MN 19 What would happen to the cowherd following Ajahn Brahm's redefinition of jhāna?

The Buddha's similes are often remarkably apt.

Besides giving us very rich detail about what those states may feel like experientially,

the similes often tells us what those states are NOT.

For example, if you have a wrong definition and understanding of sati, "mindfulness",

the simile will make the error very clear.

In AN 7.67, "mindfulness" is the wise gatekeeper that allows friends to enter the fortress and enemies removed.

If "mindfulness" was a non judgmental, choiceless awareness gatekeeper who only observed without reacting, he would just let anyone waltz through the gate. That is not a wise gate keeper. So clearly that can not be a correct definition of "mindfulness" (sati). 

Similarly, MN 19 gives us a great first jhāna simile, of a cowherd monitoring a herd of cows. 

Prior to first jhāna, the cowherd is kept busy, poking the cows, keeping them in the proper areas and keeping them from wandering into forbidden areas. 

This represents right effort restraining actions and pulling them in line with right view and right resolves. 

When right resolves are qualified for first jhāna, the Buddha then describes the cowherd with this simile: 

MN 19 (simile of cowherd relaxed in jhāna)

seyyathāpi, bhikkhave,	“Just as (in the)
gimhānaṃ pacchime māse	hot-season, (in the) last month,
sabba-sassesu gāmanta-sambhatesu	(when) all-crops (into the) village-(they've been)-stored-up,
gopālako gāvo rakkheyya,	a cowherd {would look after} (his) cows:
tassa rukkha-mūla-gatassa vā	While resting under the shade of a tree or
abbhokāsa-gatassa vā	out in the open,
🐘 sati-karaṇīyam-eva hoti — ‘etā VAR gāvo’ti.	🐘 he simply keeps himself remembering ‘those cows.’
evamevaṃ kho, bhikkhave,	In the same way,
🐘 sati-karaṇīyam-eva ahosi — ‘ete dhammā’ti.	🐘 I simply kept myself remembering ‘those Dhammas.’

(code phrase for successful entry into 4 jhānas)

“āraddhaṃ kho pana me, bhikkhave,	“aroused indeed in me, monks

(7sb → 3. 🏹) vīriyaṃ ahosi a-sallīnaṃ,	(7sb → 3. 🏹), vigor was un-flagging,
(7sb → 1. 🐘) upaṭṭhitā sati a-sam-muṭṭhā,	(7sb → 1. 🐘) established remembering [of which ☸Dhamma to do], not-forgetful,
(7sb → 5. 🌊) passaddho kāyo a-sāraddho,	(7sb → 5. 🌊) Pacified body, un-aroused,
(7sb → 6. 🌄) samāhitaṃ cittaṃ ek’aggaṃ.	(7sb → 6. 🌄) Undistractability-and-lucidity (of) mind (with) singular-preoccupation.

(STED 4 jhānas)

(STED 1st Jhāna)

🚫💑 vivicc’eva kāmehi	🚫💑 Quite-withdrawn (from) sensuality,
🚫😠 vivicca a-kusalehi dhammehi	🚫😠 withdrawn (from) un-skillful Dhamma [teachings & qualities],
(V&V💭) sa-vitakkaṃ sa-vicāraṃ	(V&V💭) With-directed-thought, with-evaluation,
😁🙂 viveka-jaṃ pīti-sukhaṃ	😁🙂 withdrawal-born rapture-&-pleasure,
🌘 paṭhamaṃ jhānaṃ upasampajja viharati.	🌘 first Jhāna (he) enters, dwells.

(STED 2nd Jhāna)... 4th jhāna

That state involving the 7 awakening factors immediately before first jhāna, is describing what's occuring WHILE one is in first jhāna. MN 125 makes this even more explicit by removing the standard first jhāna formula, and adding a second passage on satipaṭṭhāna.

The cowherd lucidly discerning "those cows" is also describing first jhāna.

Now lets pretend Ajahn Brahm's redefinition of jhāna was the same as the Buddha's jhāna

What would the cowherd be doing? 

He'd be resting under the shade of the tree, thinking: "those cows" (vitakka), referring to the cows serenely chewing on grass and not wandering around.  

But according to Brahm that can't be vitakka (verbal thinking) of first jhāna, since one can not "think" in first jhāna 

That's just access concentration (a concept the Buddha never uses).

Then the cowherd, with the pīti and sukha (physical and mental pleasure) of access concentration, notices the cow kasina counterpart image arise (the Buddha never talked about jhāna with kasinas), or alternatively, the beautiful breath nimitta, a visual bright white vision. 

As the white luminosity gets brighter and bigger, the cowherd absorbs into the nimitta, being completely absorbed in mental bliss. The body senses are shut off, the cowherd can't see, can't hear, can't think. The cowherd could be here in a disembodied frozen state of bliss for hours on end until the cows come home, and the cowherd wouldn't know it. He's just frozen in bliss.

(remember, we're hypothetically assuming Ajahn Brahm's redefinition of jhāna is genuine Buddha's jhāna)

To indicate this is genuine jhāna, the Buddha in the jhāna standard formula helpfully redefines the terms 'body' as "body of mind only factors excluding the body', and vitakka, which means verbal thinking everywhere else in the hundreds of occurrences in the suttas, yet in jhāna, vitakka inexplicably means 'not able to think, mind is frozen in place.'

Does that seem likely to you? That the Buddha would be consistent with the use of 'body' and 'thinking' in every single place in the suttas with a body satipaṭṭhāna context, but just in the four jhānas, he would redefine 'body' as 'not body', and 'thinking' as 'not thinking'? 

Does that seem likely to you?

And he would do this secret redefinition without telling you about it? 

The revelation of the Buddha's secret redefinition would require the external assistance of specially appointed prophets that come 500 years and 2500 years after the Buddha died, to explain those terms vitakka and kāya which have a mysterious counter intuititve redefinition?  

Let's check in on those cows and the cowherd

Earlier, with the cowherd in the disembodied frozen bliss of Ajahn Brahm's "jhāna", the cows peacefully went home. 

But we need to stress test this simile and examine realistic possibilites.

Maybe the cows don't notice the cowherd is frozen, for 20 minutes, 60 minutes. 

But after that, they've grazed the area clean, and need to eat some more.

You ever wonder how vegan, herbivore animals get so massive? 

Cows have four stomachs. Giraffes graze for 12 hours a day.

These cows are still hungry.

One of the cows, Bessy, goes right up to the cowherd, nudges him, gets no reaction, nudges him again and still gets now reaction.

So Bessy thinks to herself and lucidly discerns (using vitakka, vicāra, sati and sampajāno), "if that cowherd can't move, he can't use that stick to hit us when we go graze wherever we want."

So Bessy moos to the other cows letting them know it's safe to go graze wherever they want without repercussion.

The cows go to town, eating and crapping wherever they want, trampling all over king's prized rose garden in his private pleasure garden. The cowherd has an unpleasant surprise waiting for him when he emerges from Ajahn Brahm's "jhāna":

(simile of cowherd busy)

seyyathāpi, bhikkhave,	“Just as,
vassānaṃ pacchime māse	(in) the-rains-period, following (the) last-month,
saradasamaye kiṭṭha-sambādhe	(in the) autumn-season, when the crops are ripening,
gopālako gāvo rakkheyya.	(a) cowherd, (his) cows (he) would look after:
so tā gāvo tato tato daṇḍena	on this side & that (with his) stick,
ākoṭeyya paṭikoṭeyya sannirundheyya sannivāreyya.	(he would) tap & poke & check & curb them.
taṃ kissa hetu?	Why is that?
passati hi so, bhikkhave,	Because he foresees
gopālako tato-nidānaṃ	(the) cowherd (on) account-of [letting cows run amuck]
vadhaṃ vā bandhanaṃ vā	flogging or imprisonment or
jāniṃ vā garahaṃ vā.	a fine or public censure.