Reading guide
Four benefits, gathered together
Confirmed by direct reading, this discourse restates all four benefits named separately across SN 54.17-19 — giving up the fetters, uprooting the underlying tendencies, completely understanding the course of time — adding its own fourth and final claim, ending the defilements (āsavakkhaya), the traditional mark of arahantship already met throughout this project's own SN 51 and SN 52 work.
The formula, given in full once more
Confirmed by direct reading, this discourse states the complete sixteen-step formula's own opening and closing steps once more before attributing all four benefits to it — the same formula given in full at this saṃyutta's own opening discourse, SN 54.1, now closing the saṃyutta as well.
The close of Vagga 2 and of the entire saṃyutta
Confirmed by direct reading of the root Pali colophon (not assumed): “Dasamaṁ. Dutiyo vaggo.” (“Tenth. The second vagga [ends].”), followed immediately by “Ānāpānasaṁyuttaṁ dasamaṁ” (“The Ānāpānasaṃyutta is the tenth [section].”) — confirming this project's own expected structure of 20 discourses across 2 vaggas (10+10), and confirming this saṃyutta as Book V's own tenth, directly following SN 53 (Jhānasaṃyutta, the ninth), already confirmed complete by this project.
A ten-title uddāna, confirmed against this project's own SN 54.11-20
Confirmed by direct reading, this discourse's own closing uddāna (“Icchānaṅgala, Kaṅkheyya, two more with Ānanda; mendicants, fetters and tendencies, course of time and ending of defilements”) lists exactly ten titles, matching this project's own SN 54.11 through SN 54.20 precisely.
Key terms
The text
§1“Mendicants, when immersion due to mindfulness of breathing is developed and cultivated it leads to the ending of defilements.” … “And how is immersion due to mindfulness of breathing developed and cultivated so as to lead to giving up the fetters, uprooting the underlying tendencies, completely understanding the course of time, and ending the defilements?
The formulaIt’s when a mendicant—gone to a wilderness, or to the root of a tree, or to an empty hut—sits down cross-legged, sets their body straight, and establishes mindfulness in front of them. … They practice like this: ‘I’ll breathe in observing letting go.’ They practice like this: ‘I’ll breathe out observing letting go.’
§2That’s how immersion due to mindfulness of breathing is developed and cultivated so as to lead to giving up the fetters, uprooting the underlying tendencies, completely understanding the course of time, and ending the defilements.”
ClosingThe Linked Discourses on Mindfulness of Breathing is the tenth section.
Self-check quiz
3 questions. Click an answer to see immediate feedback. No score is recorded — this is for your own checking.