The Word of the Buddha The Bodily Parts
The Word of the BuddhaIV. The Path that Leads to the Extinction of Suffering
1.4. Contemplating the Disagreeable in the Body
Furthermore, a bhikkhu reviews this very body from the soles of the feet upwards and from the top of the hair downwards, bounded by skin and full of various impurities thus: ‘In this body, there are hairs of the head, hairs of the body, nails, teeth, skin; flesh, sinews, bones, bone marrow, kidneys; heart, liver, inner membrane, spleen, lungs; intestines, mesentery, stomach contents, feces, [brain]; bile, phlegm, pus, blood, sweat, fat, tears, grease, saliva, nasal mucus, synovial fluid, and urine.’
Just as if there were a bag with an opening at both ends full of many sorts of grains, such as rice, barley, beans, peas, millet, and white rice, and a man with good eyesight having opened it were to reflect, ‘These are rice, these are barley, these are beans, these are peas, these are millet, these are white rice.’
In just the same way, a bhikkhu reviews this very body from the soles of the feet upwards and from the top of the hair downwards, bounded by skin and full of various impurities thus: ‘In this body, there are hairs of the head, hairs of the body, nails, teeth, skin; flesh, sinews, bones, bone marrow, kidneys; heart, liver, inner membrane, spleen, lungs; intestines, mesentery, stomach contents, feces, [brain]; bile, phlegm, pus, blood, sweat, fat, tears, grease, saliva, nasal mucus, synovial fluid, and urine.’
Thus, he dwells observing the body in and of itself internally, or he dwells observing the body externally, or he dwells observing the body both internally and externally. He dwells observing the arising nature in the body, or he dwells observing the going-away nature in the body, or he dwells observing both the arising and going-away nature in the body. Or else, mindfulness that ‘there is a body’ is simply established in him to the extent necessary for knowledge and remembrance. He dwells independently and does not cling to anything in the world.
In this way too, a bhikkhu dwells observing the body in and of itself.
Last updated on October 20, 2026