The second shamatha jhana is like the first, a seemingly solidified mind state.
With the dropping of almost all applied and sustained effort,
the rapture and happiness/joy factors created by concentration
can really predominate.
Thus,
whereas the first jhana requires you to make effort to pay attention to maintain it,
the second jhana has much more of the quality of showing itself to you,
welling up, filling the field of attention with itself, blossoming naturally, etc.
The focus of attention extends out somewhat,
sort of like looking straight ahead
without focusing the eyes on anything specific.
Mind-generated objects, such as visualizations,
that in a well-developed visual-based first jhana are relatively stable,
may now begin to move in the second jhana
(spin, pulse, resonate, shimmer, subtly flux, or something similar)
in ways that correlate with the phase of the breath,
moving slowly towards the top and bottom of the breath
and more quickly in the middle.
~~~
This fine movement may be subtle to some and very obvious to others.
Mantras may suddenly seem to be repeating themselves.
The breath suddenly is noticeably breathing itself
and there is something that feels great about that.
This more insight-related aspect of change (impermanence)
will not be noticed by everyone, but if you do notice it,
that is very second jhana.
~~~
Objects can also seem very steady, very stable, and yet
still have that welling-up, on-their-own quality.
This state is a fine attainment but can be quite captivating for obvious reasons.
The second shamatha jhana has very skillful elements, in that
it cultivates six of the seven factors of awakening to some degree
(excluding investigation, and is more focused on rapture than on equanimity).
~~~
It temporarily suppresses the hindrances,
creating more beneficial wiring in the brain.
It is also very seductive and sticky.
Some may get stuck cultivating this again and again for some period
ranging from days to years.
Again,
the meditator also has the option to:
1) get stuck here;
2) go on to the third jhana; or
3) investigate this state and begin the progress of insight,
paying careful attention to completely deconstructing the state into its
moment-to-moment components, as with the first jhana.
This article was Inspired by
Buddha’s step by step instructions to obtain Enlightenment
as refined by The Arahant Daneil M. Ingram.
