MN10. The Foundations of Mindfulness

Translations [43]

The Foundations of Mindfulness

Thus I heard:

On one occasion the Blessed One was living in the Kuru country.

There is town of theirs called Kammāssadamma, and there he addressed the bhikkhus thus: “Bhikkhus.”

“Venerable sir,” they replied. The Blessed One said this:

“Bhikkhus, this path, namely the four foundations of mindfulness, is a path that goes in one way only: to the purification of beings, to the surmounting of sorrow and lamentation, to the disappearance of pain and grief, to the attainment of the true way, to the realization of Nibbana.

“What are the four? Here a bhikkhu abides contemplating a body as a body fully aware and mindful, having put away covetousness and grief for the world. He abides contemplating feelings as feelings, ardent, fully aware and mindful, having put away covetousness and grief for the world. He abides contemplating mind as mind, ardent, fully aware and mindful, having put away covetousness and grief for the world. He abides contemplating dhammas as dhammas, ardent, fully aware and mindful, having put away covetousness and grief for the world.

Contemplation Of The Body

I. Mindfulness of Breathing

“And how does a bhikkhu abide contemplating the body as a body? Here a bhikkhu, gone to the forest, or to the root of a tree, or to an empty hut, sits down; having folded his legs crosswise, set his body erect, established mindfulness on the breath in front of him, always mindful he breaths in, mindful he breathes out.

“Breathing in long, he understands: ‘I breathe in long’; breathing out long, he understands: ‘I breathe out long’. Breathing in short, he understands: ‘I breathe in short’; breathing out short, he understands: ‘I breathe out short’. He trains thus: ‘I shall breathe in experiencing a whole body’; he trains thus: ‘I shall breathe out experiencing a whole body’. He trains thus: ‘I shall breathe in tranquillizing the body process’; he trains thus: ‘I shall breathe out tranquillizing the bodily process’.

“Just as skilled turner or his apprentice, when making a long turn understands: ‘I make a long turn’; or when making a short turn understands: ‘I make a short turn’; so too, breathing in long, he understands:

‘I breathe in long’… he trains thus: ‘I shall breathe out tranquillizing the bodily process’.

Insight

“In this way he abides contemplating the body as a body in himself, or he abides contemplating the body as a body externally, or he abides contemplating the body in himself and externally.

“Or else he abides contemplating in the body its arising factors, or he abides contemplating in the body its vanishing factors, or he abides contemplating in the body its arising and vanishing factors.

“Or else mindfulness that ‘there is a body’ is simply established in him to the extent of bare knowledge and remembrance of it, while he abides independent, not clinging to anything in the world.

“That is how a bhikkhu abides contemplating the body as a body.

II. The Four Postures

“Again, a bhikkhu, when walking, understands: ‘I walk’; when standing, understands: ‘I stand’; when sitting, understands: ‘I sit’; when lying down, understands: ‘I am lying down’; or however his body is disposed he understands accordingly.

‘… contemplating… in himself… externally… in himself and externally.

“… contemplating… arising factors… vanishing factors… arising and vanishing factors.

“… mindfulness that ‘there is a body’… not clinging to anything in the world.

“That also is how a bhikkhu abides contemplating the body as a body.

III. Full Awareness

“Again, a bhikkhu is one who acts in full awareness when moving to and fro, who acts in full awareness when looking at and away, who acts in full awareness when flexing and extending, who acts in full awareness when wearing the patched cloak, bowl and robes, who acts in full awareness when feeding, drinking, chewing and supping, who acts in full awareness when evacuating the bowels and making water, who acts in full awareness when walking, standing, sitting, falling asleep, waking up, talking, and keeping silent.

“… contemplating… in himself… externally… in himself and externally… contemplating… arising factors… vanishing factors… arising and vanishing factors… mindfulness that ‘there is a body’… not clinging to anything in the world.

“That also is how a bhikkhu abides contemplating the body as a body.

IV. Foulness—The Bodily Parts

“Again, a bhikkhu reviews this same body up from the soles of the feet and down from the top of the hair as full of many kinds of filth, thus: ‘In this body there are head-hairs, body-hairs, nails, teeth, skin, flesh, sinews, bones, bone-marrow, kidneys, heart, liver, midriff, spleen, lungs, bowels, entrails, gorge, dung, bile, phlegm, pus, blood, sweat, fat, tears, grease, spittle, snot, oil of the joints and urine.’

“Just as though there were a bag with an opening at both ends full of many sorts of grain such as hill rice, red rice, beans, peas, millet and white rice, and a man with clear eyes had opened it and were reviewing it thus: ‘This is hill rice, this is red rice, these are beans, these are peas, this is millet, this is white rice’, so too, a bhikkhu reviews this same body up from the soles of the feet and down from the top of the hair as full of many kinds of filth… and urine.

“… contemplating… in himself… externally… in himself and externally… contemplatng… arising factors… vanishing factors… arising and vanishing factors… mindfulness that ‘there is a body’… not clinging to anything in the world.

V. Elements

“Again, however it is placed, however disposed, a bhikkhu reviews this same body consisting of elements, thus: ‘In this body there are the earth element, the water element, the fire element, and the air element.’

“Just as though a skilled butcher or his apprentice had a killed cow and were seated at the four crossroads with it cut up into pieces: so too, however it is placed, however disposed, a bhikkhu reviews this same body… and the air element.

“… contemplating… in himself… externally… in himself and externally… contemplating… arising factors… arising and vanishing factors… mindfulness that ‘there is a body’… not clinging to anything in the world.

VI—XIV. The Nine Charnel Grounds

“Again, a bhikkhu judges this same body as though he were looking at bodily remains thrown on a charnel ground, one day dead, two days dead, three days dead, bloated, livid, and oozing matter, thus: ‘This body too is of such a nature, it will be like that, it is not exempt from that.’