Photo by Michael Lange Charlotte Joko Beck She brought modern psychology to bear on meditation-Zen would never be the same. That too is how a monk dwells contemplating the body in the body.įrom In the Buddha’s Words: An Anthology of Discourses from the Pali Canon, by Bhikkhu Bodhi (Wisdom Publications). And he dwells independent, not clinging to anything in the world. In this way he dwells contemplating the body in the body internally, externally, and both internally and externally…. That is how a monk dwells contemplating the body in the body.Īgain, monks, when walking, a monk understands: “I am walking” when standing, he understands: “I am standing” when sitting, he understands: “I am sitting” when lying down, he understands: “I am lying down” or he understands accordingly however his body is disposed. Or else mindfulness that “there is a body” is simply established in him to the extent necessary for bare knowledge and repeated mindfulness. Or else he dwells contemplating in the body its nature of arising, or he dwells contemplating in the body its nature of vanishing, or he dwells contemplating in the body its nature of both arising and vanishing. In this way he dwells contemplating the body in the body internally, or he dwells contemplating the body in the body externally, or he dwells contemplating the body in the body both internally and externally. Breathing in long, he understands: “I breathe in long” or breathing out long, he understands: “I breathe out long.” Breathing in short, he understands: “I breathe in short” or breathing out short, he understands: “I breathe out short.” He trains thus: “I will breathe in experiencing the whole body” he trains thus: “I will breathe out experiencing the whole body.” He trains thus: “I will breathe in tranquilizing the bodily formation” he trains thus: “I will breathe out tranquilizing the bodily formation.” Just as a skilled lathe-worker 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, a monk understands: “I breathe in long” … he trains thus: “I will breathe out tranquilizing the bodily formation.” How, monks, does a monk dwell contemplating the body in the body? Here a monk, gone to the forest, to the foot of a tree, or to an empty hut, sits down having folded his legs crosswise, straightened his body, and established mindfulness in front of him, just mindful he breathes in, mindful he breathes out. Teaching: Contemplate the Body in the Body What he came up with was a combination of mindfulness practice, wisdom, and ethical living that came to be known as the noble eightfold path to enlightenment. It is said the Buddha then stayed under the Bodhi Tree for another seven weeks as he pondered how best to teach this to others. Finally, seated under the Bodhi Tree, he stopped all spiritual struggle and simply rested in his own true nature and the true nature of reality, achieving enlightenment. He sought out renowned teachers and undertook many intense practices, but nothing worked. Shaken by the suffering he saw, he ventured into the world on a spiritual quest to find an answer. He taught mindfulness meditation to his disciples, and his teachings in sutras like The Four Foundations of Mindfulness were the first systematic and detailed presentation of mindfulness practice.īorn a prince known as Siddhartha Gautama, he lived a sheltered existence until excursions outside his palace revealed to him the sad facts of sickness, aging, and death. It can fairly be said that the Buddha was the world’s first mindfulness teacher. Looking into meditation for the first time, a beginner won’t search long before coming across the Buddha. 750–850CE, courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art The Buddha The original mindfulness teacher. “Buddha Expounding the Dharma,” Sri Lanka, ca.
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