Mindfulness of Breathing & Four Elements Meditation (book)

Ven. Pa-Auk Sayadaw (Mindfulness of Breathing & Four Elements Meditation (Buddhanet.net); Dhr. Seven, Amber Larson (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Namo Tassa Bhagavato Arahato Samma Sambuddhassa

"Homage to the Blessed One, the Worthy

One, the Perfectly Self-Enlightened One."

Preface to the Revised Edition

This book contains instructions for mindfulness-of-breathing meditation, four-elements meditation, and the subsequent detailed discernment of materiality. The last section covers some relevant theory. This revised edition has clarified the language of the first edition and has translated most of the Pali language terms previously left untranslated. Several pages have been added by the Sayadaw covering the balancing of the Five Controlling Faculties and the Seven Factors of Enlightenment. Also added is his explanation of the difference between the supermundane experience of nirvana and the common experience of the unconscious life-continuum (bhavanga).

Contents

• Preface to the Revised Edition...iv
• Part 1: How to Develop Mindfulness-of-Breathing...1
• Balancing the Five Controlling Faculties...9
• Balancing the Seven Factors of Enlightenment...13
• Attaining Jhana [Meditative Absorption]...14
• 
  
• PART 2: How to Develop Four-Elements Meditation...19
• How to Analyze Rupa Kalapas [Material Particles]...28
• How to Analyze the Transparent-Elements Materiality...33
• The 54 Types of Materiality in the Eye...36
• How to See Materiality Produced by Consciousness...37
• How to See Materiality Produced by Temperature...37
• How to See Materiality Produced by Nutriment...39
• Detailed Method for Developing Four-Elements Meditation...50
• Nine Kinds of Rupa Kalapa Produced by Karma...53
• Eight Kinds of Rupa Kalapa Produced by Consciousness...55
• Four Kinds of Rupa Kalapa Produced by Temperature...56
• Two Kinds of Rupa Kalapa Produced by Nutriment...57
• Three Kinds of Sound...58
• Discerning the Four Characteristics of Materiality...59
• The Time for Discerning as "Materiality"...59
• The Characteristic of Being Molested by Change...60
• 
  
• PART 3: Theory for Discernment of Materiality...61
• The Dhammas [Things] That Must Be Comprehended by One Practicing Vipassana [Insight] Meditation...61
• Twenty-Eight Types of Materiality...64
• Four Great Elements (Maha-Bhuta):...64
• Five Types of Transparent-Element Materiality (Pasada-Rupa)...65
• Seven Types of Field Materiality (Gocara-Rupa)...65
• Two Types of Sex-Materiality (Bhava-Rupa):...66
• Heart-Materiality (Hadaya-Rupa)...66
• Life-Materiality (Jivita Rupa)...66
• Nutriment-Materiality (Ahara-Rupa)...66
• Delimiting Materiality (Pariccheda-Rupa)...68
• Two Types of Materiality of Intimation (Vinnatti)...69
• Five Types of Materiality as Alteration (Vãkara-Rupa)...69
• Four Types of Materiality as Characteristic (Lakkhana-Rupa)...70
• The Nature of Materiality...71
• Three Kinds of Compactness of Materiality...74
• 1. Compactness of Continuity (Santati-Ghana)...74
• 2. Compactness of Grouping (Samuha-Ghana)...76
• 3. Compactness of Function (Kicca-Ghana)...76
• The Purification of Mind...76
• Momentary Concentration of the Purification of Mind...80
• Insight and Momentary Concentration...84
• All Three Characteristics...87
• Falling into Bhavanga...87
• Something to Be Careful of...88
• Glossary of Untranslated Pali Terms...91

Part 1: How to Develop Mindfulness-of-Breathing

The development of mindfulness-of-breathing (anapana-sati) is taught by the Buddha in "The Greater Discourse on the Fourfold Setting Up of Mindfulness" (Maha Satipatthana Sutta).

There he says: “Meditators, here in this Teaching a meditator having gone to the forest, or to the foot of a tree, or to an empty place, sits down cross-legged, keeps body erect, and establishes mindfulness on the meditation object. Only mindfully one breathes in, and only mindfully one breathes out. 

1. “Breathing in a long breath, one knows [is simply aware without thinking, analyzing, judging, or articulating], 'I am breathing in a long breath.' Or breathing out a long breath, one knows, 'I am breathing out a long breath.'

2. “Breathing in a short breath, one knows, 'I am breathing in a short breath.' Or breathing out a short breath, one knows, 'I am breathing out a short breath.'

3. “Experiencing the whole breath-body [the whole length of the breath] I will breathe in,” thus one trains oneself. And 'Experiencing the whole breath-body I will breathe out,' thus one trains oneself.

4. “'Calming the breath-body I will breathe in,” thus one trains oneself. And 'Calming the breath-body I will breathe out,” thus one trains oneself.’”

To begin meditating, sit in a comfortable position and be aware of the breath as it enters and leaves the body through the nostrils. Feel it either just below the nose or somewhere around the nostrils. Do not follow the breath inside the body or outside the body. [Keep attention at the nostrils like a vigilant gatekeeper remains aware of an entrance.]

Just be aware of the breath at the place where it brushes against and touches either the top of the upper lip or around the nostrils [or directly at the center of the opening of the nostril]. If the breath is followed in and out, it will not be possible to perfect concentration, but if awareness of the breath is kept at the most obvious place it touches, either the upper lip or around the nostrils, it will be possible to develop and perfect concentration.

Do not pay attention to the individual characteristic, general characteristics, or the color of the sign nimitta (the mind-made sign of concentration) [Note 1] [that may eventually arise in the mind's eye]. The individual characteristics are the natural characteristics of the Four Elements [categories of qualities and characteristics] in the breath: hardness, roughness, flowing, heat, supporting, pushing, and so on.

The general characteristics are the impermanent (anicca), disappointing (dukkha), and impersonal (non-self or anatta) characteristics of the breath. This means do not note "in, out, impermanent," or "in, out, disappointing," or "in, out, impersonal." Simply be aware of the in-and-out-breath as a concept.

The concept of the breath is the object of mindfulness-of-breathing meditation. It is this object to which one must direct attention in order to develop concentration. As one pays attention to the concept of the breath in this way, and if one has practiced this meditation in previous lives and has developed some perfections (paramis), one will easily be able to concentrate on the in-and-out-breath.

If the mind does not easily concentrate on the in-and-out-breath, The Path of Purification (Visuddhimagga) suggests one count the breaths. This will aid in developing concentration.

How? Count after the end of each breath: "In, out, one. In, out, two. In, out, three. In, out, four. In, out, five. In, out, six. In, out, seven. In, out, eight.’ Count up to at least five but not more than ten. Count up to eight because this reminds one of the Noble Eightfold Path, which is being developed. So if counting, count up to any number between 5 and 10, and determine in mind that during that time the mind will not be allowed to drift or go elsewhere.

Simply be calmly aware of the breath. [Stay with it, or if it drifts, bring it back as many times as it strays -- but bring it back without judgment, resentment, anger, or frustration for it having drifted. Of course it's going to drift; that's its nature, and a new habit is being established with persistence rather than force.]

When one counts like this, one finds that one is able to concentrate the mind and make it calmly aware of only the breath. After one can concentrate the mind like this for at least half an hour, proceed to the second stage, which is:... More

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