Bhante, I strive to practice anapanasati as a laid person.
Deep in mind, due to attachments to definition of pandaka in abhidhamma, mentally I am struggling! Occasionally, I felt I am not clean, even when offering.
Able to practice anapanasati, able to obtain peace and knowing well it’s still far from jhana…Am I wrong to wish to attain jhana? Or pandaka or post op is define as short of wisdom root therefore will never ever able to achieve that (jhana) in current life?
According to suttas you can attain jhana by practicing the noble eightfold path. Gender and surgery status make no difference. Virtue, absorption and wisdom is what is important.
Sabbe satta bhavantu sukhitatta.
May all beings be happy (even generous and dedicated practicing trans women)
Also adding a recommendation to use the search to understand what a pandaka might be.
https://discourse.suttacentral.net/search?q=pandaka
Trans people are not pandaka. The Buddha was fine with trans* people
Indeed.
The “pandakas” that would be unable to attain Jhāna are what we today might call “sex addicts.” It’s pretty obvious that someone strongly afflicted by lust would have a hard time getting Jhāna.
Well, you’re occupying a body and all bodies are kinda gross: male, female, young, old, big, small, and everything in between. They are all leaking bags of filth.
The import thing, as Venerable @Pasanna said, is what you do with the gross body you have. If you’re doing a good deed, rejoice in that, recalling that you are far older than your current vessel.
Thx bhante for very quick reply…this has given me some level of confidence to keep practicing…sadhux3…will like to seek guidance…when practice observation of breath, my concentration will always auto switch to yintang (Yintang is located on the forehead,exactly between the two eyebrows, at the midpoint of the line connecting the medial ends of the eyebrows.), do feel a lot easier to get calmness at beginning but it takes a lot of energy…is it a right way to switch concentration from yintang to breath after initial calmness?
You would be better to speak with an in person meditation teacher. We don’t allow discussion of personal practice on this forum because meaning and nuance can get lost in these situations.
