Jhana from a Taoist Perspective

[al.]

In Buddhist samatha meditation there is the practice of the 8 Jhana's. Does anyone know of a Taoist parallel?

 

My current view is that there is surely the same skill/experience being developed in Daoist methods... but has it been structured/framed in different ways?

[Gerard]

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Edited August 22, 2013 by Gerard

[Harmonious Emptiness]

chi settling then rising on its own, orbiting the circle of yin and yang (falling, rising) which endures by being in the Dao of Dao, ever existing, De, the mysterious microcosm.

 

 

{note: I'm not quoting so don't take this as authoritative.

[Mark Foote]

I just finished a piece on the first four jhanas, and I would characterize them as a natural part of human nature, and the Gautamid's description as pretty amazing but hard for most of us to make sense of. I'm hoping that taking notes has allowed me to see it a little bit better. My notes, as it were, are here:

 

http://www.zenmudra.com/zenmudra-the-practice-of-zazen.html

 

A thread that I started to announce the piece is here:

 

http://thetaobums.com/topic/27984-letting-go-in-action-the-practice-of-zazen/

 

hope it hits you right.

[al.]

Thanks for the comments, interesting thoughts.

 

The Zazen article works around this theme nicely. A clear read.

 

To me, this all suggests that the same states of consciousness are being experienced, but the difference lies in the language used to describe these experiences, which in turn is dependant on the context of the dialogue.

 

So, perhaps because the Buddha went on to develop Vipassana, the investigative and insight based system of meditation, he developed a more intricate way of describing these states. This could have also been due to his many years spent engaged in teaching, whereas, I get the impression that Taoist adepts in general have not historically had the same lengthy (or wordy) experience of teaching.

 

Or then again perhaps the difference lies in the differences of the actual languages being spoken. I am no linguist, but I would surmise there are some important differences between the Chinese language and the old Indian languages... I wouldn't no where to start in analysing the structural differences of these languages and how this would reflect cultural ways of seeing/being, but this would be fascinating to explore...

 

A