Section Five: The States of Dhyāna

In the first dhyāna, concepts of time and space are present; one knows when and where one is. In the second dhyāna, one does not perceive any thoughts and is without awareness or knowledge; only upon emerging from samādhi does one realize one was in samādhi. Some say thoughts still exist in the fourth dhyāna; this is the first time I've heard of it. In the second dhyāna, the manas (mind root) has thoughts, but the consciousness (mano-vijñāna) is unaware of them. Because at that time, the samādhi is so deep that one knows nothing, yet if someone softly says "time for the meal," one hears it immediately, and the mind then emerges from samādhi. Why can such a small sound cause one to emerge? It is because the manas is preoccupied with the matter of eating; upon hearing the faint sound, it causes the consciousness to arise and perceive, thus leading to emergence from samādhi.

In the second dhyāna, consciousness is not extinguished but is extremely subtle; I am unable to perceive anything, do not know I am in samādhi, and seem to know nothing. If, in the second dhyāna, the manas is not preoccupied with eating, even if someone says "time for the meal," one will not emerge. Because when I enter samādhi, dozens of people around me are talking to each other without ever quieting down, yet I cannot hear them; I only hear the phrase "time for the meal."

I have never entered the fourth dhyāna and cannot know the state of the conscious mind within it; without personal realization, I have no right to speak. I may have entered the third dhyāna for one day; it was too blissful, but fearing demonic influence, I abandoned it. In the second dhyāna, consciousness lacks reflective power and one does not know the state consciousness was in at that time.

The second dhyāna can be entered in an instant, and then one knows nothing; emerging is also instantaneous. Only after emerging does one realize one was just in samādhi, feeling the body extremely comfortable, the mood exceptionally joyful, and the mind exceptionally clear. A faint sound is enough to awaken the auditory consciousness (śrotra-vijñāna), thus causing emergence. Because the manas still has matters preoccupying it, when the time comes, if an important matter is reminded by someone, even a sound as faint as a mosquito can be heard, and one then emerges. Before entering samādhi, amidst very noisy sounds, the mind can quickly settle down; the noisy sounds become increasingly faint, then become inaudible, and the person enters samādhi.

In the "approaching samādhi" (anāgamya-samādhi), the state of lightness and ease (prasrabdhi) can arise. Samādhi (samādhi) is the meditative state that appears in dhyāna from the first dhyāna upwards. The approaching samādhi has a state of lightness and ease, but it differs greatly from that of the first dhyāna; the first dhyāna feels almost like an immortal being. The lightness and ease of the approaching samādhi are slightly lesser; the body may experience phenomena like becoming tall, large, light, or buoyant; walking becomes swift, the body feels uplifted, the whole body feels light, footsteps make no sound, and the mind is tranquil. Each person's physical and mental state in the same dhyāna is not entirely identical; even the same person at different times may exhibit some small differences. The states of desire-realm samādhi (kāma-dhātu samādhi) also have many varieties, with differing depths of samādhi. Even within the same first dhyāna, each person's physical and mental sensations and states are not completely identical; the same person entering the same samādhi at different times will also not have entirely identical physical and mental states and sensations.

The same term "lightness and ease" has different defining boundaries; the degree of its manifestation is still different, and it is impossible to strictly determine the critical point of lightness and ease. Each person's definition may differ. If someone's mind is unsettled and insists on debating, then each will only stick to their own view. Samādhi, strictly speaking, should be in the dhyāna from the first dhyāna upwards; this is the formal meditative absorption, the beginning of the four dhyānas and eight samāpattis.

The States Above the First Dhyāna

In the states above the first dhyāna, the devas (gods) of the form realm (rūpa-dhātu) from the first dhyāna upwards have no desire-realm beings' greed and lust; they have no gender, no distinction between male and female; they have no olfactory consciousness (ghrāṇa-vijñāna), no gustatory consciousness (jihvā-vijñāna); they do not smell scents, have no food or drink, and do not need to eat, drink, or excrete. Devas above the second dhyāna have no five consciousnesses (pañca-vijñāna) during samādhi and do not perceive the objects of the five sense fields (pañca-viṣaya). Devas of the formless realm (ārūpya-dhātu) have no form body (rūpa-kāya) and no first five consciousnesses; they only have consciousness (mano-vijñāna), manas, and the eighth consciousness (ālaya-vijñāna). Devas in the "no-perception" heaven (asaṃjñā-deva) also extinguish the conscious mind; without consciousness, there is no mental factor (caitta) of perception (saṃjñā), only manas and the eighth consciousness. An arhat with "liberation through both" (ubhayatobhāga-vimukta) entering the "cessation of perception and feeling" samādhi (nirodha-samāpatti) has no conscious mind; two of the five universal mental factors (pañca-sarvatraga) of manas—feeling (vedanā) and perception (saṃjñā)—are extinguished. It is also called the "samādhi of cessation of feeling and perception" (nirodha-samāpatti). However, manas still has three mental factors, and the eighth consciousness remains sustaining the body. Therefore, an arhat in nirodha-samāpatti is a living person; once the eighth consciousness departs, it becomes a corpse.