jim_flanegin wrote: > I barely know anything about religion. > Jim - You seem to be interested in religion, this topic concerns the stages of samadhi. I'm just trying to point out that the word samadhi pertains to the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali - one of the main scriptures of the Indian Six Systems. But the other respondent, Barry, seems to be confused and wants to debate Patanjali about the existence of the Ishvara. The term samadhi is a Buddhist term, so what's up with the misinformation about the God of Yoga? The word Samadhi is found in the early Buddhist leterature, specifically the Anguttara Nikaya IV.94 of the Samadhi Sutra of Shakya the Muni, namely Gautama of Kapilavastu, India's first historical yogin.
There is a long history of the use of this word in early pre-sectarian Buddhism, in the Chan tradition and in Zen Buddhism. In the index of the Visuddi Magga, for example, there are over twenty-five references to Samadhi that need to be read in context. However, the word Samadhi is not found in any of the 10 Upanishads commented on by Shankara Acharya. This is no small mattter and cannot be passed over, for if, as other respondents say, the attainment of Samadhi is central to the experiential verification of the Vedanta, one would expect the phrase to occur in the sacred texts, would one not? Samadhi: 1. Sanskrit (Saúmaúdhi) n. Jap., sanmai or zanmai 2. Nirvana, Parinirvana 3. from the root word 'Sam', to establish, make firm. 4. A conscious experience that lies beyond waking, dreaming, and deep sleep. 5. A non-meditative meditative mental equipose.
