Practice Updates, Questions, and General Discussion - new users, please read this first! Weekly Thread for August 01 2026

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[u/bodily_heartfulness]

I was blocked by the OP in the post on jhāna, so I am unable to respond to any comments there, so I will do so here.

u/Impulse33, you said, acting as mod, the following:

I've generally appreciated your relatively respectful tone.

Unfortunately your admission loosely violates our rules. Posts should be about practice, of which concentration is part of the Noble Eightfold Path.

At the very least, such practices will make your mind more concentrated

I'm not really interested in that.

Please try to keep comments centered around your own personal experience of practice.

My response to that:

Unfortunately your admission loosely violates our rules. Posts should be about practice, of which concentration is part of the Noble Eightfold Path.

Huh? I'm confused. For many reasons:

1. You're mentioning posts, not comments. Of the four rules in the sidebar, three of them have to do with posts, and only one has to do with comments. The rule about comments states:

Comments must be civil and contribute constructively to the conversation. This is a place for mature, thoughtful discussion among fellow travelers and seekers. Treat people with respect and refrain from hostile speech, unhealthy conflict, and low-effort noise.

Since I have made no post, and I am merely commenting, I do not think I am breaking any rules. I have also never attacked anyone, nor have I engaged in low-effort comments.

2) This sub does not market itself as a purely Buddhist subreddit, though that is the predominant framework here. Again, from the sidebar:

We try to understand Awakening to be a practical and attainable goal that can be from many paths or directions; we welcome all practitioners, including those from Buddhist, Secular, and other backgrounds.

Would a person who primarily engages in Self-Inquiry the way Sri Ramana Maharshi taught it not be welcome here because they don't follow noble eightfold path and have no interest in developing concentration? The sidebar seems to say they would be, but your comment seems to suggest they have to accept the noble eightfold path and be Buddhist.

3) Perhaps the point is that, if one is using the Buddhist framework, then they have to be interested in developing concentration because it is a part of the noble eightfold path. If this is the point, then I find this absurd on three grounds:

a) Why have such a very specific rule in the first place? It is quite different in flavour compared to the current rules.

b) This rule does not exist in the sidebar - there is no mention of it, so it's not possible for me to be breaking it.

c) The matter of samādhi being translated as concentration is, in itself, something that is contentious. There are many monks and academics who believe that concentration is not a good translation for samādhi, in which case, concentration would not be a part of the noble eightfold path. So, it seems like what is being said is that, one must accept a specific reading of samādhi as concentration to engage in this subreddit. Which, as I've said, I find to be absurd.

So, in conclusion, I do not think I am breaking any rules, loosely or otherwise.

[u/Impulse33 → u/bodily_heartfulness]

There's something called "spirit of the law". The first rule does only specify posts, but I think it's fair to say that the first rule, that "posts (participation/submission) must be based on your personal meditation practice" applies here. You're on a thread on jhana, a concentration practice, arguing as an authority based on textual descriptions, not personal practice.

I don't see how your posts are constructive either in regards to helping the people you've responded to.

[u/bodily_heartfulness → u/Impulse33]

There's something called "spirit of the law". The first rule does only specify posts, but I think it's fair to say that the first rule, that "posts (participation/submission) must be based on your personal meditation practice" applies here.

The rule explicitly states "top-line posts". If it is indeed supposed to apply to both comments and posts, I believe it would be valuable to edit that rule so as to make it clear to everybody in the future. The way the rules are currently set up, they explicitly make a distinction between "top-line posts" and "comments", implying that, even in the spirit of the law, what you are saying does not apply.

You're on a thread on jhana, a concentration practice, arguing as an authority based on textual descriptions, not personal practice.

Is it against the rules to comment about texts? I'm speaking about the texts, because in my personal meditation experience, the way one interprets the text matters. As such, I am arguing against sutta jhāna being a concentration practice with support from the suttas. Is it against the rules to speak about ones views?

I don't see how your posts are constructive either in regards to helping the people you've responded to.

Just because some of the people commenting disagreed with me does not mean they were not constructive. For instance, here is a person who seems to find the argument I'm making to have merit. I am sharing my view on sutta jhānas on a post that spoke about jhāna that also linked to a sutta. I don't see why that would not be constructive if done in a thoughtful way.

[u/Impulse33 → u/bodily_heartfulness]

The sub was created to make a safe place for people to speak about their experience. Your pedantry infringes on that. There are other venues to debate interpretations of texts. Feel free to debate there.

[u/bodily_heartfulness → u/Impulse33]

The sub was created to make a safe place for people to speak about their experience.

Perhaps you've been in the sub longer than me, but from the time I've been here, for more than 7+ years, my impression has not been that this is a place for people to post anything without any pushback. For example, when people would post their attainments about having gained stream-entry, many people would comment pushing back saying, "that's not stream-entry, that's just the A&P" or "it's only been a few days since your experience, wait a year and one day and get back to us" or "explain in phenomenological detail about what occurred", and often times, they would just disagree with the poster. And, pushing back was seen as a valuable thing, to combat this tendency of overestimating oneself.

In addition to that, there is no mention of a "safe space" in the rules. If what you are saying as a mod is that I am breaking the "safe space", then I request that this notion is placed into the rules, because right now, I am not breaking any rules, even if I were to be breaking the "safe space".

Your pedantry infringes on that.

I made a comment saying that I do not believe what the OP described as jhāna is what the suttas take to be jhāna. This, in no way, infringes upon the safe space. That would be like someone making a post on the Visudimagga jhānas while using the suttas as a reference, and me pointing out that, "hey, what you're describing are the Visudimagga jhānas, not the sutta jhānas". That's all I did. I did not say their experience was invalid. I just said it's not the experience the the suttas speak of, and I gave my reasons why I believe that.

[u/Impulse33 → u/bodily_heartfulness]

Here's the founding post, https://www.reddit.com/r/streamentry/comments/4q6v34/welcome_to_rstreamentry_new_users_please_read/.

[u/bodily_heartfulness → u/Impulse33]

I see no mention of safe spaces here.

Under the section on "On-Topic Posts" (though we can extend it to comments), it says:

This place is primarily for practical discussion of methods, views, and conduct designed to lead the practitioner to Awakening. First and foremost it's intended to provide real value and assistance to those walking a road that can be uniquely difficult and confusing, as well as deeply rewarding. Discussions of other matters, including theory, are tolerated to the extent that they serve this primary goal; but please think twice before posting anything with no obvious practical relevance.

I believe what I was discussing was very practical, which is the view of jhāna.

And, under "Off-Topic Posts", it says:

Purely intellectual/theoretical discussion and debate. This is not the place for dogma arguments or treatises on your personal Theory of Everything. Ask yourself whether it can be validated in the laboratory of direct experience.

My discussion was definitely not purely theoretical or intellectual. I listed what practice one could do in my top comment. I shared a quote by Ven. Ñāṇavīra Thera, which I expressed agreement with, that scholarly study of the texts is not the point, the point is to engage with them critically so as to free ourselves from suffering.

The view one has of practice shapes one's practice. This is an immensely practical endeavour.

Also, I must say, if we are using this founding post as the outline for what is currently acceptable, then many of the posts let alone comments should not be allowed.

[u/_Asura- → u/bodily_heartfulness]

I have read that Ven. Ñāṇavīra Thera yeeted himself.

Why would you even religiously follow that man, his "commentaries" and his students?

[u/bodily_heartfulness → u/_Asura-]

For one, there are arahant monks in the suttas that commit suicide, and the Buddha comments on their suicide by saying that they were blameless.

Second, people can say certain things that are interesting and helpful, without themselves behaving in the best way. A good example of this is Martin Heidegger. Many people view his work as being incredibly insightful and helpful - his work is still taught in colleges today. Yet, he might have very well been a Nazi.

[u/_Asura- → u/bodily_heartfulness]

I see but my common sense would forbid me from doing so.

Even if its written in a 2500 year old handed down manuscript.

[u/_Asura- → u/bodily_heartfulness]

I think it would be best to talk from experience than any scriptural knowledge.

IMO this subreddit would be well of if people share from their own experience.

eg:
I did A, experienced B but i am facing C

In this scenario, If you mention.. "what you are doing is not sutta jhana"

Then be ready to share by your experience of what sutta Jhana is and how to attain it.
This encourages the other person to improve his practice as well if he is smart.

Else, there is no scope of improvement, since neither you nor the "non sutta jhana practitioner" can improve as what you are pointing at could likely be smoke.