The Ānāpānasati Sutta

The Ānāpānasati Sutta is the Buddha's fullest teaching on mindfulness of breathing. Ānāpāna means breathing in and breathing out, and sati means mindfulness. It is the 118th discourse of the Majjhima Nikāya (MN 118).

The setting

The discourse is set at the end of the rains, when many monks had gathered around the Buddha at Sāvatthī. He was pleased with the community's practice and stayed on for another month. On the full moon he explained how mindfulness of breathing, when developed, fulfils the four foundations of mindfulness, which in turn fulfil the seven factors of awakening, which lead to liberation.

The basic instruction

The meditator goes to a quiet place, sits with legs crossed and the body upright, and sets mindfulness in front. Then, simply, mindful they breathe in, mindful they breathe out. Everything else builds on this.

Sixteen steps in four groups

The steps are arranged in four sets of four, matching the four foundations of mindfulness.

• Body. Knowing a long breath as long and a short breath as short; experiencing the whole body; calming the activity of the body.
• Feelings. Experiencing rapture; experiencing happiness; experiencing the activities of the mind; calming them.
• Mind. Experiencing the mind; gladdening it; concentrating it; releasing it.
• Phenomena. Contemplating impermanence; fading away; cessation; letting go.

Each step is practised while breathing in and while breathing out. The sequence moves naturally from calming the body, through joy and stillness, to insight into the changing nature of experience.

Why it is valued

The breath is always present, needs no equipment and is neither too exciting nor too dull, which makes it a good anchor. The texts record that the Buddha himself practised this method on the night of his awakening, and many teachers in every tradition still begin with it.

Trying it

You do not need to work through all sixteen steps at once. Most people spend a long time with the first few: sitting comfortably, noticing the breath without controlling it, and returning kindly each time attention drifts. Over time the later steps tend to make more sense from your own experience.