Second dhyana
When concentration in any layer of consciousness reaches its peak, that consciousness ceases, stops, and disappears. If we concentrate in the World of Phenomena, the actual consciousness stops, and we experience the first Enlightenment, Kensho. If we concentrate (practice Reflection and Investigation) in the Astral World, the subconscious mind stops, and we enter the second dhyana.
The second dhyana is the cessation of Reflection and Investigation. In this stage, no thoughts arise. All we feel is Pleasure and Lightness in mind and body. Moreover, our state is a state of Contemplation, or a state of perfect concentration based on the cessation of the work of the mind.
However, having entered the second dhyana, we are for a short period of time, say five or ten minutes, in a state of complete cessation of thinking at the subconscious level. Then the stopped thinking may arise again. If thinking arises, we return to the first dhyana – Investigation arises. When a coarser state of consciousness arises, we return to Reflection. In other words, the halting state of the subconscious mind must be fixed, that is, we must learn to enter this state unhindered and experience it repeatedly.
Having mastered the second dhyana, we experience for the first time a full-fledged state of Emptiness: data exists, but consciousness is motionless. There is an immersion in pure, very bright silvery-white light. At first, it may flicker, then it stabilizes. In the depths of this light, there is a transparent space, immersed in which we enter Samadhi. However, for this, it is necessary to expand the state of Calmness and Contemplation of the subconscious mind, which we realized by entering the second dhyana.
Third dhyana
The expansion of the state of cessation of thinking at the subconscious level, or the state of Calmness and Contemplation, occurs in the third dhyana stage.
Tranquility is the complete rest of the subconscious mind or the state in which thinking completely ceases, as previously stated.
Contemplation is a clear, precise awareness of all thought-forms, colorful lights, sounds, and visions that appear before us in the Astral World, while our consciousness (subconsciousness) remains motionless.
Consciousness at this moment is very clear; it becomes clearer and clearer as the dhyana deepens. The light surrounding us also becomes more intense.
At this stage, we gain full experience of the Incarnation Body (astral body) and experience of supernatural powers – for example, we can see our past and future lives. We can also observe the various worlds of the universe.
However, dhyana and subsequent Samadhi do not mean to «cut off» consciousness and connection with the physical body and «fly away» or «fall through» somewhere. Dhyana and Samadhi mean control, natural withdrawal, and subsequent emancipation from the Five Aggregates. Hence, being in the Astral World, one can see what is happening in the World of Phenomena. In other words, one can, while in the third dhyana, simultaneously experience two worlds: the Astral World and the World of Phenomena. That is why I often have the following experience. Amid meditation, I realize that I am in my room where I started meditating, and it is literally flooded with dazzling silvery-white light. The light floods even the farthest corners of the room. At this moment, it is not the physical, but the subtle vision that allows me to see the World of Phenomena. I clearly understand where and what is in the room. Subconsciousness and actual consciousness are completely stopped: I just contemplate my room flooded with bright light. However, then I suddenly have the thought, «How strange! After all, the room was completely dark when I started meditating». At that very moment, the subconscious mind goes into motion: first Investigation and then Reflection return, and then I return to my body. At the same time, the surrounding world goes dark, as if someone had turned off the lights in the room.
This experience clearly shows that it is the workings of our consciousness that forms all our illusions and prevents us from seeing reality. What is reality? It is a light that becomes stronger and clearer as one continues meditating and going through the dhyanas. Eventually, one comes to realize that everything is created out of this light (this happens when entering the Formless World). In addition, what stands between us and reality, or the Emptiness, or the light, is the work of consciousness. When the work of consciousness arises, we are plunged into darkness. Therefore, the work of consciousness closes off the Emptiness from us, closes off the light from us.
Here the second line from Patanjali's Yoga Sutras immediately comes to mind: «Yoga is the cessation of the activity of consciousness». Alternatively, Lao Tzu's words from the Tao De Jing:
«One should make [one's heart[33]] utterly impartial, firmly keeping peace, and then all things will change by themselves, and we will only have to contemplate their return. [There is a great variety of things in the world, but [all of them] return to their beginning. Return to the beginning is called rest, and rest is called return to essence».
In the stage of the third dhyana, we move away from Pleasure in mind and body. All that remains is Ease and Contemplation.
Fourth dhyana
From the third dhyana, we finally move on to the fourth stage, to a state of perfect cessation of senses, suffering, and pleasure. Our soul calms down and we enter the fourth dhyana, or Samadhi. Lightness disappears, and only contemplative peace remains.
What forms the Astral World is the data of the Causal World: our past experience and the information accumulated up to now. Causal data is manifested in the Astral World in the form of soul work: Discernment, Will, and Perceptions (or image formation). If the work of the soul stops, the Astral World disappears as well. We are immersed in a bright transparent space in which the Astral World, or the world where consciousness manifests as color and images, stops completely.
In other words, we reach a state where our consciousness does not move at all about the data of past experience that are still coming down from the Causal World so that the formation of images stop. A state of unity and freedom arises.
At this moment the sense of time is completely lost. It seems that time has stopped, that it is somewhere outside of you, that the flow of time is flowing independently of you. This happens because our false «self», i.e. the work of Discernment, Will, and Perception, has completely disappeared. The «subject-object» duality disappears. In other words, the false «self» that suffers or rejoices depending on the perceived objects and the work of past experience disappears. This disappearance of the false «self» is Samādhi, which in Sanskrit (samādhi) literally means, «merging with the object of contemplation/focus» (samā «joining together, merging» + dhi «to hold»).
«When the movement of Prāna is completely annihilated, then the mind is again absorbed, and the state of Samādhi is said to have been attained.
When the dual nature of the individual soul and the Atman is overcome and they become one entity, all desires/concepts are destroyed and this is considered to be the state of Samadhi» («Hatha Yoga Pradipika»).
Thus, the state when the work of the physical body is stopped, when Sensations, Perceptions when Formed Experience is stopped and there is no past or future, when Discernment is stopped – such a state is called Samadhi.
Physically, Samadhi manifests itself in the form of a stoppage of breathing. During the previous dhyanas, it gradually becomes more and more infrequent and superficial. Of course, this does not mean Cheyne-Stokes[34] breathing – our breathing naturally slows down, becoming barely noticeable. Finally, you exhale and find that for some reason you don't need to take another breath. So why is it not necessary to take a new breath? Because the worldly desires that are no longer forming, are absent. Why are they absent? Because the function of the Formed Experience, the Will, or Motive Force, which forms our desires, has been stopped. In turn, the function of Formed Experience is stopped because the false «self» has disappeared.
Therefore, in Samadhi our false «self» stops completely. This also leads to the cessation of the flow of heat energy, which provides physiological processes in our body. Therefore, all physiological processes in our body, including breathing, heartbeat, and brain activity, also stop. Why does not the physical body of a yogi who has entered Samadhi die? Why is he free to return to his physical body at the end of Samadhi? Because the preservation of the body is ensured by Kundalini of Wind, which can also be called Prana (energy) in its pure form. This flow of Wind preserves our body in Samadhi. In other words, it is in Prana that the key to unlocking the mystery of Samadhi[35] is hidden.
After death, we cannot return to the physical body. However, since in Samadhi it is possible to control both body and soul, the ability to enter Samadhi can be called gaining true freedom – the freedom to transcend life and death.
VI. Perfection of Wisdom
(Sanskrit: Prajnya Paramita; Pali: Pannya Paramita)
To put it briefly, wisdom is seeing things as they are. Wisdom is the result, or manifestation, of Enlightenment, so like Enlightenment, Wisdom also has levels. Prajnya, or Wisdom, is originally possessed by each of us, but because of the movement of consciousness, we cannot recognize, or realize it in ourselves.
Let us consider the very first level of wisdom, gained after the realization of the first Enlightenment. All kinds of objects exist around us, which we perceive with our six senses. With our eyes, we see, for example, other people, with our ears, we hear sounds, with our nose, we smell odors, with our tongue, we taste food or drinks, with our touch, we feel, for example, the temperature of the environment or the force of touch, with our actual consciousness we perceive various information, ideas and so on. As soon as we «grasp» an object, our past experiences and information are immediately activated. This happens because our consciousness is active. We immediately distinguish between: «This is good», «this is wrong», «this is a bad person», «This is delicious food», «This is an unpleasant sensation», «this is a wrong opinion» and so on ad infinitum. 72,000 worldly desires arise from discernment and suffering from pain, impermanence, and dissatisfaction. As long as consciousness is moving, all phenomena necessarily correspond to something of these three.
What happens when we return our consciousness to its original state? It stops. Stopping consciousness means stopping dual thinking, i.e. all «good-bad», «tasty-not-tasty», «right-wrong», and «pain-pleasure» disappear. However, as I have repeatedly emphasized before, Enlightenment is not a «blackout» when you do not see, hear, or understand anything. On the contrary, you begin to see everything much more clearly. That is, Enlightenment does not mean turning off and further absence of perception. By the way, it is precisely when the work of consciousness stops that true perception appears. But whatever one sees, hears, whatever one smells, tastes, or feels, whatever information one encounters, nothing has any influence, consciousness does not come into motion, and hence suffering does not arise.
What then does the enlightened one use to perceive objects or phenomena? Wisdom (Prajnya), which begins to arise in response to the perception of anything. Enlightened consciousness cannot be expressed, but there are two things that characterize it. They are Calmness and Contemplation. The latter – Contemplation – when one perceives but the consciousness remains at rest, is Wisdom. That is, in this state one sees any object without an «intermediary» in the form of consciousness, which colors everything that appears before it in the colors of past experience and information. You see exactly the object. And, therefore, you can fully and freely understand the essence of this object. In addition, this state is our true original state, which we all possess from the beginningless past. In other words, there is knowledge (information and past experience) and there is Wisdom. Experience and information, especially those that make us unhappy, can be stripped off (stopped) like clothes if we engage in spiritual practice. But what is essential cannot be removed.
Further, as we continue our practice, we experience Enlightenments at the subconscious and superconscious levels. When all three levels of consciousness are completely stopped, we begin to see the primary source of ALL information that forms both the Universe and what we call «me» – the data of the Causal World (Formless World). Having reached this level, we can see all past and future lives of all living beings, see their karma, and see the causes, conditions, and results of any action. This is the Perfection of Wisdom. However, Wisdom, or Prajnya, is not the ultimate goal, for it is only the Causal World, not Nirvana. We can say that Wisdom is the precursor of Nirvana or the Absolute State.
Therefore, the word «Paramita» is also translated as «leading to the other shore». «This shore» is the World of Phenomena in which we begin our practice. «The Ocean» («Ocean of Sansara») that must be «swum across» is the Astral World, the world of our subconscious mind, which we transcend in Samadhi. «The Other» or «That Shore» is the Causal World (Formless World), surpassing which we realize Emancipation.