English
But here, in "contemplating feelings in feelings, contemplating mind in mind, contemplating phenomena in phenomena," "feelings" means the three feelings. And these are only mundane; the mind too is mundane, and so are the phenomena. Their division will become clear in the section on exposition. However, here, one should be understood as "contemplating feelings in feelings" by contemplating feelings as they should be contemplated. This method applies to mind and phenomena. And how should feelings be contemplated? Pleasant feeling as painful, painful as a dart, neither-painful-nor-pleasant as impermanent. As it was said: "He who sees pleasure as pain, and sees pain as a dart, And sees the peaceful neither-painful-nor-pleasant as impermanent; That bhikkhu is of right view, and will wander calmed." All these should also be contemplated as simply painful. And it was said: "Whatever is felt, that I say is included in suffering." And it should also be contemplated as pleasure and pain, as it was said: "Pleasant feeling, friend Visākha, is pleasant in its duration, painful in its change," and everything should be expanded. Moreover, it should be contemplated by way of contemplating the seven kinds of impermanence, etc. The rest will become clear in the section on exposition. In mind and phenomena, mind is the support of the object. To be contemplated based on the various distinctions of arising-together, arising-from-karma, result of karma, and action, and based on the distinctions of lust, etc., that arise in the section on contemplating impermanence, etc. Things are to be contemplated based on the characteristics of own-characteristic and common-characteristic, the emptiness of things, the contemplation of impermanence, etc., and the distinctions of fear and fearlessness that arise in the section on contemplation. The rest is as previously stated. And indeed, for whom lust and displeasure are abandoned in the world designated as the body, for them, it is abandoned in the worlds of feeling, etc., as well. But it is stated everywhere in terms of different individuals and in terms of the momentary development of mindfulness. Or, when it is abandoned in one place, it is abandoned in the others as well. Therefore, it should be understood that it is said thus to show the abandonment there as well. The explanation of the section on the outline is finished. Explanation of the section on the exposition of mindfulness of the body 356. Now, just as a skilled wicker-worker, wishing to make various items such as thick wicker, fine wicker, baskets, boxes, etc., having obtained a large bamboo, would cut it into four parts, and then taking each piece of bamboo, would split it and make that particular item; or just as a skilled goldsmith, wishing to make various kinds of ornaments, having obtained a piece of purified gold, would divide it into four parts, and then taking each portion, would make that particular ornament; even so, the Blessed One, wishing to bring about various kinds of attainments for beings through the teaching of mindfulness, having divided one right mindfulness into four in terms of object in the manner of "Four are these mindfulnesses – here, a bhikkhu dwells contemplating the body in the body inwardly," etc., and then taking each mindfulness, while analyzing, began to speak the section on exposition in the manner of "And how does a bhikkhu dwell contemplating the body in the body inwardly?" etc. There, "And how?" etc., is a question of wanting to speak to expand. And this is the meaning in brief here – in what way, in what manner, does a bhikkhu dwell contemplating the body in the body inwardly? The same applies to the remaining sections of questioning. Such is the method. Here, "bhikkhu" means a bhikkhu in this Dispensation. Here, the word "here" indicates the Dispensation, the basis for a person who develops all kinds of body contemplation through the way of internal etc., and it negates the existence of such a state in other Dispensations. It was said: "Here, bhikkhus, is a samana... ...empty are the doctrines of others, devoid of samanas." Therefore, it is said, "bhikkhus in this Dispensation." "Internal body" means one's own body. "Upwards from the soles of the feet" means above the soles of the feet. "Downwards from the crown of the head" means below the tips of the hairs. "Skin-encircled" means bounded by skin all around. "Full of various kinds of impurities, one reflects" means one sees that this body is filled with various kinds of impurities, such as hair etc. How? "There are in this body hairs... ...urine." There, "there are" means they exist. "In this" means in that which is called "upwards from the soles of the feet, downwards from the crown of the head, skin-encircled, full of various kinds of impurities." "Body" means in the body. For the body is called "body" because it is a collection of impurities, a source of disgusting things like hairs etc., and a source of hundreds of diseases like eye diseases etc. "Hairs, body hairs" means these hairs etc., the thirty-two parts. There, the connection should be understood thus: "There are in this body hairs, there are in this body body hairs." For in this frame, extending upwards from the soles of the feet, downwards from the crown of the head, and all around from the skin, in this fathom-long corpse, searching in every way, no one sees even a tiny bit of anything pure, like a pearl, a gem, a beryl, aloeswood, saffron, camphor, or fragrant powder, but only sees various kinds of impurities, such as hairs, body hairs, etc., which are extremely foul-smelling, disgusting, and unsightly. Therefore, it is said: "There are in this body hairs, body hairs... ...urine." This is the explanation here according to the connection of the words. Now, a clansman who wishes to develop this meditation subject and attain arahantship, from the beginning, Having purified the fourfold morality, and being established in perfectly pure morality, and having cut off that which is an impediment among the ten impediments, and having produced the first jhāna by the development of the repulsive meditation subject, and having made the jhāna a basis, and having established insight, and desiring to attain arahantship or any other of the fruits such as non-returning, with the final limitation, it should be learned from a teacher who is a good friend, who is familiar with the Pāli together with its commentary. If a pure, such-like good friend is not found in one monastery, it should be learned by going to his dwelling place. Therein, the purification of the fourfold morality, and the impediments, and the cutting off of the impediments, and the method of approaching a teacher, all this is extensively described in the Visuddhimagga. Therefore, it should be understood in the manner described therein. But the teacher, when explaining the meditation subject, should explain it in three ways. One bhikkhu is by nature one who has grasped the meditation subject. For him, it should be explained after making him recite it once or twice. One desires to live nearby and learn it. For him, it should be explained at each time he comes. One desires to learn it and go elsewhere. For him, the meditation subject should be explained neither too elaborately nor too concisely, but clearly and without entanglements. What should he explain when explaining? He should explain the sevenfold skill in grasping and the tenfold skill in attending. Therein, the sevenfold skill in grasping should be explained thus: by word, by mind, by color, by shape, by direction, by location, by limitation. For in this repulsive meditation subject, even one who knows the Tipitaka should first recite it with the voice when attending to it. For to some, the meditation subject becomes clear even while reciting it, like the two elders who learned the meditation subjects from the elder Mahādeva, a resident of Malaya. It is said that the elder, by them... Having requested a meditation subject, he gave the thirty-two parts of the body, saying, "For four months, recite this." Although they were proficient in two or three Nikāyas, by reciting the thirty-two parts of the body for four months with respect, they became stream-enterers. Therefore, the teacher who is giving a meditation subject should tell the pupil, "First, recite it verbally." And while reciting, one should divide it into groups of five, etc., and recite in direct and reverse order. For example, having said, "Hair, body hair, nails, teeth, skin," one should then say in reverse order, "Skin, teeth, nails, body hair, hair." Then, in the group of five coverings, having said, "Flesh, sinews, bones, bone marrow, kidney," one should then say in reverse order, "Kidney, bone marrow, bones, sinews, flesh, skin, teeth, nails, body hair, hair." Then, in the group of five organs, having said, "Heart, liver, membranes, spleen, lungs," one should then say in reverse order, "Lungs, spleen, membranes, liver, heart, kidney, bone marrow, bones, sinews, flesh, skin, teeth, nails, body hair, hair." Then, even without having mastered this sequence, one should, as it comes in the Paṭisambhidāmagga (Paṭi. Ma. 1.4), insert the brain at the end of the excrement sequence and, having established the sequence, in this group of five with the brain, say, "Intestine, mesentery, undigested food, excrement, brain," and then in reverse order, "Brain, excrement, undigested food, mesentery, intestine, lungs, spleen, membranes, liver, heart, kidney, bone marrow, bones, sinews, flesh, skin, teeth, nails, body hair, hair." Then, in the group of six with fat, having said, "Bile, phlegm, pus, blood, sweat, fat," one should then say in reverse order, "Fat, sweat, blood, pus, phlegm, bile, brain, excrement, undigested food, mesentery, intestine, lungs, spleen, membranes, liver, heart, kidney, bone marrow, bones, sinews, flesh, skin, teeth, nails, body hair, hair."