Exercise 09: Body as Impermanent

The Nine Contemplations (the nine stages of decomposition of a corpse):

• 1. The corpse is bloated, blue, and festering.

  2. The corpse is crawling with insects and worms. Crows, hawks, vultures, and wolves are tearing it apart to eat.

  3. All that is left is a skeleton with some flesh and blood clinging to it.

  4. All that is left is a skeleton with some bloodstains, but no more flesh.

  5. All that is left is a skeleton with no more bloodstains.

  6. All that is left is a collection of scattered bones -here an arm, here a shin, here a skull, and so forth.

  7. All that is left is a collection of bleached bones.

  8. All that is left is a collection of dried bones.

  9. The bones have decomposed, and only a pile of dust is left.

This exercise helps us see the impermanent and decomposing nature of our body. The objects of our mindful observation are the nine stages of the decomposition of a corpse. When you first read this, you may feel that this is not a pleasant meditation. But the effect of this practice can be very great. It can be liberating and can bring us much peace and joy. The practitioner observes mindfully in order to see the corpse at each of these stages and to see that it is inevitable that his or her own body will pass through the same stages.

In former times, practitioners would actually sit in cemeteries and observe corpses in these various stages of decomposition. Of course, today, decomposing bodies are not exposed for us to view. But we can visualize them according to the description in the sutra. This exercise should be practiced by those who are in good mental and physical health. It should not be practiced by those who have not yet mastered desire and aversion. Its intention is not to make us weary of life, but to help us see how precious life is; not to make us pessimistic, but to help us see the impermanent nature of life so that we do not waste our life. If we have the courage to see things as they are, our meditation will have beneficial results. When we see the impermanent nature of things, we appreciate their true value. Have you ever stayed up at night to see a Cereus cactus flower open? The flower opens and dies in a few hours, but because we are aware of that, we appreciate its wondrous fragrance and beauty. We can be in real contact with the flower and not be sad or depressed when it fades, because we knew before it opened how ephemeral its life was. 

Our dear ones who live with us and the beautiful and precious beings around us are all wonderful cactus flowers. If we can see their true nature as well as their outward form, we will know how to value their presence in the present moment. If we know how to value them, we will have the time to be in real contact with them, and we will take care of them, make them happy, and therefore be happier ourselves.

These Nine Contemplations help us see the preciousness of life. They teach us how to live lightly and freshly, without being caught by attachments and aversions.

~From Transformation and Healing by Thich Nhat Hanh