What the heck does “parimukhaṁ” mean? It’s mentioned in classic Buddhist meditation instructions and is often translated as something like “bring mindfulness to the fore.” Some other translations of this Pali word “parimukhaṁ” — found in the essential Satipaṭṭhāna and Ānāpānasati Suttas — are:
- establish mindfulness in front
- focuses their mindfulness right there
- establishes mindfulness as foremost
- arousing mindfulness in front of him
- arouses mindfulness in the object of meditation, namely, the breath which is in front of him
- keeps his body erect and his mindfulness alert. [Literally, “setting up mindfulness in front.”]
- establishing mindfulness to the fore
- setting mindfulness to the fore [lit: the front of the chest]
- establish mindfulness right there
- pari-mukhaṃ satiṃ upaṭṭhapetvā = Make sati establishment your “main priority”
- “focus on the task at hand”, or make “what’s in front of you your main priority”
- prioritizing mindfulness [p.71 footnote in Breathing like a Buddha]
neuter
- mouth; face; entrance; opening; front. (adjective), foremost
More on this topic from different angles later but first various translations of sutta selections where mukha appears to get an idea of how it works in the suttas.
The various translations below are from the following Pali portion of the Satipatthana Sutta — Discourse on Applications of Mindfulness:
Idha, bhikkhave, bhikkhu araññagato vā rukkhamūlagato vā suññāgāragato vā nisīdati, pallaṅkaṁ ābhujitvā, ujuṁ kāyaṁ paṇidhāya, parimukhaṁ satiṁ upaṭṭhapetvā.
It’s when a mendicant—gone to a wilderness, or to the root of a tree, or to an empty hut—sits down cross-legged, with their body straight, and focuses their mindfulness right there. Just mindful, they breathe in. Mindful, they breathe out.
Mahāsatipaṭṭhānasutta—Bhikkhu Sujato
Middle Discourses 10
Mindfulness Meditation
Monks, a monk who has gone to the forest, to the base of a tree, or to an empty building sits down, crosses his legs, sets his body upright, and establishes mindfulness as foremost. One breathes in mindfully, one breathes out mindfully.
Mahāsatipaṭṭhānasutta—Suddhāso Bhikkhu
10. Great Discourse on the Establishment of Mindfulness
Suddhāso Bhikkhu, (2018)
And how, monks, does a monk fare along contemplating the body in the body? Herein, monks, a monk who is forest-gone or gone to the root of a tree or gone to an empty place, sits down cross-legged, holding his back erect, arousing mindfulness in front of him.
Majjhima Nikāya–I.B. Horner
The Middle Length Sayings
Satipaṭṭhāna Suttaṁ
10. Discourse on the Applications of Mindfulness
Here, O bhikkhus, a bhikkhu, gone to the forest, to the foot of a tree, or to an empty place, sits down, bends in his legs crosswise on his lap, keeps his body erect, and arouses mindfulness in the object of meditation, namely, the breath which is in front of him.
MN 10 PTS: M i 55
Satipatthana Sutta: The Discourse on the Arousing of Mindfulness
translated from the Pali by Soma Thera
Herein, monks, a monk, having gone to the forest, to the foot of a tree or to an empty place, sits down with his legs crossed, keeps his body erect and his mindfulness alert.3 [3] Literally, “setting up mindfulness in front.”]
MN 10 PTS: M i 55
Satipatthana Sutta: The Foundations of Mindfulness
translated from the Pali by Nyanasatta Thera
“And how does a monk remain focused on the body in & of itself?
“There is the case where a monk—having gone to the wilderness, to the shade of a tree, or to an empty building—sits down folding his legs crosswise, holding his body erect and establishing mindfulness to the fore [lit: the front of the chest].6 Always mindful, he breathes in; mindful he breathes out.
Note(s):
6. To the fore (parimukhaṁ): An Abhidhamma text, Vibhaṅga 12:1, defines this term as meaning “the tip of the nose or the sign of the mouth.” However, the term appears as part of a stock phrase describing a person engaged in meditation, even for themes that have nothing to do with the body at all, such as sublime-attitude (brahma-vihāra) meditation (AN 3:64). Thus it seems more likely that the term is used in an idiomatic sense, indicating either that mindfulness is placed face-to-face with its object, or that it is made prominent, which is how I have translated it here.
Selection (mix) from The Establishing of Mindfulness Discourse
Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta (MN 10)–Ṭhānissaro Bhikkhu
The same selection of Pali appearing above also appears in the Ānāpānasati Sutta — (often translated as Mindfulness of Breathing):
“There is the case where a monk, having gone to the wilderness, to the shade of a tree, or to an empty building, sits down folding his legs crosswise, holding his body erect, and establishing mindfulness to the fore.1
Same Note:
1. To the fore (parimukhaṁ): An Abhidhamma text, Vibhaṅga 12:1, defines this term as meaning “the tip of the nose or the sign of the mouth.” However, the term appears as part of a stock phrase describing a person engaged in meditation, even for themes that have nothing to do with the body at all, such as sublime-attitude (brahma-vihāra) meditation (AN 3:64). Thus it seems more likely that the term is used in an idiomatic sense, indicating either that mindfulness is placed face-to-face with its object, or that it is made prominent, which is how I have translated it here.
Selection from Mindfulness of Breathing
Ānāpānasati Sutta (MN 118)
Here a bhikkhu, gone to the forest or to the root of a tree or to an empty hut, sits down; having folded his legs crosswise, set his body erect, and established mindfulness in front of him, ever mindful he breathes in, mindful he breathes out.
Selection from Majjhima Nikāya–—Bhikkhu Bodhi
118. Mindfulness of Breathing
It’s when a mendicant has gone to a wilderness, or to the root of a tree, or to an empty hut. They sit down cross-legged, with their body straight, and establish mindfulness right there. Just mindful, they breathe in. Mindful, they breathe out.
[Or, it looks like there’s slight editing tweak since I first started working on this article:] It’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.
Selection from Middle Discourses 118—Bhikkhu Sujato
Mindfulness of Breathing
There is also:
Established mindfulness in front of him (parimukhaṁ satiṁ upaṭṭhapetvā) =
having placed (ṭhapayitvā) mindfulness (satiṁ) facing the meditation subject (kammaṭṭhānābhimukhaṁ). Or alternatively, the meaning can be treated here too according to the method of explanation given in the Paṭisambhidā, which is this: Pari has the sense of control (pariggaha), mukhaṁ (lit. mouth) has the sense of outlet (niyyāna), sati has the sense of establishment (upaṭṭhāna); that is why parimukhaṁ satiṁ (‘mindfulness as a controlled outlet’) is said” (Paṭis I 176). The meaning of it in brief is: Having made mindfulness the outlet (from opposition, forgetfulness being thereby] controlled.— 161 Visuddhimagga Chapter VIII
I’ve kind of wondered for awhile how exactly one “establishes mindfulness to the fore.” And in the suttas this seems more a prerequisite than an end goal as in one ought actually to establish mindfulness first before getting into the training. This may be in contrast to the perception of training the Four Foundations of Mindfulness and Ānāpānasati to result in (greater) mindfulness. (Although, granted, it seems likely a meditator both uses whatever degree of mindfulness is available from the get-go as well as training to cultivate mindfulness.)
I was reminded of this instruction of establishing mindfulness to the fore — as well as learned a new caveat I explore in just a bit — all from a brief mention made in Gradual Training on the Buddhist Path with Leigh Brasington Part 2 of 2 [which I also did a related blog post on this event called Questions And Points Put To Leigh Brasington On “Psychic Powers” In The Suttas where Leigh answers some of my questions]:
. . . Just above this, we had one sits down cross legged, holds one’s body erect, and sets up mindfulness before oneself. I would say yeah, if you can sit cross legged, great. But we have these evil things called chairs. And they’ve screwed up our ability to sit cross legged. So sit in a chair, be on a bench, lie down if necessary. If you lie down to meditate, pull your knees up, so your feet are flat on the bed or floor or whatever you’re lying on. And your knees are up making a little triangle bear with your feet and your point where your knees touch each other. Okay. And then one sets up mindfulness before oneself, so literal translation, one sets up mindfulness at the mukha. Mukha means mouth, but I think it’s like the mouth of a cave, the opening, and I’m assuming that’s the opening at the nostrils.
Leigh Brasington from Gradual Training on the Buddhist Path with Leigh Brasington Part 2 of 2
As far as I know the Buddha never explicitly says to do the particular samatha technique (sometimes taught) of paying attention to the breath on just the edges of the nostrils and upper lip, or the “Ānāpāna spot.” Could this samatha technique originate, or partially originate from the word mukha or parimukhaṁ [as mentioned briefly in the aforementioned Leigh Brasington event] sometimes translated as mouth; face; entrance; opening; or front?
And could this mukha, this front entrance (also be extrapolated to) mean the opening(s) of/at the sense gates — body, nose, taste, sight, sound, and mind — the threshold where contact happens (and/or the noticing of phenomena arising and perishing wherever and however that happens and is sensed)?
If so, in meditation practice, how about taking it a step further by bringing attention and awareness to (certain) skillful and unskillful phenomena at the sense gates? And in particular paying attention to sense phenomena in the most conducive way(s) to further approach realizing full awakening as well as vice versa: what not to attend to in what way(s) in order to eradicate any and all sabotaging of eventual Nibbana?
So are there diplomatic compromises to all these different thoughts, ideas and translations especially in the context of mediation practice? How about something like practicing with the breath’s foremost (important) place? Perhaps, at least from time to time, this constitutes a physical association with the body and breath. Perhaps at other times it’s an energetic association with the body and breath. Maybe it’s some other association. And maybe it’s a combination. Can this include the”Ānāpāna spot” at times as well as the entire body as a whole? Why or why not is this legit?
Other stuff coming to mind around the word parimukhaṁ:
- If it’s like the opening of a cave could this include (all) the passageways in the head like the nasal passages, ear openings and tubes, throat spaces, mouth and what the difference of this more external, upper beginning and end point breath energy when compared to the breath energy of air passages deeper (down) in the body?
- If I’m getting this right, “pari-” is a prefix used with the connotation of around, about, all over, or that of completeness. Could this be like parinibbāna where “pari” means something like ultimate or complete or best overall then mixing with “mukhaṁ” as mouth, opening, entrance and/or any of the other mentioned interpretations for “mukhaṁ“?
- There’s also the similar prefix “para”:
Definitions:
1. Beside; near; alongside: parathyroid.
2. Beyond: paranormal.
3. Incorrect; abnormal: paresthesia.
4. Similar to; resembling: paratyphoid fever.
5. Subsidiary; assistant: paraprofessional.
6. Isomeric; polymeric: paraldehyde.
Etymology:
para- (1)
before vowels, par-, word-forming element of Greek origin, “alongside, beyond; altered; contrary; irregular, abnormal,” from Greek para- from para (prep.) “beside, near; issuing from; against, contrary to” (from PIE *prea, from root *per- (1) “forward,” hence “toward, near; against”).
It is cognate with Old English for- “off, away.” Originally in English in Greek-derived words; it has been active in English mostly in scientific and technical words, but until recently was not usually regarded as a naturalized formative element in English.
para- (2)
before vowels par-, word-forming element of Latin origin meaning “defense, protection against; that which protects from,” from Italian para, imperative of parare “to ward off,” from Latin parare “make ready” (from PIE root *pere- (1) “to produce, procure”). It figures in parachute, parasol, parapet, etc.
https://www.thefreedictionary.com/para- and https://www.etymonline.com/word/para-
- Take and apply “para” in this meditative context. Perhaps this lends to more a vagueness and non-conventionality to what regularly experiences in worldly life, beyond what things seem on the surface. “Para” also brings to my mind “two” as in “pair.” In terms of breathing and mediation, there are plenty of pairs. In and out being the biggest. The in and out breath, two pauses between them, a start and an end to the in-breath, a start and an end to the out-breath, two nostrils and two lungs, an area preceding the nostrils and areas inside the body outside of the lungs.
- The etymological “that which protects from” and “to ward off” seems reminiscent of the mindfulness instructions to guard the sense doors. Where, how and what is being allowed to go into and out of the body, senses, mind, etc. or going in and out without being allowed? How is the protection and friendliness?
- This somehow reminded me of the Freemasonic notion of the Middle Chamber and the Buddha’s enlightenment poem which you’ll have to look both these up on your own and do your own contemplation on this if you feel there’s any relevance and/or helpfulness to come from it
- Also reminded of the article “Is Ānāpānasati Breath Meditation?” which is a must read for its many important points not mentioned much in Buddhist meditation circles around the fundamental meditation practice of Ānāpānasati https://puredhamma.net/bhavana-meditation/anapanasati-not-breath-meditation/
- It’s a stretch but could there kind of be the English words “muck” and “ham” in mukhaṁ and parimukhaṁ?
- To be in the muck means to be in the thick of something one wouldn’t likely like to be in. Dirt. Challenging topics. Underbellies and the like. Or a muckraker is someone reporting on topics of the like.
- The Chinook Jargon muckamuck means food and muckamuck, sometimes derogatory means a person in a position of power or authority
- A “ham” is someone who is the center of attention and acting in a way to be so. Obviously, ham is also a particular choice part of meat from a pig.
- The “Dharmāloka-Mukhaṁ” (text) is translated as “Entrance into the Light of the Dharma”
Śraddhā Mārṣā Dharmāloka-mukham-
Sirs, the faith entrance into the light of the Dharmaabhedy-āśayatāyai saṁvartate,
The first of the one hundred and eight constituents of the Entrance into the Light of the Dharma
opens the way to unbroken intention,
- Thanissaro Bhikkhu mentions parimukhaṁ literally means “the front of the chest.” A few more modern sayings perhaps seem relavant to relating to parimukhaṁ in this way:
- “that old chestnut”
- “get that off my chest”
- “hold _______ close to the heart”
- “keep/hold your cards close (to your chest)”
So after examination and contemplation, how might be some other ways to approach (all) this in practice?
Placing All This Into Practice Possibilities
When examining, contemplating and playing with the words and notions for the translations of mukha and/or parimukhaṁ perhaps consider the following practice concepts in light of the corresponding instruction laid out in the Ānāpānasati and Satipatthana Suttas ‘Idha, bhikkhave, bhikkhu araññagato vā rukkhamūlagato vā suññāgāragato vā nisīdati, pallaṅkaṁ ābhujitvā, ujuṁ kāyaṁ paṇidhāya, parimukhaṁ satiṁ upaṭṭhapetvā‘ :
- How about as a contemplation / meditation object sitting with: what does this “bring awareness to the fore” really mean and how ought it be implemented?
- How about attention itself as a meditation object? Noticing the where/location, how and quality of attention from moment to moment?
- And these, a mix of interpretation, perception and (meta-like, overarching) practice instructions:
- Open up to the practice of [mindfulness]
- Open/create a/the mindful(ness) space for [mindfulness practice]
- Hold the/one’s intent [of cultivating mindfulness] close to the heart
- Enter into (formal) mindfulness practice
- Establishes a set, setting and utmost priority [for mindfulness (practice)]
- One recalls, is aware of and realizes the distinction between inner and outer, interior and exterior of the body [for mindfulness cultivation]
- Or maybe establishing mindfulness to the fore is an overall summation and preview of what one will be doing and/or what one does when practicing the Four Foundations of Mindfulness and Ānāpānasati?
Other Resources:
- https://www.quora.com/What-is-parimukham
- https://lucid24.org/tped/p/parimukha/book/index.html
- https://buddhism.stackexchange.com/questions/34103/what-does-pari-mukha-mean-in-16-aps-anapana-sati
- https://buddhism.stackexchange.com/questions/2518/what-is-the-interpretation-of-parimukham-in-the-context-of-buddhist-meditation
Integrating Presence 
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