[The Buddha:] "Suppose there were a mountain cow -- foolish, inexperienced, unfamiliar with its field, unskilled in roaming on rugged mountains -- and it were to think, 'What if I were to go in a direction I have never gone before, eat grass I have never eaten before, drink water I never drank before?'
"It would lift its hind hoof without having firmly placed its front hoof and [as a result] would not go in a direction it had never gone before, eat grass it had never eaten before, or drink water it never drank before.
"And as for the place where it was standing when the thought occurred, 'What if I were to...' it would not return there safely.
"Why? It is because it is a foolish, inexperienced mountain cow, unfamiliar with its field, unskilled in roaming on rugged mountains.
"In the same way, there are cases where a meditator -- foolish, inexperienced, unfamiliar with his or her field, unskilled in withdrawing from sensuality, withdrawing from unskillful states, and entering and remaining in the first absorption, which is characterized by rapture and happiness born of withdrawal, accompanied by applied and sustained attention -- does not stick with a meditation object, does not develop it, pursue it, or become firmly established in it [i.e., does not learn and practice the mastery of each absorption].
"The thought occurs to that meditator, 'What if I, with the stilling of applied and sustained attention, were to enter and remain in the second absorption, which is characterized by rapture and happiness born of concentration, intensification of awareness free from applied and sustained attention.'
"That meditator is not able... to enter and remain in the second absorption... The thought occurs, 'What if I... were to enter and remain in the first absorption... [but] is not [even] able... to enter and remain in the first absorption.
"This is called a meditator who has slipped and fallen on both sides, like the mountain cow, foolish, inexperienced, unfamiliar with its field, unskilled in roaming on rugged mountains.
SMART COW
"But suppose there were a mountain cow -- wise, experienced, familiar with its field, skilled in roaming on rugged mountains -- and it were to think, 'What if I were to go in a direction I have never gone before, eat grass I have never eaten before, drink water I never drank before!'
"It would lift its hind hoof only after having firmly placed its front hoof and [as a result] would go in a direction it had never gone before... drink water it never drank before. And as for the place where it was standing when the thought occurred, 'What if I were...,' it would return there safely.
"Why? It is because it is a wise, experienced mountain cow, familiar with its field, skilled in roaming on rugged mountains.
FOUR MATERIAL JHANAS
"In just the same way, there are cases where a meditator -- wise, experienced, familiar with the field, skilled in withdrawing from sensuality, withdrawing from unskillful states, entering and remaining in the first absorption, which is characterized by rapture and happiness born of withdrawal, accompanied by applied and sustained attention -- stays with a meditation object, develops it, pursues it, and becomes firmly established in it.
"The thought occurs, 'What if, with the stilling of applied and sustained attention, I were to enter and remain in the second absorption, which is characterized by rapture and happiness born of concentration, intensification of awareness, free from applied and sustained attention?'
"Without yet ascending to the second absorption -- but with the stilling of applied and sustained attention -- that meditator enters and remains in the second absorption, which is characterized by rapture and happiness born of concentration, intensification of awareness, free of applied and sustained attention.
"One stays with that meditation object, develops it, pursues it, and becomes firmly established in it.
"The thought occurs, 'What if, with the fading of rapture, I... were to enter and remain in the third absorption...' Without yet ascending to the third absorption, but with the fading of rapture, one remains equanimous, mindful, and alert, and experiences pleasure with the body. One enters and remains in the third absorption, of which the Noble Ones say, 'Equanimous and mindful, one abides joyfully.'
"One maintains that meditation object, develops it, pursues it, and becomes firmly established in it.
"The thought occurs, 'What if I... were to enter and remain in the fourth absorption...' Without yet ascending to the fourth absorption, but with the abandoning of both rapture and happiness -- and the earlier fading away of both pleasure and pain -- one enters and remains in the fourth absorption, which is characterized by equanimity [impartiality] and mindfulness, neither-pleasure-nor-pain.
"One keeps that meditation object, develops it, pursues it, and becomes firmly established in it.
FOUR IMMATERIAL JHANAS
"The thought occurs, 'What if I... were to enter and remain in the dimension of boundless space.' Without yet ascending to the dimension of boundless space, but with the complete transcending of perceptions of [physical] form, with the disappearance of perceptions of resistance, and not heeding perceptions of diversity [mental proliferation], [perceiving,] 'Space is boundless,' one enters and remains in the dimension of boundless space.
"One maintains that meditation object, develops it, pursues it, and becomes firmly established in it.
"The thought occurs, 'What if I... were to enter and remain in the dimension of boundless consciousness.' Without yet ascending to it, but with the complete transcending of the dimension of boundless space, [perceiving,] 'Consciousness is boundless,' one enters and remains in the dimension of boundless consciousness.
"One maintains that meditation object, develops it, pursues it, and becomes firmly established in it.
"The thought occurs, 'What if I... were to enter and remain in the dimension of nothingness [no-thing-ness, one of the 31 Planes of Existence, also called the sphere of the void].'
"Without yet ascending to the dimension of nothingness, but with the complete transcending of the dimension of boundless consciousness, [perceiving,] 'There is no-thing,' one enters and remains in the dimension of nothingness.
"One maintains that meditation object, develops it, pursues it, and becomes firmly established in it.
"The thought occurs, 'What if I... were to enter and remain in the dimension of neither-perception-nor-non-perception.' Without yet ascending to it, but with the complete transcending of the dimension of nothingness, one enters and remains in the dimension of neither-perception-nor-non-perception.
One maintains that meditation object, develops it, pursues it, and becomes firmly established in it.
ATTAINMENT OF CESSATION
"The thought occurs, 'What if I, with the complete transcending of the dimension of neither-perception-nor-non-perception, were to [emerge from the absorptions and, if one is at least a non-returner, were to] enter and remain in the cessation of perception and feeling.'
"Without yet going to the cessation of perception and feeling, but with the complete transcending of the [highest and subtlest absorption (jhana) known as the] dimension of neither-perception-nor-non-perception, one enters and rests in the cessation of perception and feeling.
"When a meditator [frequently a monastic] enters and emerges from that very attainment, the mind is pliant and malleable. With this pliant, malleable mind, limitless concentration is available.
"With this limitless concentration, whichever of the six higher knowledges one turns one's mind to know and see, one can witness it whenever there is an opening.
MAGICAL POWERS
"Moreover, if one wishes, one wields manifold supernormal powers: Having been one, the adept meditator becomes many; having been many, the adept becomes one.
One appears, disappears, goes unimpeded through walls, ramparts, and mountains as if through space; dives in and out of the ground as if it were water; walks on water without sinking as if it were dry land; sitting crosslegged flies through the air like a winged bird; extending a hand, touches and strokes even the Sun and Moon, so mighty and powerful; goes physically exercises influence over this body even as far as the brahma worlds [supreme divine planes of existence].
"All of this is possible whenever there is an opening.
"If one wishes, one hears -- by means of the divine ear, purified and surpassing the human -- both kinds of sounds, divine and human, whether near or far. One knows and [hears] this whenever there is an opening.
"If one wishes, one knows the mind of other beings, other individuals, having encompassed them with one's own mind. One knows a mind beset by passion as a mind beset by passion, and a mind free of passion as a mind free of passion... a mind beset by aversion... a mind beset by delusion... a contracted mind as a contracted mind, and a scattered mind as a scattered mind.... an expanded mind as an expanded mind, and a shrunken mind as a shrunken mind..... an excelled [surpassable] mind as an excelled mind, and an unexcelled mind as an unexcelled mind.... a concentrated mind as a concentrated mind, and an unconcentrated mind as an unconcentrated mind.... a released mind as a released mind, and an unreleased mind as an unreleased mind.
"One knows and sees this whenever there is an opening.
"If one wishes, one recollects manifold past lives (lit. previous abodes of existence), that is, one birth, two births, three births, four, five, ten, 20, 30, 40, 50, 100, 1000, 100000, many aeons of cosmic contraction, many aeons of cosmic expansion, many aeons of cosmic contraction and expansion, [recollecting]:
"'There I had such a name, belonged to such an extended family, had such an appearance. Such was my food, such my experience of pleasure and pain, such the end of my life. Passing away from that state, I was reborn [lit. reappeared] there. There, too, I had such a name, belonged to such an extended family, had such an appearance. Such was my food, such my experience of pleasure and pain, such the end of my life. Passing away from that state, I was reborn here.'
"Thus one recalls manifold past lives in general and in detail. One knows and sees this for oneself whenever there is an opening.
"If one wishes, one sees -- by means of the divine eye, purified and surpassing the human -- beings passing away and reappearing [being reborn], and discerns how they are inferior and superior, beautiful and ugly, fortunate and unfortunate in accordance with their karma:
"'These beings -- who were endowed with unwholesome conduct of body, speech, and mind, who reviled [insulted, disregarded] the Noble Ones [ariya, i.e., anyone who has attained any of the stages of enlightenment], held wrong views, and who undertook actions under the influence of wrong views -- with the breakup of the body, after death, such beings have reappeared on a plane of deprivation, in an unfortunate destination, the lower realms, even the hells.
"But these [other] beings -- who were endowed with wholesome (kusala) conduct of body, speech, and mind, who did not revile [but who listened and regarded] the Noble Ones, who held right views, and who undertook actions under the influence of right views -- with the breakup of the body, after death, such beings have reappeared in fortunate destinations [human plane and higher], even in heavenly worlds.'
"Thus -- by means of the divine eye, purified and surpassing the human -- one sees beings passing away and reappearing, and discerns how they are inferior and superior, beautiful and ugly, fortunate and unfortunate in accordance with their karma.
"One knows and see all this for oneself whenever there is an opening.
"Then if one wishes, through the stilling of mental proliferation, one remains in the unsurpassed freedom of mind, freedom of heart, freedom through wisdom, full liberation here and now.
"One knows and sees all this for oneself whenever there is an opening."
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