/lit/ - Literature

This thread is being offered for reader's consideration regarding the practice of meditative absorption. With so much confusing and contradictory information buzzing around the web on the subject of jhana, and in an effort to set the record straight according to someone's actual experience of the practice, I am hopeful that this thread will assist others who are intrepid enough to "give it a go," and who, despite all the negative press out and about on "official" and "unofficial" Buddhist web forums, are willing to endeavor to understand and practice this often misunderstood aspect of Buddhist meditation training and accomplishment.

Let me start by dispelling the predominate myth about absorption that is being spread by websites like The Buddhist Community E-Sangha (now defunct). Often you will hear or read that mastery of absorption is rare and almost unknown in the present contemporary world; that "it is no longer possible for people of this age to achieve the mastery of meditative absorption." Nothing could be further from the truth! Despite what you may have read (or heard repeated elsewhere) on such websites, meditative absorption (otherwise known as jhana) is not all that difficult to achieve, given the right conditions and training opportunities. It just takes some practice and the correct instruction and encouragement.

And once a person begins to get an accurate idea of what jhana is, how it feels, and what to look for, it is almost impossible to stop them from achieving it. Correct knowledge is self empowering. Of course, it is often best learnt and practiced with someone face to face; that is, with a teacher or guide from whom one can receive personal guidance and instruction as well as to be able to discuss their progress. There is no substitute for hands on, in-person instruction when it comes to the slippery subject of endeavoring to communicate information about subtle mental states. Yet, even if one does not have a personal guide or teacher, it is still possible to learn about and practice absorption, as long as one has access to proper instruction and feedback. So, barring a lack of either of these two stipulations, there is no excuse for a person not to take up the study of meditative absorption and to eventually succeed at its practice, all the negative press about it notwithstanding.

>>6917210

he is not rigorous in logic, as anybody being the bastard of the academia and the entertainment industry.

=>He is good for an entry into the subject, but must be abandoned quickly. You will recognize rigorous works as soon as you see them, especially if you have mediocre sources at your beginning.