参禅参到忘人无我的境界，便到初禅“离生喜乐地”。在这个阶段，破了众生的执著，而得到禅悦为食，法喜充满的受用。在此定的境界上，呼吸停止，无呼无吸，不出不入，有一种特别的快乐。这种快乐，是妙不可言的，总之，这是一般人得不到的快乐。
When you as a Chan cultivator enter into a state where you forget yourself and forget others, you have reached the stage of the First Dhyana, which is called the Stage of the Happiness of Leaving Birth. At this stage, you have broken away from the attachments of living beings and experience the feeling of "taking Dhyana bliss as food and being filled with the joy of Dharma." In this samadhi, your breath will have stopped; you will no longer inhale or exhale. There is a unique happiness that is wonderful and inexpressible. This happiness is one that most people never experience.
二禅是“定生喜乐地”，在定中得到最大的欢喜。坐在那里，不饮不食。脉搏也停止，等于死人一样，可是还有意念，知道自己在静坐。
The Second Dhyana is called the Stage of the Happiness of Producing Samadhi. In this samadhi, you experience the greatest joy. When you're sitting, you don't want to eat or drink. Your pulse has stopped. You're just like a dead person, but you still have thoughts and you are aware that you are sitting in meditation.
三禅是“离喜妙乐地”，在定中离开禅悦为食、法喜充满这种的欢喜，而得到一种妙乐。这种妙乐，没有法子可以形容，是微妙不可思议的。在此境界，把念头也止住了，没有意念，所谓“一念不生全体现，六根忽动被云遮。
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The Third Dhyana is the Stage of the Wonderful Bliss of Leaving Happiness. In this stage of samadhi, you leave the happiness of "taking Dhyana bliss as food and being filled with the joy of Dharma" and attain a kind of wonderful bliss that is impossible to describe. It's subtle and inconceivable. In this particular state, your thoughts have stopped. You have no thoughts. It's been described as: "When not even one thought arises, the entire substance appears. But when the six sense organs suddenly move, you're covered by clouds."
四禅是“舍念清净地”，到了这个境界，意念不但止住，而且也舍了。这时候，得到非常清净、非常微妙的快乐。四禅的境界，还是凡夫的地位，尚未证果，不要以为了不起。此境界离证果尚有一段距离，应该努力去参，再接再厉去参，进一步才到“五不还天”的境界，那才是入圣人法性流。
The Fourth Dhyana is the Stage of the Purity of Renouncing Thought. When you reach this state, not only are your thoughts stopped, they are eliminated entirely. At this time, you attain an extremely pure and wonderfully subtle joy. However, the state of the Fourth Dhyana is still at the stage of a common mortal. You have not yet realized fruition of your cultivation. Do not assume you are a special person, because you're still far from realizing the fruition. You should still work hard at your cultivation and meditate diligently, because if you can advance, you'll reach the state of the Five Heavens of No Return. That's when you enter the Dharma-nature stream of sages.
有个无闻比丘，他参到四禅的境界，误认为证了果位，所以到处宣传，自己证了果。因为他对佛法不彻底了解的缘故，所以打妄语，最后堕于无间地狱。
There was a person known as the Unlearned Bhikshu, who had cultivated to the stage of the Fourth Dhyana, but mistakenly assumed that he had realized the fruition of Arhatship. He went about announcing that he had realized the fruition. Because he did not have a thorough understanding of the Buddhadharma, he uttered a major lie and later fell into the uninterrupted hells.
