Skip to main content

SN 22.95 verse, our old friend jhāna and upekkha, S&S, all in cohoots

SN 22.95:
B.Sujato trans.
“Pheṇapiṇḍūpamaṃ rūpaṃ,
“Form is like a lump of foam;
vedanā bubbuḷūpamā;
feeling is like a bubble;
Marīcikūpamā saññā,
perception seems like a mirage;
saṅkhārā kadalūpamā;
co-doings like a banana tree;
Māyūpamañca viññāṇaṃ,
and consciousness like a magic trick:
desitādiccabandhunā.
so taught the Kinsman of the Sun.
Yathā yathā nijjhāyati,
However you contemplate them,
yoniso upaparikkhati;
examining them carefully,
Rittakaṃ tucchakaṃ hoti,
they’re void and hollow
yo naṃ passati yoniso.
when you look at them closely.


Here's my more literal translation

“Pheṇa-piṇḍ-ūpamaṃ rūpaṃ,
“(A) Foam-lump-(is)-similar (to) Form;
vedanā bubbuḷ-ūpamā;
experienced-sensations (and a) bubble-(are)-similar;
Marīcik-ūpamā saññā,
(a) mirage-(is)-similar (to) perceptions;
saṅkhārā kadal-ūpamā;
co-doings(and a) banana-tree-(are)-similar;
Māy-ūpamañca viññāṇaṃ,
(a) magic-trick-(is)-similar (to) consciousness:
desitā-dicca-bandhunā.
so taught the Kinsman of the Sun.
Yathā yathā nij-jhāyati,
However however (you use) jhāna (to contemplate them),
yoniso upa-par-ikkhati;
(with) careful equanimous-observation;
Rittakaṃ tucchakaṃ hoti,
they’re void and hollow
yo naṃ passati yoniso.
when you look at them closely.

... and the end of the verse section, we see jhana, S&S, upekkha, viriya,  all operating simulateneously.  avekkheyya is a similar word to upekkha, 

Evaṃ khandhe avekkheyya,
in-such-away (should) aggregates (be)  examined,
bhikkhu āraddha-vīriyo;
(by a) monk (with) aroused-vigor
Divā vā yadi vā rattiṃ,
with lucid-discerning and rememberfulness
sampajāno paṭis-sato.
whether by day or by night.
Jaheyya sabba-saṃyogaṃ,
They should give up all fetters,
kareyya saraṇattano;
and make a refuge for themselves.
Careyy-āditta-sīsova,
Carry-on (as if) raging-fire (on your) head,
patthayaṃ accutaṃ padan”ti.
aspiring to the imperishable state.”


So while you are in jhāna, there are 7 independent jhana factors operating (not 5), with highlighted items mentioned in the verse

http://lucid24.org/sn/sn46/sn46-003/toc-addon/index.html
(implied: pamojja and pīti would result from contact with inspiring monks)
(0. 👂 Bhikkhūnaṃ dhammaṃ sutvā)
0. 👂 listen to Dhamma [teaching] from a monk [and memorize it]
(1. 🐘 Sati: taṃ Dhammaṃ anus-sarati anu-vitakketi)
1. 🐘 that Dhamma [teaching] (he) recollects and thinks about
(2. 💭 Dhamma-vicaya: taṃ dhammaṃ paññāya, pa-vicinati pa-vicarati pari-vīmaṃsam-āpajjati )
2. 💭 that Dhamma discerning; he discriminates, evaluates, investigates
(3. 🏹 Vīriya: āraddhaṃ hoti vīriyaṃ a-sallīnaṃ.)
3. 🏹 his aroused vigor is not-slackening
(4. 😁 Pīti: Āraddha-vīriyassa uppajjati pīti nir-āmisā,)
4. 😁 his aroused vigor leads to arising of rapture not-carnal (of jhana)
(5. 🌊 Passaddhi: Pīti-man-assa, kāyo-pi passambhati, cittam-pi passambhati )
5. 🌊 with enraptured-mind, his body becomes pacified, his mind becomes pacified
(6. 🌄 Samādhi: Passaddha-kāyassa sukhino, cittaṃ samādhiyati.)
6. 🌄 with pacified body, he is in pleasure, mind becomes undistractable and lucid.
(7. 👁 Upekkha: so tathā-samāhitaṃ cittaṃ, sādhukaṃ ajjh-upekkhitā hoti)
7. 👁 he of such undistractable & lucid mind, thoroughly looks-upon-it-with-equanimity
(7 types of fruits, Nirvana)
Seven different levels of awakening results from proper practice of 7sb.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Advice to younger meditators on jhāna, sex, porn, masturbation

Someone asked: Is porn considered harmful sexual.activity? I don't have a sex life because I don't have a partner and I don't wish to engage in casual sex so I use porn to quench the biological urge to orgasm. I can't see that's it's harmful because nobody is being forced into it. The actors are all paid well and claim to enjoy it etc. The only harm I can see is that it's so accessible these days on smart devices and so children may access it but I believe that this is the parents responsibility to not allow unsupervised use of devices etc. Views? Frankk response: In another thread, you asked about pleasant sensations and jhāna.  I'm guessing you're young, so here's some important advice you won't get from suttas   if you're serious about jhāna.  (since monastics are already celibate by rule)   If you want to attain stable and higher jhānas,   celibacy and noble silence to the best of your ability are the feedstock and prerequiste to tha...
Post a Comment
Read more

Lucid24.org: What's new?

Link to lucid24.org home page :    4👑☸   Remember, you may have to click the refresh button on your web browser navigation bar at to get updated website. 2024 9-17 Lots of new stuff in the last 2 and a half years.  Too many to list. Main one justifying new blog entry, is redesign of home page. Before, it was designed to please me, super dense with everything in one master control panel. I've redesigned it to be friendly to newbies and everyone really. Clear structure, more use of space.  At someone's request, I added a lucid24.org google site search at top of home page. 2022 4-14 Major update to lucid24.org, easy navigation of suttas, quicklink: the ramifications 4-2 new feature lucid24.org sutta quick link 3-28 A new translation of SN 38.16, and first jhāna is a lot easier than you think 🔗📝notes related to Jhāna force and J.A.S.I. effect AN 9.36, MN 64, MN 111: How does Ajahn Brahm and Sujato's "Jhāna" work here? 3-13 Added to EBPedia J.A.S.I. ('Jazzy...
3 comments
Read more

SN 48.40 Ven. Thanissaro comments on Ven. Sunyo's analysis

This was Ven. Sunyo's analysis of SN 48.40: https://notesonthedhamma.blogspot.com/2024/05/exciting-news-honest-ebt-scholars-like.html And here is Ven. Thanissaro's response to that analysis: I think there’s a better way to tackle the issue of SN 48:40 than by appealing to the oldest layers of commentarial literature. That way is to point out that SN 48:40, as we have it, doesn’t pass the test in DN 16 for determining what’s genuine Dhamma and what’s not. There the standard is, not the authority of the person who’s claiming to report the Buddha’s teachings, but whether the teachings he’s reporting are actually in accordance with the principles of the Dhamma that you know. So the simple fact that those who have passed the Buddha’s teachings down to us say that a particular passage is what the Buddha actually taught is not sufficient grounds for accepting it. In the case of the jhānas—the point at issue here— we have to take as our guide the standard formula for the jhānas, a...
Post a Comment
Read more