1At one time the Buddha was staying in a forest near Icchānaṅgala. There he addressed the mendicants:

“Mendicants, I wish to go on retreat for three months. No-one should approach me, except for the one who brings my alms-food.”

“Yes, sir,” replied those mendicants. And no-one approached him, except for the one who brought the alms-food.

2Then after three months had passed, the Buddha came out of retreat and addressed the mendicants:

“Mendicants, if wanderers who follow another path were to ask you: ‘Reverends, what was the ascetic Gotama’s usual meditation during the rainy season residence?’ You should answer them like this. ‘Reverends, the ascetic Gotama’s usual meditation during the rainy season residence was immersion due to mindfulness of breathing.’

In this regard: mindful, I breathe in. Mindful, I breathe out.

When breathing in heavily I know: ‘I’m breathing in heavily.’ When breathing out heavily I know: ‘I’m breathing out heavily.’ When breathing in lightly I know: ‘I’m breathing in lightly.’ When breathing out lightly I know: ‘I’m breathing out lightly.’ I know: ‘I’ll breathe in experiencing the whole body.’ …

I know: ‘I’ll breathe in observing letting go.’ I know: ‘I’ll breathe out observing letting go.’

3For if anything should be rightly called ‘the meditation of a noble one’, or else ‘the meditation of a Brahmā’, or else ‘the meditation of a realized one’, it’s immersion due to mindfulness of breathing.

For those mendicants who are trainees — who haven’t achieved their heart’s desire, but live aspiring to the supreme sanctuary — the development and cultivation of immersion due to mindfulness of breathing leads to the ending of defilements.

For those mendicants who are perfected — who have ended the defilements, completed the spiritual journey, done what had to be done, laid down the burden, achieved their own goal, utterly ended the fetters of rebirth, and are rightly freed through enlightenment — the development and cultivation of immersion due to mindfulness of breathing leads to blissful meditation in the present life, and to mindfulness and awareness.

4For if anything should be rightly called ‘the meditation of a noble one’, or else ‘the meditation of a Brahmā’, or else ‘the meditation of a realized one’, it’s immersion due to mindfulness of breathing.”

1Ekaṁ samayaṁ bhagavā icchānaṅgale vihārati icchānaṅgalavanasaṇḍe. Tatra kho bhagavā bhikkhū āmantesi:

"Icchāmahaṁ, bhikkhave, temāsaṁ paṭisallīyituṁ. Nāmhi kenaci upasaṅkamitabbo, aññatra ekena piṇḍapātanīhārakenā"ti.

"Evaṁ, bhante"ti kho te bhikkhū bhagavato paṭissutvā nāssudha koci bhagavantaṁ upasaṅkamati, aññatra ekena piṇḍapātanīhārakena.

2Atha kho bhagavā tassa temāsassa accayena paṭisallānā vuṭṭhito bhikkhū āmantesi:

"Sace kho, bhikkhave, aññatitthiyā paribbājakā evaṁ puccheyyuṁ: ‘katamenāvuso, vihārena samaṇo gotamo vassāvāsaṁ bahulaṁ vihāsī’ti, evaṁ puṭṭhā tumhe, bhikkhave, tesaṁ aññatitthiyānaṁ paribbājakānaṁ evaṁ byākareyyātha: ‘ānāpānassatisamādhinā kho, āvuso, bhagavā vassāvāsaṁ bahulaṁ vihāsī’ti.

Idhāhaṁ, bhikkhave, sato assasāmi, sato passasāmi.

Dīghaṁ assasanto ‘dīghaṁ assasāmī’ti pajānāmi, dīghaṁ passasanto ‘dīghaṁ passasāmī’ti pajānāmi; rassaṁ assasanto ‘rassaṁ assasāmī’ti pajānāmi, rassaṁ passasanto ‘rassaṁ passasāmī’ti pajānāmi; ‘sabbakāyappaṭisaṁvedī assasissāmī’ti pajānāmi … pe … ‘paṭinissaggānupassī assasissāmī’ti pajānāmi, ‘paṭinissaggānupassī passasissāmī’ti pajānāmi.

3Yañhi taṁ, bhikkhave, sammā vadamāno vadeyya: ‘ariyavihāro’ itipi, ‘brahmavihāro’ itipi, ‘tathāgatavihāro’ itipi. Ānāpānassatisamādhiṁ sammā vadamāno vadeyya: ‘ariyavihāro’ itipi, ‘brahmavihāro’ itipi, ‘tathāgatavihāro’ itipi.

Ye te, bhikkhave, bhikkhū sekhā appattamānasā anuttaraṁ yogakkhemaṁ patthayamānā vihāranti tesaṁ ānāpānassatisamādhi bhāvito bahulīkato āsavānaṁ khayāya saṁvattati.

Ye ca kho te, bhikkhave, bhikkhū arahanto khīṇāsavā vusitavanto katakaraṇīyā ohitabhārā anuppattasadatthā parikkhīṇabhavasaṁyojanā sammadaññāvimuttā, tesaṁ ānāpānassatisamādhi bhāvito bahulīkato diṭṭhadhammasukhavihārāya ceva saṁvattati satisampajaññāya ca.

4Yañhi taṁ, bhikkhave, sammā vadamāno vadeyya: ‘ariyavihāro’ itipi, ‘brahmavihāro’ itipi, ‘tathāgatavihāro’ itipi. Ānāpānassatisamādhiṁ sammā vadamāno vadeyya: ‘ariyavihāro’ itipi, ‘brahmavihāro’ itipi, ‘tathāgatavihāro’ itipī"ti.

Paṭhamaṁ.