Human Development
Eight liberations
Description:
These are the eight means by which a being is liberated from the manifest activity of specific afflictions, although complete cessation (which includes freedom from the potential of the affliction) is not included in such liberation. These are: (i) embodied looking at form - meditation on the impurity of things both internal and external to the body removes attachment to them; (ii) formless looking at form - reinforcement of this non-attachment by meditation on the impurity of the external; (iii) beautiful form - meditation on the beautiful, not its impurity, still leads to no attachment; (iv) infinite space; (v) infinite consciousness; (vi) nothingness; (vii) peak of cyclic existence - here there is neither perception nor non-perception; (viii) equipoise of cessation, a state of [nirodha samapatti] (attainment of nirodha).Context:
One of the paths of calming according to Buddhist teaching. Mastery of attachment to forms (the first two liberations) are the same as the first of the [abhibhavayatana] (eight masteries). The second liberation is equivalent to stages two and three of the eight masteries (strengthening concentration). The fourth to seventh liberations correspond to the four stages of formlessness - [arupa samadhi].< Broader:
Paths of calming