T he special dhyan is an actual practice in which there is no considering, but in which there is examining.. Thus the first dhyana has the classifications as the mere actual practice tha
Trang 1(1) Identifying its essence
22d In special dhyan, there’s no considering
Well then, there is the term preparations and also the term special dhyana Are
these two the same or different? you ask They are different T he former is the path that brings detachment T he special dhyan is an actual practice in which there is no considering, but in which there is examining Thus the first dhyana has the classifications as the mere actual practice that has both considering and examining, and the special that has examining only There is no such dis tinction in the second and so forth, so there is no classification o f them as mere or special
(2) Classifications
23a It’s threefold,
It, the special dhyana, is threefold: concurrent w ith enjoyment, pure, and undefiled
(3) Which feelings it has
Because the special dhyana is a difficult path that m ust be created by exer tion, it only has neutral feeling that is neither pain n o r pleasure
(4) Result
23b And has Great Brahma as result
A nd what is the particular result o f the special dhyana? you ask It has the Great B rahm a realm as result, because those who meditate on it will be reborn
in Great Brahma
II Classifications of samadhi This has two topics: A Classifying samadhi in three, and B Classifying samadhi in four
A Classifying samadhi in three This has three topics: 1 Classifying in terms
o f level, 2 Classifying in terms o f path, and 3 Classifying in terms o f the mode o f engaging the object
Trang 21 Classifying in terms of level
23cd Below, samadhi has considering,
Examining Above, there’s neither
T he sutras teach that there are three types o f samadhi O f these, on special dhyana there is samadhi that has no considering but does have examining alone Below it, on the first dhyana and N ot Unable, there is sam adhi that has considering and examining Above it, from the preparations for the second
to the Peak, there is samadhi that has neither considering nor examining
2 Classifying in terms of path This has three points
a Identifying the essences of the three samadhis
24 The signless has aspects o f peace,
And emptiness engages selfless
And emptiness No wishing has
All other aspects o f the truths
T he sutras speak o f the three samadhis: the samadhi o f emptiness, samadhi of
no wishing, and samadhi o f signlessness O f these, the signless samadhi is a samadhi that is free o f the ten attributes— the five objects, the four character istics o f composites, and male and female attributes— and from focusing on noncomposites has aspects o f peace, the four aspects o f the truth o f cessation
A nd the samadhi o f em ptiness is samadhi that, for any focus, engages only the two aspects o f selfless and em ptiness T he samadhi o f no w ishing is a samadhi that focuses on composites and only has the aspects o f the truths that create revulsion, so it is concurrent with all the other aspects o f the tru th s than those six previously m entioned It is a samadhi that is concurrent with the ten remaining aspects: four of the truth o f origin, four o f path, and suf fering’s aspects o f impermanence and suffering Because the other six do not create revulsion, it does not have them
b Classifications of their internal categories
25a They’re pure or stainless
They, these three samadhis, can be pure worldly or stainless, transworldly u n defiled T h e pure are on the eleven levels o f Desire, N o t Unable, special dhyana, the four dhyanas, and the four Formless T he stainless are on the nine undefiled levels
Trang 3c Examining their names
They are three gates o f liberation
W h en they, these three, are stainless, they are gates to liberation, so they are the three stainless gates o f liberation o f emptiness, no wishing, and signless ness
3 Classifying in terms of the mode of engaging the object This has two topics: a Teaching the classification in general, and b Explaining their features
in detail
a Teaching the classification in general
25cd There are three more samadhis, called
The em pty o f emptiness, et cetera
Also in the sutras, there are three m ore samadhis in addition to the previous three T hey are the samadhis called emptiness o f em ptiness, et cetera, includ ing no wishing o f no wishing and signlessness o f signlessness
b Explaining their features in detail This has five points
i Distinctions of focus and aspect
26 Two focus on nonlearner’s aspects
O f em pty and im perm anent
The signlessness o f signlessness,
O n peace, nonanalyzed extinction
O f those three, the first two focus respectively on the nonlearner s aspect of emptiness while viewing the empty, and focus on the nonlearner’s no wishing while viewing the aspect o f im perm anent As for the signlessness o f signless ness, if one arises from the nonlearner’s signlessness while viewing the aspect
o f peace, the conditions for the continuation o f signlessness are not met, so signlessness o f signlessness focuses on the nonanalytic extinction or the at tainm ent o f nonanalytic cessation O f these three, the first two look at liber ation itself T he third focuses on its cessation and is thus diminished, so it is dim inished liberation
Trang 4ii Distinction of essence
27a Defiled,
These three are solely defiled
iii Distinctions of support
W here are they produced? you ask They are only produced by hum ans, not
by gods or others
iv Distinctions of individual
W ho produces them? you ask They only arise for unshakable arhats, not for others
v Distinctions of level
27b Except the seven preparations
Except the seven latter preparations,336 they are on the eleven levels previously explained
B Classifying samadhi in four
27cd First dhyanas virtue is m editation
O n samadhi which is happiness
28 Clairvoyance o f eye is that which sees
Produced by training is discernment
The vajra-like o f the last dhyana
Extinguishes all the defilements
T he Bhagavan said:
There are four meditations on samadhi: if you always
remain in m editation on samadhi and do this m any
times, you will also dwell in happiness in the visible
O f these the first, the first dhyanas virtue— pure or undefiled— is the m edi tation on sam adhi w hich is dwelling in happiness in the visible T he other
Trang 5dhyanas are also known to be the same There is no certainty o f dwelling in happiness in future lifetimes, because it is possible to regress, and those who are reborn in higher realms or pass into complete nirvana do not have the first dhyanas happiness The clairvoyance o f divine eye that knows death and re birth, and the knowing concurrent with the m ind consciousness that arises after that, are proposed as th a t samadhi w hich knows and sees T he defiled
or undefiled qualities o f the three realms that are produced by training and everything undefiled are the m editation on samadhi o f discernm ent or full knowing T h e vajra-like samadhi that has the support o f the last fourth dhyana is samadhi meditation that extinguishes all the defilements
Thus these four samadhis are taught just as the Bhagavan himself m ani fested them in the past At the very first, he produced the first dhyana in the shade o f a Rose-Apple tree Later he sat beneath the Bodhi Tree, and just after tam ing the Maras he saw with the divine eye the miserable deaths and births
o f sentient beings In order to give them refuge, he produced the dhyanas, emancipations, and so forth during the night session At dawn, on the basis
o f the fourth samadhi, he manifested the paths up to the vajra-like samadhi, the Great Exposition says
III Explanation of the qualities su p p o rted by sam adhi This has two topics:
A Teaching the immeasurables, and B Teaching the other qualities
A Teaching th e im m easurables This has two topics: 1 Classifications, and
2 Distinguishing features
1 Classifications This has three points
a Actual classification
29a Immeasurables are four
As they focus on immeasurable sentient beings and have immeasurable merit, they are called immeasurables In focusing on immeasurable sentient beings, there are four: loving-kindness, compassion, joy, and equanimity
b Establishing their quantity
They’re antidotes for malice, et cetera