Meditating on the body and skeleton
58 Following in the Buddha's Footsteps
Venerable Thubten Chodron 
Volume 4 Following in the Buddha's Footsteps 
Jul 11, 2025 Part of an ongoing series of teachings based on the book Following in the Buddha's Footsteps, the fourth volume in The Library of Wisdom and Compassion series by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Venerable Thubten Chodron.
- Review of taming the five hindrances
- Meditating on color, shape, tactile contact and usefulness of the body
- Body as a corpse and also body when alive
- Meditations on the skeleton and bone
- Counteracting attachment, restlessness and laxity
58 Meditating on the Body and Skeleton (download)
Contemplation points
- We apply the antidotes to our afflictions during our meditation sessions to begin to change the way we think, to see things from a different perspective. Why is it so important to change the way we view the world in and around us? What is the danger of not investigating and challenging our thoughts?
- We meditate on the body to counter the sensual desire that interferes with concentration. Follow along, spending time with each of the sentences from the text for the Meditation on the Body to Counteract Desire. What resistance comes up when doing this meditation? As you do the meditation, how is your view of the body changed? Why is it important to our Dharma practice to do this meditation and see the body for what it is?
- We meditate on our own skeleton to counteract restlessness. Follow along, spending time with each sentence from the text for Meditating on a Skeleton to Counteract Restlessness. What are the advantages of doing this meditation? How does it change the way you view your own and others’ bodies? How might that influence your meditation sessions as well as how you interact with others in the break time?
Venerable Thubten Chodron
Venerable Chodron emphasizes the practical application of Buddha’s teachings in our daily lives and is especially skilled at explaining them in ways easily understood and practiced by Westerners. She is well known for her warm, humorous, and lucid teachings. She was ordained as a Buddhist nun in 1977 by Kyabje Ling Rinpoche in Dharamsala, India, and in 1986 she received bhikshuni (full) ordination in Taiwan. Read her full bio.
