Jhana 1 experience - sat 1 hour cross legged on bed.

 Today I experienced the 1st Jhana very strongly and consistently. I sat to meditate at 12 noon and at 12.30, I felt piti (rapture). It started with just a little shaking in the head and a joyful feeling. I abided in the sukha (pleasant feeling) and relaxed and smile more and the piti aimplified and became stronger and spread throughout the body. The whole body was shaking slightly. I continued to smile and relax and let this continue for another 30 minutes. At 1.00 pm, I smiled and relax more and the piti went away. At this point, I stopped meditation and got up to walk. From the moment the piti and sukha arose, my mind was concentrated on the pleasant feeling and I was able to easily sit for 1 hour. Without the piti and sukha (which is also known as the 1st Jhana), I could hardly sit for 30 mins.

The technique to enter the first Jhana is a combination of TWIM and Leigh Brasington's Right Concentration technique.

My technique:

Sit cross legged with a propped up cushion, with back and head straight. Open the window to let fresh air circulate. Put a small fan in front blow up at you. All this to make sure I am really comfortable. Jhana meditation is a pleasure meditation. But the pleasure is wholesome pleasure - as described by the Buddha and also encouraged by the Buddha. Pleasure leads to rapture, then happiness, then equanimity. Once you have equanimity you can direct it to insight meditation, eg, observing annica, dukkha and anatta in all things as well as dependent origination.

Then relax whole body and mind. Do not rush, take your time let it happen naturally. When you relax, there is a tendency to smile, just let the smile come and try to keep the smile and relax going for as long as you can. It is a letting go process, not a pushing/controlling process. Need to be very gentle and let it take its time. As you relax and smile, be faintly aware that you are breathing. No need to specifically focus on the breathing. The awareness of the breathing can be in the background. In the foreground would be your warm and pleasant feeling of the relaxation and smile. Occasionally, thoughts of joy might come from some memory, let it add to your existing pleasant feeling and let it increase. If you are being distracted by those thoughts, just gently relax and smile and come back to the pleasant feeling. Do not suppress anything - do not use force. It has to be a relaxed mild effort. Leigh Brasington calls it relaxed diligence. 

If you continue like this. After a while you will feel the piti arise as a slight shaking or vibration somewhere in the body. 

Continue to relax and smile and abide in the pleasant feeling (sukha) - not the piti. Just let the piti be there, do not try to do anything with it. Just abide in the sukha that the relaxation and smiling brings up. That is all you need to do.

r7