Should you follow Ajahn Brahm or the Buddha's walking meditation instructions?

Following Ajahn Brahm's walking meditation instructions is like this:

So many problems, I'll just address a few of the major ones

Ajahn Brahm's walking meditation instructions

(from his 2024 book Journey to the Heart of the Lotus)

Walking meditation can be beautiful and powerful, but please don’t use walking meditation for contemplation.
 Some people do that, and it’s a mistake.
 They’re walking backwards and forwards and trying to contemplate the Four Noble Truths, or Dependent Origination, or some other deep Dhamma.
There’s a sutta
called the ‘Paṁsudhovakasutta’, or ‘The Panner’ (AN 3.101), which talks about the obstacles to getting enlightened.
 These include thoughts about family, reputation and so on.
 It then talks about a lingering obstacle that you have to get through to experience the samādhi, which will bring you to enlightenment.
 It’s dhammavitakka or thinking about the Dhamma!
 When I first mentioned that, some of the monks argued that this was what they were supposed to do:
 think about the Dhamma!
 I responded with:
 “Only at the right time.”
Sometimes I’ve had an experience where my mind is so peaceful that I feel I could give the most brilliant Dhamma discourse, but then I realised this is a last ploy of Māra
to stop us becoming enlightened.
 Our mind hasn’t fully given up the five hindrances yet, and so we’re not seeing the true Dhamma.
What we’re supposed to do is to get so still and peaceful that jhāna appears.
 When you come out of jhāna, when the five hindrances are gone for a long period of time, you don’t even need to think about the Dhamma;
 the Dhamma just appears.
 That’s the Dhamma which is the most valuable, which will create experiences of enlightenment.
The insight you think you have during contemplation while the hindrances are active is not real insight, so please don’t contemplate Dhamma on the walking meditation path.
 Just keep being quiet and observe how still your mind can become.
 When your mind becomes still, go and sit down and get into deep meditation.
 Afterwards, your mind will be so strong that you’ll realise the power of the teachings by the Buddha.
So that’s walking meditation.

AN 3.101 gold panner

In Ajahn Brahm's deluded world, vitakka in first jhāna gets redefined to "not thinking",

so it's unclear precisely how he misunderstands AN 3.101.

What he fails to realize, is that AN 3.101 is contrasting the relatively unrefined (gold dust) thoughts of Dhamma of first jhāna,

against the refined subverbal mental activity (gold oranments) of imperturbable fourth jhāna.

The Buddha is not saying thoughts of Dhamma block "real insight". 

He's simply saying gold dust is less refined than crafted gold ornaments.

If he had meant Dhamma thoughts to be something we should avoid,

he would have grouped Dhamma thoughts with the gold impurities, 

rather than giving it (pure) gold dust status.

AN 3.101

3.101.15.3 (monk’s fine impurities = thoughts about home life → gold’s fine impurities)

Tasmiṃ pahīne tasmiṃ byantīkate santi adhicittamanuyuttassa bhikkhuno sukhumasahagatā upakkilesā ñātivitakko janapadavitakko anavaññattipaṭisaṃyutto vitakko, tamenaṃ sacetaso bhikkhu dabbajātiko pajahati vinodeti byantīkaroti anabhāvaṃ gameti.	When they’ve been given up and eliminated, there are fine corruptions: thoughts of family, country, and being looked up to. A sincere, capable monk gives these up, gets rid of, eliminates, and obliterates them.

3.101.15.4 (first jhāna has Dhamma thoughts → gold dust)

Tasmiṃ pahīne tasmiṃ byantīkate athāparaṃ dhamma-vitakk-āvasissanti.	When they’ve been given up and eliminated, only thoughts about the ☸Dharma are left.
So hoti samādhi na ceva santo na ca paṇīto nap-paṭip-passaddha-laddho na ekodi-bhāv-ādhigato sa-saṅkhāra-niggayhavāritagato.	That undistractible-lucidity is not peaceful, not sublime, not [sufficiently] pacified, not [sufficiently] singular in focus, but is held in place by forceful suppression [of first jhāna’s vitakka thoughts focusing on the Dharma].
	[Internal settling, singular focus, and undistractible ludicity are the explicit terms that first appear in second jhāna’s formula, and are absent from the first jhāna.]

3.101.15.5 (purifed 4th jhana → easily make any gold ornament)

Hoti so, bhikkhave, samayo yaṃ taṃ cittaṃ ajjhattaṃyeva santiṭṭhati sannisīdati ekodi hoti samādhiyati.	But there comes a time when that mind is stilled internally; it settles, becomes singular in focus, and becomes undistractible and lucid in samādhi.
So hoti samādhi santo paṇīto paṭippassaddhiladdho ekodibhāvādhigato na sasaṅkhāraniggayhavāritagato.	That undistractible-lucidity is peaceful and sublime and pacified and singular in focus, not held in place by forceful suppression [of first jhāna’s thoughts related to Dharma].
Yassa yassa ca abhiññā sacchikaraṇīyassa dhammassa cittaṃ abhininnāmeti abhiññā sacchikiriyāya tatra tatreva sakkhibhabbataṃ pāpuṇāti sati satiāyatane.	They become capable of realizing anything that can be realized by insight to which they extend the mind, in each and every case.

3.101.20 (He can exercise any of the 6 abhiññā...)

(see 6ab ⚡☸ )

And if you need any more confirmation of the role of Dhamma vitakka in first jhāna,

In AN 8.30 the Buddha explicitly lists 8 types of Dhamma vitakka that operate within the explicit first jhāna formula that follows

        AN ^8.30.1 - (Anuruddha has line of thinking, pari-vitakka, on these 7 great thoughts)
            AN ^8.30.1.1 – (Buddha uses psychic power to read Anuruddha’s vitakka thoughts)
            AN ^8.30.1.2 – (Buddha adds one more to make it 8 great thoughts)
            AN ^8.30.1.3 – (eighth thought of not ‘proliferating’ is reference to MN 18 vitakka thought proliferation)
        AN ^8.30.5 – (You transition seamlessly from vitakka of 8 great thoughts into First jhāna’s vitakka)
            AN ^8.30.5.2 – (2nd jhāna)

8.30.1.2 – (Buddha adds one more to make it 8 great thoughts)

“Sādhu sādhu, anuruddha.	“Good, good, Anuruddha!
Sādhu kho tvaṃ, anuruddha, yaṃ taṃ mahāpurisavitakkaṃ vitakkesi:	It’s good that you reflect on these thoughts of a great man:
‘appicchassāyaṃ dhammo, nāyaṃ dhammo mahicchassa;	‘this Dharma is for those of few wishes, not those of many wishes.
santuṭṭhassāyaṃ dhammo, nāyaṃ dhammo asantuṭṭhassa;	This Dharma is for the contented, not the discontented.
pavivittassāyaṃ dhammo, nāyaṃ dhammo saṅgaṇikārāmassa;	This Dharma is for the judiciously-secluded, not those who enjoy company.
āraddhavīriyassāyaṃ dhammo, nāyaṃ dhammo kusītassa;	This Dharma is for the energetic, not the lazy.
upaṭṭhitassatissāyaṃ dhammo, nāyaṃ dhammo muṭṭhassatissa;	This Dharma is for the rememberful, not the unrememberful.
samāhitassāyaṃ dhammo, nāyaṃ dhammo asamāhitassa;	This Dharma is for those with undistractible-lucidity, not those without undistractible-lucidity.
paññavato ayaṃ dhammo, nāyaṃ dhammo duppaññassā’ti.	This Dharma is for the wise, not the witless.’
Tena hi tvaṃ, anuruddha, imampi aṭṭhamaṃ mahāpurisavitakkaṃ vitakkehi:	Well then, Anuruddha, you should also reflect on the following eighth thought of a great man:

8.30.1.3 – (eighth thought of not ‘proliferating’ is reference to MN 18 vitakka thought proliferation)

‘nippapañcārāmassāyaṃ dhammo nippapañcaratino, nāyaṃ dhammo papañcārāmassa papañcaratino’ti.

‘this Dharma is for those who don’t enjoy proliferating and don’t like to proliferate, not for those who enjoy proliferating and like to proliferate.’

(MN 18-20 differentiates bad vitakka from good vitakka of first jhāna)

(Cakkhu + rūpe + viññāṇaṃ → phasso → vedeti (vedanā) → sañjānāti → vitakketi → papañceti)

(eye + forms + consciousness → contact → feel → perceive → think → proliferate)

^{(MN 18 vitakka thought proliferation, MN 19 transforms vitakka into first jhāna, and MN 20 takes you to 2nd through fourth jhāna)}

8.30.5 – (You transition seamlessly from vitakka of 8 great thoughts into First jhāna’s vitakka)

Yato kho tvaṃ, anuruddha, ime aṭṭha mahāpurisavitakke vitakkessasi, tato tvaṃ, anuruddha, yāvadeva ākaṅkhissasi,

“Anuruddha, when you think these eight thoughts of a great person, then— whenever you want—

🚫💑 vivicc’eva kāmehi	Judiciously-secluded from desire for five cords of sensual pleasures,
🚫😠 vivicca a-kusalehi dhammehi	Judiciously-secluded from unskillful ☸Dharmas,
(V&V💭) sa-vitakkaṃ sa-vicāraṃ	with directed-thought and evaluation [of those verbal ☸Dharma thoughts],
😁🙂 viveka-jaṃ pīti-sukhaṃ	with [mental] rapture and [physical] pleasure born from judicious-seclusion,
🌘 paṭhamaṃ jhānaṃ upasampajja viharati.	he attains and lives in first jhāna.

Ajahn Brahm maintains that thought is not possible in first jhāna,

despite the Buddha being clear, explicit, unequivocal that verbal thoughts of Dhamma have a role to play in generating pleasure and rapture of first jhāna.

In AN 5.26 monks give Dhamma talks using vitakka to induce jhāna in themselves and their audience

    AN ^5.26 - AN 5.26 Vimuttāyatana: Opportunities for Freedom
        AN ^5.26.1 - First jhāna possible while hearing live dhamma talk
            AN ^5.26.1.7 - (refrain: 7sb☀️ → jhāna → arahantship)
        AN ^5.26.2 - Giving a dhamma talk leads to himself getting jhāna
            AN ^5.26.2.7 - (refrain: 7sb☀️ → jhāna → arahantship)
        AN ^5.26.3 - Reciting memorized dhamma passage leads to jhāna
            AN ^5.26.3.7 - (refrain: 7sb☀️ → jhāna → arahantship)
        AN ^5.26.4 - first jhāna possible while thinking and pondering memorized dhamma
            AN ^5.26.4.7 - (refrain: 7sb☀️ → jhāna → arahantship)
        AN ^5.26.5 - No V&V, undirected samādhi into 2nd jhāna or higher
            AN ^5.26.5.7 - (refrain: 7sb☀️ → jhāna → arahantship)

But according to Ajahn Brahm, using thoughts (vitakka) about dhamma is Māra trying to trick you into thinking you have "real insight" when you should instead be aiming for "stillness" of Brahm's corrupt redefinition of jhāna as a disembodied frozen stupor. 

Several more suttas here where the Buddha instructs monks to use thoughts about Dhamma WHILE they are walking in jhāna 

https://lucid24.org/tped/s/samadhi/smd247/index.html#2.2

Essentially, everything the Buddha says about walking meditation,  Ajahn Brahm is telling you to instead do something inverted or just plain wrong.

What Ajahn Brahm says here is especially ludicrous:

 When you come out of jhāna, when the five hindrances are gone for a long period of time, you don’t even need to think about the Dhamma;
 the Dhamma just appears.
 That’s the Dhamma which is the most valuable, which will create experiences of enlightenment.

Frankk comment:

Then what about all the non Buddhist meditators throughout history who could do Ajahn Brahm's disembodied frozen stupor "jhāna" samādhi?

Did they all become Buddhas and Arahants and fully enlightened, when they emerged from their frozen stupor?

Did the "Dhamma Just appear to them"? 

5 hindrances suppressed "for a long time" is far different than seeing the causes of craving, ignorance, and severing their root.