Ekaṁ samayaṁ bhagavā nātike viharati giñjakāvasathe. At one time, the Auspicious One was staying at Ñātika in the brick house.
Atha kho āyasmā saddho yena bhagavā tenupasaṅkami; upasaṅkamitvā bhagavantaṁ abhivādetvā ekamantaṁ nisīdi. Ekamantaṁ nisinnaṁ kho āyasmantaṁ saddhaṁ bhagavā etadavoca: Then Venerable Sandha approached the Auspicious One, bowed, and sat down to one side. The Auspicious One said to him:
“Ājānīyajhāyitaṁ kho, saddha, jhāya; “Sandha, meditate like a thoroughbred, mā khaḷuṅkajhāyitaṁ. not like a wild colt.
Kathañca, khaḷuṅkajhāyitaṁ hoti? And how does a wild colt meditate? Assakhaḷuṅko hi, saddha, doṇiyā baddho ‘yavasaṁ yavasan’ti jhāyati. A wild colt, tied by the feeding trough, meditates: ‘Fodder, fodder!’ Taṁ kissa hetu? Why is that? Na hi, saddha, assakhaḷuṅkassa doṇiyā baddhassa evaṁ hoti: Because it does not occur to the wild colt tied by the feeding trough: ‘kiṁ nu kho maṁ ajja assadammasārathi kāraṇaṁ kāressati, kimassāhaṁ paṭikaromī’ti. ‘What task will the horse trainer have me do today? How should I respond?’ So doṇiyā baddho ‘yavasaṁ yavasan’ti jhāyati. Tied by the feeding trough, it meditates: ‘Fodder, fodder!’
Evamevaṁ kho, saddha, idhekacco purisakhaḷuṅko araññagatopi rukkhamūlagatopi suññāgāragatopi kāmarāgapariyuṭṭhitena cetasā viharati kāmarāgaparetena uppannassa ca kāmarāgassa nissaraṇaṁ yathābhūtaṁ nappajānāti. In the same way, take a certain unruly man who has gone to the forest, the root of a tree, or an empty hut. His mind is overcome and mired in sensual desire, and he does not understand as it is the escape from arisen sensual desire. So kāmarāgaṁyeva antaraṁ katvā jhāyati pajjhāyati nijjhāyati avajjhāyati, Harboring sensual desire internally, he meditates and contemplates and cogitates and ruminates. byāpādapariyuṭṭhitena cetasā viharati … His mind is overcome by ill will … thinamiddhapariyuṭṭhitena cetasā viharati … indolence-and-lethargy … uddhaccakukkuccapariyuṭṭhitena cetasā viharati … restlessness-and-anxiety … vicikicchāpariyuṭṭhitena cetasā viharati vicikicchāparetena, uppannāya ca vicikicchāya nissaraṇaṁ yathābhūtaṁ nappajānāti. doubt … So vicikicchaṁyeva antaraṁ katvā jhāyati pajjhāyati nijjhāyati avajjhāyati. Harboring doubt internally, he meditates and contemplates and cogitates and ruminates. So pathavimpi nissāya jhāyati, āpampi nissāya jhāyati, tejampi nissāya jhāyati, vāyampi nissāya jhāyati, ākāsānañcāyatanampi nissāya jhāyati, viññāṇañcāyatanampi nissāya jhāyati, ākiñcaññāyatanampi nissāya jhāyati, nevasaññānāsaññāyatanampi nissāya jhāyati, idhalokampi nissāya jhāyati, paralokampi nissāya jhāyati, yampidaṁ diṭṭhaṁ sutaṁ mutaṁ viññātaṁ pattaṁ pariyesitaṁ anuvicaritaṁ manasā, tampi nissāya jhāyati. He meditates dependent on earth, water, fire, and air. He meditates dependent on the extent of infinite space, infinite consciousness, nothingness, or neither-perception-nor-non-perception. He meditates dependent on this world or the other world. He meditates dependent on what is seen, heard, thought, cognized, attained, sought, or explored by the mental faculty. Evaṁ kho, saddha, purisakhaḷuṅkajhāyitaṁ hoti. That is how an untrained person meditates.
Kathañca, saddha, ājānīyajhāyitaṁ hoti? And how does a thoroughbred meditate? Bhadro hi, saddha, assājānīyo doṇiyā baddho na ‘yavasaṁ yavasan’ti jhāyati. A fine thoroughbred, tied by the feeding trough, does not meditate: ‘Fodder, fodder!’ Taṁ kissa hetu? Why is that? Bhadrassa hi, saddha, assājānīyassa doṇiyā baddhassa evaṁ hoti: Because it occurs to the fine thoroughbred tied by the feeding trough: ‘kiṁ nu kho maṁ ajja assadammasārathi kāraṇaṁ kāressati, kimassāhaṁ paṭikaromī’ti. ‘What task will the horse trainer have me do today? How should I respond?’ So doṇiyā baddho na ‘yavasaṁ yavasan’ti jhāyati. Tied by the feeding trough, it does not meditate: ‘Fodder, fodder!’ Bhadro hi, saddha, assājānīyo yathā iṇaṁ yathā bandhaṁ yathā jāniṁ yathā kaliṁ evaṁ patodassa ajjhoharaṇaṁ samanupassati. For that fine thoroughbred regards the use of the goad as a debt, a bond, a loss, a misfortune.
Evamevaṁ kho, saddha, bhadro purisājānīyo araññagatopi rukkhamūlagatopi suññāgāragatopi na kāmarāgapariyuṭṭhitena cetasā viharati na kāmarāgaparetena, uppannassa ca kāmarāgassa nissaraṇaṁ yathābhūtaṁ pajānāti, In the same way, take a certain fine thoroughbred man who has gone to the forest, the root of a tree, or an empty hut. His mind is not overcome and mired in sensual desire, and he understands as it is the escape from arisen sensual desire. *[The escape *within* the pressure of sensual objects](https://suttas.hillsidehermitage.org/?q=an9.42). Same applies for the other hindrances. na byāpādapariyuṭṭhitena cetasā viharati … His mind is not overcome by ill will … na thinamiddhapariyuṭṭhitena cetasā viharati … indolence-and-lethargy … na uddhaccakukkuccapariyuṭṭhitena cetasā viharati … restlessness-and-anxiety … na vicikicchāpariyuṭṭhitena cetasā viharati na vicikicchāparetena, uppannāya ca vicikicchāya nissaraṇaṁ yathābhūtaṁ pajānāti. doubt … So neva pathaviṁ nissāya jhāyati, na āpaṁ nissāya jhāyati, na tejaṁ nissāya jhāyati, na vāyaṁ nissāya jhāyati, na ākāsānañcāyatanaṁ nissāya jhāyati, na viññāṇañcāyatanaṁ nissāya jhāyati, na ākiñcaññāyatanaṁ nissāya jhāyati, na nevasaññānāsaññāyatanaṁ nissāya jhāyati, na idhalokaṁ nissāya jhāyati, na paralokaṁ nissāya jhāyati, yampidaṁ diṭṭhaṁ sutaṁ mutaṁ viññātaṁ pattaṁ pariyesitaṁ anuvicaritaṁ manasā, tampi nissāya na jhāyati; He does not meditate dependent on earth, water, fire, and air. He does not meditate dependent on the extent of infinite space, infinite consciousness, nothingness, or neither-perception-nor-non-perception. He does not meditate dependent on this world or the other world. He does not meditate dependent on what is seen, heard, thought, cognized, attained, sought, or explored by the mental faculty. jhāyati ca pana. Yet he does meditate.
Evaṁ jhāyiñca pana, saddha, bhadraṁ purisājānīyaṁ saindā devā sabrahmakā sapajāpatikā ārakāva namassanti: When a fine thoroughbred meditates like this, the gods together with Indra, Brahmā, and the Progenitor worship him from afar:
‘Namo te purisājañña, ‘Homage to you, O thoroughbred! namo te purisuttama; Homage to you, supreme among men! Yassa te nābhijānāma, We do not understand yampi nissāya jhāyasī’”ti. what your meditation depends on.’”
Evaṁ vutte, āyasmā saddho bhagavantaṁ etadavoca: When he said this, Venerable Sandha asked the Auspicious One, “kathaṁ jhāyī pana, bhante, bhadro purisājānīyo neva pathaviṁ nissāya jhāyati, na āpaṁ nissāya jhāyati, na tejaṁ nissāya jhāyati, na vāyaṁ nissāya jhāyati, na ākāsānañcāyatanaṁ nissāya jhāyati, na viññāṇañcāyatanaṁ nissāya jhāyati, na ākiñcaññāyatanaṁ nissāya jhāyati, na nevasaññānāsaññāyatanaṁ nissāya jhāyati, na idhalokaṁ nissāya jhāyati, na paralokaṁ nissāya jhāyati, yampidaṁ diṭṭhaṁ sutaṁ mutaṁ viññātaṁ pattaṁ pariyesitaṁ anuvicaritaṁ manasā, tampi nissāya na jhāyati; “But Bhante, how does that fine thoroughbred meditate?” jhāyati ca pana? Kathaṁ jhāyiñca pana, bhante, bhadraṁ purisājānīyaṁ saindā devā sabrahmakā sapajāpatikā ārakāva namassanti:
‘Namo te purisājañña, namo te purisuttama; Yassa te nābhijānāma, yampi nissāya jhāyasī’”ti.
“Idha, saddha, bhadrassa purisājānīyassa pathaviyaṁ pathavisaññā vibhūtā hoti, āpasmiṁ āposaññā vibhūtā hoti, tejasmiṁ tejosaññā vibhūtā hoti, vāyasmiṁ vāyosaññā vibhūtā hoti, ākāsānañcāyatane ākāsānañcāyatanasaññā vibhūtā hoti, viññāṇañcāyatane viññāṇañcāyatanasaññā vibhūtā hoti, ākiñcaññāyatane ākiñcaññāyatanasaññā vibhūtā hoti, nevasaññānāsaññāyatane nevasaññānāsaññāyatanasaññā vibhūtā hoti, idhaloke idhalokasaññā vibhūtā hoti, paraloke paralokasaññā vibhūtā hoti, yampidaṁ diṭṭhaṁ sutaṁ mutaṁ viññātaṁ pattaṁ pariyesitaṁ anuvicaritaṁ manasā, tatrāpi saññā vibhūtā hoti. “Sandha, for a fine thoroughbred, the perception of earth is absent while earth is there. The perception of water … fire … air is absent while air is there. The perception of the extent of infinite space is absent while the extent of infinite space is there. The perception of the extent of infinite consciousness … nothingness … neither-perception-nor-non-perception is absent while the extent of neither-perception-nor-non-perception is there. The perception of this world is absent while this world is there. The perception of the other world is absent while the other world is there. And the perception of what is seen, heard, thought, cognized, attained, sought, or explored by the mental faculty is absent while that is there. *With each item here the locative case occurs, which denotes simultaneity. This is the same reasoning behind my rendering of [the _satipaṭṭhāna_ stanza](https://suttas.hillsidehermitage.org/?q=mn10#mn10:3.1-mn10:3.5). The meaning of this section is not that all cognizable things disappear altogether, which would be illogical to present as the only right meditation. What this passage means is that the mind is not “established” in any of these things while they are there (described also at MN 138 as “scattered and diffused consciousness”), and this is already the case in the first jhāna. For a detailed treatise on what this entails, see [“The Meaning of Yoniso Manasikāra”](https://www.hillsidehermitage.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/The-Meaning-of-Yoniso-Manasikara-Bhikkhu-Anigha.pdf). Evaṁ jhāyī kho, saddha, bhadro purisājānīyo neva pathaviṁ nissāya jhāyati …pe… That is how that fine thoroughbred man does not meditate dependent on earth, water, fire, and air. He does not meditate dependent on the extent of infinite space, infinite consciousness, nothingness, or neither-perception-nor-non-perception. He does not meditate dependent on this world or the other world. yampidaṁ diṭṭhaṁ sutaṁ mutaṁ viññātaṁ pattaṁ pariyesitaṁ anuvicaritaṁ manasā, tampi nissāya na jhāyati; He does not meditate dependent on what is seen, heard, thought, cognized, attained, sought, or explored by the mental faculty. *At AN 4.77, the field of one in jhāna (_jhāyissa jhānavisayo_) is said to be impossible to ascertain. This is because _jhāna_ does not take place at the level of the _content_ of one's experience, not even, as stated here, the objects of the mental faculty (_mano_). Simply put, jhāna is the unification of the mind (_citta_) on a certain overarching attitude, purified from unwholesome inclinations, that is independent of the content of the six senses; the only constraint being that in the first jhāna there cannot be speech, in the second there can be no thinking and pondering, and so on (SN 36.11). See [this post](https://www.reddit.com/r/HillsideHermitage/comments/1e2hztc/on_thinking_about_jh%C4%81na_by_ven_thanissaro/). jhāyati ca pana. Yet he does meditate.
Evaṁ jhāyiñca pana, saddha, bhadraṁ purisājānīyaṁ saindā devā sabrahmakā sapajāpatikā ārakāva namassanti: When a fine thoroughbred meditates like this, the gods together with Indra, Brahmā, and the Progenitor worship him from afar:
‘Namo te purisājañña, ‘Homage to you, O thoroughbred! namo te purisuttama; Homage to you, supreme among men! Yassa te nābhijānāma, We do not understand yampi nissāya jhāyasī’”ti. what your meditation depends on.’”
Navamaṁ.