The History of Buddhist Thought c12.85

c12.85

The monk goes to the forest or the root of a tree or an empty house, sitting cross-legged and upright, and setting up mindfulness (*sati*) before him. He begins his contemplation of the body. This portion consists of fourteen reflections, each with the same refrain. He breathes conscious of each breath. “ He practises, ‘ conscious of my whole body I will breathe in ’; he practises, ‘ conscious of my whole body I will breathe out ’; he practises, ‘ calming my bodily organism I will breathe in ’; he practises, ‘ calming my bodily organism I will breathe out ’.” He contemplates the body as something that arises, then as something that passes away, then as something that both arises and passes away. “ His mindfulness becomes established with the thought, ‘ here is the body,’ so far as required for knowledge and self-reflection. He abides independent, and grasps at nothing in the world. Even so the monk abides reflecting on the body.”