Four Jhanas=四禪; Bodhi=菩提; Nibbana-in-this-World=現法涅槃
摘要
The Buddhist traditions assert that Gotama was the first historical person in the world to become the Buddha, the Tathagata. Non-buddhist traditions confirm this in an indirect way，for in their literature none of the non-buddhist teachers was given the epithet of "Buddha." Gotama became the Buddha, for he realized the "bodhi," the truly objective knowledge concerning the destruction of the asravas or dukkha. In a wider sense the bodhi can be interpreted as the objective knowledge of the Conditioned. The realization of bodhi provided Gotama with the only valid premise for really ascertaining the existence of the Nibbana, the unconditioned reality. The existence of the Nibbana was no longer a matter of faith with him.
This achievement of Gotama revolutionized the spiritual world of the Sramanas. The pre-Buddhist Sramanas had not evinced any real interest for understanding the true nature of the Conditioned; they were all for attaining a mental state which offered the closest approximation to the calmness of the Unconditioned. Their spiritual endeavour was directed towards the suppression of mental agitations caused by unwholesome elements like greed, dukkha etc. but never towards the utter destruction of such evil elements.
The pre-Buddhists Sramanas mainly practiced either of the following two systems of meditation：one was practiced for attaining freedom from the influence of the feelings; the other aimed at the cessation of perception and feeling through the gradual elimination of the perceptions of form，space etc. The fist system was suitable for the realization of bodhi，for it left the field of perception intact but showed the way to overcome the influence of the perceptibles; the other system was necessary for experiencing the Nibbana- in-this-world for it gradually obliterates almost all the traces of the Conditioned.
Gotama was the first historical person who practiced both the systems, improved upon them，combined them into one system and realized the ultimate spiritual goal. The present article attempts a detailed and critical account of the entire path Gotama traversed to become the Buddha, the Tathagata.
Summary First Source Second Source Third Source Spiritual Activities of Gotama Before Attaining the First Jhana First Jhana The Second Jhana Third Jhana Fourth Jhana Observations on the System of Four Jhanas Special Aspects of the Fourth Jhana Suitability of the Fourth Jhana as a Means of True Knowledge Realisation of the Three Knowledges (Vijja) Implications of Bodhi A Particular Mental State Necessary for Attaining Bodhi Realization of Nibbana
