Kāye Kāyānupassanā – Details in Satipaṭṭhāna

Kāye Kāyānupassanā, described in the Mahā Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta, enables one to enter the Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi at will. Kāye Kāyānupassanā is the second stage of Ānāpānasati to enter the Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi (which is free of ‘kāma saññā’) to attain higher magga phala.

November 15, 2025

Kāyānupassanā and Kāye Kāyānupassanā

1. As pointed out in “Ānāpānasati – Connection to Satipaṭṭhāna,” the first stage of Ānāpānasati is to see the anicca nature of the whole pañcupādānakkhandha kāya (most times referred to as only ‘kāya‘ in the suttās) to attain the Sotapanna stage of Nibbāna. We discussed the first stage in “First Stage of Ānāpānasati – Seeing the Anicca Nature of ‘Kāya’” and “First Stage of Ānāpānasati – Verses in Ānāpānasati Sutta.” This is Kāyānupassanā.

• The second stage is to cultivate Satipaṭṭhāna (literally meaning ‘to place sati or mind focus in the Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi’) by temporarily overcoming the kāma saññā. 
• In the second stage, one MUST understand how a mind is automatically defiled by EVERY sensory input due to the built-in ‘kāma saññā.‘ Comprehending that process automatically moves the mind to the Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi.
• This second stage involves cultivating Kāye Kāyānupassanā, or examining ‘another kāya‘ within the ‘pañcupādānakkhandha kāya.’ That turns out to be the ‘purāna kamma‘ stage of the ‘pañcupādānakkhandha kāya’ that we have already discussed. See “Purāna and Nava Kamma – Sequence of Kamma Generation.”
• Therefore, Kāyānupassanā is cultivated in the first stage of Ānāpānasati, and Kāye Kāyānupassanā is cultivated in the second stage of Ānāpānasati.

Previously Unheard Teachings (‘Pubbe Ananussutesu Dhamma‘)

2. In the “Ananussuta Sutta (SN 47.31)“, the Buddha explains another version of the “previously unheard teachings” he discovered: “‘Ayaṁ kāye kāyānupassanā’ ti me, bhikkhave, pubbe ananussutesu dhammesu cakkhuṁ udapādi, ñāṇaṁ udapādi, paññā udapādi, vijjā udapādi, āloko udapādi.”

• Correct Translation of the Buddha’s statement: “I realized that kāye kāyānupassanā (in Satipaṭṭhāna Bhāvanā) is the ‘previously unheard teachings’ (pubbe ananussutesu dhammesu). With that realization, ‘the vision, knowledge, wisdom arose in me’ (cakkhuṁ udapādi, ñāṇaṁ udapādi, paññā udapādi),  ignorance in me disappeared, and the true nature of the world arose (vijjā udapādi), and my mind was released from the world (āloko udapādi), i.e., I attained Nibbāna.”
• Incorrect Translation (in the above link): ‘This is the observation of an aspect of the body.’ Such, mendicants, was the vision, knowledge, wisdom, realization, and light that arose in me regarding teachings not learned before from another.” Note that’kāye kāyānupassanā‘ is mistranslated as ‘observation of an aspect of the body,’ and  ‘āloko‘ is also mistranslated as ‘light.’ Therefore, that translation is appallingly misleading.
• The point is that kāye kāyānupassanā involves the Buddha’s deepest teachings. This is the ultimate explanation of how the mind of a puthujjana becomes defiled with ALL sensory inputs. Saññā (= kāma saññā in kāma loka) plays a key role in it.

Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi – Where One Has Sammā Sati

3. A person gets into the Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi for the first time ever at the moment of attaining the Sotapanna phala. At that time, their minds get to Sammā Diṭṭhi and also fulfill the other seven ‘path elements’ to reach the eighth ‘path element’ of Sammā Sati. One must overcome the kāma saññā to attain Sammā Sati and Sammā Samādhi. See #6 of “Sammā Samādhi – How to Define It?“

• This is when one truly becomes a ‘Sandiṭṭhiko,’ one who can discern how “san” (rāga, dosa, moha) gets “added” to a “pure mind” (pabhassara mind) via attaching to saññā.  see “Sandiṭṭhiko – What Does It Mean?” 
• However, after attaining the Sotapanna phala, the mind falls back quickly from the Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi to ‘kāma loka.’  
• It takes only the duration of a lightning flash in the Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi to attain the Sotapanna phala moment; see, “Vajirūpama Sutta (AN 3.25).

4. To attain higher magga phala, a Sotapanna must re-enter the Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi and stay there for long times to ‘cultivate the Noble Path’ to make further progress on the Satipaṭṭhāna Bhāvanā to eliminate the remaining seven saṁyojana. 

• That is because it is difficult for the mind to grasp the deep concepts necessary to attain higher magga phala if the mind is influenced by the ‘kāma saññā.’
• A Sotapanna must make an effort to re-enter the Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi and to be able to stay there for extended times to ‘cultivate the Noble Path,’ which involves cultivating ‘Satta Bojjhaṅga’ (“seven awakening factors”) or ‘seven factors leading to full Nibbāna.’ Here, ‘Bojjhaṅga’ comes from ‘Bodhi aṅga’ or the ‘factors that lead to Nibbāna.’ 
• The second stage of Ānāpānasati was introduced in #4 of “Ānāpānasati – Connection to Satipaṭṭhāna.” It is that second stage of Ānāpānasati that is discussed in more detail in the Mahā Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta.
• That second stage of Ānāpānasati can be fulfilled only by a Sotapanna, but it would be beneficial to understand the details discussed in the Mahā Satipaṭṭhāna Suttaeven for those who have not attained the Sotapanna stage.
• That is because those details clarify the origin of kāma rāga and provide a solid understanding of Buddha’s worldview, and help dispel wrong views.

Mahā Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta Is About Kāye Kāyānupassanā

5. I recommend having a printout of the first few pages of the Mahā Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta and the Ānāpānasati Sutta to keep track of the following discussion.

• The “Mahā Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta (DN 22)” starts with ‘Kāye Kāyānupassanā‘ (@marker 1.9): “Idha, bhikkhave, bhikkhu kāye kāyānupassī viharati ātāpī sampajāno satimā vineyya loke abhijjhādomanassaṁ.”
• It focuses mostly on the second stage of Ānāpānasati, i.e.,  ‘Kāye Kāyānupassanā.‘

6. However, the description begins @marker 2.1 with a description of the Kāyānupassanā from marker 2.2 to marker 2.7. It ends with ‘Passambhayaṁ kāyasaṅkhāraṁ assasissāmī’ti sikkhati, ‘passambhayaṁ kāyasaṅkhāraṁ passasissāmī’ti sikkhati.’

• Note that this first section in the Mahā Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta is (@1.13) on “1. Kāyānupassanā” and “1.1. Kāyānupassanā ānāpāna pabba” (‘Section on Kāyānupassanā in ānāpāna’ or ‘stage 1 of ānāpānasati’).
• Here, ‘Passambhayaṁ kāyasaṅkhāraṁ‘ means ‘calming down and cessation of ‘kāya saṅkhāra‘ or all saṅkhāra associated with the pañcupādānakkhandha kāya.’ We discussed that in #3 -#5 of “First Stage of Ānāpānasati – Verses in Ānāpānasati Sutta.”
• Thus, that is about the first stage of Ānāpānasati, i.e., it is about ‘Kāyānupassanā.‘

Moving From Kāyānupassanā to Kāye Kāyānupassanā

7. Then there is the following verse in the Mahā Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta before it starts describing ‘Kāye Kāyānupassanā.‘

• At marker 2.8: “Seyyathāpi, bhikkhave, dakkho bhamakāro vā bhamakārantevāsī vā dīghaṁ vā añchanto ‘dīghaṁ añchāmī’ti pajānāti, rassaṁ vā añchanto ‘rassaṁ añchāmī’ti pajānāti“
• Translation (the idea to grasp): Think of a good carpenter working on smoothing out a piece of wood with a ‘plane’ (an instrument used to smooth out a wooden surface; see the figure below). Initially, he would use a large, heavy plane to take out the ‘big bumps’ on the surface. Then he would use a smaller plane (with a fine blade) to smooth out the surface.

• The idea is that Kāyānupassanā is the first ‘rough attempt’ to remove the hardest defilements from the mind (wrong views or micchā diṭṭhi, specifically the three diṭṭhi saṁyojana, including sakkāya diṭṭhi). These are the causes for rebirths in the apāyās, i.e., Kāyānupassanā leads to the Sotapanna stage.
• Now, the next step is to use the finer version (to see the details of the mind-contamination process) so one can understand the role of the kāma saññā in giving rise to the ‘purāna kamma‘ stage. This is ‘Kāye Kāyānupassanā,‘ that is described starting @ marker 2.9. This is essential for removing the remaining seven saṁyojana. That would take one from the Sotapanna stage to the Arahant stage.

Starting the Description on Kāye Kāyānupassanā

8. Thus, the description of ‘Kāye Kāyānupassanā‘ in the Mahā Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta starts @ marker 2.9. This is important to keep in mind when we examine the following verses that describe it.

(@2.9)”evameva kho, bhikkhave, bhikkhu dīghaṁ vā assasanto ‘dīghaṁ assasāmī’ti pajānāti, dīghaṁ vā passasanto ‘dīghaṁ passasāmī’ti pajānāti, rassaṁ vā assasanto ‘rassaṁ assasāmī’ti pajānāti, rassaṁ vā passasanto ‘rassaṁ passasāmī’ti pajānāti.‘Sabbakāyapaṭisaṁvedī assasissāmī’ti sikkhati, ‘sabbakāyapaṭisaṁvedī passasissāmī’ti sikkhati, ‘passambhayaṁ kāyasaṅkhāraṁ assasissāmī’ti sikkhati, ‘passambhayaṁ kāyasaṅkhāraṁ passasissāmī’ti sikkhati.

(@2.11) Iti ajjhattaṁ vā kāye kāyānupassī viharati, bahiddhā vā kāye kāyānupassī viharati, ajjhattabahiddhā vā kāye kāyānupassī viharati. Samudayadhammānupassī vā kāyasmiṁ viharati, vayadhammānupassī vā kāyasmiṁ viharati, samudayavayadhammānupassī vā kāyasmiṁ viharati.‘Atthi kāyo’ti vā panassa sati paccupaṭṭhitā hoti yāvadeva ñāṇamattāya paṭissatimattāya anissito ca viharati, na ca kiñci loke upādiyati.

(@2.14) Evampi kho, bhikkhave, bhikkhu kāye kāyānupassī viharati.”

• Kāye Kāyānupassanā is about another ‘kāya‘ in the ‘pañcupādānakkhandha kāya.’

9. That ‘kāya within kāya’ is the ‘purāna kamma‘ stage of the ‘pañcupādānakkhandha kāya.’ The initial part of the ‘pañcupādānakkhandha kāya’ (‘purāna kamma‘ stage) can be uncovered only by a Buddha.

• This is the ‘pubbe ananussuta dhamma‘ discovered by a Buddha; see #2 above. (As we have discussed, ‘pañcupādānakkhandha kāya’ = ‘purāna kamma’ stage + ‘nava kamma’ stage.)

Passambhaya – Two Meanings

10. In the Ānāpānasati Sutta describing ‘Kāyānupassanā’ (@marker 18.4 in that sutta), the phrase, ‘passambhayaṁ kāya saṅkhāraṁ’ refers to ‘calming of the saṅkhāra generation associated with the ‘whole kāya’ or the ‘pañcupādānakkhandha kāya.’  See #6 above.

• We also discussed that in #3 of “First Stage of Ānāpānasati – Verses in Ānāpānasati Sutta.”
• The same verse with the same meaning appears at marker 2.1 in the Mahā Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta, where it briefly mentions ‘Kāyānupassanā,’ before providing the analogy of a carpenter switching to a ‘finer plane’ to smooth a piece of wood.
• That is when the sutta switches to discussing Kāye Kāyānupassanā as seen in the verses in #8 above.

“Passambhayaṁ Kāyasaṅkhāraṁ” in Kāye Kāyānupassanā

11. The same verse (‘passambhayaṁ kāyasaṅkhāraṁ’) is used with a different meaning when describing Kāye Kāyānupassanā in both suttās. Here, we are discussing the Mahā Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta.

• At @marker 2.9, the Mahā Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta starts describing Kāye Kāyānupassanā. There, the verse, ‘passambhayaṁ kāyasaṅkhāraṁ assasissāmī’ti sikkhati, ‘passambhayaṁ kāyasaṅkhāraṁ passasissāmī’ti sikkhat‘ appears for the second time.
• Here, the verse refers to two types of ‘kāya‘ within the ‘purāna kamma‘ stage.
• Let’s discuss that now.

Kāye Kāyānupassanā Description in Mahā Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta

12. To emphasize, now we are discussing the verse ‘Passambhayaṁ kāyasaṅkhāraṁ assasissāmī’ti sikkhati, ‘passambhayaṁ kāyasaṅkhāraṁ passasissāmī’ti sikkhati’ appears @marker 2.9 in the Mahā Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta, after the sutta starts describing Kāye Kāyānupassanā.

• Here, ‘Passambhayaṁ (‘passam ubhayaṁ‘ ) refers to ‘seeing two types of kāya saṅkhāra‘; ‘ubhaya’ means ‘two’ and ‘passa‘ means ‘to see.’ The word Passambhayaṁ has a totally different meaning here.
• Thus, the verse here refers to the ‘saṅkhāra formation’ in two stages: ‘purana kamma‘ and ‘nava kamma‘ stages.
• In the first stage of Ānāpānasati (on Kāyānupassanā), ‘saṅkhāra formation’ refers to that in the whole ‘pañcupādānakkhandha kāya.’ 
• Now, we are focusing on ‘saṅkhāra formation’ in the ‘purana kamma‘ stage, i.e., how initial, weak saṅkhāra arise due to the ‘kāma saññā.’

Two Types of Kāya in the Purāna Kamma Stage – Ajjhatta and Bahiddha Kāya

13. Two types of ‘kāya’ (with ‘kāya saṅkhāra‘) that arise in the ‘purana kamma‘ stage are explained next @maker 2.11 in the Mahā Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta: “Iti ajjhattaṁ vā kāye kāyānupassī viharati, bahiddhā vā kāye kāyānupassī viharati, ajjhattabahiddhā vā kāye kāyānupassī viharati.”

• Translation: “And so they meditate observing the ajjhatta kāya and bahiddha kāya.” Note that ‘kāya‘ includes five entities (rupa, vedanā, saññā, saṅkhāra, viññāna).
• Again, it is critical to have the sutta printouts in front and to closely follow the above text to capture the finer details.
• The above verse refers to the ajjhatta kāya and bahiddha kāya. Those are the initial stages of ‘kaye kāya‘ or the ‘purāna kāya.’ They are all (initial) stages of the ‘pañcupādānakkhandha kāya’  or simply the ‘kāya.’
• We have discussed all those terms of ‘purāna kāya,‘ ajjhatta kāya, and bahiddha kāya in great detail in previous posts. See, for example, “Purāna and Nava Kamma – Sequence of Kamma Generation.”
• Regarding the “saṅkhāra formation” mentioned above, the purāna kamma stage again has two types: bahiddha saṅkhāra and ajjhatta saṅkhāra. The bahiddha and ajjhatta kāya stages would have their own rupa, vedanā, saññā, saṅkhāra, viññāna kāya. 

Samudhaya and Vaya Dhamma

14. The next verse in the Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta (@2.12) is: ‘Samudaya dhammānupassī vā kāyasmiṁ viharati, vaya dhammānupassī vā kāyasmiṁ viharati, samudaya vaya dhammānupassī vā kāyasmiṁ viharati.’

• It means: ‘you comprehend how the ajjhatta kāya and bahiddha kāya arise (Samudaya) via attachment to the ‘kāma saññā‘ (in the ‘kāma loka‘). You will also understand how both can be stopped from arising (Vaya). Thus, you will understand both ‘samudaya‘ and ‘vaya.’
• If ajjhatta kāya and bahiddha kāya cannot arise, then ‘pañcupādānakkhandha kāya’ cannot arise. Thus, the mind is now in the Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi devoid of ‘kāma saññā.’

The last verse there (@2.13) is “‘Atthi kāyo’ti vā panassa sati paccupaṭṭhitā hoti yāvadeva ñāṇamattāya paṭissatimattāya anissito ca viharati, na ca kiñci loke upādiyati.”

• It means: That is how one’s mind enters the Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi (paccupaṭṭhitā hoti) with cultivated wisdom (ñāṇamattāya) and spends the time there not being subject to the ‘kāma saññā‘ and without any inducement for craving things in the world (na ca kiñci loke upādiyati).

The above is only a summary (key steps) of the process of cultivating Satipaṭṭhāna. We will discuss details in upcoming posts. 

• Please review the relevant previous posts starting with “Ānāpānasati – Connection to Satipaṭṭhāna” in “Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta – New Series” section (fourth post there).

Other Three Types of Anupassanā Associated With Kāye Kāyānupassanā

15. As we know, ‘kāya‘ or ‘pañcupādānakkhandha kāya‘ has five entities: rupa. vedanā, saññā, saṅkhāra, and viññāna.

• When focusing on the whole kāya, that is kāyānupassanā. Associated with it, one also cultivates vedanānupassanā, cittānupassanā, and dhammānupassanā. Those three are parts of kāyānupassanā: vedanānupassanā is about vedanā; cittānupassanā is about contemplating what types of saṅkhāra are generated (rāga, dosa, or moha); dhammānupassanā is about contemplating the concepts associated with kamma generation. They are discussed in the first stage of Ānāpānasati.
• As we discussed above, Kāye Kāyānupassanā focuses on the initial ‘purāna kamma‘ stage of the whole kāya.
• Therefore, Vedanāsu Vedanānupassanā, Cittesu Cittānupassanā, and Dhammesu Dhammānupassanā are associated with Kāye Kāyānupassanā, i.e., the contemplation of those entities in the ‘Kāye Kāya‘ (or the ‘purāna kamma‘ stage of the whole kāya). They are briefly discussed in the second stage of Ānāpānasati and are described in more detail in the Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta.
• In the next post, I will provide a broader description of the Ānāpānasati Sutta to tie up any ‘loose ends.’ It is critical to understand the basic frameworks of the Ānāpānasati Sutta and the Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta.