Preparation

Sit quietly and allow the body to settle. Let the breath flow naturally.

Establish mindfulness with the intention: "May this contemplation loosen my attachment to this body, and awaken insight into impermanence, not-self, and the urgency to practice."

Visualization of the Corpse

Bring to mind the image: "Just as if one were to see a corpse thrown aside in a charnel ground, one, two, or three days dead, bloated, livid, and festering, in the same way, a disciple considers this very body, however it is placed or disposed, as: This too is the nature of the body, thus it will become, and it is not exempt from this fate. Thus, a disciple dwells contemplating the body in the body internally."

Visualize it clearly:

• The skin has discolored, turning blue-green.
• The belly is swollen with gas.
• Fluids begin to seep.
• The stench of decomposition fills the air.
• Flies gather. The body no longer resembles the person it once was.

This is the body, just days after the breath stops.

Reflect: “This too is the nature of this body.”

Look at your own body, not abstractly but as this body, flesh, skin, blood, and organs.

What you wash and perfume today will rot and stink tomorrow. What you clothe and admire will be reduced to bone and dust.

Let this bring disenchantment, not depression, but a liberating disillusionment.

Bring It Closer to Your Sense of Self

Consider the parts of the body you most identify with, your face, your voice, your body’s strength.

Say: "These too will not last. They are not mine, not me, not my self."

Stay with that feeling. Let it pierce through vanity, fear, and fantasy.

Conclude in Stillness

Return to the breath. Let the mind rest in silence. Sense the freedom in letting go of ownership of the body.

Generate a gentle resolve:

• While this body lasts, may I use it to walk the path.

• May I not be deceived by its appearance.

• May I remember the truth of death and decay so that I may live wisely, with compassion and urgency.