How do I safely redirect lava?

Question

I'm building a long tunnel straight down. I've hit water plenty of times, which has proven easy to redirect by simply tunneling to the sides when under the water.

But alas, I had to hit a pond of lava at some point. I had planned to make a tunnel under the lava, then place some TNT and RUN for it.

Any better suggestions?

Answer

You can place blocks two spaces away from you. Take advantage of this to fill the lava over with stone or something similar as you go; when you mine the filler blocks, they will turn to air, and you can force a wall between your tunnel and the lava.

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