本文嘗試以四禪為主題來重新檢察禪修方法在解脫中的所扮演的角色。筆者使用的方法是對巴利四部尼柯耶作一番盡可能的搜索，找出所有相關的用例，以便檢視和分析其所屬文脈中所要傳達的要旨或義理。根據所歸納的結果，進一步去回應近年來學術界中對禪修主題所作的爭論：究竟「止」、「觀」是否兩種截然不同的修行路徑，是否在解脫上「定」不是必要條件，「慧」才是必要者。其中本文特別針對Griffiths所作的主張提出一些論證和批評。最後，本文主張在解脫學上禪定具有必要、且與智慧同等的地位，如此才符合「定／止＋慧／觀→解脫」的模式。

This study attempts to re-examine the role of four-jhānas meditation method in the accomplishment of Buddhist liberation. The paper makes a great effort on searching for every relevant occurrence on the usage and related description of four-jhānas in the four Pāli Nikāyas, and trying to analyze their main meaning or intention appearing in various contexts. The result of some findings is applied to response to a heated discussion issue on Buddhist meditation in recent scholarship, regarding whether the shamatha represents a path of practice which is quite different from the so called vipassanā, and whether the jhāna or jhāna-alike meditation is not a necessary condition for the liberation but the paññā does play such a role. This paper tries to criticize Griffiths' assertion on this issue, and aims to provide evidence, suggesting that the jhāna/shamatha is as important as paññā/vipassanā. This view point is therefore in consistent with the model of liberation as ＂jhāna/shamatha + paññā/vipassanā = liberation.＂