8. Right Stillness (Jhāna)

MN 36 I remembered a time when my father was occupied, while I was sitting in the cool shade of a rose-apple tree, having passed beyond the five senses and free from unwholesome states, I entered and abided in the first jhāna. I thought “Could that be the path to awakening (bodhi)?” Then the realisation arose: “That jhāna is indeed the path to awakening.”

The Four Jhānas

Having abandoned the five hindrances, totally free from the five senses, free from unwholesome states (the hindrances), you enter upon and abide in the first jhāna, wherein the mind moves onto the object and holds onto it, the object being joy and pleasure caused by being totally free from the five senses.

MN 43 In the first jhāna, five things are absent and five factors are present. When one has entered the first jhāna, the five hindrances are totally absent, and what is present is: (1) the mind moves onto the object, (2) it holds on to the object, the object being (3) joy and (4) pleasure, and there is (5) oneness of mind.

MN 27 When the mind no longer moves onto the object because it lets go of holding on to it, you enter upon and abide in the second jhāna, which has trust (in the object, the bliss, enough to let go of holding it) and unity of mind without any movement or holding, with joy and pleasure caused by absolute stillness.

With the fading away of joy, you abide mindful and fully aware, experiencing a bliss purified from joy; you enter upon and abide in the third jhāna, on account of which noble ones announce: “One has a pleasant abiding indeed who has such mindfulness and equanimity.”

Having abandoned pleasure and pain (all vedanā from the five senses), and with the disappearance of joy and unhappiness (all vedanā from the sixth sense except for equanimity), you enter upon and abide in the fourth jhāna, which has only neutral mental vedanā remaining—just pure mindfulness with equanimity.

MN 108 [Venerable Ānanda:] And what kind of meditation did the Buddha recommend? Totally free from the five senses … you abide in the first jhāna. When the mind stops moving onto the joy and pleasure, and stops holding it … you abide in the second jhāna. With the fading away of joy … you abide in the third jhāna. With the abandoning of all mental pleasant and unpleasant vedanā … you abide in the fourth jhāna. The Buddha praised these four kinds of meditation.

DN 29 There are, Cunda, these four kinds of life devoted to pleasure that are entirely conducive to revulsion (nibbidā), to fading away, cessation, peace, realisation, awakening, to nibbāna. What are they? The four jhānas. So, if devotees of other sects should say that the Buddhists are addicted to these four forms of pleasure-seeking, they should be told “Yes,” for they would be speaking correctly about you.

Then some people might further ask you what benefits can you expect from a life attached to these four forms of pleasure-seeking? You should reply that they can expect only four fruits, four benefits: (1) stream-winning, (2) once-returning, (3) non-returning, or (4) full awakening. These are the benefits that you can expect from being attached to these four forms of pleasure-seeking.

MN 64 There is one path, Ānanda, to the abandoning of the five basic fetters. It is impossible that anyone can understand or abandon these five basic fetters without relying on that path. No more than it is possible to cut out the hardwood from a tree without cutting through its bark and sapwood. What is that path? Any of the four jhānas and first three immaterial attainments.

MN 68 While you still do not experience jhāna, the five hindrances together with discontent (arati) and weariness (tandī) invade your mind and remain. But when you do experience a jhāna, the five hindrances, together with discontent and weariness do not invade your mind and remain.

AN 8.81 When you have no jhāna, for one deficient in jhāna, the cause for seeing things as they truly are is destroyed. When you do not see things as they truly are, for one deficient in such wisdom, the cause for revulsion and fading away is destroyed. When you are not revolted, nor do you incline to disappearing, for one deficient in these, the cause for knowledge and vision of liberation is destroyed.

SN 22.5 Develop jhāna. When you experience jhāna, you can understand things as they really are. And what do you understand as it really is? The origin and passing away of form; the origin and passing away of experience; the origin and passing away of perception; the origin and passing away of will; the origin and passing away of consciousnesses.

Dhp 372 There is no jhāna for one without wisdom,
There is no wisdom for one without jhāna.
For one who has both jhāna and wisdom,
They are in the presence of nibbāna!

Summing Up of the Noble Eightfold Path

SN 56.11 This is that middle way awakened to by the Buddha, which gives rise to vision, which gives rise to knowledge, which leads to peace, to direct knowledge, to awakening, to nibbāna.

Dhp 275 Enter then upon this path; you’ll make an end of suffering.

Nibbāna

MN 39 When you know and see thus, the mind is no longer pulled out into the world of the five senses (it is liberated from the wanting āsava); it no longer flows out just to be (it is liberated from the being āsava), and it no longer leaks out because of delusion (it is liberated from the delusion āsava). When liberation occurs, the knowledge of liberation invariably follows.

You understand: “Rebirth is finished, the holy life has been fulfilled, done was what had to be done, there is nothing more here.”

MN 26 Your deliverance is unshakeable;
This is your last life;
Now there will be no renewal of existence.
For this is the supreme noble wisdom, namely, the knowledge of the destruction of all suffering.

The True Goal

MN 29 So this holy life does not have gain, honour and fame for its main purpose, nor the attainment of virtue for its main purpose, nor the attainment of jhāna as its main purpose, nor insight for its main purpose.

The main purpose of the holy life is this unshakeable deliverance of mind, full awakening. That is the goal of this holy life, its essence and its culmination.

DN 16 It may be that you will think: “The Teacher’s instruction has ceased, now we have no teacher!” It should not be seen like this, for what I have taught and explained to you as Dhamma and discipline will, at my passing, be your teacher.

You should live as islands unto yourselves,
Being your own refuge, with no one else as your refuge,
With the Dhamma as your island,
With the Dhamma as your refuge, with no other refuge.

For this reason those matters that I have discovered and proclaimed should be thoroughly learnt by you, practised, developed and cultivated, so that this holy life may endure for a long time, that it may be for the benefit and happiness of the multitude, out of compassion for the world, for the benefit and happiness of devas and humans.

SN 56.31 “Which do you think are greater, the few leaves that I hold in my hand or all the leaves in the forest?” asked the Buddha. “The leaves in the forest,” came the answer. “Likewise, the things that I know but have not taught to you are many, like the leaves in the forest, whereas the things that I have taught you are few, like the leaves in my hand. The reason that I have not taught you those many things is because they are irrelevant to the holy life and do not lead to awakening.”