Visuddhimagga comparing a meditator working on getting lasting jhana to a skillful archer working to split a hair - Lemmy

76. Evamadhigate pana etasmiṃ tena yoginā vālavedhinā viya, sūdena viya ca ākārā pariggahetabbā. Yathā hi sukusalo dhanuggaho vālavedhāya kammaṃ kurumāno yasmiṃ vāre vālaṃ vijjhati, tasmiṃ vāre akkantapadānañca dhanudaṇḍassa ca jiyāya ca sarassa ca ākāraṃ pariggaṇheyya. ‘‘Evaṃ me ṭhitena evaṃ dhanudaṇḍaṃ evaṃ jiyaṃ evaṃ saraṃ gahetvā vālo viddho’’ti. So tato paṭṭhāya tatheva te ākāre sampādento avirādhetvā vālaṃ vijjheyya. Evameva yogināpi ‘‘imaṃ nāma me bhojanaṃ bhuñjitvā evarūpaṃ puggalaṃ sevamānena evarūpe senāsane iminā nāma iriyāpathena imasmiṃ kāle idaṃ adhigata’’nti ete bhojanasappāyādayo ākārā pariggahetabbā. Evañhi so naṭṭhe vā tasmiṃ te ākāre sampādetvā puna uppādetuṃ, appaguṇaṃ vā paguṇaṃ karonto punappunaṃ appetuṃ sakkhissati. [https://tipitaka.org/romn/cscd/e0101n.mul4.xml] When it has been attained in this way, the mode of its attainment must be discerned by the meditator as if he were a hair-splitting archer or a cook. For when a very skilful archer, who is working to split a hair, actually splits the hair on one occasion, he discerns the modes of the position of his feet, the bow, the bowstring, and the arrow thus: “I split the hair as I stood thus, with the bow thus, the bowstring thus, the arrow thus.” From then on he recaptures those same modes and repeats the splitting of the hair without fail. So too the meditator must discern such modes as that of suitable food, etc., thus: “I attained this after eating this food, attending on such a person, in such a lodging, in this posture at this time.” In this way, when that [absorption] is lost, he will be able to recapture those modes and renew the absorption, or while familiarizing himself with it he will be able to repeat that absorption again and again.