8 Jhanas

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In early Buddhist meditation, the 8 jhānas are progressively deeper states of meditative absorption (jhāna in Pali; dhyāna in Sanskrit). They are often divided into 4 form jhānas and 4 formless attainments.

The 4 Form Jhānas

1st Jhāna — Collected attention with joy

The mind becomes unified and withdrawn from sensory distraction. There is:

• Applied attention
• Sustained attention
• Joy/rapture (pīti)
• Happiness/contentment (sukha)
• One-pointedness

A common description is: joy and pleasure born of seclusion.

2nd Jhāna — Inner stillness

Thinking quiets down. The mind becomes steadier.

• Joy remains
• Happiness remains
• Deeper concentration
• Less mental effort

The meditator no longer needs deliberate directing of attention.

3rd Jhāna — Quiet contentment

The energetic joy fades.

• Calm happiness remains
• Equanimity grows
• Deep peace

Pleasure becomes subtler and more stable.

4th Jhāna — Equanimity and purity

Pleasure and pain fade.

• Deep equanimity (upekkhā)
• Mindfulness purified
• Neutral peace

This is often described as very still, balanced awareness.

The 4 Formless Attainments (sometimes counted as jhānas 5–8)

5th — Infinite Space

Attention expands beyond bodily form:

“Infinite space”

6th — Infinite Consciousness

Awareness turns toward consciousness itself:

“Infinite consciousness”

7th — Nothingness

Perception shifts toward:

“There is nothing”

8th — Neither perception nor non-perception

An extremely subtle state where perception is so refined it can hardly be described.

These states appear in texts like the Anupada Sutta, where Sariputta is described as observing mental factors in each attainment “one by one.”

A key Buddhist point: even the highest jhānas are conditioned states, not liberation itself. In early Buddhism, insight into impermanence and non-clinging is what leads to awakening.

There’s an interesting parallel to the Hindi page you shared (“just be”): the jhānas move toward increasing stillness, but Buddhism emphasizes clarity about experience rather than holding onto peaceful states.