Mindfulness of the body
100 Following in the Buddha's Footsteps
Venerable Thubten Chodron 
Volume 4 Following in the Buddha's Footsteps 
Jun 19, 2026 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 four objects of mindfulness in relation to four conceptual errors, four distortions and four truths
- Causes of the body, nature of the body and result of the body
- Looking at the body as not clean and beautiful from different aspects
- Viewing the body as the basis for many problems
- Having a balanced view and seeing the value of having a human body to practice the dharma
100 Mindfulness of the body (download)
Contemplation points
- Describe each of the distortions through which we usually view our body, feelings, mind, and phenomena.
- Which of the four truths corresponds with each distortion? How do these thoughts counteract the four distortions?
- The first sentence in this section of the text is “We are embodied beings.” What thoughts come up when you hear that expression? What does it mean to have a body from a Buddhist perspective? What is His Holiness the Dalai Lama trying to get us to recognize?
- What is a healthy relationship with our body from a Dharma perspective? What would relating to your body in a healthy way look like in your own life?
- Spend some time considering the body as a corpse, the foulness of the body, and that it is the basis of illness, injury, pain, worry, fear, and the like. What is the correct attitude to develop when meditating with mindfulness of the body? What is the danger in not reaching the correct Dharma conclusion from your meditation?
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.
