Hi JR,
Pretty much I agree with Beoman's analysis of the practice you described.
In addition, I'd like to comment on the following, as it may help you to understand that these experiences are not limited in any way by what has been taken to be stock descriptions of these states found in the discourses. I mention this in order to encourage your continued disciplined exploration of whatever states happen to arise in your practice such that you are able to gain insight from them, as well as to corroborate your experiences.
J.R. Cooper:
Sze-Hung, thanks for your reply. I've been doing these particular practices for about a year, both in daily practice and short retreats. In a typical sit focusing on that 2nd state, I will take some time to follow the breath and get stabilized before slipping into "resting awareness in space." So, you may very well be right that there are some subtle qualities of the transition that I have been missing when I go straight into that 2nd (space) state.
It may not be that you have missed these "subtle qualities" but rather that they pass so quickly as to be virtually unnoticeable. With time and continued practice, though, they may eventually reveal themselves (meaning that with increased mindfulness you may eventually be able to perceive their passing more clearly).
I began experiencing this same phenomenon
after about a year of heavy three-times-a-day practice, similar to what you have described above ("been practicing these for about a year"). Not having anyone I could directly speak with about this phenomenon, I began looking around on the Internet and asking other experienced practitioners whose opinions I trusted what they might make of this, and came to learn that others had been experiencing the same phenomenon. One description of this can be found in the
All Purpose Jhana thread where fellow yogi Geoff Schatz describes something very similar: "Of course over time and especially when sitting a lot, one can enter into the deeper jhanas quickly. And I've also found (and this has been confirmed by others) that over the years
the level of initial piti-sukha becomes more refined and subtle, and the body and mind are either already at a level of pliancy when one sits down, or else pliancy is easily attained upon sitting, which is essential for piti-sukha."
After having personally succumbed (albeit briefly, until it was pointed out to me by another experienced practitioner) to the "Jhana Junkie" syndrome (where entering the "blissful absorptions" becomes the primary aim of practice over and above the establishment of mindfulness during jhana), I quickly grew weary of the negative effect that
piti and
sukha would have and how the inclination of my mind during that period would bring on a trance-like experience (trance meaning dull-mindedness or a lack of mindfulness [
sati], during the experience). When I recognized that this was what was happening, I quickly developed an aversion to that state and began seeking ways to avoid it, which in essence entailed the establishment and maintenance of mindfulness during meditation.
One way I soon learned involved passing quickly from the first jhana to what I perceived to be the fourth jhana without seeming to traverse through the middle two jhanas (the second and third). At first, this confused me, because I began doubting that I had achieved jhana at all. This experience wasn't what was being described in the discourses at all, and there was nowhere in the discourses where I could find a similar experience described. It was only through persistently asking questions of other experienced practitioners and doing a lot of reading and observation of this state that I finally came to the conclusion that what I was experiencing was still jhana (meaning "fixed concentration" or
appana samadhi), but a more mature (meaning more disciplined and controlled) way of entering it. Or as Geoff states above: ". . . the body and mind are either already at a level of pliancy when one sits down, or else pliancy [was] easily attained upon sitting."
J.R. Cooper:
Alternatively, I may blend the two and go through the "five levels of breath" (what BCDEFG identified as maybe being jhanas 1-4) and then enter the "resting awareness in space" state. Now that I think of it, when I follow this pattern the 2nd (space) state becomes much more vast and profound.
I will say that when I claim I can slip into this space state more or less at will, it's definitely an early "stage" of the progression (most likely very soft) -- it definitely lacks the "wow" and profundity factors of the later stages of resting awareness in space and also of the five levels of breath (jhanas 1-4?). I do it while walking outside, even while driving. This did happen to be an initial state I found in my own practice, before being exposed to and practicing all of the other stuff I have been describing. I kind of found my way there on my own and kept going back since it was such a stable place to practice with not much in the way of discursiveness... Owing to the ease of access, not sure that this one is a later jhana... But maybe the later more expansive, still, consciousness-infused versions of it are?
This latter that you describe ("a stable place to practice with not much in the way of discursiveness") is the perfect state for proceeding with what I call contemplation or the practice of
satipatthana and others call insight meditation. If your experience of this state is anywhere near the same as mine, you experience a rock-solid concentration on whatever object you have taken and you are able to observe it with impunity which can lead to the arising of insight.
While in this state and by subtly inclining the mind toward an insight object (such as the three characteristics, the five aggregates,
vedana or whatever) you set up the condition to gain more insight into these objects. Meditation thus becomes a tool to be used to quiet the mind in order that the mind will be able to "see things as they are" without the byplay and interference of subjective bias or otherwise conditioned thinking. It is the single-pointed focus of
samadhi and the intensity and clarity of awareness of
sati that a yogi should eventually recognize as the tools he needs for his investigations and eventual awakening.
Just some thoughts to be aware of as your practice moves forward.
In peace,
Ian
