[Still_Waters]

Originally Posted by jonesboy

Remember the Jhanas are states of meditation.

Here is a very good article on the 1st Jhana if you would like to talk about it.

https://www.lionsroar.com/entering-the-jhanas/

I also found these to go with your definitions.

Jhana is the Pali word for meditation or a meditative state that is best characterized as a condition of supreme tranquillity. According to the Pali Canon, there are eight stages of jhana, one progressing to another. The first four stages (Rupa Jhana) involve meditation upon a subject. The latter four stages are more subtle – Arupa Jhana or formless meditation. There are five hindrances that must be conquered for effective meditation – sensual attachments, anger, slothfulness, anxiety and scepticism.

First Jhana: The practitioner experiences extremely pleasant sensations and a cessation of any existing physical aches.

Second Jhana: This is characterized by emotional joy and increased serenity.

Third Jhana: Joy changes to a more subdued feeling of contentment.

Fourth Jhana: Equanimity reigns, with neither positive nor negative sensations in mind or body. Instead, there is an all-pervasive peace, with the mind singularly focused upon itself.

Fifth Jhana: The practitioner’s attention shifts outward, as if watching himself from above. The body experiences floating, expansive sensations, as though it were gradually filling out all of space.

Sixth Jhana: The meditator realizes that the unlimited space he “occupies” includes his own consciousness. There is a sense of unification with nature and concentration becomes further pinpointed.

Seventh Jhana: Realization dawns that this infinite consciousness contains nothing permanent – the universe is always in flux.

Eight Jhana: This is a state of indescribable peace. There is little realization of the experience, yet the practitioner is not entirely unaware of what is happening, either. Enlightenment however, is still some distance away.

The Buddha is said to have experienced a ninth jhana – a complete termination of all feeling and perception. Advanced practitioners of the jhanas, such as arahants, are said to acquire superhuman powers and insight into their past lives as well as those of others.

Your descriptions of the jhanas correspond closely to mine. We're pretty much on the same wavelength. There are various translations of "jhana" with "meditation" being a frequent translation. However, as you can see in the link below, "mental absorption" is an alternate definition in the Theravada Buddhism.

https://www.wisdomlib.org/definition/jhana

I read the article whose link you provided, and I agree with the "pleasant sensation". However, I did not experience it in the hands as the article indicated. I heard an indescribable sound at the crown of the head which, like the sirens in the story of Odysseus, draw on upward to the crown and beyond that.

The comments on the breath were right on target. The breath does eventually slow down and ultimately vanish. Years ago, in the steam room at the gym, it got unbearably hot and everyone fled. I decided to meditate on the heat. When I opened my eyes again, the room was full of people staring at me. One of my friends was there. I was dressed only in my bathing suit and he said that there were no signs of breath --- not even the slightest signs of inhalation or exhalation at the stomach or from the nostrils. He said that he waved his hands in front of me but that was not acknowledged. The group said that they had never seen anything like that before and were afraid to touch me since it might have shocked me. They were about ready to call the front desk for assistance and possibly medical help. Having multiple eye-witnesses convinced me that the breath had indeed virtually stopped and that I was truly "absorbed" (to use the word that I prefer for "jhana").

Thanks for your input. It's helpful.

EDIT: The pleasant sound vibrations at the crown of the head actually become more prominent in the second jhana once one has stilled the vibrations of thought-conception and discursive thought as the pleasant sound vibrations can be masked out during the first jhana by the grosser thought vibrations.