10 Ways to ZEN (jhana)

Wisdom Quarterly, Ven. Buddhaghosa (Path of Purification)

Serenity is beginner's mind, our natural joy and tranquility, free of neurosis -- "monkey mind," distraction, worry, ADHD, believing mere thoughts, etc. (alibaba.com).

Meditation (jhana, zen) Means Merit

Successful meditation is spectacularly profitable karma (merit). Allowing full absorption (into a single object) purifies the heart/mind.

It is redounding with profit leading to the storing up of tremendously beneficial karma (seeds with the capacity to exponentially ripen with pleasant results).

Jhana has the power to lead to rebirth as a divinity, in accordance with the depth and level of mastery if it is held at the time of passing.

Moreover, it can serve as the basis for fruitful insight (vipassana) practice. In this case it becomes supermundane, leading to enlightenment here and now.

What destroys serenity and insight? These Five Hindrances oppose absorption: sensual craving, ill-will, physical sloth and mental torpor, restlessness and remorse, doubt and uncertainty.

What gives rise to successful meditation? These five Factors of Absorption (zen, jhana, dhyana) lead to "right concentration," a component of the Noble Eightfold Path: application of mind, sustained attention, rapture, joy, and concentration.

The ancient commentarial Path of Purification (Vissudhimagga I 128) gives ten ways to improve the likelihood of gaining one of these serene states of stillness:

1. Purify the basis: clean body, clean surroundings (wearing white), clean conscience.
2. Balance these five factors: Energy equal to concentration and faith to understanding with no limit on mindfulness.
3. Skill in the sign: develop a nimitta (internal light or object so intense that the mind creates a counterpart) by balanced persistence.
   
4. Exert mind on all occasions: steady persistence is more fruitful than spurts of effort.
5. Control mind on all occasions: restraint is a blessing, as are mindfulness and clear comprehension.
6. Encourage mind on occasions when it is advantageous to rouse and cheer it.
7. Observe the mind with equanimity: when things proceed appropriately.
8. Avoid distracted, agitated, frantic, unconcentrated, and stressful people.
9. Cultivates company with well focused, determined, and concentrated people.
10. Resolutely determine level of absorption (of the eight jhanas) to be practiced. (This is done by emerging from one level of absorption and reflecting on its defects and the peacefulness of being free from those defects. For example, the defect of the first jhana is that it is very close to the ordinary scattered mind because of the Five Hindrances; the second jhana is far from those distressing influences).

The Cow Sutra! (AN 9.35)

"The Cow," Gavi Sutta (AN 9.35), derivative translation by Seven (Wisdom Quarterly)

[The Buddha:] "Suppose there were a mountain cow -- foolish, inexperienced, unfamiliar with its field, unskilled in roaming on rugged mountains -- and it were to think, 'What if I were to go in a direction I have never gone before, eat grass I have never eaten before, drink water I never drank before?'



"It would lift its hind hoof without having firmly placed its front hoof and [as a result] would not go in a direction it had never gone before, eat grass it had never eaten before, or drink water it never drank before.



"And as for the place where it was standing when the thought occurred, 'What if I were to...' it would not return there safely.



"Why? It is because it is a foolish, inexperienced mountain cow, unfamiliar with its field, unskilled in roaming on rugged mountains.



"In the same way, there are cases where a meditator -- foolish, inexperienced, unfamiliar with his or her field, unskilled in withdrawing from sensuality, withdrawing from unskillful states, and entering and remaining in the first absorption, which is characterized by rapture and happiness born of withdrawal, accompanied by applied and sustained attention -- does not stick with a meditation object, does not develop it, pursue it, or become firmly established in it [i.e., does not learn and practice the mastery of each absorption].



"The thought occurs to that meditator, 'What if I, with the stilling of applied and sustained attention, were to enter and remain in the second absorption, which is characterized by rapture and happiness born of concentration, intensification of awareness free from applied and sustained attention.'



"That meditator is not able... to enter and remain in the second absorption... The thought occurs, 'What if I... were to enter and remain in the first absorption... [but] is not [even] able... to enter and remain in the first absorption.



"This is called a meditator who has slipped and fallen on both sides, like the mountain cow, foolish, inexperienced, unfamiliar with its field, unskilled in roaming on rugged mountains.







SMART COW

"But suppose there were a mountain cow -- wise, experienced, familiar with its field, skilled in roaming on rugged mountains -- and it were to think, 'What if I were to go in a direction I have never gone before, eat grass I have never eaten before, drink water I never drank before!'



"It would lift its hind hoof only after having firmly placed its front hoof and [as a result] would go in a direction it had never gone before... drink water it never drank before. And as for the place where it was standing when the thought occurred, 'What if I were...,' it would return there safely.



"Why? It is because it is a wise, experienced mountain cow, familiar with its field, skilled in roaming on rugged mountains.



FOUR MATERIAL JHANAS

"In just the same way, there are cases where a meditator -- wise, experienced, familiar with the field, skilled in withdrawing from sensuality, withdrawing from unskillful states, entering and remaining in the first absorption, which is characterized by rapture and happiness born of withdrawal, accompanied by applied and sustained attention -- stays with a meditation object, develops it, pursues it, and becomes firmly established in it.



"The thought occurs, 'What if, with the stilling of applied and sustained attention, I were to enter and remain in the second absorption, which is characterized by rapture and happiness born of concentration, intensification of awareness, free from applied and sustained attention?'



"Without yet ascending to the second absorption -- but with the stilling of applied and sustained attention -- that meditator enters and remains in the second absorption, which is characterized by rapture and happiness born of concentration, intensification of awareness, free of applied and sustained attention.



"One stays with that meditation object, develops it, pursues it, and becomes firmly established in it.



"The thought occurs, 'What if, with the fading of rapture, I... were to enter and remain in the third absorption...' Without yet ascending to the third absorption, but with the fading of rapture, one remains equanimous, mindful, and alert, and experiences pleasure with the body. One enters and remains in the third absorption, of which the Noble Ones say, 'Equanimous and mindful, one abides joyfully.'



"One maintains that meditation object, develops it, pursues it, and becomes firmly established in it.



"The thought occurs, 'What if I... were to enter and remain in the fourth absorption...' Without yet ascending to the fourth absorption, but with the abandoning of both rapture and happiness -- and the earlier fading away of both pleasure and pain -- one enters and remains in the fourth absorption, which is characterized by equanimity [impartiality] and mindfulness, neither-pleasure-nor-pain.



"One keeps that meditation object, develops it, pursues it, and becomes firmly established in it.



FOUR IMMATERIAL JHANAS

"The thought occurs, 'What if I... were to enter and remain in the dimension of boundless space.' Without yet ascending to the dimension of boundless space, but with the complete transcending of perceptions of [physical] form, with the disappearance of perceptions of resistance, and not heeding perceptions of diversity [mental proliferation], [perceiving,] 'Space is boundless,' one enters and remains in the dimension of boundless space.



"One maintains that meditation object, develops it, pursues it, and becomes firmly established in it.



"The thought occurs, 'What if I... were to enter and remain in the dimension of boundless consciousness.' Without yet ascending to it, but with the complete transcending of the dimension of boundless space, [perceiving,] 'Consciousness is boundless,' one enters and remains in the dimension of boundless consciousness.



"One maintains that meditation object, develops it, pursues it, and becomes firmly established in it.



"The thought occurs, 'What if I... were to enter and remain in the dimension of nothingness [no-thing-ness, one of the 31 Planes of Existence, also called the sphere of the void].'



"Without yet ascending to the dimension of nothingness, but with the complete transcending of the dimension of boundless consciousness, [perceiving,] 'There is no-thing,' one enters and remains in the dimension of nothingness.



"One maintains that meditation object, develops it, pursues it, and becomes firmly established in it.



"The thought occurs, 'What if I... were to enter and remain in the dimension of neither-perception-nor-non-perception.' Without yet ascending to it, but with the complete transcending of the dimension of nothingness, one enters and remains in the dimension of neither-perception-nor-non-perception.



One maintains that meditation object, develops it, pursues it, and becomes firmly established in it.



ATTAINMENT OF CESSATION

"The thought occurs, 'What if I, with the complete transcending of the dimension of neither-perception-nor-non-perception, were to [emerge from the absorptions and, if one is at least a non-returner, were to] enter and remain in the cessation of perception and feeling.'



"Without yet going to the cessation of perception and feeling, but with the complete transcending of the [highest and subtlest absorption (jhana) known as the] dimension of neither-perception-nor-non-perception, one enters and rests in the cessation of perception and feeling.



"When a meditator [frequently a monastic] enters and emerges from that very attainment, the mind is pliant and malleable. With this pliant, malleable mind, limitless concentration is available.



"With this limitless concentration, whichever of the six higher knowledges one turns one's mind to know and see, one can witness it whenever there is an opening.



MAGICAL POWERS

"Moreover, if one wishes, one wields manifold supernormal powers: Having been one, the adept meditator becomes many; having been many, the adept becomes one.



One appears, disappears, goes unimpeded through walls, ramparts, and mountains as if through space; dives in and out of the ground as if it were water; walks on water without sinking as if it were dry land; sitting crosslegged flies through the air like a winged bird; extending a hand, touches and strokes even the Sun and Moon, so mighty and powerful; goes physically exercises influence over this body even as far as the brahma worlds [supreme divine planes of existence].



"All of this is possible whenever there is an opening.



"If one wishes, one hears -- by means of the divine ear, purified and surpassing the human -- both kinds of sounds, divine and human, whether near or far. One knows and [hears] this whenever there is an opening.



"If one wishes, one knows the mind of other beings, other individuals, having encompassed them with one's own mind. One knows a mind beset by passion as a mind beset by passion, and a mind free of passion as a mind free of passion... a mind beset by aversion... a mind beset by delusion... a contracted mind as a contracted mind, and a scattered mind as a scattered mind.... an expanded mind as an expanded mind, and a shrunken mind as a shrunken mind..... an excelled [surpassable] mind as an excelled mind, and an unexcelled mind as an unexcelled mind.... a concentrated mind as a concentrated mind, and an unconcentrated mind as an unconcentrated mind.... a released mind as a released mind, and an unreleased mind as an unreleased mind.



"One knows and sees this whenever there is an opening.



"If one wishes, one recollects manifold past lives (lit. previous abodes of existence), that is, one birth, two births, three births, four, five, ten, 20, 30, 40, 50, 100, 1000, 100000, many aeons of cosmic contraction, many aeons of cosmic expansion, many aeons of cosmic contraction and expansion, [recollecting]:



"'There I had such a name, belonged to such an extended family, had such an appearance. Such was my food, such my experience of pleasure and pain, such the end of my life. Passing away from that state, I was reborn [lit. reappeared] there. There, too, I had such a name, belonged to such an extended family, had such an appearance. Such was my food, such my experience of pleasure and pain, such the end of my life. Passing away from that state, I was reborn here.'



"Thus one recalls manifold past lives in general and in detail. One knows and sees this for oneself whenever there is an opening.



"If one wishes, one sees -- by means of the divine eye, purified and surpassing the human -- beings passing away and reappearing [being reborn], and discerns how they are inferior and superior, beautiful and ugly, fortunate and unfortunate in accordance with their karma:



"'These beings -- who were endowed with unwholesome conduct of body, speech, and mind, who reviled [insulted, disregarded] the Noble Ones [ariya, i.e., anyone who has attained any of the stages of enlightenment], held wrong views, and who undertook actions under the influence of wrong views -- with the breakup of the body, after death, such beings have reappeared on a plane of deprivation, in an unfortunate destination, the lower realms, even the hells.



"But these [other] beings -- who were endowed with wholesome (kusala) conduct of body, speech, and mind, who did not revile [but who listened and regarded] the Noble Ones, who held right views, and who undertook actions under the influence of right views -- with the breakup of the body, after death, such beings have reappeared in fortunate destinations [human plane and higher], even in heavenly worlds.'



"Thus -- by means of the divine eye, purified and surpassing the human -- one sees beings passing away and reappearing, and discerns how they are inferior and superior, beautiful and ugly, fortunate and unfortunate in accordance with their karma.



"One knows and see all this for oneself whenever there is an opening.



"Then if one wishes, through the stilling of mental proliferation, one remains in the unsurpassed freedom of mind, freedom of heart, freedom through wisdom, full liberation here and now.







"One knows and sees all this for oneself whenever there is an opening."

• The field of work (kamatthana) for serenity meditation
• Buddha or Arahant - Don't take the finger for the Moon
• Magic cow gone wrong: reptilian hybrid in Cambodia
  
  

For free distribution. This work may be republished, reformatted, reprinted, and redistributed in any medium. It is the author's wish, however, that any such republication and redistribution be made available to the public on a free and unrestricted basis and that translations and other derivative works be clearly marked as such.

The Blissful Way to Meditate

Wisdom Quarterly

(Philiproeland/Flickr)



It was only when Siddhartha stopped being afraid of pleasure dissociated from sensuality that he entered upon the path to enlightenment. For it is not by austerity but by happiness that one finds nirvana: "There is no way to happiness; happiness ["pleasure" (sukha) as a factor of absorption] is the way!"



(More happy panda pictures at Kjdrill/Flickr)

Meditative bliss (piti in jhana or zen, dhyana, ch'an) is given shortshrift in this age of insight (vipassana). But profound concentration serves as the best foundation for the work of penetrative wisdom.



It purifies the mind-heart and stabilizes mindfulness. It intensifies the mind making it manifest what it is capable of, things we ourselves would not believe of it.



For example, when coming out of a meditative absorption it is very useful to review the factors of absorption associated with it. In this way one ensures where in the practice one is. This is done by turning attention toward the "mind door" which is located in the area of the physical heart. Without absorption (or at least access concentration), one sees nothing.



But with it one notices something that has always been there: a greenish mirror reflecting whatever is in the mind. One can then check the factors. (Only do this under a teacher skilled in the absorptions for, as the Gavi Sutra or "Cow Discourse" points out, one foolishly loses even the absorption one has already gained to say nothing of going no higher).

The importance of "Jhanas" in Buddhism

Stephanie Nash (mindfulnessarts.org) interviews Leigh Brasington, respected jhana meditation teacher about the "meditative absorptions." This is the beginning of a longer interview about the what, why, and how of jhanas as part of a meditation practice. Filmed in August 2009 at Cloud Mountain Retreat Center, Washington.



The Jhanas in Ancient Buddhism

Ven. Henepola Gunaratana ("Bhante G")

The various subjects and methods of meditation divide into two inter-related systems. One is called the development of serenity (samatha), the other the development of insight (vipassana).



The former also goes under the name of development of concentration (samadhi), the latter the development of wisdom (pañña). The practice of serenity meditation aims at developing a calm, concentrated, unified mind as a means of experiencing inner peace and as a basis for wisdom.



The practice of insight meditation aims at gaining a direct understanding of the real nature of phenomena.



Of the two, the development of insight is regarded by Buddhism as the essential key to liberation, the direct antidote to the ignorance underlying bondage and suffering.



Whereas serenity meditation is recognized as common to both Buddhist and non-Buddhist contemplative disciplines, insight meditation is held to be the unique discovery of the Buddha and an unparalleled feature of his path.



However, because the growth of insight presupposes a certain degree of concentration, and serenity meditation helps to achieve this, the development of serenity also claims an incontestable place in the Buddhist meditative process.



Jon Kabat Zinn narrates a guided meditation that corresponds to the first two stages of Ajahn Brahm's jhana meditation technique: (1) Letting go of past and future, placing attention on the body, (2) letting go of inner chatter, placing attention on sounds, (3) letting go of diversity, placing attention only on the breath.



Together the two types of meditation work to make the mind a fit instrument for enlightenment. With his mind unified by means of the development of serenity, made sharp and bright by the development of insight, the meditator can proceed unobstructed to reach the end of suffering, nirvana.

Pivotal to both systems of meditation, though belonging inherently to the side of serenity, is a set of meditative attainments called the jhanas. Though translators have offered various renderings of this word, ranging from the feeble "musing" to the misleading "trance" and the ambiguous "meditation," we prefer to leave the word untranslated and to let its meaning emerge from its contextual usages.

From these it is clear that the jhanas are states of deep mental unification that result from the centering of the mind upon a single object with such power of attention that a total immersion in the object takes place.

The early sutras speak of four absorptions, named simply after their numerical position in the series: the first jhana, the second jhana, the third jhana, and the forth jhana. In the sutras the four repeatedly appear each described by a standard formula, which we will examine later in detail.

The importance of the jhanas in the Buddhist path can readily be gauged from the frequency with which they are mentioned throughout the discourses. They figure prominently both in the Buddha's own experience and in his exhortation to disciples.

In his childhood, while attending an annual plowing festival, the future Buddha spontaneously entered the first jhana. It was the memory of this childhood incident, many years later [during his six year quest for enlightenment] after his futile pursuit of austerities, that revealed to him the way to enlightenment during his period of deepest despondency (M.i, 246-247).

After taking his seat beneath the Bodhi tree, [Siddhartha] entered the four jhanas immediately before direction his mind to the threefold knowledge that issued in his enlightenment (M.i.247-249).

Throughout his active career the four jhanas remained "his heavenly dwelling" (D.iii.220) to which he resorted in order to live happily here and now.

His understanding of the corruption, purification, and emergence in the jhanas and other meditative attainments is one of the Ten Powers [of a Buddha or Tathagata] which enable him to turn the matchless wheel of the Dharma (M.i.70).

Just before his passing away the Buddha entered the jhanas in direct and reverse order, and the passing away itself took place directly from the fourth jhana (D.ii.156).

The Buddha is constantly seen in the suttas encouraging his disciples to develop jhana. The four jhanas are invariably included in the complete course of training laid down for disciples ("Fruits of Recluseship" discourse (DN 2; MN 27).

They figure in the training as the discipline of the Noble Eightfold Path... More

Absorption Advice (Jhana Meditation)

(jhanasadvice.com)

Pa Auk Sayadaw is a Theravada Buddhist scholar-practitioner. Two of his accomplished Western students are Stephen Snyder and Tina Rasmussen. They are offering retreats, day long meditations, and interviews (advice on practicing to gain profound serenity).



2011 Retreats

3-day meditation retreat at Cloud Mountain, Dec. 9-12, 2011



Dharma Talks, Daylongs, Interviews

• Tina Rasmussen was recently interviewed by Nonduality Magazine, an online magazine featuring interviews with teachers from a wide variety of traditions. Stephen Snyder will be interviewed for the next issue.

Dharma Talks

• Sacramento, CA on April 21 & 22, 2012
• We have posted a Dharma talk recorded in November, 2009 when Ven. Pa Auk Sayadaw invited us to teach at the Theravada Dhamma Society near San Francisco, California.
• We were interviewed in 2010 by Vince Horn at BuddhistGeeks.com. It was a lot of fun talking about the "Jedi Warrior Training" yogis described experiencing at our Dec. 2009- Jan 2010 retreat. Click here for the link, and scroll down to the interviews (in two parts).

Upcoming 2012 and 2013 Retreats

• 25-day Retreat in Washington, 2013: We will also offer our first 25-day retreat, October 13-November 8, 2013, at a private retreat center on Samish Island, near Bellingham, Washington. The estimated cost is $1,350 and all rooms are single cabins. Pre-registration is now open.
• These retreats are in addition to our usual 13-day annual retreat at Cloud Mountain, which next year will be held Sept 8-21, 2012. See Events page for details.
  
  

Spirit Rock Daylong: In Jan. 2011, we held our first daylong at Spirit Rock Meditation Center (near San Francisco). We were delighted that 120 people attended with very positive feedback.

Practicing the Jhanas Book

• Now available for e-readers! The e-reader version of Jhanas Advice is sold at a reduced cost, on Amazon Kindle, Barnes & Noble, and Google.
• Practicing the Jhanas (Shambhala Publications) is available in major bookstores and most Internet booksellers. Or order from JhanasAdvice.com (Books page).
  
  
• The original Jhanas Advice from Two Spiritual Friends was purchased by more than 550 people in 31 countries on six continents in a two year period. The Shambhala version contains one additional chapter on "First Sit to First Jhana" as well as an expanded section on the Purification of Mind. Several wonderful reviews of our book have been released, including Yoga Journal UK, Wisdom Quarterly: American Buddhist Journal, and Buddhadharma. The latest can be found here.

Knowing and Seeing by Pa Auk Sayadaw

This seminal text is now available at cost for purchase on Amazon.com thanks to two yogis in our sangha -- Ted Weinstein and Michael Nagy. The book is beautiful and much easier to read and use than the downloadable version. It sells for $15.99 (nonprofit) with any small proceeds being donated to Pa Auk Forest Monastery in Burma. Click here to order. For a description visit Books/Dana page.

The Buddha's Sister: Sundari Nanda

Wisdom Quarterly

The mysterious pull of beauty is revealed and undone when we see it clearly according to its true nature as composite with an illusory stability.

Sundari Nanda, Suddhodana and Maha Pajapati's daughter, the Buddha's half-sister

Soon after his birth, Prince Siddhartha's mother (Maha Maya Devi) passed away. He was adopted by her younger sister, King Suddhodana's other wife, Maha Prajapati. She was later to become history's first Buddhist nun.

When she was born, Princess Nanda was lovingly welcomed by her parents: Her father was King Suddhodana, the father of the Buddha; her mother was Mahaprajapati. Nanda's name means "joy, contentment, and pleasure." She was so named because her parents were especially joyous about the newborn's arrival.

Nanda was known in her childhood for being extremely beautiful, well-bred, and graceful. To distinguish her from other Sakyans -- the Buddha's extended family -- with the same name, like her brother, she came to be known as Rupa Nanda ("one of delightful form") and Sundari Nanda ("beautiful Nanda").

Over time, many members of her family, the Sakyans of Kapilavastu [likely located in the vicinity of Bamiyan, Afghanistan -- sakya literally meaning "grey earth" according to Wonderlane -- formerly the mountainous desert northwest of India, or less likely but as is traditionally held, southern Nepal] left the worldly life. They renounced it for the ascetic life, inspired by the enlightenment of Prince Siddhartha, who came to be called the "Sage of the Sakyas" (Shakyamuni).

Among them was her and the Buddha's brother, Nanda, and their cousins Ananda and Anurudha, who were two of the Buddha’s leading disciples. When their mother became the first nun, many other royal Shakyan ladies, including Siddhartha's former wife, Princess Yasodharā, became Buddhist monastics.


So Sundari Nanda also renounced the burdensome household life. But unlike many of the others, who sought the best guidance, she did not do it out of

• confidence in the Buddha's enlightenment
• confidence in the efficacy of the Dharma to bring one to enlightenment
• confidence in the success of that Noble Sangha who followed the Path (the Buddha-Dharma) laid out for quickly reaching enlightenment.

She did it out of love for and attachment to her relatives and a feeling that she belonged with them.

Renunciation

It soon became obvious that Sundari Nanda was not focused on her life as an ascetic nun. Her thoughts were mainly centered on her beauty and popularity with the people, characteristics she enjoyed due to the ripening of meritorious actions performed in past lives. This welcome karmic inheritance became an impediment to Sundari Nanda. She neglected to reinforce it with new merit (profitable karma or weighty good actions).

She felt guilty that she was not living up to the lofty expectations of others. She was far from the goal so many members of the Shakyan royal family had left the home life for. And she felt certain the Buddha would censure her. So for a long time, she avoided him.

Enlightenment

One day the Buddha requested all the nuns come to him individually to hear the teaching. Sundari Nanda disregarded the request. The Buddha asked for her to be called explicitly. She presented herself but her demeanor was abashed and anxious. The Buddha wisely appealed to her positive qualities, so she became willing to listen and delighted in his words.

When the Buddha knew the conversation had raised her spirits and made her joyful and ready to accept the Dharma, he began to teach her. Since Sundari Nanda was preoccupied with her physical beauty, he used his psychic powers to produce a vision of a stunningly beautiful woman, one more gorgeous than Sundari Nanda.

The woman then began to age rapidly and forcefully right in front of her. As a result, Sundari Nanda could see in explicit detail what humans otherwise only notice after decades or an entire lifespan: Youth recedes, health and beauty fade, decay and signs aging appear -- wrinkles, hair greying and loss, decline in faculties.

The vision deeply affected Sundari Nanda; she was shaken to the core. Having seen the image, the Buddha could explain the universal mark of radical impermanence [which is not about eventual aging, but moment-to-moment rising and falling of the Five Aggregates] to her in such a manner that she penetrated the truth entirely and thereby attained the first stage of enlightenment, certainty of future liberation, stream-entry.

As a meditation subject, the Buddha advised her to contemplate the impermanent and unpleasant aspects of the body -- to see it as it truly is and thereby be liberated by that truth. This is a systematic contemplation -- the first of the Four Foundations of Mindfulness -- not simply an epiphany (satori) based on a vision of the future loss of beauty. Sundari Nanda persevered for extended periods of practice "diligent and courageous day and night." She described it as recorded in the "Verses of Enlightened Nuns" (Therigatha 82-86):

Ill, impure, and offensive as well,
Nanda, see this jumbled mass [the body].
Toward the unlovely, develop mind
Well-composed to singleness.

As is this, so was that
As that, so will this likewise be.
Exhaling foulness, evil odors,
A thing delighted in by fools.

Diligently inspecting it, just as it is,
By day and night thus seeing it,
With my own wisdom having seen,
I turned away, dispassionate.

With diligence, carefully
I examined the body
And saw this as it really is --
Both within and without.

No longer lusting but quenched
Within this body then was I:
By diligence from fetters freed,
Peaceful was I and quite cool.

As Sundari Nanda had once been infatuated with her physical appearance, it was necessary for her to apply the meditation on bodily unattractiveness to counterbalance that powerful tendency and bias and find equanimity (impartiality).

Later the Buddha recognized his half-sister as being the foremost amongst female monastics who practiced meditative absorption (jhana) -- like the chief female disciple Uppalavanna and chief male disciple Mahamoggallana. This meant that she not only followed the analytical way of insight, but was expert in the foundational stages of serenity.

Enjoying this pure supersensual well-being, she no longer needed any sensual distractions. She enjoyed inner peace at will, in spite of having become a member of the Sangha out of attachment to her loved ones.

I admit it, I'm a doting parent. I want an enlightened child. I show this to her, but she only laughs. She's not getting any younger you know.

Buddhist Prophecy: "Seven Suns" (video)

Translation by Pa Auk Sayadaw, preeminent noble living Buddhist scholar-practitioner, from his compendious The Workings of Kamma, edited by Wisdom Quarterly

In the "Seven-Suns Discourse" (Satta-Suriya Sutra, A.VII.vii.2) the Buddha gives a detailed account of this world-system’s eventual destruction.

"Inconceivable is the beginning, disciples, of the round of rebirth. A first point is not known of beings hindered by ignorance and fettered by craving rushing on and running about [from life to life in samsara]."

The Buddha then explains how, in the distant future, the world-system will come to an end. This possibly settles a question made famous by the American poet Robert Frost:

Some say the world will end in fire,
Some say in ice.
From what I've tasted of desire
I hold with those who favor fire.
But if it had to perish twice,
I think I know enough of hate
To say that for destruction ice
Is also great
And would suffice.

THERE WILL COME A TIME

First the great ocean dries up: "There will come a time, disciples, when the great ocean dries up, evaporates, and is no more.

"In the distant future the world will be destroyed in one of three ways [16]: destroyed by fire, by water or by wind" [20]. Here, the Buddha describes what happens when the world is destroyed by fire [21]. "First of all, a 100,000 years beforehand, certain sky-devas [literal beings from space] will appear before people with disheveled hair, and pitiful faces, wiping their tears with their hands [22].

They will announce the end of the world and urge people to develop the four Divine Abidings (Brahma Viharas): loving-kindness (metta), compassion, joy in others' joy, and impartiality (equanimity) up to the level of absorption (jhana). And they will advise people to look after their parents and respect their elders. Most people will take these words to heart and practice loving-kindness towards each other. In this and other ways they accomplish wholesome karma.

Those who are able will develop the meditative-absorptions. Those who are unable to develop [any of the eight] absorptions will, because of their past profitable karma, be reborn in the deva world. Then as devas they will develop absorption.

Dependent on ignorance and craving, the karmic potency of their absorption causes all of these beings to be reborn in the brahma world [23]. [This is the result of the weighty good karma of absorption held at the time of dying.]

(FULL LENGTH MOVIE)

After a long period, a great cloud appears, and heavy rain falls throughout the hundred thousand million world spheres. People sow crops, but when the crops have grown high enough for an ox to graze, the rain stops [24]. With no more rain, plants dry up and are no more. Soon there is famine. Human beings die and also earthbound-devas (bhumma-deva), for they live on flowers and fruits.

Owing to their past profitable karma, they are reborn in the deva world. And as devas they develop absorption using meditative disks (kasina). Again, dependent on ignorance and craving, the karmic potency of their absorption serves as the cause of rebirth in the brahma world.

After a long time, the water in the world begins to evaporate. Fish, turtles, and other creatures that live in the water die. Owing to their past profitable karma, they are also reborn in the deva world, where as devas develop absorption. Dependent on ignorance and craving, the karmic potency of their absorption causes them to be reborn in the brahma world.

According to a "law of nature" (niyama), the beings residing in hellish planes also escape from hell and are reborn in the human world [25]. They develop loving-kindness and are reborn in the deva world, where as devas they develop absorption. Dependent on ignorance and craving, the karmic potency of their absorption causes them to be reborn in the brahma world.

But the beings who were reborn in the [lowest worlds, the eight great] hells as a result of holding persistent wrong views (niyata-miccha-ditthi) [26] do not escape: Dependent on ignorance and craving, the karmic potency of their persistent wrong view causes them to be reborn in an interstitial hell (loka-antarika-niraya, see e.g., "The Darkness Discourse," Andhakara Sutra, S.V.XII.v.6), one of the unfortunate destinations situated in the space between world-systems [27]. Thus, even though the world system is coming to an end, the continued rushing on and running about of beings does not come to an end.

The Buddha goes on to declare [28], "Not even then, disciples, is the suffering of beings hindered by ignorance and fettered by craving (who rush on and run about) brought to an end, I declare.

"After a long period without rain, by the time all beings have been reborn elsewhere, a second sun appears [29]. As one sun sets the other rises, so there is no more telling night from day: The world is continuously scorched by the heat of two suns. Streams and smaller rivers dry up.

"After yet another very long period, a third sun appears, and now the great rivers dry up [30]. Then after yet another very long period, a fourth sun appears, and the great lakes that were the source of the great rivers dry up [31]. After yet another very long period, a fifth sun appears, and the seas dry up. There is not enough water left to wet a finger [32]. Again, after yet another very long period, a sixth sun appears. Now the great Mount Sineru [33] and the very Earth itself begin to burn and give off clouds of smoke.

"Eventually, after yet another very long period, a seventh sun appears. Now all bursts into flames, into one great sheet of flame. Great Mount Sineru and the Earth burn and disintegrate. Powerful winds carry the fire right up to the brahma worlds [high in space]. And just as burning ghee [creme de la creme] or oil leave no ashes, so the burning Mount Sineru and Earth leave no ashes [34].

"Even so," the Buddha explains, "there is no end to the rushing on and running about of beings in the round of rebirth [35].

"There will come a time, disciples, when Sineru, King of Mountains, is burned, destroyed, and is no more. Not even then, disciples, is the suffering of beings hindered by ignorance and fettered by craving (who rush on and run about) brought to an end, I declare.

"There will come a time, disciples, when the great Earth, is burned, destroyed, and is no more. Not even then, disciples, is the suffering of beings hindered by ignorance and fettered by craving (who rush on and run about) brought to an end, I declare."

Having explained how beings continue to rush on and run about in the round of rebirth (samsara), the Buddha then discusses why. More (p. 23) plus footnotes

• Why does Outer Space look black?
• Mars station explained; Martian ruins unexplained
• VIDEO: China news unable to explain two suns
• Alternative News Report: What is the second sun?
• FBI infiltrating and disabling US anti-war movement

Why We Love Trees (Tree Hugger's Ball)

We love trees. And what better way to show it than to save them, meditate under them, and hug them? The Buddha was born under a Sal tree in Lumbini Garden.

During his quest, he sought shelter under a great Sal tree. There he realized that a course of austerities was no way to enlightenment; then, mistaken for a tree spirit (dryad or bhummi-deva), he was fed good food that fortified him for the more difficult effort of balancing striving-and-receiving.

He then sat under a Bodhi tree and reached enlightenment. He taught under trees, taught others to sit under trees, and frequently retreated to the forest alone to enjoy the silence and bliss of meditation under trees.

Such was his experience under the canopy that when it came time to pass into final nirvana, he laid out between twin Sal trees. He joyfully said goodbye, gave his last words of advice -- "All conditioned-phenomena are hurtling towards destruction; work out your liberation with diligence" (Parinirvana Sutra) -- then entered the purifying absorptions (jhanas) before going beyond:

"Gone, gone, gone beyond, gone altogether beyond, O what an awakening, so it is!" (the Heart of Perfect Wisdom Sutra mantra)

(OC Weekly: Tree Hugger's Ball)

It’s that time of year again -- the annual Tree Hugger’s Ball takes over Silverado, and OC’s eco-maniacs get their day in the Sun. The afternoon begins with the Go Green Expo, an environmental fair dedicated to teaching everyone how to do just that via food, art, auctions, shopping, costumed dancers, and information about alternative energy and fuel-efficient vehicles. Eco-hero Daryl Hannah is the night’s guest speaker; she’ll be followed by bands playing folk, Appalachian music and “environmental blues” (gas prices, oil wars?) and dancing until midnight. Guests are encouraged to wear their own earthy costumes. It is a ball after all.

Heavenly Rebirths are due to Absorptions

Wisdom Quarterly (AN IV, 123) Numerical Discourses, Book of the Fours

[The Buddha:] O disciples, these four kinds of persons are found existing in the world. What four?

1. Here within this teaching, disciples, some person enters and dwells in the first meditative absorption [jhana or zen, a profound purifying level of concentration], which is accompanied by initial and sustained application of mind [to a single object], experiencing rapture and happiness born of seclusion [mental and physical withdrawal].

One relishes it, longs for it, and is satisfied in it, having mastered it, resolved on it, and become able to dwell in it at will without falling away from it. On passing away [while holding this profoundly wholesome state, as a result] one is reborn in the company of devas ["shining ones"] in Maha Brahma's Retinue [with a lifespan that depends on the degree of mastery of the first absorption, either a third, a half, or a full aeon corresponding to inferior, intermediate, or superior mastery].

The lifespan of those devas is one aeon (kalpa). The ordinary [uninstructed] worldling remains there for the full lifespan [until the extremely profitable karma of this absorption that led to rebirth there is exhausted]. After completing the lifespan there, one is reborn in a hellish state, the animal realm, or the world of ghosts.

But the disciple of the Blessed One [the Buddha] remains there for the full lifespan. After completing the lifespan there [and having at some point successfully completed the requisite insight practices], one attains final nirvana. Disciples, this is the distinction, the disparity, the difference between the instructed worldling in regard to destination and rebirth.

2. Furthermore, disciples, some person within this teaching [Dharma], with the subsiding of initial and sustained application of mind, enters and dwells in the second meditative absorption. That attainment is characterized by the subsiding of discursive [distracted] thinking and a superior bliss born of concentration [samadhi, calm, collected intensification of mind], filled with rapture and joy [sukha].

One relishes it, longs for it, and is satisfied in it, having mastered it, resolved on it, and become able to dwell in it at will without falling away from it. On passing away [while holding this state], one is reborn in the company of devas of Streaming Radiance.

The lifespan of those devas is two aeons. The ordinary worldling remains there for the full lifespan. After completing the lifespan there, one is reborn in a hellish state, the animal realm, or the world of ghosts.

But the disciple of the Blessed One remains there for the full lifespan then attains final nirvana. Disciples, this is the distinction...in regard to destination and rebirth.

3. Disciples, some person within this teaching, with the fading away as well of rapture dwells equanimous [impartial, unbiased, settled, and serene]. Mindful and clearly comprehending, one experiences happiness throughout the body: One attains and dwells in the third meditative absorption of which the Noble Ones say: "Happy indeed is the person who lives mindful and equanimous!"

One relishes it, longs for it, and is satisfied in it, having mastered it, resolved on it, and become able to dwell in it at will without falling away from it. On passing away [while holding this state], one is reborn in the company of devas of Resplendent Glory (Abhassara deva).

The lifespan there is four aeons. The [ordinary, uninstructed] worldling reamins there for the full lifespan. After completing the lifespan there, one goes to a hellish state, or the animal realm, or the world of ghosts.

But the disciple of the Blessed One remains there for the full lifespan then attains final nirvana. This, disciples, is the distinction, the disparity, the difference between the instructed noble disciple and the uninstructed worldling in regard to destination and rebirth.



4. Finally, disciples some here within this teaching, with the abandoning of pleasure and pain, and the previous falling away of gladness (sukha) and sadness, enters and dwells in the fourth meditative absorption, which is neither painful nor pleasant and includes the purification of mindfulness by equanimity.

One relishes it, longs for it, and is satisfied in it, having mastered it, resolved on it, and become able to dwell in it at will without falling away from it. On passing away [while holding this state], one is reborn in the company of devas of Great Fruit.

The lifespan there is 500 aeons. The ordinary worldling remains there for the full lifespan. After that, one is reborn in a hellish state, the animal realm, or the world of ghosts.

But the disciple of the Blessed One remains there for the full lifespan then attains final nirvana. Disciples, this is the distinction, the disparity, the difference between the instructed noble disciple and the uninstructed worldling in regard to destination and rebirth.

These are the four kinds of persons found existing in the world. [Discourse AN IV, 125 follows this pattern according to the Four Divine Abidings (Brahma Viharas) with the liberation of mind/heart by loving-kindness being correlated with the first meditative absorption. AN III, 114 follows this pattern according to the first three of the four formless attainments corresponding to the eight total absorptions.]

*NOTE: Bhikkhu Bodhi explains that according to the commentary to this text, The difference between non-disciples and disciples of the Buddha born in this heavenly state is that, while the worldling might move on to an unfortunate destination, even one of the hells, the noble disciple who is a trainee does not descend lower by way of rebirth but attains final nirvana in that same form becoming (or) later in a certain brahma-world in the second or third existence, etc. The ordinary worldling might go to one of the hells after a sequence of lives, but not in the very next life. According to the Abhidharma, existence in the fine-material sphere (rupa loka) cannot be followed immediately by rebirth in the plane of misery (the four unfortunate states collectively). Therefore such a deva, on passing away from the fine-material sphere, might be reborn in the human world (the lowest of the fortunate destinations), where one might then commit unprofitable deeds that lead to rebirth in the lower (subhuman) worlds.

"Rapture" in Buddhism

Wisdom Quarterly

The "Christ in a the clouds UFO-invasion" theory promulgated by fundamentalist Christians may be a too literal interpretation of an internal experience.

There is a lifting up, an effervescence, a pleasurable floating sensation -- called piti in Buddhism -- as if one were held in soft, nurturing hands. Five things oppose it, and five things enable it. It all occurs on a seat, a cushion, or the root of a tree, fully clothed.

Rapture (Pali, pīti, pronounced "pee-tee," Sanskrit prīti) is variously translated as joy, bliss, supersensual happiness, enthusiasm, or keen or joyful interest in an object of Buddhist meditation. It is certainly not limited to Buddhist experience; it is, rather, a universally accessible and naturally occurring process of the cultivated mind.

It is a serene quality of absorption (intense collectedness or concentration into a single object, Pali, jhana, Sanskrit, dhyana). While rapture is uplifting, it eventually wears thin as the mind longs for greater peace. This happiness is happiness-in-the-body, but it is not a physical sensation. Rapture is precariously close to Earth and one senses it would not take much to draw one back to erratic and distressing worldly affairs.

Eventually, as the absorptions deepen (there are eight progressively subtle and pleasurable states, four material and four immaterial), gross happiness becomes equanimous. Excited bliss becomes calm impartiality. Buoyancy goes from a healthy, happy body to a tranquil, contented mind (sukha or "gladness").

What opposes entrance into this natural state? The Five Hindrances:

1. Sensual desire: craving for sense pleasures.
2. Ill-will, anger, or wrath: malice directed at others.
3. Sloth-torpor: boredom or lassitude of body and mind.
4. Restlessness-worry: worry, regret, scattered energy.
5. Doubt: lack of confidence, conviction, faith, or trust.

What enables entrance? The Five Factors of Absorption:

1. Moving the mind onto the object (applied attention)
2. Retaining the mind on the object (sustained attention)
3. Rapture (joyful interest in the object)
4. Happiness (the opposite of suffering or distress)
5. Equanimity (impartiality, serenity, tranquility)

All of these states are accompanied, to a lesser or greater degree, by one-pointedness of mind, something we often lack in our attention-deficit-disordered daily lives. When does serenity ever occur? Now. Only now.