Abhidhamma View: Recollection of Virtue
Vism. p. 218-219 (excerpt):
101. One who wants to develop the recollection of virtue should go into solitary retreat and recollect his own different kinds of virtue in their special qualities of being untorn, etc., as follows: Indeed, my various kinds of virtue are untorn, unrent, unblotched, unmottled, liberating, praised by the wise, not adhered to, and conducive to concentration (A III 286). And a layman should recollect them in the form of laymen's virtue while one gone forth into homelessness should recollect them in the form of the virtue of those gone forth.
103. Or in general they are untorn, unrent, unblotched, unmottled when they are undamaged by the seven bonds of sexuality (I.144) and by anger and enmity and the other evil things (see #59).
104. Those same virtues are liberating since they liberate by freeing from the slavery of craving. They are praised by the wise because they are praised by such wise men as Enlightened Ones. They are not adhered to (aparaama.t.thataa) since they are not adhered to (aparaama.t.thataa) with craving and [false] view, or because of the impossibility of misapprehending (paraama.t.thu.m) that There is this flaw in your virtues. They are conducive to concentration since they conduce to access concentration and absorption concentration, or to path concentration and fruition concentration.
105. As long as he recollects his own virtues in their special qualities of being untorn, etc., in this way, then: On that occasion his mind is not obsessed by greed, or obsessed by hate, or obsessed by delusion, his mind has rectitude on that occasion, being inspired by virtue (A III 286).
So when he has suppressed the hindrances in the way already described, the jhaana factors arise in a single conscious moment. But owing to the profundity of the virtues special qualities, or owing to his being occupied in recollecting special qualities of many sorts, the jhaana is only access and does not reach absorption. And that access jhaana itself is known as recollection of virtue too because it arises with the virtues special qualities as the means.
Love Buddha's dhamma,