notes on the Dhamma

(5/1/2021 updated to correct an error, notes at bottom) These were my previous notes on the sutta, where I had some uncertainty about where first and fourth jhana fell in the similes, since the sutta never explicitly uses the term 'jhana'.  AN 3.101  Paṃsudhovaka: Dirt-washer purifying gold simile.  misconduct in body, speech, & mind. = gross impurities,  wrong intention/thoughts = moderate impurities,  thoughts of family/caste = fine impurities,  thoughts of Dhamma remain, in the grey zone between doorway of first jhana and just plain 4sp.  With mind purified, the 6 abhiñña easy to get. (agama parallel sutta may shed light on details of AN 3.101) SA 1246, || to AN 3.101 After studying this carefully, I realize there's enough information there to deduce conclusively exactly which jhanas correspond to which stage of gold purification. Here's the proof AN 3.101 Paṃsudhovaka dirt-washer (gold’s gross impurities) (gold’s moderate impurities) (gold’s fi...

Let's talk about me. Not.  I don't like talking about myself or sharing details about my personal life.  I don't like parties, even if they're populated with 100% high quality people discussing important issues. I'm not interested in converting anyone or convincing them of anything. If it seems that I do, it's only because I express enthusiasm about issues important to me. The reason I'm not interested in converting anyone is because I know it has no long term impact; it's almost always a vain and futile waste of time. True conversion has to come from within, truth has to be seen for oneself. Others may point the way or open up a new perspective, that's all.  I'd be perfectly happy to spend the rest of my life as an anonymous hermit with no name, no friends, no history, no attachments.  If I share some personal detail, it's only because it has some strategic value, some people may benefit. For example, learning from and not repeating stupid t...

All courteous inquiries and questions will be answered, time permitting.   If I don't respond to a comment or question of yours, it's for one of the following reasons: * That forum software has a poor or nonexistent notification system so I'm not even aware someone added a new comment or response to a message thread * TL;DNR (too long; did not read): A discussion thread too long, too dense, no time to read through. * The question requires too long of an answer and I don't have time to respond. If I know for sure I don't have time or interest in responding, I'll respond promptly to let you know that. If you never hear from me, it's because either I intended to respond and postponed and then forgot about it, or I never saw your comment. * The question comes from someone with a long track record of being discourteous, dishonorable, disingenuous in discussions. If I ignore someone intentionally, you can be sure that I've already given them at least three cha...

 Got an interesting blog comment question from many months ago that I didn't notice until just now.  This comes from blog post: https://notesonthedhamma.blogspot.com/2020/09/mn-125-agama-parallel-ma-198-has-some.html 2 comments: 🦏 October 1, 2020 at 2:14 AM Hello Frank. How to reconciliate this sutta with SN 4.23? "Now at that time Venerable Godhika was staying on the slopes of Isigili at the Black Rock. Then Venerable Godhika, meditating diligent, keen, and resolute, experienced temporary freedom of heart. But then he fell away from that temporary freedom of heart. For a second … third … fourth … fifth … sixth time Godhika experienced temporary freedom of heart. But for a sixth time he fell away from it. For a seventh time Godhika, meditating diligent, keen, and resolute, experienced temporary freedom of heart. Then he thought, “I’ve fallen away from this temporary freedom of heart no less than six times. Why don’t I slit my wrists?” Reply Delete Replies frankk April 28, 202...

  Re: Contradiction regarding directed thought and evaluation in relation to knowledge? Edit Delete Report Quote Post   by  frank k  »  Tue Apr 27, 2021 7:15 am Yes, it seems contradictory. But it's the difference between using vitakka and vicara in first jhana, and someone with no jhana using V&V. What he describes in your quote, is someone who's in samadhi of second jhana or higher, and then using vitakka / thought from that state of samadhi, whatever higher jhana or attainment they were in, and then they downshift into first jhana, if you want to think of it that way, or you can also legitmately say theyr'e in an imperturbable purified version of fourth jhana (where they can levitate, exercise psychic power, have conversations with gods that require vitakka) Think of V&V as a sword. Someone with first jhana, second, ... .fourth jhana, has a sword of samadhi +1, +2, +3, +4. And someone coming out of samadhi to use that V&V can do some serious damag...

  DN 2 example of how a simile can show that jhana meditation bliss is happening in the mind only, not in the physical body B. Sujato claims the Buddha had to redefine what "body" and "thinking" means in the four jhānas, because he just didn't have the language to indicate those words changed into a more subtle meaning. And second, he also wasn't able to use simile to accurately convey that the 'body' in jhana was not a physical body, but a mind. "The body as metaphor", B. Sujato essay from 2012 attempting to justify hiding the dead body in the third jhana formula https://sujato.wordpress.com/2012/12/08/the-body-as-metaphor/ The body as metaphor ... And in just the same way, the body is not a physical body, but a metaphor for the wholeness and directness of experience. As if this were not obvious enough from the context, notice that the things to be realized with the body are the eight liberations, which include the four formless attainment...

  ♦ 73. itaraṃ pana sukhanaṃ sukhaṃ,  suṭṭhu vā khādati,  khanati ca kāyacittābādhanti sukhaṃ,  taṃ sātalakkhaṇaṃ,  sampayuttānaṃ upabrūhanarasaṃ, anuggahapaccupaṭṭhānaṃ.  satipi ca nesaṃ katthaci avippayoge iṭṭhārammaṇapaṭilābhatuṭṭhi pīti. paṭiladdharasānubhavanaṃ sukhaṃ. yattha pīti, tattha sukhaṃ. yattha sukhaṃ, tattha na niyamato pīti. saṅkhārakkhandhasaṅgahitā pīti. vedanākkhandhasaṅgahitaṃ sukhaṃ. kantārakhinnassa vanantudakadassanasavanesu viya pīti. vanacchāyāpavesanaudakaparibhogesu viya sukhaṃ. tasmiṃ tasmiṃ samaye pākaṭabhāvato cetaṃ vuttanti veditabbaṃ. iti ayañca pīti idañca sukhaṃ assa jhānassa, asmiṃ vā jhāne atthīti idaṃ jhānaṃ pītisukhanti vuccati. 100. But as to the other word: pleasing (sukhana) is bliss (sukha).  Or alternatively: it thoroughly (SUṭṭhu) devours (KHĀdati),  consumes (KHAṇati),30 bodily and mental affliction, thus it is bliss (sukha).  It has gratifying as its characteristic.  Its function is to inte...

  The parable of Bhikkhu Sujato, the 9 mendicants and 9 attainments Introduction Bhikkhu = male mendicant, a monk Bhikkhuni = female mendicant, a nun Mendicant (can be male or female) The term mendicant (from Latin: mendicans - "begging") refers to religious ascetics of various backgrounds who rely primarily (or exclusively) on begging and charity to survive... In Theravada Buddhism, mendicants are known by the terms Bhikkhu (male) and Bhikkhuni (female)... The translator Bhikkhu Sujato translates the pali term Bhikkhu (a male mendicant) as 'mendicant' (a beggar that can be male or female). Presumably, he does this to emphasize that the suttas, even though 99.9% of the time the Buddha is talking to male monks, are teaching universal Dharmas that apply equally to female nuns. While this translation is defensible from certain points of view, this does establish a precedent where B. Sujato tends to translate in a biased way to advance his various agendas, rather than kee...

(This article is a work in progress. I'll add to it slowly over time) If you search for "vitakka and vicara in first jhana" on google, B. Sujato's blog article which I quote in full below, comes up top in the search results. I'm posting a full copy of his article, and inserting my comments within, as if we're having a conversation on the topic. My comments will be in italics, and prefaced with 'frankk'. Why vitakka doesn't mean 'thinking' in jhana | Sujato's Blog https://sujato.wordpress.com/2012/12/06/why-vitakka-doesnt-mean-thinking-in-jhana/ Why vitakka doesn’t mean ‘thinking’ in jhana I shall give you a simile; for it is by means of a simile that some wise people here understand the meaning of what is said. —THE BUDDHA frankk also heard a similar quote from anonymous: "I shall give you a simile, for it is through simile, equivocation, and planting red herrings we can ignore the hard evidence that render my arguments as complete...