Leigh Brasington
Dan Harris interviews Leigh Brasington, a prominent American teacher of Jhana meditation, about accessing these altered states of consciousness. They discuss the practical steps to enter Jhanas, their purpose as a warm-up for insight practice, and their neurological effects.
Deep Dive Analysis
20 Topic Outline
Introduction to Jhana Meditation and Controversies
Defining Jhanas and Their Purpose
Accessibility of Jhanas for Regular People
Generating Access Concentration and Shifting Focus
First Jhana: Glee, Rapture, and Joy
Second Jhana: Sustained Happiness and Calm
Third Jhana: Contentment and Stillness
Fourth Jhana: Equanimous Quiet Stillness
Scientific Evidence for Jhanas (Neurophysiological Changes)
Leigh Brasington's Personal Journey to Jhanas
The 'Trick' to Accessing Jhanas (Finding Pleasure)
Jhana Practice vs. Insight Practice
Fifth Jhana: Realm of Infinite Space
Sixth Jhana: Realm of Infinite Consciousness
Seventh Jhana: Realm of Nothingness
Eighth Jhana: Neither Perception Nor Non-Perception
The Discovery vs. Invention of Jhanas
Controversy: Jhanas and Superpowers
Controversy: 'Jhana Light' and Different Interpretations
Relaxed Diligence for Effective Practice
9 Key Concepts
Jhanas
Eight altered states of consciousness brought on by concentration, each yielding even more concentration, allowing a stair-step to deeper levels. They serve as a warm-up exercise for insight practice, helping one achieve a less egocentric perspective.
Access Concentration (Samadhi)
A basic level of indistractability, sufficient concentration to give access to the jhanas. It involves generating the ability to not become distracted, often taking several days to achieve consistently on retreat.
Piti
A Pali word translated as glee, rapture, euphoria, or ecstasy, representing an energetic release with a primarily physical component. It is a key experience in the first jhana.
Sukkha
A Pali word translated as joy or happiness, referring to a more emotional sense of joy or happiness. It accompanies piti in the first jhana and becomes the primary focus in the second jhana.
Insight Practice
An investigation of reality, aiming to see its impermanent nature, the fact that nothing provides lasting happiness, and that everything depends on other things. It differs from jhana practice, which focuses on generating concentration.
Realm of Infinite Space (Fifth Jhana)
A state where one perceives a vast, empty space, achieved by imagining one's boundaries expanding without limit. It is an experience of outward expansion leading to a sense of boundless emptiness.
Realm of Infinite Consciousness (Sixth Jhana)
A state where one's mind feels as big as infinite space, achieved by shifting attention from the perceived infinite space to one's consciousness of that space. The consciousness itself feels vast and boundless.
Realm of Nothingness (Seventh Jhana)
A state focused on the absence of content within infinite consciousness, where the sense of 'nothing' stabilizes and expands. It's like perceiving an absolute void or lack of characteristics.
Realm of Neither Perception Nor Non-Perception (Eighth Jhana)
A state that has no characteristics by which it can be described, yet one is aware that their mind is in such a state. It is a subtle, indescribable mental state beyond conceptualization.
8 Questions Answered
The jhanas are eight altered states of consciousness brought on by intense concentration, leading to profound bliss, happiness, and ecstasy, and serving as a warm-up for insight practice.
Yes, it is possible for regular people to access the jhanas, but it typically requires leaving behind daily distractions for a minimum of a 10-day residential meditation retreat to learn them.
Scientific studies, including EEG and fMRI scans, show neurophysiological changes during jhana states, such as increased activity in the left prefrontal cortex and nucleus accumbens, and decreased activity in the default mode network, indicating they are not merely made up.
Jhana practice aims to generate and sustain indistractability on increasingly subtle objects, while insight practice is an investigation of reality, focusing on its impermanent nature and interconnectedness.
While pleasant, Westerners with short attention spans tend to get bored and move on to insight practice. Also, cultivating jhanas can lead to a naturally pleasant default state of mind in daily life.
The trick is to shift attention from the primary meditation object (like breath) to some pleasant sensation, such as a genuine smile, warmth in hands, or tingling in the third eye, and then sustain focus on that pleasure.
Leigh Brasington is skeptical of claims of supernatural powers, though he notes that his 'ESP' (possibly heightened awareness of subtle cues or probability) seems enhanced during jhana practice, but not in a reliable way.
Over time, the understanding and description of jhana states evolved, with later commentaries (favored by Theravadan Buddhism) describing much deeper, more concentrated states than those found in the Buddha's original discourses, leading to different teaching approaches.
20 Actionable Insights
1. Cultivate Concentration for Clearer Perspective
Generate sufficient concentration to move beyond an egocentric perspective, which allows for a better chance of seeing what is actually happening in reality.
2. Attend Jhana Retreat
To learn Jhana meditation, plan to attend a minimum 10-day residential retreat, leaving behind daily responsibilities like work and family, as this environment is conducive to learning.
3. Generate Access Concentration
Begin meditation practice by generating a basic level of indistractability, known as ‘access concentration,’ which is the sufficient concentration needed to gain access to the Jhanas.
4. Utilize Access Concentration Methods
Achieve access concentration by using various methods such as following the breath, systematic body scans, loving-kindness (metta) meditation, or silently repeating a mantra.
5. Seek Pleasant Sensations in Meditation
After achieving access concentration, shift your attention from your primary meditation object (e.g., breath) to any pleasant sensation in the body, such as a genuine smile, warmth in the hands, the heart center, top of the head, or a tingling in the third eye area.
6. Maintain Focus for Jhana 1
Once focused on a pleasant sensation, do nothing else but stay with it; this sustained attention will eventually cause the sensation to increase in intensity and propel you into the first Jhana, characterized by glee and joy.
7. Sustain First Jhana Mindfully
Remain in the first Jhana for a period inversely proportional to its intensity (e.g., 10-30 seconds for strong, 5-10 minutes for mild), being careful not to ‘freak out’ from its power, which can cause it to dissipate.
8. Transition to Second Jhana
To move to the second Jhana, take a nice deep breath, exhale to calm the physical glee (Piti), and shift your attention to the emotional component of joy and happiness (Sukha).
9. Transition to Third Jhana
To enter the third Jhana, take another deep breath, exhale to further calm the mind, and allow the joy/happiness to transform into a sense of deep contentment and wishlessness, focusing on this very still, pleasant feeling.
10. Transition to Fourth Jhana
To reach the fourth Jhana, let go of the pleasure of contentment, relax any subtle ‘Buddha smile’ to neutral, and allow your mind to drop into a state of quiet stillness, described as beyond pleasure and pain, and emotionally neutral.
11. Transition to Fifth Jhana (Infinite Space)
From the quiet stillness of the fourth Jhana, get in touch with the boundaries of your being and imagine expanding them without limit (e.g., filling the room, building, town, horizon), focusing on this outward expansion until a vast, empty space appears.
12. Transition to Sixth Jhana (Infinite Consciousness)
After experiencing infinite space, shift your attention from the space itself to your consciousness of that space, becoming aware of your awareness, which will make your mind feel absolutely huge, as big as the space.
13. Transition to Seventh Jhana (Nothingness)
From infinite consciousness, shift your attention to the lack of content within that consciousness; focus on this sense of ’nothing’ or ’no-thingness’ as it stabilizes and gets a bit bigger.
14. Transition to Eighth Jhana (Neither Perception Nor Non-Perception)
From the seventh Jhana’s nothingness, allow the ’nothing’ to collapse and come to rest in front of your face, observing if your mind enters a state that has no describable characteristics, yet you are aware of being in it.
15. Integrate Jhanas with Insight Practice
After experiencing the Jhanas (especially the fourth or higher), stay there for a while, then come out and start doing your insight practice, which is an investigation of reality with a jhanically concentrated mind.
16. Adopt a Comfortable Meditation Posture
Sit in a comfortable, upright posture that allows you to meditate without fighting physical pain; use pillows or a chair if necessary to avoid straining your back or muscles.
17. Practice Relaxed Diligence
Approach all meditation practice with ‘relaxed diligence,’ meaning you put in consistent effort without forcing or trying too hard, allowing states to arise naturally and most effectively.
18. Exclusive Focus for Jhana Practice
When practicing for Jhanas, maintain exclusive attention on your chosen object; if distractions arise, immediately return to the object without labeling or investigating the distraction.
19. Label Distractions in Insight Practice
In insight practice, if you get carried away by a distraction (e.g., planning), turn your attention to it, label it, relax any associated tension, and then bring your attention back to your primary object.
20. Cultivate Positive Default States
Recognize that whatever state of mind you have a tendency to hang out in becomes your default; therefore, intentionally cultivate pleasant and blissful states to enhance your natural mental baseline.
6 Key Quotes
The jhanas are a warm-up exercise for what's usually called insight practice, an investigation of reality.
Leigh Brasington
If you get sufficiently concentrated, then you're in a less egocentric place, and you have a less egocentric perspective. It turns out that I is not the center of the universe.
Leigh Brasington
You get quiet enough and you stop covering up the natural state of the mind, which is actually kind of blissful.
Leigh Brasington
We're not trying to do something unnatural. We're trying to stop doing something unnatural. We're trying to let the obvious, you know, clear, blissful state of mind that we have shine forth.
Leigh Brasington
They weren't invented. They were discovered.
Leigh Brasington
Whenever you're practicing, keep in mind, relaxed diligence. That's what's necessary to do this practice most effectively.
Leigh Brasington
8 Protocols
Entering the First Jhana
Leigh Brasington- Generate access concentration (indistractability) using a method like following the breath, body scan, loving-kindness, or mantra. This may take 4-5 days on a 10-day retreat.
- Once access concentration is consistently generated, shift attention from the primary meditation object to a pleasant sensation (e.g., a genuine smile, warmth in hands, tingling in the third eye).
- Sustain focus on this pleasant sensation without doing anything else, allowing it to slowly increase in intensity.
- Eventually, the sensation will propel you into an altered state of consciousness full of glee (piti) and joy (sukkha), which is the first jhana.
Moving from First to Second Jhana
Leigh Brasington- While in the first jhana, take a nice deep breath and really let the energy out with the exhale.
- This action will calm the physical component (piti/glee) and decouple it from the emotional component (sukka/joy/happiness).
- Shift your attention to the emotional component (joy/happiness), making it the new focus.
Moving from Second to Third Jhana
Leigh Brasington- While in the second jhana, take another deep breath and exhale, allowing things to calm down further.
- This will turn the volume of the joy/happiness down to a sense of contentment, wishlessness, or satisfaction.
- Shift your focus to this pleasant sense of contentment, which is a very still experience.
Moving from Third to Fourth Jhana
Leigh Brasington- While in the third jhana, get in touch with the pleasantness of the contented feeling (e.g., a wispy Buddha smile).
- Relax that pleasantness out to neutral, allowing a sense of things physically dropping down.
- Go with this dropping sensation until it settles into a place of quiet stillness, a state beyond pleasure and pain, which is the fourth jhana.
Moving from Fourth to Fifth Jhana (Realm of Infinite Space)
Leigh Brasington- From the quiet stillness of the fourth jhana, get your energy back up if you've slumped.
- Find something to imagine expanding without limit (e.g., the boundaries of your being).
- Expand it to fill the room, building, town, and beyond, staying focused on outward expansion and the edges of that expansion.
- Eventually, a vast, empty space will appear before you (or be known in another sensory way).
Moving from Fifth to Sixth Jhana (Realm of Infinite Consciousness)
Leigh Brasington- After sustaining focus on the infinite space of the fifth jhana, shift your attention from the space itself to your consciousness of the space.
- Become conscious of your consciousness, realizing that your consciousness must be as big as the infinite space.
- Focus on how big your consciousness feels, leading to the experience of your mind feeling absolutely huge.
Moving from Sixth to Seventh Jhana (Realm of Nothingness)
Leigh Brasington- After sustaining focus on infinite consciousness, consider the content of that consciousness.
- Realize there is no real content, and shift your attention to this sense of 'nothing'.
- Focus on this 'nothing' as it stabilizes and gets bigger, becoming focused on 'no thing'.
Moving from Seventh to Eighth Jhana (Neither Perception Nor Non-Perception)
Leigh Brasington- From the seventh jhana, let the 'nothing' collapse and come to rest in front of your face.
- Observe if your mind goes into a state where you cannot describe where you are; it has no characteristics, but you can stay in this state.