4👑☸ Cattāri Ariya-saccaṃ 四聖諦

4👑☸ → 8🌄 → jhāna and samādhi similes 🔗📝 🔝

Jsim ¹ – Similes sorted by sutta ref.
Jsim ² – Famous four jhāna similes
Jsim ³ – similes from 6ab ⚡☸ higher knowledges
Jsim ⁴ – similes from 4ip 🌕⚡ power bases
Jsim ⁵ – similes of swords and warriors

Similes relating to jhāna and samādhi

AN 3.101 gold impurities compared to 5niv, pure gold = imperturbable 4th jhana

c AN 3.101 gold smith – gold impurities compared to 5 hindrances, pure gold compared to malleable mind of 4th jhāna that can realize 6 abhiñña.

AN 3.102 gold smith refining gold → jhana balancing upekkha, viriya, samadhi

AN 3.102 gold smith – jhanas not referred to explicitly, but refining gold by blowing, adding water, examining it compared to balancing energy, samādhi, and upekkha. Implicitly balancing those 3 bojjhanga are covering the territory of 4 jhānas. Finished gold being malleable one can then attain 6 abhiñña.

AN 4.181 Yodh-ājīva, similar to AN 9.36 archer simile

AN 4.181 Yodh-ājīva, similar to AN 9.36
Does not explicitly refer to jhana, but one can’t help but notice the strong similarity to AN 9.36, which does the same functions as this sutta, explicitly while in the 4 jhanas and 7 samaapatti.

AN 5.28 famous four jhāna similes

AN 5.28 four jhāna similes + 5th reflection
See AN 5.28. 4 similes are bathman making soap ball, lake fed by spring, lotus in still pond, and man covered completely in white cloth. 5th simile is man standing reflecting on one sitting, or one sitting reflecting on one lying down.

AN 5.28 5th simile on reflection, man standing looking at one sitting…

AN 5.28 four jhāna similes + 5th reflection
Note this 5th simile is not in the other suttas that have the 4 jhana similes, like DN 2

AN 6.60 (parallel MA 82) 4 jhāna attainments doesn’t guarantee freedom from lust and desire

AN 6.60 (parallel MA 82 4 jhāna attainments doesn’t guarantee freedom from lust and desire

first jhāna simile	dust at crossroads after rain may reappear
2nd jhāna	pebble and shells in pond may temporarily be invisible in bad weather
3rd jhāna	leftover food not appealing to man who just ate full meal
4th jhāna	mountain glen lake devoid of waves from lack of wind
A-nimitta samādhi (sabbanimittānaṃ amanasikārā animittaṃ cetosamādhiṃ upasampajja viharati.)	king with army travelling setting up camp temporarily causes sound of crickets to disappear

AN 7.67 frontier fortress food: water, beans, butter

AN 7.67 frontier fortress food

♦ “katamesaṃ catunnaṃ jhānānaṃ ābhicetasikānaṃ diṭṭhadhammasukhavihārānaṃ nikāmalābhī hoti akicchalābhī akasiralābhī?	(Thanissaro Trans.)“And which are the four jhānas—heightened mental states that provide a pleasant abiding in the here & now—that he can obtain at will, without difficulty, without trouble?
seyyathāpi, bhikkhave, rañño paccantime nagare bahuṃ tiṇakaṭṭhodakaṃ sannicitaṃ hoti abbhantarānaṃ ratiyā aparitassāya phāsuvihārāya bāhirānaṃ paṭighātāya. evamevaṃ kho, bhikkhave, ariyasāvako vivicceva kāmehi ... pe ... paṭhamaṃ jhānaṃ upasampajja viharati attano ratiyā aparitassāya phāsuvihārāya okkamanāya nibbānassa.	“Just as a royal frontier fortress has large stores of grass, timber & water for the delight, convenience, & comfort of those within, and to ward off those without; in the same way the disciple of the noble ones, quite secluded from sensuality, secluded from unskillful qualities, enters & remains in the first jhāna—rapture & pleasure born of seclusion, accompanied by directed thought & evaluation—for his own delight, convenience, & comfort, and to alight on unbinding.
♦ “seyyathāpi, bhikkhave, rañño paccantime nagare bahuṃ sāliyavakaṃ sannicitaṃ hoti abbhantarānaṃ ratiyā aparitassāya phāsuvihārāya bāhirānaṃ paṭighātāya. evamevaṃ kho, bhikkhave, ariyasāvako vitakkavicārānaṃ vūpasamā ... pe ... dutiyaṃ jhānaṃ upasampajja viharati attano ratiyā aparitassāya phāsuvihārāya okkamanāya nibbānassa.	“Just as a royal frontier fortress has large stores of rice & barley for the delight, convenience, & comfort of those within, and to ward off those without; in the same way the disciple of the noble ones, with the stilling of directed thoughts & evaluations, enters & remains in the second jhāna—rapture & pleasure born of concentration, unification of awareness free from directed thought & evaluation—internal assurance—for his own delight, convenience, & comfort, and to alight on unbinding.
♦ “seyyathāpi, bhikkhave, rañño paccantime nagare bahuṃ tilamuggamāsāparaṇṇaṃ sannicitaṃ hoti abbhantarānaṃ ratiyā aparitassāya phāsuvihārāya bāhirānaṃ paṭighātāya. evamevaṃ kho, bhikkhave, ariyasāvako pītiyā ca virāgā ... pe ... tatiyaṃ jhānaṃ upasampajja viharati attano ratiyā aparitassāya phāsuvihārāya okkamanāya nibbānassa.	“Just as a royal frontier fortress has large stores of sesame, green gram, & other beans for the delight, convenience, & comfort of those within, and to ward off those without; in the same way the disciple of the noble ones, with the fading of rapture, remains equanimous, mindful, & alert, and senses pleasure with the body. He enters & remains in the third jhāna—of which the noble ones declare, ‘Equanimous & mindful, he has a pleasant abiding’—for his own delight, convenience, & comfort, and to alight on unbinding.
♦ “seyyathāpi, bhikkhave, rañño paccantime nagare bahuṃ bhesajjaṃ sannicitaṃ hoti, seyyathidaṃ — sappi navanītaṃ telaṃ madhu phāṇitaṃ loṇaṃ abbhantarānaṃ ratiyā aparitassāya phāsuvihārāya bāhirānaṃ paṭighātāya. evamevaṃ kho bhikkhave, ariyasāvako sukhassa ca pahānā dukkhassa ca pahānā pubbeva somanassadomanassānaṃ atthaṅgamā adukkhamasukhaṃ upekkhāsatipārisuddhiṃ catutthaṃ jhānaṃ upasampajja viharati attano ratiyā aparitassāya phāsuvihārāya okkamanāya nibbānassa. imesaṃ catunnaṃ jhānānaṃ ābhicetasikānaṃ diṭṭhadhammasukhavihārānaṃ nikāmalābhī hoti akicchalābhī akasiralābhī.	“Just as a royal frontier fortress has large stores of tonics—ghee, fresh butter, oil, honey, molasses, & salt—for the delight, convenience, & comfort of those within, and to ward off those without; in the same way the disciple of the noble ones, with the abandoning of pleasure & pain, as with the earlier disappearance of elation & distress, enters & remains in the fourth jhāna—purity of equanimity & mindfulness, neither pleasure nor pain—for his own delight, convenience, & comfort, and to alight on unbinding.
♦ “yato kho, bhikkhave, ariyasāvako imehi sattahi saddhammehi samannāgato hoti, imesañca catunnaṃ jhānānaṃ ābhicetasikānaṃ diṭṭhadhammasukhavihārānaṃ nikāmalābhī hoti akicchalābhī akasiralābhī. ayaṃ vuccati, bhikkhave, ariyasāvako akaraṇīyo mārassa akaraṇīyo pāpimato”ti.	“When a disciple of the noble ones is endowed with these seven true qualities and can obtain at will—without difficulty, without trouble—these four jhānas, heightened mental states that provide a pleasant abiding in the here & now, he is said to be a disciple of the noble ones who can’t be undone by Māra, can’t be undone by the Evil One.”

AN 9.36 simile of skilled archer, 4 jhanas and first 7 attainments

AN 9.36 simile of skilled archer

DA 20 || DN 3 like DN 2 with 4 jhāna similes

ebms p.75 DA parallel to DN 2 for gradual training

8) Then they diligently discard sensual desire, evil and
unwholesome states. Being endowed with [directed] awareness and [sustained] contemplation,23 with joy and happiness
arisen from seclusion, they gain entry into the first absorption.
Their body is completely pervaded, filled, and drenched by
joy and happiness,24 with no [part] that is not permeated.
It is just like a capable bath attendant who fills a container
with much [soap] powder. By drenching it with water, he
completely moistens it with water,25 so that no [part] is not
pervaded [by water].26
In the same way monastics gain entry into the first absorption, with joy and happiness throughout their body,
with no [part] that is not permeated. Young brahmin, in this
way this is the first gaining of happiness with the present
body. Why is that? Because this is to be gained by being
diligent, with mindfulness that is not confused, and by delighting in quietude and seclusion.
Discarding [directed] awareness and [sustained] contemplation,27 they give rise to confidence,28 and their mindfulness is collected in mental unification. Being without [directed] awareness and without [sustained] contemplation,
with joy and happiness arisen from concentration, they
enter the second absorption. Their body is completely pervaded, filled, and drenched by the joy and happiness of
mental unification, with no [part] that is not permeated.
It is just like [a pool] on a mountain top with cool spring
water that wells up by itself from within, none coming in
from outside.29 The pool itself is in turn soaked by the clear
water that wells up from within, with no [part] that is not
pervaded.
Young brahmin, in the same way monastics enter the
second absorption, with no [part of their body] that is not
permeated by the joy and happiness born of concentration.
This is their second gaining of happiness with the present
body.
Discarding joy, they dwell in equipoise and with mind
fulness that is not confused. With their whole being expe
riencing acute happiness they enter the third absorption,30
which is spoken of by noble ones as a [condition of] equi
poise, mindfulness, and happiness.31 Their body is com
pletely pervaded, filled, and drenched by happiness that is
without joy, with no [part] that is not permeated.
It is just like uppala lotuses, paduma lotuses, kumuda
lotuses, [or] puṇḍarīka lotuses, which have emerged from
the mud, but have not emerged above the water. Their roots,
stems, stalks, and flowers are soaked in the water, with no
[part] that is not pervaded [by the water].32

Young brahmin, in the same way monastics enter the
third absorption and dwell with their body soaked with
happiness that is secluded from joy, with no [part] that is
not pervaded. [85c] This is their third gaining of happiness
with the present body.
Discarding pain and happiness,33 sadness and joy having
previously ceased, being without pain and without happiness,
with purity of equipoise and mindfulness, they enter the fourth
absorption. Their body is completely filled and drenched
with mental purity, with no [part] that is not pervaded.

It is just like a person who has taken a bath and is clean.
He covers his body with a new white cloth, demonstrating
the cleanness of his body.34
Young brahmin, in the same way monastics enter the
fourth absorption and permeate their body with mental
purity, with no [part] of it that is not pervaded.

plus a 5th simile for 4th jhana imperturbability

9) Again, having entered the fourth absorption their mind
is imperturbable, without increase or decrease. They dwell
without craving or aversion in the stage of imperturbability.
It is just like a private room that has been plastered in
side and outside, and whose door has been firmly shut and
locked,35 with no wind or dust [entering]. Inside a lamp has
been lit, which nobody touches or agitates. The flame of
that lamp rises quietly and without perturbation.36
Young brahmin, in the same way monastics have en
tered the fourth absorption and their mind is imperturbable,
without increase or decrease. They dwell without craving
or aversion in the stage of imperturbability. This is their
fourth gaining of happiness with the present body. Why is
that? Because this is to be gained by being diligent without

laxity, being with mindfulness that is not confused, and
delighting in quietude and seclusion.

Mūlasarvāstivāda Sanskrit fragment

Dharmaguptaka
DĀ 20

Theravāda
DN 2

1) sense-restraint 5) comprehension 6) seclusion 7) hindrances & similes 8) absorption & similes 9) imperturbability & simile

1) sense-restraint
& simile
2) food moderation
& simile
3) wakefulness
4) satipaṭṭhāna
5) comprehension
& simile
6) seclusion
7) hindrances
& similes
8) absorption
& similes
9) imperturbability
& simile

1) sense-restraint
5) comprehension
6) seclusion
7) hindrances
& similes
8) absorption
& similes
9) imperturbability

DA 20 fifth simile on imperturbability bridged from 4th jhana, man in sealed room with light

DN 27 Jhāna as fire, light, meditation, true early Brahman

DN 27 Jhāna as fire, light, meditation, true early Brahman
An extremely dense four words
(from https://discourse.suttacentral.net/t/an-extremely-dense-four-words/6049)

Essays, ebt-translation, Ven. sujato

Usually in the EBTs the style tends to be explicit, even overly verbose. Much of this is due to the repetition required to preserve the meaning; but also, the Buddha in doctrinal passages is concerned to make the meaning clear and unambiguous. However, outside of strict doctrine, in narrative, dialogue, and verse, we sometimes encounter a more playful and allusive spirit.

DN 27 Aggañña, on the (re)creation of the world, is a great example of this. As has been recognized by Gombrich and others, there is a humor and light-heartedness to this narrative, no matter how serious the overall intent. I won't go into this too much, only to note that play is an essential aspect of myth.

I would like to draw attention to one short sequence of words. Now, it is a commonplace, and I think a mistake, to assert that Pali is especially rich in meaning, and many terms are untranslatable. Sorry to disappoint, but Pali is just a language, and is no more rich or translatable than any other. What can be tricky is translating the ideas that are expressed in Pali. But that is the case in any kind of translation. But having said that, this particular sequence is so dense in allusions that it is, I think, impossible to translate properly, hence this essay.

As a bit of background, in DN 27 the Buddha is discussing with the brahmins Vāseṭṭha and Bharadvāja, who want to ordain. The other brahmins have been dissing them for hanging out with the menial ascetics, when they are from the high caste of brahmins, sprung from the head of Brahma. The Buddhs uses this as a chance to tell a myth of origins. In typically Buddhist style, this takes the basic tropes of origin myths—the primordial waters, the arising of social institutions, and so on—and turns them on their head. We should be alerted to the subversive character of the myth when the Buddha starts his myth of origin with the line: "There comes a time when the world ends."

The Buddha tells of the origins of society and the beginnings of moral decay. Here the thematic unity of the text becomes very satisfying. Normally, of course, when listing the castes the Buddha puts his own caste, the khattiyas or aristocrats, first. Here he gives an explanation of why this is so. He connects khattiya with khetta, "field", and traces their origin to the beginnings of agriculture.

While the details of this are obviously mythic, the overall sense of it is very accurate. People originally used foods that were provided naturally. But due to overconsumption, they exhausted the natural resources, and started cultivating their own food so as to support a denser population. This required a sense of ownership over land, dividing it up, and laying the roots for inequality and punishment.

One of the key changes that cultivation brought about was the storing up of food, principally grain. No longer were populations bound to the seasons, they could construct large silos and store food all year round. Of course, monastics are not allowed to do this, and in this sense are depicted as returning to an earlier and purer way of life.

Now, when people started to store up grain, the Buddha says that certain people, disgusted by this immorality, withdrew to leaf huts in the forest to meditate. This is the origin of the brahmin caste. And this where the web of allusions starts to get dense.

First up, in saying that the brahmins originated as renunciates, the Buddha is upending traditional brahmin beliefs (and, incidentally, actual history). Rather than selling out the true brahmanical tradition, Vāseṭṭha and Bharadvāja are returning to its pure roots—just like the Buddhist mendicants. So the Buddhists, in an important sense, are truer to the brahmanical tradition than the brahmins themselves.

In fact, the origin of the word brahmin is traced, rather implausibly, to the word bāheti, to "ward off" bad things. Thus rather than the metaphysical explanation given in their own mythology, the brahmins are redefined according to the Buddha's ethical approach. Brahminhood is a matter of behavior, not birth. This too is one of the basic teachings of the Buddha, and so here again he is subverting the brahmanical mythology.

So, how do they do this? They build leaf huts in the wilderness—just like Buddhist monastics. And what do they do in those huts? Here at last we come to the four words:

jhāyanti vītaṅgārā vītadhūmā pannamusalā

Let me first take the chance to say here that the following allusions and webs of meanings are absolutely intended by the text. This is no accident, no reading of meanings into an innocent saying. The brahmins were the intellectual elite of the time, and, speaking with highly educated and intelligent brahmins, the Buddha is knowingly introducing a series of terms, highly unusual in the context, that force a reading on multiple levels.

Okay, so here are the basic meanings.

jhāyanti: they meditate.
vītaṅgārā: free of glowing coals
vītadhūmā: free of smoke
pannamusalā: with shovel put down

Okay, so I'll try to tease out the layers of meaning, no easy task. It should be immediately obvious that the surface meaning alone is inadequate.

Jhāyati has the dual senses of "contemplate, meditate", and "burn, illuminate". In the sense of meditation of course it normally means to practice jhāna. Whether it means specifically that here is debatable, although it certainly implies something of the sort.

However, the sense of "burn" is not far away, as shown by the following terms. Taking these three words of out context, you'd think it referred to something like a lamp that glowed without flames or smoke. Clearly the allusion is intentional. In DN 2, for example, the Sangha is said to jhāyati in the hall, meditating like pure bright lamps, leading the way. These original brahmins were shining, bright, and pure, an example and inspiration for others.

But this is just the beginning. A little lower in the text, there is a pun on jhāyaka and ajjhāyaka. Ajjhāyaka is a completely different word, meaning "reciter". The pub says that these brahmins were originally jhāyakas (meditators), but some couldn't meditate, so they went back to the villages and complied texts, i.e. the three Vedas. they then became ajjhāyaka (non-meditator = reciter). In the old days this was said to be worse, but these days, the Buddha laments, it's considered better.

So not only is the metaphysical origin of the brahmins disputed, but the basic task of the brahmins, to recite and preserve the Vedas, is felt to be a betrayal of their original practice. And once again, it is among the Buddhists that the practice of jhāna prevails.

Next the brahmins in their huts are said to be free of glowing charcoal and smoke. This is a direct continuation of the previous passage, on the storing up of food. In its most literal sense it means that they didn't cook; once again, just like Buddhist monastics. The passage makes this clear when it goes on to describe how they would go to the village for alms; just like, you guessed it, Buddhist monastics.

As we have already seen, however, these terms not only refer directly to that most pervasive icon of civilization, the cooking fire, but they serve to illuminate and qualify the previous term, jhāyanti, evoking a pure smokeless flame.

But it goes even further than this, for they also undermine another basic feature of the brahmanical life, the worship of the sacred flame. Going back to the very roots of Indo-European religion, probably further, the worship of fire predates even the reciting of texts. But, so it would seem, not only did the original brahmins not worship fire, they were characterized by their rejection of fire. And—you'll never guess this one—Buddhist monastics are also restricted in lighting fires3.

Finally, they are said to have "put down the shovel". This phrase is usually mistranslated as "mortar and pestle" or something like that, but there is no doubt it refers to specifically a digging implement. It only occurs in one other place in the nikayas, MN 81, where Ghaṭikāra is praised because he "put down the shovel and doesn’t dig the earth with his own hands" (pannamusalo na sahatthā pathaviṃ khaṇati). This phrase is echoed in the Sanskrit text of the Sanghabhedavastu (nikṣiptaparṇamusalo na svahastaṃ pṛthivīṃ khanati na khānayati).

As I have discussed in a previous post, one of the practices of Jain ascetics is that they will not accept food from a house where there is a musala inside. In that post, I said musala might either mean "club" or "shovel". These days I tend to think "shovel" is more likely in that case; but regardless, that's clearly what it means here.

Digging the soil is, of course, also essential for agriculture. So along with cooking, these original brahmins reject tilling the soil. You know who else is forbidden from digging? Surprise! It's Buddhist monastics.1

At a spiritual level, the putting down of the shovel is not just the refusal to disturb the soil, but a committment to a life of simplicity and renunciation. Like the similar term pannabhāra ("with burden put down"), which describes the arahants, these original brahmins are described more by what they don't do than what they do do.

Free of the burdens and duties of civilization, unconcerned for the future, relying on the spontaneous generosity of others, these brahmins devote their lives to meditation, pure and unsullied. They shine as examples for the rest of us, reminding us that the path of greed, ownership, and holding on is the path of suffering.

Given the above, any overly literal translation is doomed to fail. Here is the best I can do.

They build leaf huts in a wilderness region where they meditate pure and bright, without lighting cooking fires or digging the soil. They come down in the morning for breakfast and in the evening for supper to the village, town, or royal capital seeking a meal.

MA 198 same similes as MN 125

MN 125 four jhanas and imperturbable war elephant

MN 125 view from a mountain top

MN 125 four jhanas and imperturbable war elephant
I don’t think it explicitly says 4 jhanas, but it is comparing two people, one standing at the base of the mountain who can’t see through the forest, talking to friend standing at the top of mountain who can see all kinds of delightful views. The one who can’t see is one under 5 hindrances, and the one who can see from the top has 4 jhanas (free of 5 niv), and perhaps also a hidden word play on ekagga, agga being the peak of the mountain.

1 – Similes sorted by sutta ref.

AN ^3.101 gold impurities compared to 5niv, pure gold = imperturbable 4th jhana
AN ^3.102 gold smith refining gold → jhana balancing upekkha, viriya, samadhi
AN ^4.181 Yodh-ājīva, similar to AN ^9.36 archer simile
AN ^5.28 famous four jhāna similes
AN ^5.28 5th simile on reflection, man standing looking at one sitting…
AN ^6.55 Sona musician tuning string of lute just right ↔ samatha and vīriya balanced
AN ^6.55 Sona becomes arahant who is imperturbable (anenja, jhāna term) to sensory input ↔ solid mountain not moved by storms

AN ^6.60 (parallel MA 82) 4 jhāna attainments doesn’t guarantee freedom from lust and desire
AN ^7.67 frontier fortress food: water, beans, butter
AN ^9.36 simile of skilled archer, 4 jhanas and first 7 attainments
DA 20 || DN ³ like DN ² with 4 jhāna similes
plus a 5th simile for 4th jhana imperturbability
DA 20 fifth simile on imperturbability bridged from 4th jhana, man in sealed room with light
DN ²⁷ Jhāna as fire, light, meditation, true early Brahman
KN Mil 3.7.6 Ven. Nāgasena says about the sword of samādhi: "It don't mean a thing, if it ain't got that swing!" 🔗📝
MA 198 same similes as MN ¹²⁵
MN ¹²⁵ four jhanas and imperturbable war elephant
MN ¹²⁵ view from a mountain top

2 – Famous four jhāna similes

3 – similes from 6ab ⚡☸ higher knowledges

4 – similes from 4ip 🌕⚡ power bases

5 – similes of swords and warriors

KN Mil 3.7.6 Ven. Nāgasena says about the sword of samādhi: "It don't mean a thing, if it ain't got that swing!" 🔗📝

sword of samādhi: comparing various Buddhist meditation systems 🔗📝