinking; it was confident, settled, and decided about it. I saw it as peaceful.
So kho ahaṃ, ānanda, vitakkavicārānaṃ vūpasamā … pe … dutiyaṃ jhānaṃ upasampajja viharāmi.
And so, as the directed-thought and evaluation were stilled … I was entering and remaining in the second jhāna.

(impure second jhāna: interrupted by impure perceptions of thoughts)

Tassa mayhaṃ, ānanda, iminā vihārena viharato vitakkasahagatā saññāmanasikārā samudācaranti. Svassa me hoti ābādho.
While I was in that meditation, perceptions and attentions accompanied by directing-thought beset me, and that was an affliction for me.
Seyyathāpi, ānanda, sukhino dukkhaṃ uppajjeyya yāvadeva ābādhāya;
Suppose a happy person were to experience pain; that would be an affliction for them.
evamevassa me vitakkasahagatā saññāmanasikārā samudācaranti. Svassa me hoti ābādho.
In the same way, should perceptions and attentions accompanied by directed-thought and evaluation beset them, that’s an affliction for them.



1 comment:

  1. One of the key differences between suttanta jhanas and the Visuddhimagga jhanas is as follows: Vism. jhanas are a result of what is strictly an exercise in exclusive attentional training. Such an exercise can be done completely independent of the moral-psycho-behavioral implications of the Dhamma, and are trance-like absorption that can take place without the frame of the Dhamma. Suttanta jhanas incline the mind in the direction of renunciation and of all the goals of the Dhamma, basing themselves on Right Mindfulness (consistent keeping in mind of the Dhamma's purpose, orientation, and method).
    Being an indispensable part of the liberative path, Suttanta jhanas are training in weaning off the mind of the grossest kind of craving, that of sensuality. The composure, steadiness, lucidity, non-distractibility of suttanta jhanas are not simply the result of hyper-focus.
    In training in suttanta jhanas, the meditator comes to see how renunciation does not lead to privation, but to more lasting gratification; he sees that the gradual pacification of sankharas (the way the mind relates to and extracts pleasure from phenomena) leads to increasing peace. When the meditator trains in jhanas, he at that moment is not entirely consumed and swept along by sensual hunger (as most untrained worldlings are most of the time), the most blinding and reflexive of a mode of craving. He is, therefore, at that moment, in a position to find a breathing room (the suttas talk about an "opening" in a confining space), to see drawbacks of either sensual craving or craving in general, to habituate the mind to the wholesome kinds of pleasure that are liberation-conducing (these pleasures include those of conviction, of renunciation, of silence, of equanimity, of non-fashioning, etc.). In short, suttanta jhanas are not simply an exercise in attentional hyper-focus, but are states of mind when one is steadily in the process of eradicating craving, the root of suffering.

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