Jhana - The Preparation for Jhana

The Jhanas in Theravada Buddhist Meditation
by Bhikkhu Henepola Gunaratana



  Chapter 2
  The Preparation for Jhana



    
    The jhanas do not arise out of a void but in dependence on the right
    conditions. They come to growth only when provided with the nutriments
    conductive to their development. Therefore, prior to beginning meditation,
    the aspirant to the jhanas must prepare a groundwork for his practice by
    fulfilling certain preliminary requirements. He first must endeavor to
    purify his moral virtue, sever the outer impediments to practice, and place
    himself under a qualified teacher who will assign him a suitable meditation
    subject and explain to him the methods of developing it. After learning
    these the disciple must then seek out a congenial dwelling and diligently
    strive for success. In this chapter we will examine in order each of the
    preparatory steps that have to be fulfilled before commencing to develop
    jhana.
    The Moral Foundation for Jhana
    A disciple aspiring to the jhanas first has to lay a solid foundation of
    moral discipline. Moral purity is indispensable to meditative progress for
    several deeply psychological reasons. It is needed first, in order to
    safeguard against the danger of remorse, the nagging sense of guilt that
    arises when the basic principles of morality are ignored or deliberately
    violated. Scrupulous conformity to virtuous rules of conduct protects the
    mediator from this danger disruptive to inner calm, and brings joy and
    happiness when the mediator reflects upon the purity of his conduct (see
    A.v,1-7).
    A second reason a moral foundation is needed for meditation follows from an
    understanding of the purpose of concentration. Concentration, in the
    Buddhist discipline, aims at providing a base for wisdom by cleansing the
    mind of the dispersive influence of the defilements. But in order for the
    concentration exercises to effectively combat the defilements, the coarser
    expressions of the latter through bodily and verbal action first have to be
    checked. Moral transgressions being invariably motivated by defilements --
    by greed, hatred and delusion -- when a person acts in violation of the
    precepts of morality he excites and reinforces the very same mental factors
    his practice of meditation is intended to eliminate. This involves him in a
    crossfire of incompatible aims which renders his attempts at mental
    purification ineffective. The only way he can avoid frustration in his
    endeavor to purify the mind of its subtler defilements is to prevent the
    unwholesome inner impulses from breathing out in the coarser form of
    unwholesome bodily and verbal deeds. Only when he establishes control over
    the outer expression of the defilements can he turn to deal with them
    inwardly as mental obsessions that appear in the process of meditation.
    The practice of moral discipline consists negatively in abstinence from
    immoral actions of body and speech and positively in the observance of
    ethical principles promoting peace within oneself and harmony in one's
    relations with others. The basic code of moral discipline taught by the
    Buddha for the guidance of his lay followers is the five precepts:
    abstinence from taking life, from stealing, from sexual misconduct, from
    false speech, and from intoxicating drugs and drinks. These principles are
    bindings as minimal ethical obligations for all practitioners of the
    Buddhist path, and within their bounds considerable progress in meditation
    can be made. However, those aspiring to reach the higher levels of jhanas
    and to pursue the path further to the stages of liberation, are encouraged
    to take up the more complete moral discipline pertaining to the life of
    renunciation. Early Buddhism is unambiguous in its emphasis on the
    limitations of household life for following the path in its fullness and
    perfection. Time and again the texts say that the household life is
    confining, a "path for the dust of passion," while the life of homelessness
    is like open space. Thus a disciple who is fully intent upon making rapid
    progress towards Nibbana will when outer conditions allow for it, "shave off
    his hair and beard, put on the yellow robe, and go forth from the home life
    into homelessness" (M.i,179).
    The moral training for the bhikkhus or monks has been arranged into a system
    called the fourfold purification of morality (catuparisuddhisila).[1] The
    first component of this scheme, its backbone, consists in the morality of
    restraint according to the Patimokkha, the code of 227 training precepts
    promulgated by the Buddha to regulate the conduct of the Sangha or monastic
    order. Each of these rules is in some way intended to facilitate control
    over the defilements and to induce a mode of living marked by harmlessness,
    contentment and simplicity. The second aspect of the monk's moral discipline
    is restraint of the senses, by which the monk maintains close watchfulness
    over his mind as he engages in sense contacts so that he does not give rise
    to desire for pleasurable objects and aversion towards repulsive ones.
    Third, the monk is to live by a purified livelihood, obtaining his basic
    requisites such as robes food, lodgings and medicines in ways consistent
    with his vocation. The fourth factor of the moral training is proper use of
    the requisites, which means that the monk should reflect upon the purposes
    for which he makes use of his requisites and should employ them only for
    maintaining his health and comfort, not for luxury and enjoyment.
    After establishing a foundation of purified morality, the aspirant to
    meditation is advised to cut off any outer impediments (palibodha) that may
    hinder his efforts to lead a contemplative life. These impediments are
    numbered as ten: a dwelling, which becomes an impediment for those who allow
    their minds to become preoccupied with its upkeep or with its appurtenances;
    a family of relatives or supporters with whom the aspirant may become
    emotionally involved in ways that hinder his progress; gains, which may bind
    the monk by obligation to those who offer them; a class of students who must
    be instructed; building work, which demands time and attention; travel; kin,
    meaning parents, teachers, pupils or close friends; illness; the study of
    scriptures; and supernormal powers, which are an impediment to insight
    (Vism.90-97; PP.91-98).
    The Good Friend and the Subject of Meditation
    The path of practice leading to the jhanas is an arduous course involving
    precise techniques and skillfulness is needed in dealing with the pitfalls
    that lie along the way. The knowledge of how to attain the jhanas has been
    transmitted through a lineage of teachers going back to the time of the
    Buddha himself. A prospective meditator is advised to avail himself of the
    living heritage of accumulated knowledge and experience by placing himself
    under the care of a qualified teacher, described as a "good friend"
    (kalyanamitta), one who gives guidance and wise advice rooted in his own
    practice and experience. On the basis of either of the power of penetrating
    others minds, or by personal observation, or by questioning, the teacher
    will size up the temperament of his new pupil and then select a mediation
    subject for him appropriate to his temperament.
    The various meditation subjects that the Buddha prescribed for the
    development of serenity have been collected in the commentaries into a set
    called the forty kammatthana. This word means literally a place of work, and
    is applied to the subject of meditation as the place where the meditator
    undertakes the work of meditation. The forty meditation subjects are
    distributed into seven categories, enumerated in the Visuddhimagga as
    follows: ten kasinas, ten kinds of foulness, ten recollections, four divine
    abidings, four immaterial states, one perception, and one defining.[2]
    A kasina is a device representing a particular quality used as a support for
    concentration. The ten kasinas are those of earth, water, fire and air; four
    color kasinas -- blue, yellow, red and white; the light kasina and the
    limited space kasina. The kasina can be either a naturally occurring form of
    the element or color chosen, or an artificially produced device such as a
    disk that the meditator can use at his convenience in his meditation
    quarters.
    The ten kinds of foulness are ten stages in the decomposition of a corpse:
    the bloated, the livid, the festering, the cut-up, the gnawed, the
    scattered, the hacked and scattered, the bleeding, the worm-infested and a
    skeleton. The primary purpose of these meditations is to reduce sensual lust
    by gaining a clear perception of the repulsiveness of the body.
    The ten recollections are the recollections of the Buddha, the Dhamma, the
    Sangha, morality, generosity and the deities, mindfulness of death,
    mindfulness of the body, mindfulness of breathing, and the recollection of
    peace. The first three are devotional contemplations on the sublime
    qualities of the "Three Jewels," the primary objects of Buddhist virtues and
    on the deities inhabiting the heavenly worlds, intended principally for
    those still intent on a higher rebirth. Mindfulness of death is reflection
    on the inevitably of death, a constant spur to spiritual exertion.
    Mindfulness of the body involves the mental dissection of the body into
    thirty-two parts, undertaken with a view to perceiving its unattractiveness.
    Mindfulness of breathing is awareness of the in-and-out movement of the
    breath, perhaps the most fundamental of all Buddhist meditation subjects.
    And the recollection of peace is reflection on the qualities of Nibbana.
    The four divine abidings (brahmavihara) are the development of boundless
    loving-kindness, compassion, sympathetic joy and equanimity. These
    meditations are also called the "immeasurables" (appamanna) because they are
    to be developed towards all sentient beings without qualification or
    exclusiveness.
    The four immaterial states are the base of boundless space, the base of
    boundless consciousness, the base of nothingness, and the base of
    neither-perception-nor-non-perception. These are the objects leading to the
    corresponding meditative attainments, the immaterial jhanas.
    The one perception is the perception of the repulsiveness of food. The one
    defining is the defining of the four elements, that is, the analysis of the
    physical body into the elemental modes of solidity, fluidity, heat and
    oscillation.
    The forty meditation subjects are treated in the commentarial texts from two
    important angles -- one their ability to induce different levels of
    concentration, the other their suitability for differing temperaments. Not
    all meditation subjects are equally effective in inducing the deeper levels
    of concentration. They are first distinguished on the basis of their
    capacity for inducing only access concentration or for inducing full
    absorption; those capable of inducing absorption are then distinguished
    further according to their ability to induce the different levels of jhana.
    Of the forty subjects, ten are capable of leading only to access
    concentration: eight recollections -- i.e. all except mindfulness of the
    body and mindfulness of breathing -- plus the perception of repulsiveness in
    nutriment and the defining of the four elements. These, because they are
    occupied with a diversity of qualities and involve and active application of
    discursive thought, cannot lead beyond access. The other thirty subjects can
    all lead to absorption.
    The ten kasinas and mindfulness of breathing, owing to their simplicity and
    freedom from thought construction, can lead to all four jhanas. The ten
    kinds of foulness and mindfulness of the body lead only to the first jhana,
    being limited because the mind can only hold onto them with the aid of
    applied thought (vitakka) which is absent in the second and higher jhanas.
    The first three divine abidings can induce the lower three jhanas but the
    fourth, since they arise in association with pleasant feeling, while the
    divine abiding of equanimity occurs only at the level of the fourth jhana,
    where neutral feeling gains ascendency. The four immaterial states conduce
    to the respective immaterial jhanas corresponding to their names.
    The forty subjects are also differentiated according to their
    appropriateness for different character types. Six main character types are
    recognized -- the greedy, the hating, the deluded, the faithful, the
    intelligent and the speculative -- this oversimplified typology being taken
    only as a pragmatic guideline which in practice admits various shades and
    combinations. The ten kind of foulness and mindfulness of the body, clearly
    intended to attenuate sensual desire, are suitable for those of greedy
    temperament. Eight subjects -- the four divine abidings and four color
    kasinas -- are appropriate for the hating temperament. Mindfulness of
    breathing is suitable for those of the deluded and the speculative
    temperament. The first six recollections are appropriate for the faithful
    temperament. Four subjects -- mindfulness of death, the recollection of
    peace, the defining of the four elements, and the perception of the
    repulsiveness in nutriment -- are especially effective for those of
    intelligent temperament. The remaining six kasinas and the immaterial states
    are suitable for all kinds of temperaments. But the kasinas should be
    limited in size for one of speculative temperament and large in size for one
    of deluded temperament.
    Immediately after giving this breakdown Buddhaghosa adds a proviso to
    prevent misunderstanding. He states that this division by way of temperament
    is made on the basis of direct opposition and complete suitability, but
    actually there is no wholesome form of meditation that does not suppress the
    defilements and strengthen the virtuous mental factors. Thus an individual
    mediator may be advised to meditate on foulness to abandon lust, on
    loving-kindness to abandon hatred, on breathing to cut off discursive
    thought, and on impermanence to eliminate the conceit "I am" (A.iv,358).
    Choosing a Suitable Dwelling
    The teacher assigns a meditation subject to his pupil appropriate to his
    character and explains the methods of developing it. He can teach it
    gradually to a pupil who is going to remain in close proximity to him, or in
    detail to one who will go to practice it elsewhere. If the disciple is not
    going to stay with his teacher he must be careful to select a suitable place
    for meditation. The texts mention eighteen kinds of monasteries unfavorable
    to the development of jhana: a large monastery, a new one, a dilapidated
    one, one near a road, one with a pond, leaves, flowers or fruits, one sought
    after by many people, one in cities, among timber of fields, where people
    quarrel, in a port, in border lands, on a frontier, a haunted place, and one
    without access to a spiritual teacher (Vism. 118-121; PP122-125).
    The factors which make a dwelling favorable to meditation are mentioned by
    the Buddha himself. If should not be too far from or too near a village that
    can be relied on as an alms resort, and should have a clear path: it should
    be quiet and secluded; it should be free from rough weather and from harmful
    insects and animals; one should be able to obtain one's physical requisites
    while dwelling there; and the dwelling should provide ready access to
    learned elders and spiritual friends who can be consulted when problems
    arise in meditation (A.v,15). The types of dwelling places commended by the
    Buddha most frequently in the suttas as conductive to the jhanas are a
    secluded dwelling in the forest, at the foot of a tree, on a mountain, in a
    cleft, in a cave, in a cemetery, on a wooded flatland, in the open air, or
    on a heap of straw (M.i,181). Having found a suitable dwelling and settled
    there, the disciple should maintain scrupulous observance of the rules of
    discipline, He should be content with his simple requisites, exercise
    control over his sense faculties, be mindful and discerning in all
    activities, and practice meditation diligently as he was instructed. It is
    at this point that he meets the first great challenge of his contemplative
    life, the battle with the five hindrances.
    Notes:
    [1] A full description of the fourfold purification of morality will be
    found in the Visuddhimagga, Chapter 1.
    [2] The following discussion is based on Vism.110-115; PP.112-118.