A single elided line, closing this vagga's own ten topics
Length
<1 minute to read, plus a described (not translated) colophon and uddāna
Northern parallel
No individual parallel confirmed by this project's own check
Difficulty
★☆☆☆☆ — closes this vagga's own ten topics, giving the vagga its own name
Why this discourse
Mindfulness of breathing (ānāpānassati) — the meditation subject giving this entire vagga its own name — closes the sequence with the identical single-line compression already applied to the eight preceding topics, confirmed by the vagga's own colophon to be its own tenth and final subject.
Reading guide
The vagga's own namesake, closing rather than opening
Unlike vaggas named for their own opening discourse (such as the Pabbatavagga, named for SN 46.1's own mountain simile), this vagga takes its own name (Ānāpānavagga) from its own CLOSING topic — mindfulness of breathing, a meditation practice significant enough elsewhere in the canon (notably the much longer Ānāpānasati Sutta, MN 118) to lend its own name to this entire ten-topic sequence despite occupying only its own final, single-line position here.
A colophon and uddāna, confirming this vagga's own count
The Pāli root closes with “Dasamaṁ” (“the tenth”) and “Ānāpānavaggo sattamo” (“the Breathing chapter, the seventh”), matching this project's own count without discrepancy. The closing uddāna names all ten topics in order: skeleton, worm-infested, livid; split open, bloated (the fifth); love, compassion, rejoicing; equanimity and breathing, these ten.
Key terms
ānāpānassati — “mindfulness of breathing” — the meditation subject giving this entire vagga its own name, closing rather than opening its own sequence
bhāvitā bahulīkatā — “developed and cultivated” — the standard phrase, followed by the source's own elision
satta bojjhaṅgā — the seven awakening factors, implicitly developed together with mindfulness of breathing
ānāpānavaggo sattamo — “the Breathing chapter, the seventh” — unambiguous confirmation of this vagga's own position, matching this project's own count without discrepancy
dasamaṁ — “the tenth” — the Pāli root's own closing numeral, confirming this vagga's own total of ten topics
The text
The complete discourse as the source itself gives it, closing the Ānāpānavagga. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).
§1“Mendicants, when mindfulness of breathing is developed and cultivated it’s very fruitful and beneficial. …”
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Self-check quiz
3 questions. Click an answer to see immediate feedback. No score is recorded — this is for your own checking.
Question 1 of 3
What is unusual about how this vagga gets its own name, compared to a vagga like the Pabbatavagga?
Correct: A. The Pabbatavagga, by contrast, is named for SN 46.1's own opening mountain simile.
Question 2 of 3
What longer, well-known discourse elsewhere in the canon treats mindfulness of breathing at much greater length?
Correct: A. A significant enough practice elsewhere in the canon to lend its own name to this entire ten-topic vagga.
Question 3 of 3
What does this vagga's own closing colophon confirm?
Correct: A. Confirmed without discrepancy, consistent with several vaggas already confirmed throughout SN 46.
