The Milestones of Meditation
You don’t have to meditate to experience enlightenment, but a lot of people do, and it’s probably fair to say that meditation is the most popular technique for getting it done. Yet it struck me recently how I’ve never come across a model for the progress of insight phrased in terms of the development of meditation technique.
I was thinking about this because I’d noticed a couple of important milestones in my practice that I’d never seen listed in any of the classic descriptions of enlightenment. These milestones, I realised, were developments within meditation rather than stages of insight per se. Having understood this, it seemed possible to describe a whole model based on technique, although the model closely follows the contours of the classic Theravada four-path insight model.
The first milestone
In terms of meditation technique the first milestone is passed when the meditator overcomes completely his or her aversion to sitting.
I noticed this for myself after the attainment of stream-entry (or the grade of Magister Templi in the western magical tradition). Beforehand, there was often a sense of disinclination toward the prospect of sitting, of having to resolve oneself against one’s natural desire. But at the first milestone in my new model this is eradicated, although in a curiously paradoxical fashion: one’s aversion to sitting becomes itself an object of interest.
After stream-entry the involuntary expressions of aversion that arise at the prospect of sitting become a source of motivation. There is no longer any question of whether one will sit or not. The meditator has understood that the resistance to sitting offers a juicy opportunity for investigating how ignorance partitions certain sensations away from others (i.e. the sensation of not wanting to sit is isolated from the feeling that one should sit) in order to create an impression of a self.
The second milestone
This, like all the others, also appears as a deeply experienced paradox, but is most likely not established until the meditator has a few fruitions under their belt.
Simply put, on passing this milestone we begin to notice a new level of stabilisation in our technique, to the extent that we begin to become aware of what we are not currently aware of.
If we are focusing on the breath, for instance, or other sensations in the body, then when the mind wanders we are not completely absorbed in the wandering, but a kind of paradoxical consciousness enables us to see that we have wandered and we remain focused during the wandering in a way that enables meditation to continue rather than to be grossly interrupted.
In other words, there is no longer any ‘break’ in our meditation when the attention loses focus upon the object. The focus remains even during the wandering; it is merely a change of object that has occurred.
Again, this breakthrough in technique represents an erosion of the sense of self. Formerly, if the mind wandered from the object, there was an experience of a ‘break’, as if the change in focus represented a transition from a self that was meditating and focused to a self that was not meditating and unfocused.
The leap in technical competence that is achieved with this second milestone comes about because the meditator has examined reality thoroughly enough to observe that sensations of being focused and unfocused are simply that, and do not imply a self separate from those sensations that somehow can ‘have’ a focus to gain or lose.
The third milestone
The first milestone concerned the challenge posed to meditation by the ‘self’, and the second concerned the challenge posed by the ‘object’. The third milestone undoes the very basis of both of these.
Prior to this milestone, when we sit we are driven by a desire or the idea of a goal that is to be achieved. After this milestone, our practice is informed by a curious sensation that whatever idea or goal we set ourselves, our current experience is already it. This development represents a deep acceptance and a letting go of the idea that in our meditation there is anything to be surmounted.
The experience that our current awareness is already ‘it’ is not wish-fulfilment, but the simple realisation that nothing ‘extra’ is needed for us to see what is. Our meditation now becomes fulfilling to a degree that we had not imagined possible, yet at the same time it’s clear the practice itself is entirely redundant.
This milestone is passed shortly after the attainment of third path (or the grade of Magus) and represents a deep and dramatic shift. The notion of meditation technique itself now comes into question and is seen through. Indeed, it’s probably advisable to abandon whatever practice one was doing formerly at this point, in order to understand clearly that whatever that practice was, it isn’t responsible for what can now be seen, for how could it possibly be that experiencing reality as it is should involve ‘doing’ or ‘seeing’ anything? This is already it! That’s the realisation that underpins the shift in technique at this stage – a shift towards abandoning technique altogether.
The fourth milestone
The third milestone is a curious echo of the first: the overcoming of the aversion to sitting (‘don’t want to’) is superseded by the more inclusive realisation that meditation isn’t necessary (‘don’t need to’).
Similarly, the fourth milestone is an echo of the second: the realisation that there is no ‘break’ in awareness is superseded by the more inclusive realisation that there is no difference between meditating and not.
The practice of meditation is, in a sense, destroyed at enlightenment. There simply isn’t any difference between meditating and not meditating. The culmination of the progress of insight, from the perspective of meditation technique, is to arrive at a point where there is no longer any technique whatsoever, because when a person who has experienced enlightenment sits, then they’re just sitting.
I can definitely relate to this model. My experience of the 1st milestone matches up with yours.
No. 2: In other words, there is no longer any ‘break’ in our meditation when the attention loses focus upon the object. The focus remains even during the wandering; it is merely a change of object that has occurred.
Wow, me and Lee discussed exactly this point on DhO not long back, take a look: http://www.dharmaoverground.org/web/guest/discussion/-/message_boards/message/128066 (scroll to my post for a summary). If I remember correctly, Lee believes he may have nailed second path around this time, and I started noticing this just before I got what I think was second path. Very interesting..
If we are focusing on the breath, for instance, or other sensations in the body, then when the mind wanders we are not completely absorbed in the wandering, but a kind of paradoxical consciousness enables us to see that we have wandered and we remain focused during the wandering in a way that enables meditation to continue rather than to be grossly interrupted.
That is a great description of it, resonates very strongly with what I experience.
I’m not at 3 yet (no emptiness in real time), but the meditation is currently very fulfilling for me, although I can stop meditating whenever without getting wound up or getting worried about not seeing “it” anymore. And the grasping and “trying to see it” have decreased considerably. Thinking back to my earlier practice, things seem so much clearer and relaxed now. I just think “equanimity” or “sensations” and it does itself. Fun!
Hey Duncan,
Thanks for this article. I found it to be intuitive with my own experiences, particularly with Shamatha’s 9 stages of meditation: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samatha .
I really appreciate these kind of “markers” or “milestones” during spiritual experiences, in that they seem to strike a fair balance. They don’t go too far in describing and mapping out spiritual territories, but allow for breathing room and “markers” to help the practitioner to develop naturally.
Thanks again, keep up the good work.
shamansun
Duncan, another excellent post. i intuitively agree with what you have said. *intuitively* because i’m not “there” yet (i recognize the paradox of this statement, but for the sake of conversation in space-time, let’s leave it at that).
that said, just want to point out that those geeky darn Theravadins had already mapped it out too. it’s just a matter of degrees and preference on how to slice the enlightenment pie 
http://www.vipassanadhura.com/sixteen.html
http://www.dhammaweb.net/dhammabook/view.php?id=229
~C
“Similarly, the fourth milestone is an echo of the second: the realisation that there is no ‘break’ in awareness is superseded by the more inclusive realisation that there is no difference between meditating and not.”
Best…. line…. ever. You are “there” when you know you are always meditating. Awake or asleep 
Thanks, man.
- Chris
Very very helpful — in a breakthrough way for me. Thanks so much!
Excellent post, Duncan. I have come to expect no less.
This topic is covered somewhat in the Dharma Overground Hurricane Ranch Discussion, where the guys hash out the different “logics” to “getting it done” depending on what Path the meditators is working toward. There are some common denominators within the different stages, including concentration and investigation/inquiry. However, as you stated in your post, the ways in which the techniques are utilized vary significantly at different junctions on the road to ‘full’ enlightenment.
For anyone interested in hearing the DhO Hurricane Ranch discussion, it may be downloaded from DharmaOverground.org in three parts (MP3 format)…
Part 1 – http://bit.ly/ZLbXH
Part 2 – http://bit.ly/3HGu2e
Part 3 – http://bit.ly/1cocej
hi,
i’ve never thought of my meditation practice along these lines, it’s very insightful…
i have (once… only once) experienced a sensation of bliss while meditating. where does this fall within the “milestones” of meditation?
thank you!
k
forgive my neophyte grasping, but what role does the relative ‘balancing’ of the body have in advancement in meditation, if any? by balancing i am referring to the feeling of subtle physical expansion and re-alignment that happens as one lets go of mentally induced muscle tensions and habits, which often results in the feeling of being a field of energy rather than a physical body.
does one have to experience this physical letting go to an advanced and permanent stage in order for realisation to have room to show itself, or can realisation take place even if one remains twisted up in the various body-mind tensions aquired during a lifetime? is this simply a physical health matter, or is its resolution a key to undoing idintification with the self?
i have a subtle scoliosis and ‘compressed’ feeling on my right side under my rib cage, and often also get sore on my right shoulder blade, which seems to interfere with the experience of absorption beyond the mind’s dialogue.
does the ‘body and mind dropping away’ have to be a regular feature of one’s meditation for insight to reveal itself, or is this simply a side-effect in the field of experience, something to be observed as one of ‘the ten thousand things’?
thanks…
@Jackson: Thanks for the links! Those Hurricane Ranch podcasts are probably the most inspiring I’ve ever listened to. Not bad, for a bunch of Buddhists!
@David: Hi David! Good question. My response would be that ‘realisation’ belongs to a different level than ‘experience’. Realisation is not experienced in the way that a pain in the body or a thought is experienced, but includes pains and thoughts (or other physical/mental phenomena) without changing or negating them. So – no, there is no necessary change to your physical or mental experience necessary to enable realisation, because realisation is compatible with all and any experiences.
In terms of practice, you mention that physical sensations interfere with absorption. The trick here is to recognise how this ‘interference’ is itself also a sensation and not (as it might appear) the ‘reaction’ of something [a self?] to a sensation.
It takes a while to grasp this, but when you next feel ‘interrupted’ by a sensation take a good look at that feeling of interruption. Is there anything outside of that feeling of interruption in which this interruption consists? If it seems that there is, take a good look at this too…
This stuff is ‘second milestone’ territory. If sitting is unpleasant, however, then ‘first milestone’ issues of aversion to sitting are also going to be paramount. However, by seeing how feelings of discomfort can provide opportunities for insight and are not necessarily barriers to them, you’re also making progress in ‘first milestone’ territory.
@ken: Hi Ken! Bliss is good, but it’s not part of this particular map. Bliss is often an indication that you’ve got a good degree of concentration going. The milestones, however, depend on utilising that concentration to gain insight into the nature of experience. See Daniel Ingram’s discussion on concentration versus insight practice.
Hey Duncan —
Thanks for this. Regarding your first milestone, a lot of meditation masters seem to regard establishing a regular meditation practice as something that demands extraordinary self-discipline, or at least an overcoming of aversion; there seems to be an assumption that it is not naturally pleasant to sit. Someone (Brad Warner maybe) wrote something to the effect that if you like sitting, you’re doing it wrong. This kind of thing makes me wonder what *I’m* doing wrong, because I usually enjoy the hour or so a day that I sit. So when you hear people saying they don’t feel any particular aversion to meditation, does that seem unlikely? Like they’re fooling themselves? Like they’re getting too stuck in concentration states and not doing enough insight practice? Or is it just one of those things — normal variation within different people’s experience? In other words, how much is resistance to practice integral to the spiritual path?
Hi Phil! Well, I do sometimes wonder whether some people enjoy meditation simply because it’s an opportunity for ‘a nice sit down’ and a bit of ‘peace and quiet’… If you’re suspicious whether this might be what’s happening in your case, I’d suggest booking yourself onto a S.N. Goenka vipassana retreat. (The link is for UK retreats, but there are Goenka centres worldwide. Retreats last ten days.) You sit for ten hours per day, starting at 4.30am, with two meals per day and short piss-breaks. It’s basically boot camp for meditators – but it made a man out of me. HUUUARRRGH!
Seriously, though, a good, challenging retreat is an excellent opportunity to explore your issues around aversion to practice and find out what’s really going on.
The trick here is to recognise how this ‘interference’ is itself also a sensation and not (as it might appear) the ‘reaction’ of something [a self?] to a sensation.
It takes a while to grasp this, but when you next feel ‘interrupted’ by a sensation take a good look at that feeling of interruption. Is there anything outside of that feeling of interruption in which this interruption consists? If it seems that there is, take a good look at this too…
I just want to echo this advice, because it’s invaluable at so many different stages, and can be applied to pretty much any apparently solid or separate sensation. You look everywhere and see that all the scaffolding is inter-linked and cross-connected. And thus empty of inherent existence
if you like sitting, you’re doing it wrong
I don’t agree. Although I’ve gone through some very tough periods, usually when I’ve pushed myself too hard on retreat, I’ve generally enjoyed a lot of my meditation. It really doesn’t have to be that difficult. Should practising open-ness, clarity and compassion be a strain?
At the moment I think that any kind of strain is really un-necessary, but then again it seems each person often needs to go a little gung-ho to realise that in the first place. Rest on it, don’t clench it! There’s a difference between persistant dedication and over-straining.
I practiced mindfulness before I seriously got into meditation, and have kept it as my core life practice throughout. Understanding that mindfulness is really at the heart of both moral and insight training seems to bridge the gap between meditation and daily life more easily for me, thus putting less strain on the “formal” sits. On a slightly related note, I just read Mindfulness in Plain English after hearing the title mentioned quite a few times. It’s free online if you search for it; highly recommened! Practical, to the point, minimal bullshit and pretty funny.
@Duncan — Good advice, and I plan on taking it, though not without trepidation. The local Zen center does 5-day sesshins of fourteen (!) hours meditation a day, which is totally intimidating to me. Going from at most 2 hours a day to 14 seems like a huge leap, but I suppose at a certain point you just have to go for it. Though considering how stiff and achey I get sometimes even after one hour, I’m trying to imagine how I’ll feel after 14 . . .
@Dan — Thanks for the tip on _Mindfulness in Plain English_. I found a pdf online and it looks brilliant.
Why focus on enumerating levels of attainment ? Why focus on charting progress ?
Buddha stressed in many sutta that even arahants must take great care to always remain heedful. This talk of outgrowing meditation altogether sounds dangerous.
Delusional people who want to believe they are already enlightened may read such a thing and use it as an excuse to relax their discipline. People who are actually enlightened will know for sure and will not need to read some blog post to affirm it.
Thanks Duncan! That clarifies a few things for me. Cheers!
Cool map, Duncan.
I’m 876 days into a 1000 day vow. I get the first 3, and find myself past them.
About the 4th: I find myself these days sinking into the same meditative state I “get to” on the cushion throughout my day whenever I am not doing something which demands attention (or curiosity.) It is still present as a “buzz” in the backdrop 24/7 (I’ve had some sensations of it during the deep sleep state), and just seems to “bubble” forward whenever the thinking mind is on a break.
Whaddya think?
Hi Travis -
I’m not going to be diagnosing the attainments of anyone from their comments on a blog! We don’t do that crazy shit here on OE!
But practice-wise, I’m interested that you describe the place you ‘get to’ as a ‘state’. It might be interesting to spend some time looking at what the ‘buzz’ is, and the difference between its being and not being there…
Gabe said:
Why focus on enumerating levels of attainment ? Why focus on charting progress? … Delusional people who want to believe they are already enlightened may read such a thing and use it as an excuse to relax their discipline. People who are actually enlightened will know for sure and will not need to read some blog post to affirm it.
Presumably your argument doesn’t apply to those people who are neither delusional nor enlightened, then – which is the majority of people. If someone is delusional there’s not much you or I can say to change that!
I don’t say anywhere in the article that anyone ‘outgrows’ meditation, but that the difference between meditation and non-meditation is eventually undone. (Not the same.) And the part about dropping one’s usual practice to see what happens when it is dropped is, of course, still a practice!
I write about models of attainment and progress because it may help serious practitioners realise where they’re at and avoid getting stuck.
Phew… I think that’s enough self-justification for one day…
@Duncan— Thanks for this… A shift happened to me recently, and I began to feel like I was meditating all the time, like your stage 4 (“there is no difference between meditating and not,”) and I briefly wondered whether this was in fact an early form of enlightenment. After a week or so, though, I realized that the sense of constant, panoramic awareness I felt (of wholeness, lightness, emptiness, a shift in my sense of self) was in fact comprised of waves. Re-reading Daniel Ingram, I found that I was probably closer to what he calls stage 11, or “equanimity” (http://bit.ly/Rrqxx). The waves I feel are a lot like what he calls “formations.” So I’m really just getting started…
@Dan, I agree that meditation doesn’t have to be unpleasant (all the time). I forget who said it: You’re lucky if you enjoy meditation, if you feel the benefits of it immediately; But whether or not you enjoy it, keep doing it.
Whether it’s enjoyable or not may be less of an issue, after you’ve been practicing for a while.
Presumably your argument doesn’t apply to those people who are neither delusional nor enlightened, then – which is the majority of people.
I beg to differ.
A delusion, in everyday language, is a fixed belief that is either false, fanciful, or derived from deception.
From what I can tell Buddha taught that all samsaric beings are delusional. All beings share a desire for happiness, but most are deluded about how to manifest it, and this is the reason why they choose to create suffering.
If someone is delusional there’s not much you or I can say to change that!
I find this runs contrary to the teachings of the Buddha. If I understand it correctly the Buddha described his dharma in many sutta specifically as the path that leads to the abandonment of passion, aversion, and delusion. The specific type of delusion that I was referencing is the belief that one has already attained release when they have not. This particular delusion is not special and can be dismantled using Buddha’s path just like any other.
“But is there, my friend, a path, is there a way to the abandoning of that passion, aversion, & delusion?”
“Yes, my friend, there is a path, there is a way to the abandoning of that passion, aversion, & delusion.”
“And what is that path, my friend, what is that way to the abandoning of that passion, aversion, & delusion?”
“Just this noble eightfold path: right view, right resolve, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration. This is the path, this is the way to the abandoning of that passion, aversion, & delusion.”
- AN 3.71 Channa Sutta: To Channa the Wanderer
I write about models of attainment and progress because it may help serious practitioners realise where they’re at and avoid getting stuck.
I understand that your intention is pure. What I’m suggesting is that focusing on models of attainment may hinder serious practitioners and get them stuck. Since this is what I believe I’m trying to be of assistance by bringing about an open discussion of the subject. I’m not saying that I know my suggestion is the correct one instead I’m hoping to explore the issue with you to figure out why you believe these models are particularly useful. If that belief is based on personal experience that would be interesting to hear about, if you base the belief on some part of the buddha’s teaching that would be very interesting to hear about also. I sincerely hope you interpret this as constructive feedback and not as a personal attack.
Can you explain why “knowing where you’re at” is particularly useful in the practice ? At the risk of sounding facetious I don’t recall “right estimation of personal attainment” as being part of the Buddha’s path. If it is useful to help students avoid getting stuck as you suggest then don’t you think the Buddha would have taught it as part of the path ? If you interpret it as falling under a particular part of the path then could you please explain which ?
If I understand the teachings correctly the task at hand is to develop and maintain skillful qualities in the mind (right view, right mindfulness, right concentration) and this task is the same no matter where you are at. Therefor in theory estimating where you are at is at best not necessary and at worst confusing for people.
Phew… I think that’s enough self-justification for one day…
If you do not wish to discuss this any further I’ll understand this is your blog not mine.
Interesting idea. There is no point when the “buzz” is not there. The buzz is I. It’s just that previously it’s changeless unmoving nature was not seen. The feel of it waxes and wanes, when attention is focused to a specific task, but it never fades. When the body-mind is at rest, or idle, the buzz becomes a roar. So, I see that everything has “I-nature.”
Duncan wrote…
> it struck me recently how I’ve never come
> across a model for the progress of insight
> phrased in terms of the development of
> meditation technique.
In most life situations, models aren’t necessary. Say you want to know if the water in your shower is too hot or cold, before you step into it. You stick your hand in the water, and you experience for yourself its temperature. No model required.
So why make or hold a model?
If you asked a stock investor why he makes models, he’d say something like this. He hopes that the model will provide a decent approximation of the future up/down movements of stocks. By using these predictions, he hopes to make money.
That makes sense for the stock-picker. But why would one look for a model in other life situations, such as a meditation practice? It’s perfectly possible for meditation to be like sticking your hand in the shower: simply an examination of experience. Why make a model?
@Travis: Aha! I think I’ve understood what you were saying now! Thanks for clarifying… A wise teacher gave me some advice for getting from the third milestone to the fourth: he told me to focus my investigation on whatever appeared not to be or not to have ‘the buzz’. There is indeed a point to this, he was saying, because eventually it becomes possible to see that even ‘no buzz’ has a buzz to it!
@Gabe and Stuart: I’m not concerned if what I say coincides with Buddhist scripture or any other scripture. I write from experience. A thorough record of this experience (and Alan’s too) is available on our website The Baptist’s Head. If you’re as interested in my experiences as you say you are, then no doubt you’ll take the time to read about them.
My progress in this field was significantly aided by teachers who provided clear and detailed models of the progress of enlightenment. So when people tell me models don’t help or that they cause harm, it contradicts my experience and also makes me wonder why those same people persist in coming to this website, when it obviously causes them nothing but annoyance.
I’d advise such people not to spend too much time composing this kind of reply to articles on this site, because I find such arguments so tedious that I can’t promise to read or publish them. I have carefully considered such arguments in the past but I have rejected them because my experience has contradicted them. On what basis would these nay-sayers have me accept their arguments, if not personal experience?
@Gabe “At the risk of sounding facetious I don’t recall “right estimation of personal attainment” as being part of the Buddha’s path. If it is useful to help students avoid getting stuck as you suggest then don’t you think the Buddha would have taught it as part of the path”
Just a quick comment from a fellow Sutta-monger: Check out the teaching on the “Bases of Power”, iddhipada.
Cheers,
Florian
Gabe, this post is useful for highly rational people like myself who have yet to begin mindfulness training, are curious as to what the path and rewards might be, and are not yet fully convinced that its worth their time or the (mental) discomfort. If you believe that others should be enlightened, then I think it is just as important to provide information for people still sitting on the side-lines as those engaged in the practice.
@Duncan: “A wise teacher gave me some advice for getting from the third milestone to the fourth: he told me to focus my investigation on whatever appeared not to be or not to have ‘the buzz’. There is indeed a point to this, he was saying, because eventually it becomes possible to see that even ‘no buzz’ has a buzz to it!”
Exactly! It’s easy to get snagged in the 3rd stage by buying in to the idea that Emptiness is stable and fixed (i.e. a “refuge” or “ground”). But as my older, wiser, Zen buddy once said to me, “There is really no place to put your feet!”
@Gabe: ” What I’m suggesting is that focusing on models of attainment may hinder serious practitioners and get them stuck.”
Every approach to truth realization has it’s shadow sides. It’s quite possible to get awakened without the use of maps and models. However, I’ve come to understand by both my experience and the sincere testimony of others that having clear, accurate maps is more often an aid than a hindrance to spiritual practice.
You’re right in suggesting that expounding on the details of the various stages of awakening could cause practitioners to become really good imposters of the real thing, even to the point of fooling themselves. On the other hand, having clear maps and models can guide one out of the delusion that they’re already “done” by giving them good solid standards from which they and their teachers/friends can judge against their direct experience.
Since I think that learning meditation is just like learning any other skill, it makes sense to have clear standards already spelled out, much like a curriculum. Step-by-step instructions have always proven useful in the pursuit of developing any skill or proficiency at any task. How is getting enlightened any different?
brilliant! thanks for this! i was wondering about the exact same thing today about how the
meditation practise changes when one passes through the different stages. at each stage
there should be a different emphasis and instruction (although it does seem that after stream-entry
the practise develops a dynamic all of its own).
i like how you laid out the milestones and everything.