What are the
40 Classic Buddhist Meditation Objects?
The Buddha taught 40 principal
meditation objects = kammatthāna:
kammatthāna literally means:
Place of work, basis of action leading
to the various degrees of mental
meditational absorption
jhāna:.
These 40 meditation subjects are:
I. Ten
kasina
exercises: Kasina = 'Entirety'. All 4
jhānas possible:
1: Earth kasina, 2: Water kasina, 3: Fire kasina, 4: Wind kasina,
5: Blue kasina, 6: Yellow kasina, 7: Red kasina, 8: White kasina,
9: Light or consciousness kasina, 10: Space kasina.
II. Ten perceptions of
disgust:
asubha-sañña:. 1st
jhāna possible:
A swollen & bloated corpse, a bluish livid corpse, a rotting corpse,
a cut-up & split corpse, a gnawed corpse, a hacked corpse, a spread
scattered corpse, a bloody corpse, a corpse of maggots, a skeleton.
IV.
Four
divine abodes or
infinite states brahma-vihāra::
1: All-embracing friendliness = mettā:, 2: Pity = karunā:,
3: Mutual joy = muditā, 4: Equanimity = upekkhā:.
V. Four formless spheres arūpāyatana: based on
the 4th jhāna:
1: The infinitude of space, 2: The infinitude of consciousness,
3: Empty nothingness, 4: Neither-perception-nor-non-perception.
VI. Perception of the disgust of food. āhāre
patikkūla-saññā:
VII.
Defining Analysis of the
four elements dhātu-vavatthāna:.