The relationship between insight practice (vipassana) and the attainment of the four jhanas (i.e. right samadhi) is a key problem in the study of Buddhist meditation. The four jhanas have been misunderstood by inaccurate interpretations of key terms in Buddhist psychology and philosophy and there have been oversights of important aspects of the meditation process.

This book offers a fresh look at this important element of Buddhist meditation theory and provides a novel map of the theoretical progress of meditation according to the early Buddhist texts in Pali. By carefully analyzing...