Patikulamanasikara

Paṭikkūlamanasikāra (variant: paṭikūlamanasikāra)[1] is a Pāli term that is

Translations of
generally translated as "reflections on repulsiveness". It refers to a traditional
Patikulamanasikara
Buddhist meditation whereby thirty-one parts of the body are contemplated in a
variety of ways. In addition to developing sati (mindfulness) and samādhi Pali Paṭikkūlamanasikāra
(concentration), this form of meditation is considered conducive to overcoming Chinese 不淨觀
desire and lust. Along with cemetery contemplations, this type of meditation is one (Pinyin: Bù jìng guān)
of the two meditations on "the foul"/unattractiveness (Pāli:asubha).[2] Japanese 不浄観
(rōmaji: Fujōkan)
Sinhalese ප ලමන කාරය,
භාවනාව
Contents (Patikulamanasikaraya,
Translation Pilikul Bhavanava)
Benefits Glossary of Buddhism
Practice
Objects of contemplation
Methods of contemplation
Traditional sources
See also
Notes
References
External links

Translation
Paṭikkūla (Pāli) literally means "against" (paṭi) "the slope" or "embankment" (kūla) and has been translated adjectivally as "averse,
[3]
objectionable, contrary, disagreeable" and, in its nounal form, as "loathsomeness, impurity".

Manasikāra (Pāli), derived from manasi (locative of mana thus, loosely, "in mind" or "in thought") and karoti ("to make" or "to bring
[4]
into") and has been translated as "attention" or "pondering" or "fixed thought".

In contemporary translations, the compound term paṭikkūla-manasikāra is generally translated as "reflections on repulsiveness" or,
adding contextual clarity at the expense of literal accuracy, "reflections on repulsiveness of the body".[5] Alternate translations
include "attention directed to repulsiveness"[6] and "realisation of the impurity of the body".[7]

Benefits
This type of meditation is traditionally mentioned as an "antidote" to sensual passion.[8] This is also one of the "four protective
meditations", along withanussati (recollection of the Buddha),mettā (benevolence) practice and recollection of death.[9]

In individual discourses, this type of contemplation is identified as a contributor to a variety of mundane and transcendental goals.
For instance, in the Girimananda Sutta (AN 10.60), Ananda's recitation of this and other contemplations immediately cures an ailing
monk.[10] In the Sampasadaniya Sutta (DN 28), Ven. Sariputta declares that meditating on these 31 body parts leads to "the
attainment of vision, in four ways", and briefly outlines how this method can be used as a springboard by which one "comes to know
the unbroken stream of human consciousness that is not established either in this world or in the next".[11] In addition, in the
Iddhipāda-samyutta's Vibhanga Sutta (SN 51.20), this meditation subject is used to develop the four bases of power (iddhipāda) by
which one is able to achieve liberation from suffering.[12]

While the Pali Canon invariably includes this form of contemplation in its various lists of mindfulness meditationtechniques,[13] the
compendious fifth-century Visuddhimagga identifies this type of contemplation (along with anapanasati) as one of the few body-
directed meditations particularly suited to the development of samādhiVism.
( VIII, 43).[14]

Practice
In Buddhist scriptures, this practice involves mentally identifying 31
parts of the body, contemplated upon in various ways.

Objects of contemplation
This meditation involves meditating on 31 different body parts:

head hairs (Pali: kesā), body hairs (lomā),

nails (nakhā), teeth (dantā), skin (taco),
flesh (maṃsaṃ), tendons (nahāru), bones
(aṭṭhi), bone marrow (aṭṭhimiñjaṃ), kidneys
(vakkaṃ),
heart (hadayaṃ), liver (yakanaṃ), pleura
(kilomakaṃ), spleen (pihakaṃ), lungs
(papphāsaṃ),
large intestines (antaṃ), small intestines
(antaguṇaṃ), undigested food (udariyaṃ),
feces (karīsaṃ),
bile (pittaṃ), phlegm (semhaṃ), pus
(pubbo), blood (lohitaṃ), sweat (sedo), fat Internal organs viewed from front:lungs (grey),
(medo), heart (white), liver (purple), stomach (yellow), large
tears (assu), skin-oil (vasā), saliva (kheḷo), intestine (yellow) and small intestine (pink), from
mucus (siṅghānikā), fluid in the joints Gray's Anatomy.
(lasikā), urine (muttaṃ).[15]

In a few discourses, these 31 body parts are contextualized within the

framework of the mahābhūta (the elements) so that the earth element
is exemplified by the body parts from head hair to feces, and the
[16]
water element is exemplified by bile through urine.

A few other discourses preface contemplation of these 31 body parts

in the following manner: "Herein ... a monk contemplates this body
upward from the soles of the feet, downward from the top of the hair,
[17]
enclosed in skin, as being full of many impurities."

The 31 identified body parts in pātikūlamanasikāra contemplation

are the same as the first 31 body parts identified in the
"Dvattimsakara" ("32 Parts [of the Body]") verse (Khp. 3) regularly
recited by monks.[18] The thirty-second body part identified in the
latter verse is the brain (matthaluṅga).[19] The Visuddhimagga Internal organs viewed from back:spleen (green),
kidneys (purple), right lower lung (purple) and
suggests the enumeration of the 31 body parts implicitly includes the
pleura (blue), from Gray's Anatomy.
brain in aṭṭhimiñjaṃ, which is traditionally translated as "bone
marrow".[20]
Methods of contemplation
A canonical formulation of how to meditate on these is:

"Just as if a sack with openings at both ends were full of various kinds of grain – wheat, rice,
mung beans, kidney beans, sesame seeds, husked rice – and a man with good eyesight,
pouring it out, were to reflect, 'This is wheat. This is rice. These are mung beans. These are
kidney beans. These are sesame seeds. This is husked rice'; in the same way, the monk
reflects on this very body from the soles of the feet on up, from the crown of the head on
down, surrounded by skin and full of various kinds of unclean things [as identified in the
above enumeration of bodily organs and fluids]...."[21]

In regards to this and other body-centered meditation objects, the Satipatthana Sutta (DN 22) provides the following additional
context and expected results:

In this way [a monk] remains focused internally on the body in & of itself, or externally on the body in & of itself, or
both internally & externally on the body in & of itself. Or he remains focused on the phenomenon of origination with
regard to the body, on the phenomenon of passing away with regard to the body, or on the phenomenon of origination
& passing away with regard to the body. Or his mindfulness that 'There is a body' is maintained to the extent of
knowledge & remembrance. And he remains independent, unsustained by (not clinging to) anything in the
world...."[22]

According to the post-canonical Pali atthakatha (commentary) on the Satipatthana Sutta, one can develop "seven kinds of skill in
study" regarding these meditation objects through:

1. repetition of the body parts verbally

2. repetition of the body parts mentally
3. discerning the body parts individually in terms of each one's color
4. discerning the body parts individually in terms of each one's shape
5. discerning if a body part is above or below the navel (or both)
6. discerning the body part's spatial location
[23]
7. spatially and functionally juxtaposing two body parts

Traditional sources
The name for this type of meditation is found in the sectional titles used in the Mahasatipatthana Sutta(DN 22) and the Satipatthana
Sutta (MN 10), where the contemplation of the 32 body parts is entitled, Paṭikkūla-manasikāra-pabbaṃ (which, word-for-word, can
be translated as "repulsiveness-reflection-section").Subsequently, in the post-canonical Visuddhimagga and other atthakatha works,
[24]
paṭikkūlamanasikāra is explicitly used when referring to this technique.

This form of meditation is mentioned in the following suttas in the Pāli Canon (listed in order of nikāya and then sutta number within
nikaya):[25][26]

Mahasatipatthana Sutta ("The Great Frames of Reference",DN 22)[27]

[28]
Sampasadaniya Sutta ("Serene Faith", DN 28)
Satipatthana Sutta ("Frames of References",MN 10).[29]
[26][30]
Mahahattipadopama Sutta ("The Great Elephant Footprint Simile", MN 28)
[26][31]
Maharahulovada Sutta ("The Greater Exhortation to Rahula", MN 62)
[21]
Kayagatasati Sutta ("Mindfulness Immersed in the Body", MN 119)
Dhatu-vibhanga Sutta ("An Analysis of the Properties", MN 140) [26][32]

In the Samyutta Nikaya's collection regarding the four bases of power iddhipada),
( in a sutta called Vibhanga
("Analysis", SN 51.20)[12]
Udayi Sutta ("To Udayi", AN 6.29)[33]
 Girimananda Sutta ("To Girimananda", AN 10.60)[34]
Elsewhere in Pali literature, this type of meditation is discussed extensively in the post-canonical Visuddhimagga (Vism. VIII, 44-
145).[35]

In several of these sources, this meditation is identified as one of a variety of meditations on the body along with, for instance, the
mindfulness of breathing (seeAnapanasati Sutta).[36]

See also
Anapanasati Sutta
Buddhist meditation
Mahasatipatthana Sutta

Notes
1. The Sinhalese SLTP Tipitaka and Rhys Davids & Stede (1921-5), p. 393, spell this termpaṭikkūlamanasikāra (with
two k's) while the Burmese CSCD tipitaka and VRI (1996), p. 10, spell paṭikūlamanasikāra
it (with one k).
2. Nanamoli (1998), p. 110,n. 16, which references the Anapanasati Sutta and the V
isuddhimagga, Ch. VI, VIII.
3. See, e.g., Rhys Davids & Stede (1921-5), p. 393, entry for "Pa ṭikkūla" (retrieved 2008-02-02 at
http://dsal.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/philologic/getobject.pl?c.2:1:1052.pali
).
4. See, e.g., Rhys Davids & Stede (1921-5), p. 521, entry "Mano & Mana(s)" (retrieved 2008-02-02 at
http://dsal.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/philologic/getobject.pl?c.2:1:3860.pali
), and pp. 197-8, entry for "Karoti" (retrieved
2008-02-03 at http://dsal.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/philologic/getobject.pl?c.1:1:367.pali
). Similarly, the core Buddhist
notion of yoniso manasikāra has been translated as "careful attention".
5. See, e.g., Nyanasatta (1994); Soma (2003), pp. 3, 100; VRI (1996), pp. 10, 11.
6. Buddhaghosa (1999), pp. 235 V ( ism. VIII, 42), 236 (Vism. VIII, 43). On p. 243 (Vism. VIII, 80), Nanmoli uses a
variant translation: "giving attention to repulsivenes".
ṭikkūla" (retrieved 2008-02-02 athttp://dsal.uchicago.edu/cgi-
7. Rhys Davids & Stede (1921-5), p. 393, entry for "Pa
bin/philologic/getobject.pl?c.2:1:1052.pali).
8. See, for instance, Udāyi Sutta (AN 6.39) (SLTP, n.d.) where contemplation of the 31 body parts is said to "remove
sensual passion" (kāmarāgassa pahānāya). In addition, in Thanissaro (1994), "Translator's Introduction", Thanissaro
states: "[Khuddakapatha] Passage 3 [which enumerates 32 body parts] gives preliminary guidance [to monastic
novices] in the contemplation of the body, a meditation exercise designed to overcome lust."
9. Bodhi (2002), p.6.
10. Piyadassi (1997a).
11. Walshe (1995), pp. 419-20.
12. Bodhi (2000), pp. 1736-40; Thanissaro (1997b).
13. E.g., see DN 22, MN 10, MN 119.
14. Buddhaghosa (1999), p. 235. That this form of meditation is particularly useful for what is known as "access
concentration" is perhaps indirectly reflected in the comments of contemporary vipassana master S.N. Goenka who
suggests that, unlike true vipassana, this type of contemplation deals with "imagination or intellectualisation".
Goenka thus reserves its use for "some cases, when the mind is very dull or agitated" and thus the mind is unable to
follow the breath or more refined sensations. He concludes: "Of course, when the actual practice ofipassana
V
starts, there should be no aversion towards this ugly body
. It is just observed as it is –yathābhūta. It is observed as
body, with sensations arising and passing. The meditator is now on the path." (Goenka, n.d.).
15. English is from the Thanissaro (2000) translation ofMahasatipatthana Sutta(DN 22). Note that, in Thanissaro
(1994), some words are translated differently, e.g., "muscle" instead of "flesh", and "lymph" instead of "pus". Also,
Thanissaro (1994) translatesvakkaṃ as "spleen" and pihakaṃ as "kidney"; thus, compared to Thanissaro (2000),
effectively inverting these anatomical objectsin the English translations. The Pali is from La T
robe University (n.d.)'s
SLTP version of DN 22, BJT page 446, athttp://www.chaf.lib.latrobe.edu.au/dcd/tipitika.php?title=&record=2612.
These 31 body parts are grouped onto six lines consistent with their traditional representation in Pali as shown in
MettaNet-Lanka (n.d.) Sinhala SLTP text at http://www.metta.lk/tipitaka/2Sutta-Pitaka/5Khuddaka-
Nikaya/01Khuddakapatha/01-Khuddakapatha-p1.html#Threeand VRI (n.d.) Burmese CSCD text at
http://www.tipitaka.org/romn/cscd/s0501m.mul2.xml.
16. See MN 28, MN 62 and MN 140. See below for more information regarding these discourses.
17. Piyadassi (1999a) translation ofAN 10.60. This preface can also be found, e.g., inSN 51.20 (Thanissaro, 1997b).
18. Piyadassi (1999b). (http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/kn/khp/khp.1-9x.piya.html#khp-3)This is consistent with
on-line Sinhala SLTP texts. The on-line Burmese CSCD includes the brain after "feces" karīsaṃ).
(
19. According to Hamilton (2001), pp. 23-4, in theSutta Pitaka, the brain is added to the traditional list of 31 body parts
only in the Khuddaka Nikaya and there only twice: in the aforementionedKhp. 3 and in Paṭis I.6. Hamilton also
identifies a similar, abbreviated, differently ordered list that includes the brain inSn 199 (see, e.g., Thanissaro,
1996); (http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/kn/snp/snp.1.11.than.html) Hamilton attributes the differences
between the traditional list of 31 or 32 body parts and theSutta Nipata text to the latter being in verse.
20. Buddhaghosa (1999), Vism. VIII, 44. Given Buddhaghosa's inclusion of the brain inaṭṭhimiñjaṃ could lead one to
infer that this Pali term might refer to something other than bone marrow in some contexts (e.g., the nervous
system).
21. Thanissaro (1997c).
22. Thanissaro (2000). (Parenthetical expression is in the original translation.)
23. Soma (2003), pp. 101-2. The commentary mentioned here is the Papañcasudani, attributed to Buddhaghosa and
thus presumably written in the 5th century CE. This is similar to what is found in
Vism. VIII, 48-60 (Buddhaghosa,
1999, pp. 237-9).
24. Buddhaghosa (1999), pp. 235, 236, 243 (Vism. VIII, 42, 43 83).
25. These suttas were found in part through a search of the SL TP canon using a search engine from La T robe University
at "Archived copy" (https://web.archive.org/web/20070927001234/http://www .chaf.lib.latrobe.edu.au/dcd/pali.htm).
Archived from the original (http://www.chaf.lib.latrobe.edu.au/dcd/pali.htm) on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2007-09-27..
26. Three of these discourses – MN 28, MN 62 and MN 140 – mention the 31 bodily organs in the context of either four
or five great elements (mahābhūta), which, strictly speaking, in the(Mahā)Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta is the basis for a
separate meditation frompaṭikkūla-manasikāra contemplation. For example, based on commentarial statements,
paṭikkūla-manasikāra contemplation could entail spatial awareness of each of the bodily organs or fluids, and is
traditionally used as an antidote to lust; on the other hand, contemplation on the elements emphasizes the tactile
experiences of solidity, liquidity, heat and air, and serves as a basis for developing equanimity and insight into not-
self (anatta) (e.g., see MN 28).
27. Thanissaro (2000).
28. Walshe (1995), pp. 417-25.
29. Nyanasatta (1994). This discourse is virtually the same as the Mahasatipatthana Sutta (Thanissaro, 2000) except
that the latter's extended exposition on theFour Noble Truths is absent from the Satipatthana Sutta.
30. Thanissaro (2003).
31. Thanissaro (2006).
32. Thanissaro (1997a).
33. SLTP (n.d.).
34. Piyadassi (1999a).
35. Buddhaghosa (1999), pp. 236-59.
36. E.g., DN 22, MN 10, MN 119, Vism. VIII, 42.

References
 Bodhi, Bhikkhu (trans.) (2000). The Connected Discourses of the Buddha: A T ranslation of the Samyutta Nikaya.
Boston: Wisdom Pubs.ISBN 0-86171-331-1.
Bodhi, Bhikkhu (Fall 2002).Climbing to the Top of the Mountain: An Interview with Bhikkhu Bodhi,Insight Journal,
Vol. 19. Barre, MA: Barre Center for Buddhist Studies. Also available on-line at
http://www.dharma.org/ij/archives/2002b/bhikkhu_bodhi.htm.
Buddhaghosa, Bhadantācariya (trans. from Pāli by Bhikkhu Ñā ṇamoli) (1999). The Path of Purification:
Visuddhimagga. Seattle, WA: BPS Pariyatti Editions.ISBN 1-928706-00-2.
Goenka, S.N. (n.d.). Discourses on Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta: Condensed from the discourses during a course in Mahā-
satipaṭṭhāna Sutta. Available on-line at http://www.vri.dhamma.org/publications/webversion/english/dstp.html. The
section dealing specifically withpatikulamanasikara is at
http://www.vri.dhamma.org/publications/webversion/english/dstp.html#15.
Hamilton, Sue (2001). Identity and Experience: The Constitution of the Human Being according to Early Buddhism .
Oxford: Luzac Oriental.ISBN 1-898942-23-4.
Nanamoli, Bhikkhu (trans.) (1998).Mindfulness of Breathing (Anapanasati): Buddhist e Txts from the Pali Canon and
Extracts from the Pali Commentaries. Kandy, Sri Lanka: Buddhist Publication Society. ISBN 955-24-0167-4.
Nyanasatta Thera (1994).Satipatthana Sutta: The Foundations of Mindfulness(MN 10). Retrieved 2008-02-02 from
"Access to Insight" at http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/mn/mn.010.nysa.html.
Piyadassi Thera (trans.) (1999a). Girimananda Sutta: Discourse to Girimananda Thera(AN 10.60). Retrieved 2008-
02-02 from "Access to Insight" athttp://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/an/an10/an10.060.piya.html.
Piyadassi Thera (trans.) (1999b).Khuddakapatha Suttas (Selections)(Khp 1-6,9). Retrieved from "Access to Insight"
at http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/kn/khp/khp.1-9x.piya.html.
Rhys Davids, T.W. & William Stede (eds.) (1921-5).The Pali Text Society's Pali-English Dictionary (PED). London:
Pali Text Society. A general on-line search engine for the PED is available at
http://dsal.uchicago.edu/dictionaries/pali/.
Soma Thera (2003) (6th reprint).The Way of Mindfulness. Kandy: Buddhist Publication Society. ISBN 978-955-24-
0256-2. A 1998 edition is available on-line from "Access to Insight" at
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/soma/wayof.html.
Sri Lanka Tripitaka Project (SLTP) (n.d.). Anuttariyavaggo (AN 6.21 - 6.30). Retrieved 2008-02-01 from "MettaNet-
Lanka" at http://www.metta.lk/tipitaka/2Sutta-Pitaka/4Anguttara-Nikaya/Anguttara4/6-chakkanipata/003-
anuttariyavaggo-p.html. The Udāyi Sutta (AN 6.29) is identified in this section as "6. 1. 3. 9".
Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (1994). Khuddakapatha Suttas (Complete)(Khp 1-9). Retrieved from "Access to Insight"
at http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/kn/khp/khp.1-9.than.html.
Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (1996).Vijaya Sutta: Victory (Sn 1.11). Retrieved 2008-03-23 from "Access to Insight"
(1997) at http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/kn/snp/snp.1.11.than.html.
Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (1997a).Dhatu-vibhanga Sutta: An Analysis of the Properties(MN 140). Retrieved
2008-02-02 from "Access to Insight" athttp://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/mn/mn.140.than.html.
Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (1997b).Iddhipada-vibhanga Sutta: Analysis of the Bases of Power(SN 51.20).
Retrieved 2008-02-02 from "Access to Insight" athttp://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/sn/sn51/sn51.020.than.html.
Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (1997c).Kayagata-sati Sutta: Mindfulness Immersed in the Body(MN 119). Retrieved
from "Access to Insight" athttp://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/mn/mn.119.than.html.
Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (2000).Maha-satipatthana Sutta: The Great Frames of Reference(DN 22). Retrieved
from "Access to Insight" athttp://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/dn/dn.22.0.than.html.
Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (2003).Maha-hatthipadopama Sutta: The Great Elephant Footprint Simile(MN 28).
Retrieved 2008-02-02 from "Access to Insight" athttp://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/mn/mn.028.than.html.
Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (2006).Maha-Rahulovada Sutta: The Greater Exhortation to Rahula(MN 62). Retrieved
2008-02-02 from "Access to Insight" athttp://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/mn/mn.062.than.html.
Vipassana Research Institute (VRI) (1996).Mahasatipatthana Sutta: The Great Discourse on the Establishing of
Awareness. Seattle, WA: Vipassana Research Publications of America.ISBN 0-9649484-0-0.
Walshe, Maurice (trans.) (1995).The Long Discourses of the Buddha: A T ranslation of the Digha Nikaya. Boston:
Wisdom Pubs. ISBN 0-86171-103-3.

External links
"The Section of Reflection on Repulsiveness", from: Soma Thera (trans.) (undated). The Commentary to the
Discourse on the Arousing of Mindfulness with Marginal Notes
. Available on-line at
http://www.abhidhamma.org/SomaTheraTheCommentary.htm.
MEDITATION ON THE THIRTY-TWO PARTS OF THE BODY by Dhamma Viro

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