ED, Yes, I have only come across one source that argues the jhana states are essential for Enlightenment and he (Jeffrey Brooks) is widely ignored in the Buddhist community. I do think that attainment of the jhanas indicates some kind of stage in meditation, but not an essential stage. They are useful for gaining a strong, one-pointed concentration that can be applied to insight meditation (vipassana) which can lead to Enlightenment, but they are not the goal themselves. In fact, much like the song of the sirens, they can distracting to such an extent that they lead a person away from the path permanently (read anything by Jeffrey Brooks!). The way to 'tie yourself to the mast' is, as you already pointed out, to just continue practicing.
Mike ________________________________ From: ED <[email protected]> To: [email protected] Sent: Mon, 18 April, 2011 15:04:33 Subject: Re: [Zen] The Three Dimensions of Release Mike, Is there any statement in my post below that you disagree with? Thanks, ED --- In [email protected], mike brown <uerusuboyo@...> wrote: > ED, Yes, I have only come across one source that argues the jhana states are essential for Enlightenment and he (Jeffrey Brooks) is widely ignored in the Buddhist community. I do think that attainment of the jhanas indicates some kind of stage in meditation, but not an essential stage. They are useful for gaining a strong, one-pointed concentration that can be applied to insight meditation (vipassana) which can lead to Enlightenment, but they are not the goal themselves. In fact, much like the song of the sirens, they can distracting to such an extent that they lead a person away from the path permanently (read anything by Jeffrey Brooks!). The way to 'tie yourself to the mast' is, as you already pointed out, to just continue practicing. Mike Anthony, In "Zen-Mind Reflections" by Dr. James Austin, the absorbtions (jhana states) are said to comprise a stage one may encounter in one's practice, and which stage lies between the makyo ('awakenings') and kensho-statori (wisdom-insight) stages. As reported in the Theravada literature, the Buddha himself encountered these jhana states prior to his enlightenment, and prior to his demise - and very probably at other times too. The jhana states are not 'illusory' states, as they are the actual personal experiences (sensations, visions, bliss states, compassion states) of the the meditator - and they are all impermanent, as are all phenomena. The experiences in each of the eight jhana states has been been itemized in detail in the Theravada literature. The advice is uniform and unambiguous toward all phenomena encountered in Zen practice, including phenomena in the makyo, jhana and kensho-satori states, and this advice is: Continue practicing. --ED
