Nadav's practice notes

This is great, Kenneth. You've inspired me to master talking during all the jhanas without problem. As some of them kind of sucked me in (got embedded) as you can witness in those videos.

Nick

"Nick and I are talking the whole time while accessing jhanas. It is, of course, possible to become completely absorbed into a jhana to the point of being unable to talk or even form a sentence. But an even higher skill is the ability to go deeply into a jhana while retaining the flexibility of mind that allows for functioning in the world.

In order to understand how this works, you have to think of jhana not as some zombified state of absorption, but more like a radio frequency. You can attune the mind to the frequency, and at first it may take all your attention to keep yourself attuned to the signal; you have to be completely focused on the frequency to the exclusion of everything else. If not, you simply drift off of the signal. With practice and greater skill, however, you learn to stay on the frequency while letting in more and more of the environment around you. This trend continues until the world and the jhana can be effortlessly integrated; and you can do this with nearly any jhana including the Pureland jhanas. This movement from one-pointedness of mind to ever-more-inclusive attention is the natural progression of concentration at every level. See my essay on chicken herding:

kennethfolkdharma.wetpaint.com/page/Jhana+and+Ñana

So, the ability to note or talk from within a jhana does not represent a "superficial" or "soft" version of a jhana that is somehow inferior to total absorption. In fact, it is just the opposite: the ability to function within a jhana represents mastery of that jhana and is the natural culmination of concentration.

Notice also that this trend from exclusion toward inclusion applies not only to jhanas but to 2nd and 3rd Gears as well."

Sorry to be a toady, but this is just incredible. Viva KFD!

Had to move again which restricted formal practice time. I'm still noting immediately upon waking up and throughout the day when possible. Feeling super tired and restless. I'll be travelling for a gig over the next couple of days, so regular practice will resume next week.
I've noticed a lot of tension in the '3rd eye' area, especially at night when I try to go to sleep.... keeping the eyes open helps. I've had this on and off for a long time (maybe years) but never labelled it as such.

30 minute sit.
started out something like:
coolness-pleasant, worried, planning thought, future image, remembering thought, remembering thought, amused, anxious, planning thought, rising, falling, rising, falling, coolness, sitting, hungry, planning, desire, tingling, itching, desire, reflecting, remembering, judging, judging, tension, coolness, rising, falling, itching, itching, planning thought, rehearsing, hearing music, desire to get up, etc.
Took maybe 10-15 minutes for the strong itching to start. I stayed with one itch for 5-10 minutes. It became stronger, almost unbearable for a minute (strong desire to itch, frustration, doubt) then weakened a little, then became more intense again (but with less aversion), etc. Same with a couple of other spots. General aversion to my sensations and desire for progress ('how long do I have to keep noting these damn itches? where is the pleasant stuff?') -- all noted. Some more itching with occasional remembering/planning, coolness then a wave of impatience, frustration, etc.

Sat for 45 minutes this morning. I recorded this sit. I might transcribe it, but it would be a page of mostly 'itching, itching, itching, itching'. Some recurring things other than itching were planning thought, remembering thought, imagining, judging, reflecting, desire, aversion, amused, coolness-pleasant, tension-unpleasant, timer curiosity, and impatience towards the end.

Nadav, have you tried staying with just one itch? Take one itch and watch it and see if it has a texture to it, then try and stay with the texture till you maybe sense a pulse in it.

"Nadav, have you tried staying with just one itch? "

Yep, that's what I've been doing.

Spent 5 hours in the car today. Noted out loud continuously for the first hour or so and then sporadically for the rest of the drive.
Just sat for 30 minutes. An interesting sit in that I experienced virtually no itching. Got very concentrated pretty quickly. Had a good sense of the entire body, everything felt loose and relaxed at first. Some tingling in the legs. Some expansion and contraction of the body feel as a whole... felt small and then huge. Couldn't stay with anything but rising and falling for very long. Then I started to feel uncomfortable, with solid blocks of tension throughout the body. Heaviness. The tension passed and I felt less concentrated. More wandering thoughts at this point. Eventually I felt the concentration go deeper again. Still can't stick with anything but rising and falling (other than thoughts). There were lots of subtle movements all over the body but they didn't stick out... couldn't grab on to them. A few itches did appear but they were not nearly as bright and apparent as before.

Had a 40 minute sit yesterday. Took a long time for any of the solid itching to appear. Mostly stuck with rising and falling while staying aware of what's going on in the body and noting thoughts as they arise.

Just sat two 25 minute sessions with a couple of minutes of stretching in the middle. Noted an itch in the beginning. It was less defined than they have been and was vibrating and moving around a bit. Tightness in the throat and stomach, very unpleasant at first and then pretty neutral. It has become very difficult to stick with one particular sensation because there is so much going on. Lots of subtle tingling, vibration, pulsations, etc. I stayed with one pulse for a while... it was circular in its rhythm, continuous and uneven. I spent most of the sit with 'rising, falling' while being aware of the whole body. The body felt lighter. I'd occasionally try to single out an itch or a pulse. This felt like trying to watch a raft on a stormy ocean, whereas before where it was like watching an elephant surrounded by arrows that say I'M OVER HERE.

"Lots of subtle tingling, vibration, pulsations, etc."-Nadavspi

What is your general mind state while this is going on, Nadav? Happy/unhappy; bored/interested; ecstatic/aversive; etc.

Curious interest. More ecstatic/excited than aversive but rather neutral overall. Not unusually happy or rapturous, more "hey, this is cool. let's watch it" than anything else.
Off the cushion, the itching continues like it's been for the couple of weeks.

You seem to be on the cusp of the A&P. How much are you sitting?

About 45 minutes a day. Less last week during the move. I'll step it up.

"I'll step it up."-Nadavspi

As the Burmese monk Sayadaw U Rajinda said to me in his deep, resonant voice in Penang in 1992, "Goood plahhn." (Good plan.)

LOL!
Just did an hour of meditation: two 25 minute sits with 10 minutes of walking in the middle. Closer to familiar itchy territory with these.

Was just directed here thanks to mumuwu!
Reading some of your posts in this thread I thought you were reporting my sensations (some difference in practice, but sensations veeery close)
Keep moving on and I'll happily read more!
Thanks for your reporting!

Meekan, very cool! I'll make sure to check out your reports.

40 minutes of sitting followed by 10 minutes of walking.
Started with the rising, falling - really following the movement of the abdomen. Switched to 'itching' after a few minutes. About half way through the sit my visual field started flickering and soon there were small vibrations all over the body. More like bubbles than cell phone vibrations. They were pleasant and exciting. I returned to rising and falling for most of this. Eventually the vibrations subsided and the itching came back.
The walking portion was spent mostly with itching and the occasional pulsation.

Great reports, Nadav! Guess you're getting settled in after the move. Looking forward to more posts...

40 minutes of sitting + 10 minutes of walking. I've developed a nasty cold that might be affecting my concentration. I was more impatient than usual and more likely to get lost in thoughts. None of the A&P-ish phenomena in this session (to which I noted some grasping/desire). Lots of itching. I singled out specific itchy points throughout but I'm also continuing to stay with the rising and falling while being aware of body sensations.

Two more sits today. In limbo... no persistent itching and no strong vibrations. I've had cold tingling moving around the feet during every sit today, neutral. Occasional back/shoulder tension, unpleasant. Judging, desire. Tension, tightness, tickling, unpleasantness in the throat. Coughing.

"Lots of itching. I singled out specific itchy points throughout but I'm also continuing to stay with the rising and falling while being aware of body sensations."-Nadav

At this stage, you have to choose one object and stay with it. You can't average your attention out between the breath and the itching. If the itching arises, go to it, drop the breath ENTIRELY and become interested in the itch. Become the world's greatest authority on that itch. What does it do? Does it get stronger, clearer, brighter, does it fade, does it pulse or strobe? After it fades out, stay in that area of a few moments and see if it returns. Go back to random noting only after you are certain that you have wrung every bit of useful information out of the itch (or the pulse or the throb or pain or whatever is the predominant object). By the way, is there some reason you prefer to use the breath? You don't need to follow the breath at all. For you, at this point, I recommend pure noting practice, aloud. This is the practice that will help your practice unfold most efficiently.

OK, that makes sense. Thanks. I started using the breathe because I saw that on the basic instructions page, you recommend staying with it while noticing other sensations when possible. Your point is clear though. Back to the 4 foundations.

Hi Nadav,

Yes, sorry, I know it's confusing to have so many different sets of instructions at various places around the site. But for any given yogi at any given time, one technique is better than another. If I am reading this correctly, you are flirting with the A&P, in which case the pure noting technique is just what you need right now. You can evaluate the success of each sitting based not on which phenomena arise, but on how long you were able to note aloud continuously at the rate of one note per second or one note every two seconds. You may find that if you can spend an hour at a time noting continuously, your practice really takes off. If an hour is too long to sit at a stretch, just spend the first fifteen or twenty minutes noting while walking and keep noting as you sit down. Keep it seamless for the entire hour. Sit comfortably. And if you have to shift posture while sitting, go ahead. Just keep noting continuously. It's all about the accuracy, the continuity, and the duration of the noting, so it doesn't matter how you sit, whether you are sitting, standing, or walking, or what phenomena arise during the session.

Keep up the good work!

Kenneth

Thanks Kenneth. I did 2 hours last night as you suggest and another hour today. Walking for 20 minutes and sitting for the rest. Yesterday I was able to note continuously for the entire period. Today was a little more difficult but the lapses were never longer than a few seconds. The itching (and occasional vibration or pain) gradually fade with attention until they are very, very subtle. I often miss the exact moment when they fade out completely. Often, another itch will begin close to the old one shortly thereafter.
As the itch I'm following becomes very subtle, stronger itches will start to pop up. Should I continue to follow the subtle one until it ends or switch to a juicier one that seems easier to follow? I've been doing the former based on your instructions above.

Just meditated for an hour. I walked for ~15 minutes then sat down. I was very impatient and restless at the end so I also walked for the last 10 minutes or so. Noted continuously with a more playful attitude, maybe a note every 2 seconds. Became pleasantly concentrated while focusing on an itch in the middle, and also very sleepy. I noted it and resolved to continue noting despite the sleepiness. It disappeared suddenly after a couple of minutes. A few times while focusing on itches, they turned into pulsations (smooth, 'circular'), lost their itchiness, and faded.