The Buddha teaches how mindfulness of breathing is developed through sixteen steps—from knowing long and short breaths through experiencing the whole body, stilling bodily and mental processes, gladdening and liberating the mind, to contemplating impermanence, fading away, cessation, and letting go—regarding with ariṭṭha.

SN 54.6 With Ariṭṭha

Sāvatthinidānaṁ.

Tatra kho bhagavā …pe… etadavoca:

“bhāvetha no tumhe bhikkhave, ānāpānassatin”ti? Evaṁ vutte, āyasmā ariṭṭho bhagavantaṁ etadavoca:

“ahaṁ kho, bhante, bhāvemi ānāpānassatin”ti.

“Yathā kathaṁ pana tvaṁ, ariṭṭha, bhāvesi ānāpānassatin”ti?

“Atītesu me, bhante, kāmesu kāmacchando pahīno, anāgatesu me kāmesu kāmacchando vigato, ajjhattabahiddhā ca me dhammesu paṭighasaññā suppaṭivinītā. So satova assasissāmi, satova passasissāmi. Evaṁ khvāhaṁ, bhante, bhāvemi ānāpānassatin”ti.

“‘Atthesā, ariṭṭha, ānāpānassati, nesā natthī’ti vadāmi. Api ca, ariṭṭha, yathā ānāpānassati vitthārena paripuṇṇā hoti taṁ suṇāhi, sādhukaṁ manasi karohi; bhāsissāmī”ti.

“Evaṁ, bhante”ti kho āyasmā ariṭṭho bhagavato paccassosi. Bhagavā etadavoca:

“Kathañca, ariṭṭha, ānāpānassati vitthārena paripuṇṇā hoti? Idha, ariṭṭha, bhikkhu araññagato rukkhamūlagato suññāgāragato nisīdati pallaṅkaṁ ābhujitvā ujuṁ kāyaṁ paṇidhāya parimukhaṁ satiṁ upaṭṭhapetvā. So satova assasati, satova passasati. Dīghaṁ assasanto ‘dīghaṁ assasāmī’ti pajānāti …pe… ‘paṭinissaggānupassī assasissāmī’ti sikkhati, ‘paṭinissaggānupassī passasissāmī’ti sikkhati. Evaṁ kho, ariṭṭha, ānāpānassati vitthārena paripuṇṇā hotī”ti.

Chaṭṭhaṁ.

Reference Translation by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0).

Sāvatthinidānaṁ.

At Sāvatthī.

Tatra kho bhagavā …pe… etadavoca:

There the Buddha … said:

“bhāvetha no tumhe bhikkhave, ānāpānassatin”ti?

“Mendicants, do you develop mindfulness of breathing?”

Evaṁ vutte, āyasmā ariṭṭho bhagavantaṁ etadavoca:

When he said this, Venerable Ariṭṭha said to him:

“ahaṁ kho, bhante, bhāvemi ānāpānassatin”ti.

“Sir, I develop mindfulness of breathing.”

“Yathā kathaṁ pana tvaṁ, ariṭṭha, bhāvesi ānāpānassatin”ti?

“But mendicant, how do you develop it?”

“Atītesu me, bhante, kāmesu kāmacchando pahīno, anāgatesu me kāmesu kāmacchando vigato, ajjhattabahiddhā ca me dhammesu paṭighasaññā suppaṭivinītā.

“Sir, I’ve given up desire for sensual pleasures of the past. I’m rid of desire for sensual pleasures of the future. And I have eliminated perception of aversion regarding phenomena internally and externally.

So satova assasissāmi, satova passasissāmi.

Just mindful, I will breathe in. Mindful, I will breathe out.

Evaṁ khvāhaṁ, bhante, bhāvemi ānāpānassatin”ti.

That’s how I develop mindfulness of breathing.”

“‘Atthesā, ariṭṭha, ānāpānassati, nesā natthī’ti vadāmi.

“That is mindfulness of breathing, Ariṭṭha; I don’t deny it.

Api ca, ariṭṭha, yathā ānāpānassati vitthārena paripuṇṇā hoti

But as to how mindfulness of breathing is fulfilled in detail,

taṁ suṇāhi, sādhukaṁ manasi karohi; bhāsissāmī”ti.

listen and apply your mind well, I will speak.”

“Evaṁ, bhante”ti kho āyasmā ariṭṭho bhagavato paccassosi.

“Yes, sir,” Ariṭṭha replied.

Bhagavā etadavoca:

The Buddha said this:

“Kathañca, ariṭṭha, ānāpānassati vitthārena paripuṇṇā hoti?

“And how is mindfulness of breathing fulfilled in detail?

Idha, ariṭṭha, bhikkhu araññagato rukkhamūlagato suññāgāragato nisīdati pallaṅkaṁ ābhujitvā ujuṁ kāyaṁ paṇidhāya parimukhaṁ satiṁ upaṭṭhapetvā.

It’s when a mendicant—gone to a wilderness, or to the root of a tree, or to an empty hut—sits down cross-legged, sets their body straight, and brings mindfulness to the present.

So satova assasati, satova passasati.

Just mindful, they breathe in. Mindful, they breathe out.

Dīghaṁ assasanto ‘dīghaṁ assasāmī’ti pajānāti …pe…

Breathing in heavily they know: ‘I’m breathing in heavily.’ Breathing out heavily they know: ‘I’m breathing out heavily.’ …

‘paṭinissaggānupassī assasissāmī’ti sikkhati, ‘paṭinissaggānupassī passasissāmī’ti sikkhati.

They practice like this: ‘I’ll breathe in observing letting go.’ They practice like this: ‘I’ll breathe out observing letting go.’

Evaṁ kho, ariṭṭha, ānāpānassati vitthārena paripuṇṇā hotī”ti.

This is how mindfulness of breathing is fulfilled in detail.”

Chaṭṭhaṁ.

Topics & Qualities:

Aversion

Aversion

A rejecting mental quality rooted in perception, where one instinctively turns away from or resists unpleasant experiences or objects; it manifests as a tendency to push away discomfort, obstructing patience and acceptance.

Also known as: animosity, hate, hostility, fault-finding mindset, upset
Pāli: dosa, paṭighasaññā, vera
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Desire

Desire

A wholesome motivation, interest, or objective that acts as the starting point for effort and application of will.

Also known as: aspiration, interest, wish, having an objective, intention, impulse
Pāli: chanda
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Giving up

Giving up

The mental quality of renunciation and release from attachment. It delights in simplicity and freedom rather than in sensual pleasure. Giving up is not loss but the joyful abandoning of burden, opening the way to peace and insight.

Also known as: renunciation, relinquishment, letting go, abandonment
Pāli: nekkhamma
View all discourses →
Mindfulness

Mindfulness

Active presence of mind and lucid retention; the faculty that remembers the Dhamma, anchors attention to the chosen object or present experience, and guards the mind against unwholesome states.

Also known as: recollecting, remembering, keeping in mind, presence, awareness
Pāli: sati, anussati
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Quenching

Quenching

An experiential state of being “cooled,” where the burning fever of craving has subsided and the mind dwells in a peace free from the anxiety of needing to become something else.

Also known as: being cooled, desirelessness, free from hope, fulfilled, fully satiated, having attained emancipation
Pāli: nibbuta, nirāsa, parinibbāyati
View all discourses →
Sensual desire

Sensual desire

A mental quality of desiring sensory gratification. It pulls the mind’s attention toward sights, sounds, smells, tastes, or touches in a search for satisfaction.

Also known as: craving for sensuality, passion for sensual pleasures, lust, pull toward enticing sense objects
Pāli: kāmacchanda
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Last updated on July 27, 2026