Hello, I've got a question regarding the results of different methods. I don't really like the dichotomy set up by my title...but it hints at my point.
Essentially I'm curious if depth of wisdom is sacrificed via methods, such as noting, that seem designed to produce quick results.
I'm also wondering, if this is the case, is the trade off worth it? I would see Zen, and AF as more focused on depth.
I believe it was MCTB, sorry if I'm mistaken, that spoke of quickly going through the nanas to get 4th path quickly. Then one can go back at one's leisure and re-examine what was originally missed. I'm reading "Emptiness Dancing" by Adyashanti right now, and he writes about moving horizontally along 'the wall' of spirituality gaining spiritual experiences, but missing out on the depth of those experiences.
Is it possible to develop insights on say 2nd path, that someone who is 4th path has not had, due to depth of experience. Some things that 4th path yogis write about seem obvious to me, even though I'm not 4th path(I think). Can some of the post 4th path work be begun pre-4th by delving deeper? It may just be that this process is not as linear as I perceive it to be. I've gotten this impression from the linear nature of the maps, however.
This question may only display my ignorance, which I freely acknowledge, but I'd love to hear thoughts on this topic from more experienced yogis.

Essentially I'm curious if depth of wisdom is sacrificed via methods, such as noting, that seem designed to produce quick results.
I'm also wondering, if this is the case, is the trade off worth it?

we will eventually learn to understand clearly and with confidence the true relationship between the pitisukha of samatha-vipassana and the Corruptions of the Mahasi method, between Samatha and a Sankharupekkhanana, between the Enlightenment of the Advaitists and the Sotapanna of the Buddhists, between the Divine Union of the Christian Mystics and the Nirvana of Buddhists. We will be able to answer the question whether Mahasi yogis fail to experience real insights the way Pa Auk yogis do, or whether the insights experienced by Pa Auk yogis are just clearer and more profound because of the high degree of concentration attained prior to insight development.

I want to take this opportunity to share with you some questions I have with regard to the relationship between magga-phala and sotapanna. I assume that for the most part what we are talking about here are magga-phala experiences that are the culmination of an extensive period of intense practice according to one of the traditional Buddhist paths to Awakening, and as such, the individual becomes a Sotapanna following the magga-phala event. But there are two questions I want to raise here. First, are magga-phala events always and exclusively the result of Buddhist practices? And second, does an individual always become a Sotapanna following a magga-phala event? I have come to think that experiences identical to what we call magga-phala can and sometimes do occur in consequence of non-Buddhist methods of training; that they can spontaneously occur without any formal training at all as a result of intense periods of profound suffering, compassion, or devotion for example; and further, that it can even happen unexpectedly with no apparent cause. I am sure not everyone agrees with me on this, but please consider it for the moment as a hypothesis. I have also become convinced that in order for a magga-phala experience to constitute stream entry, it is essential that the experience saturate to the very core of the yogi’s mind, and that requires either or both of a prolonged abiding in phala and a frequent repetition of the phala experience in order to make a sufficiently lasting imprint on the mind. If this doesn’t happen, the ‘magga-phala’ event becomes a one-time, memorable, peak experience that may perhaps permanently change the person in certain ways, but without irrevocably setting them on a path to eventual full Enlightenment.

...experience and observation tell me that the fruit of the original magga-phala experience must be firmly established and carefully nurtured through repetition if it is not to become smothered over time, and if true Stream Entry is to occur. Any habitual patterns of egocentric behavior and thinking that were not destroyed prior to magga-phala will reassert themselves afterwards whenever the right conditions are present, and so the work of the Stream Entrant is to apply Path Knowledge to their recognition and eradication. Desire and aversion are still present, and the Stream Entrant must therefore apply his/her understanding of sunnata and annata to their attenuation. This is where the ‘saturation of the mind’ with the experience of phala comes in. The advantage of traditional Buddhist trainings is that they are systematic and results are repeatable, therefore the phala experience can be achieved again and again, and if the yogi is trained in Samatha, even the initial experience can last long enough to make a very deep imprint on the psyche.

...If I am correct in thinking that some of these experiences occurring outside of the Buddhist paradigm are in fact magga-phala, then it seems possible that magga-phala may not always result in achieving Stream Entry, or at least a Stream Entry that manifests in this lifetime. And if that is true, then it also raises the possibility that even some Buddhist practitioners may experience magga-phala, but without sufficient foundation and guidance for it to result in Stream Entry. Particularly vulnerable are yogis whose meditative skills are inadequate in terms of sustaining and repeating the experience of Fruition consciousness, or who lack the opportunity to practice phala samapatti subsequent to the initial experience.

I'm reading "Emptiness Dancing" by Adyashanti right now, and he writes about moving horizontally along 'the wall' of spirituality gaining spiritual experiences, but missing out on the depth of those experiences.

The dazzling effect of lights and visions, the powerful releases of rapture and energy, all are a wonderful sign of the breakdown of the old and small structures of our being, body, and mind. However, they do not in themselves produce wisdom. Some people have had many of these experiences, yet learned very little. Even great openings of the heart, kundalini processes, and visions can turn into spiritual pride or become old memories. As with a near-death experience or a car accident, some people will change a great deal and others will return to old constricted habits shortly thereafter. Spiritual experiences in themselves do not count for much. What matters is that we integrate and learn from the process.

I find these ideas quite interesting, and they seem to speak to your question about speed vs. depth, especially that last line - "Particularly vulnerable are yogis whose meditative skills are inadequate in terms of sustaining and repeating the experience of Fruition consciousness, or who lack the opportunity to practice phala samapatti subsequent to the initial experience."