Reddit mentions of Wisdom Wide and Deep: A Practical Handbook for Mastering Jhana and Vipassana

If you want to find the Oneness and bliss back, you can do it with Jhana meditation. You don't need drugs. Jhana is the Buddhist way of connecting with the One and feeling that bliss. There are two great books about Jhana meditation on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0861715608/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 and http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/086171623X/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

In addition to 1 hour of meditation a day, you must help the situation with the following:

1. Half an hour of yoga, or simply walking out in nature.
   
2. Half an hour out in the sun (or get some D3, although you also need sun's UV to help lift depression). You can do this while you're doing #1.
   
3. Diet changes (as important): Avoid gluten completely (which is known to creating depressive symptoms). Limit sugar and processed foods, eat more veggies/fruits. Also avoid vegetable seed oils, which promote inflammation: go for coconut oil for cooking (grass-fed butter occasionally), which creates more ketones that benefit the brain (use olive oil for salads). Eat more WILD fish (low-mercury ones), shellfish, and sea vegetables to get more DHA (that also benefit the brain). Consider also supplementing with Magnesium (you can't get enough via food post-Industrial revolution), and CoQ10 Ubiquinol (not Ubiquinone).
   
   Do these four things to yourself, and you will see a major change to your being within 15-20 days.

Thanks for the link. Looks interesting.

There might be a bit of rebuilding concentration, but not much in my experience. The key for Leigh's method is feedback loops. Once the mind has found a pleasant object to focus on, it stops chasing after other sensations, and it allows itself to get absorbed with little effort. This in turn deepens the pleasant sensation which in turn deepens absorption and so on. Leigh's method works.

I don't know enough about Rasmussen and Snyder to say much, but it is possible that they are talking about a deeper level of absorption that can be cultivated...where you stop hearing sounds around you, and the senses are almost or completely withdrawn. This (I think) requires a different approach than Leigh's.

But, the lighter jhanas are enough to get the work done. (some people say you only really need access concentration). If you'd like to hear from a more experienced practitioner about the subtleties we're dancing around here, check out Upasaka Culadasa's retreat on the Jhanas.

edit: And Pa-Auk wrote the foreword to Wisdom Wide and Deep. Which is great. And so I'm remembering that he does emphasize the deeper absorptions.

If you want to understand and experience jhana I would recommend reading Wisdom Wide and Deep: A Practical Handbook for Mastering Jhana and Vipassana.

An overview of Mahasi style noting:
Part 1,
Part 2, and
Part 3

Wisdom Wide and Deep by Shaila Catherine is very thorough and covers many insight practices.

This is my first time posting here. I'm going to pledge an hour and a half every day for the next 66 days. I look forward to being a part of this virtual sangha, and I wish you all the best of luck with your practice. I've practiced meditation for a year and a half now, but have only become serious about it for 3 months. I'm currently reading Wisdom Wide and Deep, which is an excellent guide to jhana and vipassana that I recommend to anyone interested in Buddhist meditation.

17th April (1/66): 1 hour anapanasati sitting on a chair in the morning, 30 minutes anapanasati sitting in half-lotus position before bed. It's getting much easier for me to make the full hour and the surge of pleasure following meditation is growing stronger. Both recollection of the object and equanimous experience of thoughts are slowly becoming easier. Uncomfortable sitting posture has always been a hindrance to my meditation, but daily stretching is making half-lotus position easier to remain in. Looking forward to sitting in full lotus position.

This could be an arising and passing away experience. I would read Dan Ingram's material. Jhana would not create what you described:

http://www.dharmaoverground.org/web/guest/dharma-wiki/-/wiki/Main/MCTB%204.%20The%20Arising%20and%20Passing%20Away?p_r_p_185834411_title=MCTB%204.%20The%20Arising%20and%20Passing%20Away

If you are serious about Jhana I would reccomend taking advice from Pa Auk Sayadaw or one of his students who has written a good:

Sayadaw's Work
http://www.buddhanet.net/pdf_file/know-see.pdf

Student's Work (pretty accessible)
http://www.jhanasadvice.com/
http://www.amazon.ca/Practicing-Jhanas-Traditional-Concentration-Meditation/dp/159030733X
http://www.amazon.ca/Wisdom-Wide-Deep-Practical-Mastering/dp/086171623X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1334854265&sr=1-1

My meditation teacher knows Leigh Brasington, and I have been fully absorbed in Jhana before, there is very little perception of the outside when you are fully absorbed. Leigh's work is great and I have never obtained full absorption with it though, it's directly contrary to the Sayadaw's work because full absorption needs full concentration on the object, that's the only time I obtained full absorption. Focusing on a factor such as Piti can allow you to build that jhana factor, but it's argued by the above authors that is can not constitute full concentration.

Like you, I am hit and miss with the Jhana factors and absorption and entering is not mastered, so I hear you, however this anecdotally what I know and have experienced.

I don't know about a fire kasina, but using a mind-based kasina achieved the same outcome. I used the instructions listed in Wisdom Wide and Deep.