AN 3.64: walking while in jhanas?

[mikenz66]

I imagine it solves a contradiction. If jhana is a complete withdrawal of the senses, then walking, hearing, and so on during jhana doesn’t make sense. If the walking is after the jhana, there is no problem.

This has been discussed in a number of places:

Polak's Reexamining Jhanas

Moving on now to his analysis of MN 152 and how the Buddha’s scorn for Parasariya’s method is proof that the jhanas are not bereft of sense data. But first, I should correct his mistake in citing BB’s translation of MN 51 at p.48. BB did not translate “sukhañca kāyena paṭisaṃvedeti” as “still feeling pleasure in the body”, but as “still feeling pleasure with the body”. As to the meaning carried by the idiom kāyena, see the old discussions at Touching enlightenment with the body. Firstly, …

"Sutta" and "Visuddhimagga" jhanas

It is quite common to see the mention of “sutta jhanas” that are less absorbed than “Visuddhimagga jhanas”: I find this a little confusing, since there are a number of people who swear by the Early Buddhist Texts who interpret the jhana passages in the suttas as indicating a highly absorbed state (E.g. Vens. Brahm, Sujato, Bramali, Analayo). It’s not clear to me what is different between a “Visuddhimagga jhana” and the jhanas taught by, for example, Ajahn Brahm: Another feature of j…

There is a similar issue in MN 111. Most translations imply that Sariputta is considering the factors of his jhanas while still in the jhana. The alternative intrepreation is that this contemplation is after each jhana.

I don’t have the detailed Pali knowledge to defend either interpretation, but have found the conversation fascinating.