Kayagata-sati Sutta (MN 119)

Based upon translations from the Pali by Bhikkhus Nanamoli, Bodhi and Thanissaro.

Edited for readability and sensitive to the language of gnosis and cognition, March 1, 2005, by the contemplative recluse monk Sotapanna Jhanananda (Jeffrey S, Brooks)

I have heard that on one occasion the Blessed One was staying in Savatthi at Jeta's Grove, Anathapindika's monastery. Now at that time a large number of monks, after the meal, upon returning from their alms round, had gathered at the meeting hall when this discussion arose: "Isn't it amazing, friends! Isn't it astounding! -- the extent to which mindfulness of the body, when developed and pursued, is said by the Blessed One who knows, who sees -- the worthy one, rightly self-awakened -- to be of great fruit and great benefit." And this discussion came to no conclusion.

Then the Blessed One, emerging from his seclusion in the late afternoon, went to the meeting hall and, on arrival, sat down on a seat made ready. As he was sitting there, he addressed the monks: "For what topic are you gathered together here? And what was the discussion that came to no conclusion?"

"Just now, lord, after the meal, on returning from our alms round, we gathered at the meeting hall when this discussion arose: 'Isn't it amazing, friends! Isn't it astounding! -- the extent to which mindfulness of the body, when developed and pursued, is said by the Blessed One who knows, who sees -- the worthy one, rightly self-awakened -- to be of great fruit and great benefit.' This was the discussion that had come to no conclusion when the Blessed One arrived."

[The Blessed One said:] "And how is mindfulness of the body developed, how is it pursued, so as to be of great fruit and great benefit?

"There is the case where a monk -- having gone to the wilderness, to the shade of a tree, or to an empty building -- sits down folding his legs crosswise, holding his body erect and setting mindfulness to the fore. Always mindful, he breathes in; mindful he breathes out.

"Breathing in long, he discerns that he is breathing in long; or breathing out long, he discerns that he is breathing out long. Or breathing in short, he discerns that he is breathing in short; or breathing out short, he discerns that he is breathing out short. He trains himself to breathe in sensitive to the entire body and to breathe out sensitive to the entire body. He trains himself to breathe in calming the structures of the body and to breathe out calming the structures of the body. And as he remains thus heedful, ardent, and resolute, any memories and resolutions related to the household life are abandoned, and with their abandoning his mind gathers and settles inwardly, grows unified and centered. This is how a monk develops mindfulness of the body.

"Furthermore, when walking, the monk discerns that he is walking. When standing, he discerns that he is standing. When sitting, he discerns that he is sitting. When lying down, he discerns that he is lying down. Or, however his body is disposed, that is how he discerns it. And as he remains thus heedful, ardent, and resolute, any memories and resolutions related to the household life are abandoned, and with their abandonment his mind gathers and settles inwardly, grows unified and centered. This is how a monk develops mindfulness of in the body.

"Furthermore, when going forward and returning, he makes himself fully alert; when looking toward and looking away... when bending and extending his limbs... when carrying his outer cloak, his upper robe and his bowl... when eating, drinking, chewing, and savoring... when urinating and defecating... when walking, standing, sitting, falling asleep, waking up, talking, and remaining silent, he makes himself fully alert. And as he remains thus heedful, ardent, and resolute, any memories and resolutions related to the household life are abandoned, and with their abandoning his mind gathers and settles inwardly, grows unified and centered. This is how a monk develops mindfulness of the body.

"Furthermore, the monk reflects on this very body from the soles of the feet on up, from the crown of the head on down, surrounded by skin and full of various kinds of unclean things: 'In this body there are head hairs, body hairs, nails, teeth, skin, flesh, tendons, bones, bone marrow, kidneys, heart, liver, pleura, spleen, lungs, large intestines, small intestines, gorge, feces, bile, phlegm, pus, blood, sweat, fat, tears, skin-oil, saliva, mucus, fluid in the joints, urine.' Just as if a sack with openings at both ends were full of various kinds of grain -- wheat, rice, mung beans, kidney beans, sesame seeds, husked rice -- and a man with good eyesight, pouring it out, were to reflect, 'This is wheat. This is rice. These are mung beans. These are kidney beans. These are sesame seeds. This is husked rice'; in the same way, the monk reflects on this very body from the soles of the feet on up, from the crown of the head on down, surrounded by skin and full of various kinds of unclean things: 'In this body there are head hairs, body hairs, nails, teeth, skin, flesh, tendons, bones, bone marrow, kidneys, heart, liver, pleura, spleen, lungs, large intestines, small intestines, gorge, feces, bile, phlegm, pus, blood, sweat, fat, tears, skin-oil, saliva, mucus, fluid in the joints, urine.' And as he remains thus heedful, ardent, and resolute, any memories and resolutions related to the household life are abandoned, and with their abandoning his mind gathers and settles inwardly, grows unified and centered. This is how a monk develops mindfulness of the body.

"Furthermore, the monk contemplates this very body -- however it stands, however it is disposed -- in terms of properties: 'In this body there is the earth property, the liquid property, the fire property, and the wind property.' Just as a skilled butcher or his apprentice, having killed a cow, would sit at a crossroads cutting it up into pieces, the monk contemplates this very body -- however it stands, however it is disposed -- in terms of properties: 'In this body there is the earth property, the liquid property, the fire property, and the wind property.' And as he remains thus heedful, ardent, and resolute, any memories and resolutions related to the household life are abandoned, and with their abandoning his mind gathers and settles inwardly, grows unified and centered. This is how a monk develops mindfulness of the body.

Death and Decay

"Furthermore, as if he were to see a corpse cast away in a charnel ground -- one day, two days, three days dead -- bloated, livid, and festering, he applies that experience to this very body, 'This body, too will die and decay. Such is its nature, such is its future, such its unavoidable fate'...

"Or again, as if he were to see a corpse cast away in a charnel ground, picked at by crows, vultures, and hawks, by dogs, hyenas, and various other creatures... a skeleton smeared with flesh and blood, connected with tendons... a fleshless skeleton smeared with blood, connected with tendons... a skeleton without flesh or blood, connected with tendons... bones detached from their tendons, scattered in all directions -- here a hand bone, there a foot bone, here a shin bone, there a thigh bone, here a hip bone, there a back bone, here a rib, there a chest bone, here a shoulder bone, there a neck bone, here a jaw bone, there a tooth, here a skull... the bones whitened, somewhat like the color of shells... piled up, more than a year old... decomposed into a powder: He applies that experience to this very body, 'This body, too will die and decay: Such is its nature, such is its future, such its unavoidable fate.'

"And as he remains thus heedful, ardent, and resolute, any memories and resolutions related to the household life are abandoned, and with their abandoning his mind gathers and settles inwardly, grows unified and centered. This is how a monk develops mindfulness of the body.

"Furthermore, quite withdrawn from sensuality, withdrawn from unskillful mental qualities, he enters and remains in the first first absorption (jhana): bliss (piti) and joy (sukha) born from withdrawal, accompanied by applied and sustained attention (vitakka and vicára). He permeates and pervades, suffuses and fills this very body with bliss (piti) and joy (sukha) born from withdrawal. Just as if a skilled bathman or bathman's apprentice would pour bath powder into a brass basin and knead it together, sprinkling it again and again with water, so that his ball of bath powder becomes saturated, moisture-laden, permeated within and without -- would nevertheless not drip; even so, the monk permeates... this very body with bliss (piti) and joy (sukha) born of withdrawal. There is nothing of his entire body that is not pervaded by bliss (piti) and joy (sukha) born from withdrawal. And as he remains thus heedful, ardent, and resolute, any memories and resolutions related to the household life are abandoned, and with their abandoning his mind gathers and settles inwardly, grows unified and centered. This is how a monk develops mindfulness of the body.

"And furthermore, with the stilling of applied and sustained attention (vitakka and vicára), he enters and remains in the second jhana, with bliss (piti) and joy (sukha) born of tranquility, unification of awareness free from applied and sustained attention (vitakka and vicára) and with internal assurance. He permeates and pervades, suffuses and fills this very body with bliss (piti) and joy (sukha) born of tranquility. Just like a lake with spring-water welling up from within, having no inflow from the east, west, north, or south (1), and with the skies supplying abundant showers time and again, so that the cool fount of water welling up from within the lake would permeate and pervade, suffuse and fill it with cool waters, there being no part of the lake not pervaded by the cool waters; even so, the monk permeates... this very body with the bliss (piti) and joy (sukha) born of tranquility. There is nothing of his entire body not pervaded by bliss (piti) and joy (sukha) born of tranquility. And as he remains thus heedful, ardent, and resolute, any memories and resolutions related to the household life are abandoned, and with their abandoning his mind gathers and settles inwardly, grows unified and centered. This is how a monk develops mindfulness of the body.

"And furthermore, with the fading of joy (sukha), he remains in equanimity, mindful and alert, and physically sensitive of pleasure (piti). He enters and remains in the third jhana, of which the noble ones declare, 'Equanimous and mindful, he has a pleasurable abiding.' He permeates and pervades, suffuses and fills this very body with the bliss (piti) divested of joy (sukha). Just as in a lotus pond, some of the lotuses, born and growing in the water, stay immersed in the water and flourish without standing up out of the water, so that they are permeated and pervaded, suffused and filled with cool water from their roots to their tips, and nothing of those lotuses would be not pervaded with cool water; even so, the monk permeates... this very body with the bliss (piti) divested of joy (sukha). There is nothing of his entire body not pervaded with bliss (piti) divested of joy (sukha). And as he remains thus heedful, ardent, and resolute, any memories and resolutions related to the household life are abandoned, and with their abandoning his mind gathers and settles inwardly, grows unified and centered. This is how a monk develops mindfulness of the body.

"And furthermore, with the abandoning of pleasure (sukha) and pain (dukkha)-- as with the earlier disappearance of elation and anxiety -- he enters and remains in the fourth jhana: purity of equanimity and mindfulness, with neither pleasure (sukha) nor pain (dukkha). He sits, permeating the body with a pure, bright awareness. Just as if a man were sitting covered from head to foot with a white cloth so that there would be no part of his body to which the white cloth did not extend; even so, the monk sits, permeating the body with a pure, bright awareness. There is nothing of his entire body not pervaded by pure, bright awareness. And as he remains thus heedful, ardent, and resolute, any memories and resolutions related to the household life are abandoned, and with their abandoning his mind gathers and settles inwardly, grows unified and centered. This is how a monk develops mindfulness on the body.

"Monks, whoever develops and pursues mindfulness of the body encompasses whatever skillful qualities are on the side of clear knowing. Just as whoever pervades the great ocean with his awareness encompasses whatever rivulets flow down into the ocean, in the same way, whoever develops and pursues mindfulness of the body encompasses whatever skillful qualities are on the side of clear knowing.

"In whomever mindfulness of the body is not developed, not pursued, Mara gains entry, Mara gains a foothold.

"Suppose that a man were to throw a heavy stone ball into a pile of wet clay. What do you think, monks -- would the heavy stone ball gain entry into the pile of wet clay?"

"In the same way, in whomever mindfulness of the body is not developed, not pursued, Mara gains entry, Mara gains a foothold.

"Now, suppose that there were a dry, sapless piece of timber, and a man were to come along with an upper fire-stick, thinking, 'I'll light a fire. I'll produce heat.' What do you think -- would he be able to light a fire and produce heat by rubbing the upper fire-stick in the dry, sapless piece of timber?"

"In the same way, in whomever mindfulness of the body is not developed, not pursued, Mara gains entry, Mara gains a foothold.

"Now, suppose that there were an empty, hollow water-pot set on a stand, and a man were to come along carrying a load of water. What do you think -- would he get a place to put his water?"

"In the same way, in whomever mindfulness of the body is not developed, not pursued, Mara gains entry, Mara gains a foothold.

"Now, in whomever mindfulness of the body is developed, is pursued, Mara gains no entry, Mara gains no foothold. Suppose that a man were to throw a ball of string against a door panel made entirely of heartwood. What do you think -- would that light ball of string gain entry into that door panel made entirely of heartwood?"

"In the same way, in whomever mindfulness of the body is developed, is pursued, Mara gains no entry, Mara gains no foothold.

"Now, suppose that there were a wet, sappy piece of timber, and a man were to come along with an upper fire-stick, thinking, 'I'll light a fire. I'll produce heat.' What do you think -- would he be able to light a fire and produce heat by rubbing the upper fire-stick in the wet, sappy piece of timber?"

"In the same way, in whomever mindfulness of the body is developed, is pursued, Mara gains no entry, Mara gains no foothold.

"Now, suppose that there were a water-pot set on a stand, full of water up to the brim so that crows could drink out of it, and a man were to come along carrying a load of water. What do you think -- would he get a place to put his water?"

"In the same way, in whomever mindfulness of the body is developed, is pursued, Mara gains no entry, Mara gains no foothold.

The 6 higher types of wisdom, "types of wisdom" or "fruits" of the path (2)

"When anyone has developed and pursued mindfulness of the body, then whichever of the six higher types of wisdom he turns his mind to know and realize, he can witness them for himself whenever there is an opportunity.

"Suppose that there were a water jar, set on a stand, brimful of water so that a crow could drink from it. If a strong man were to tip it in any way at all, would water spill out?"

"In the same way, when anyone has developed and pursued mindfulness of the body, then whichever of the six higher types of wisdom he turns his mind to know and realize, he can witness them for himself whenever there is an opportunity.

"Suppose there were a rectangular water tank -- set on level ground, bounded by dikes -- brimful of water so that a crow could drink from it. If a strong man were to loosen the dikes anywhere at all, would water spill out?"

"Suppose there were a chariot on level ground at four crossroads, harnessed to thoroughbreds, waiting with whips lying ready, so that a skilled driver, a trainer of tamable horses, might mount and -- taking the reins with his left hand and the whip with his right -- drive out and back, to whatever place and by whichever road he liked; in the same way, when anyone has developed and pursued mindfulness of the body, then whichever of the six higher types of wisdom he turns his mind to know and realize, he can witness them for himself whenever there is an opportunity.

"Monks, for one in whom mindfulness of the body is cultivated, developed, pursued, handed the reins and taken as a basis, given a grounding, steadied, consolidated, and well-undertaken, ten benefits can be expected. Which ten?

"He conquers displeasure and delight, and displeasure does not conquer him. He remains victorious over any displeasure that has arisen.

"He conquers fear and dread, and fear and dread do not conquer him. He remains victorious over any fear and dread that have arisen.

"He is resistant to cold, heat, hunger, thirst, the touch of gadflies and mosquitoes, wind and sun and creeping things; to abusive, hurtful language; he is the sort that can endure bodily feelings that, when they arise, are painful, sharp, stabbing, fierce, distasteful, disagreeable, deadly.

"He can attain at will, without trouble or difficulty, the four jhanas -- heightened mental states providing a pleasant abiding in the here and now.

"He wields manifold supranormal powers. Having been one he becomes many; having been many he becomes one. He appears. He vanishes. He goes unimpeded through walls, ramparts, and mountains as if through space. He dives in and out of the earth as if it were water. He walks on water without sinking as if it were dry land. Sitting crosslegged he flies through the air like a winged bird. With his hand he touches and strokes even the sun and moon, so mighty and powerful. He exercises influence with his body even as far as the Brahma worlds.

"He hears -- by means of the divine ear-element, purified and surpassing the human -- both kinds of sounds: divine and human, whether near or far.

"He knows the awareness of other beings, other individuals, having encompassed it with his own awareness. He discerns a mind with passion as a mind with passion, and a mind without passion as a mind without passion. He discerns a mind with aversion as a mind with aversion, and a mind without aversion as a mind without aversion. He discerns a mind with delusion as a mind with delusion, and a mind without delusion as a mind without delusion. He discerns a restricted mind as a restricted mind, and a scattered mind as a scattered mind. He discerns an enlarged mind as an enlarged mind, and an underdeveloped mind as an underdeveloped mind. He discerns an excelled mind [one that is not at the most excellent level] as an excelled mind, and an unexcelled mind as an unexcelled mind. He discerns an absorbed mind as an absorbed mind, and a mind that is not absorbed as a mind that is not absorbed. He discerns a released mind as a released mind, and an unreleased mind as an unreleased mind.

"He recollects his manifold past lives (lit: previous homes), i.e., one birth, two births, three births, four, five, ten, twenty, thirty, forty, fifty, one hundred, one thousand, one hundred thousand, many aeons of cosmic contraction, many aeons of cosmic expansion, many aeons of cosmic contraction and expansion, [recollecting], 'There I had such a name, belonged to such a clan, had such an appearance. Such was my food, such my experience of pleasure (sukha) and pain (dukkha), such was the end of my life. Passing away from that state, I re-arose there. There too I had such a name, belonged to such a clan, and had such an appearance. Such was my food, such was my experience of pleasure (sukha) and pain (dukkha), such the end of my life. Passing away from that state, I re-arose here.' Thus he remembers his manifold past lives in their modes and details.

"He sees -- by means of the divine eye, purified and surpassing the human -- beings passing away and re-appearing, and he discerns how they are inferior and superior, beautiful and ugly, fortunate and unfortunate in accordance with their kamma: 'These beings -- who were endowed with bad conduct of body, speech, and mind, who reviled the noble ones, held wrong views and undertook actions under the influence of wrong views -- with the break-up of the body, after death, have re-appeared in the plane of deprivation, the bad destination, the lower realms, in hell. But these beings -- who were endowed with good conduct of body, speech, and mind, who did not revile the noble ones, who held right views and undertook actions under the influence of right views -- with the break-up of the body, after death, have re-appeared in the good destinations, in the heavenly world.' Thus -- by means of the divine eye, purified and surpassing the human -- he sees beings passing away and re-appearing, and he discerns how they are inferior and superior, beautiful and ugly, fortunate and unfortunate in accordance with their kamma.

"Through the ending of the mental agitation, he remains in the agitation-free awareness-release and discernment-release, having known and made them manifest for himself right in the here and now.

"Monks, for one in whom mindfulness of the body is cultivated, developed, pursued, handed the reins and taken it as the basis, given it as a foundation, steadied his awareness, consolidated it, and well-undertaken this training, these ten benefits can be expected."

That is what the Blessed One said. Gratified, the monks delighted in the Blessed One's words.

1. This means there is nothing coming through the senses that one's attention is responding to. The mind is not disturbed by sensory phenomena.

2. The 6 or 11 higher types of wisdom, "knowledges" or "fruits" of the path (abhinna).

1	Upekkha	Equanimity
2		Fearlessness
3	Adukkha	Beyond Pain and Discomfort
4	Jhana	Meditative absorption
5	Manomaya	lit. "mind-made body" (OOB), "wields manifold supranormal powers"
6	Dibba-sota	"divine ear-element" (Clairaudience)
7		knows the awareness of other beings (mental telepathy)
8	s. patisandhi, paticca samuppada	lit. “rethinking” or "dependent origination" or recollection of manifold past lives
9	Dibba-cakkhu	lit. "Divine eye" or "sees beings passing away & re-appearing" (Clairvoyance)
10		ending of mental agitation
11	Nanadassana	lit “knowledge" (nana) and "vision" (dassana)

See the Samaññaphala Sutta (DN 2) or the Kayagata-sati Sutta (MN 119). The claim that some of these "fruits" are "mundane" is pure dogma with no suttic support. They are all "supramundane" according to the Buddha.

3. The Buddha describes here something that he called "Manomaya," which is often translated as the "mind-made body." It is, however, more accurate to translate this term as "out-of-body" (OOB).

Maha-satipatthana Sutta (DN 22) "the Larger Discourse on the Four Paths to Mindfulness"

Mindfulness of the Body

Death and Decay

The 6 higher types of wisdom, "types of wisdom" or "fruits" of the path (2)