Did the Buddha only watch his breath for six years?
No,
That's not it.
When Buddha first started on his ascetic path,
He actually visited many teachers and tried to follow their teachings.
First,
He visited people who were teachers that taught the asceticism and he followed that path.
Then he realized the limitation of that path and he went to others and also experienced the others' path.
Then he wasn't satisfied with that path and he went looking for other teachers and tried those other ways as well.
However,
He got to the level of his teacher but he realized that that wasn't a complete state of being.
So he realized that himself and he went searching for others,
For other means.
So there were no other teachers and there was nobody else that he could look to in order to be taught.
So he took that and based on that level of practice,
He did it himself for the next six years.
So I think he really tried every single ideas or path that he could come across.
But I think the main part that he was awakened to is that suppressing your desire is not the way.
So he let go of all the teachings that he had been taught and practiced and really in a relaxed and comfortable state of mind and body,
He realized that neither following or suppressing your desire is the way.
So he kind of chose a new way in which you observe and be mindful of your desire.
So after he achieved enlightenment,
He taught others what he perceived to be a really easy path towards enlightenment.
First,
He went about kind of breaking that and then he taught others what he perceived to be a really easy way towards enlightenment.
And then he taught others what he perceived to be a really easy way towards enlightenment.
And then he taught others what he perceived to be a really easy way towards enlightenment.
And then he broke down the walls of ignorance in people through dialogue,
Conversation.
So he convinced people that the value they were following,
The construct that their life was built on until now,
And making them realize that and making them let that go.
So these people threw away their titles,
Positions,
Even kingships,
Left their family,
Threw away rich material they were surrounding themselves with and really kind of tried to live a life that's really simple.
However,
The ingrained karma that's within us that's been internalized doesn't really go away just because you threw away the trappings of your external life.
So he had to go about a way in which he was able to let go of that and then he taught others what he perceived to be a really easy way towards enlightenment.
So to go about doing that,
He had to let go of all the tension in your life including desires.
And taught them to focus on a singular point so that you don't get distracted.
And then he taught others what he perceived to be a really easy way to focus on a singular point so that their focus,
Their attention would be unified.
And taught them to maintain a state of mindfulness,
The state of awakeness.
And via that road,
Ask them to awaken to the truth of the body.
Also realize the underlying truth or nature of your feelings,
Your likes,
Your dislikes.
Then go about realizing the underlying truth of the nature of your desires,
Your emotions.
And kind of taught them the underlying principles by which they can free themselves from this cycle.
And there are four things that were key to that.
And realize that our current lives are based on suffering.
And that there is a underlying cause to this suffering,
To this dissatisfaction we feel in life.
And that if you get rid of the underlying cause,
Then the phenomenon of suffering,
Of dissatisfaction also goes.
Then there are these concrete ways that you can go about,
A concrete path to get rid of the underlying cause.
And taught them the precise nature of these underlying principles.
And there are four of them.
And of that,
The first method was to understand the underlying truth of the body.
And among that,
A sub part of that,
The first part is to be mindful of the breath.
And the other one is to realize the nature of your emotions.
Then also realize the different parts of your body as if you're like a car made of different parts.
And also realize that your body is composed of solid,
Liquid,
Gas,
And energy.
And also realize your body is essentially made out of your liquid,
Solid,
Gases,
And energy.
And also realize and be able to see the nine steps in which your body kind of decomposes or separates.
And really fully realize the whole cycle of your body is formed,
How it functions,
Then how it decomposes or disposes itself.
So get rid of a lot of mysticism surrounding the body.
And the very first part of that whole process is to be mindful of the breath.
It is the beginning step of a lot of step,
Follow on steps.
And it is the foundational piece for a lot of teachings.
And if you're able to be mindful to a soft breath,
That means you're mindful of the subtle sensations in your body.
And you're able to note the sentiments and emotions that arise from that subtle deep.
And if you're able to be mindful of the breath,
That means you're mindful of the subtle sensations in your body.
Also be mindful of the desires and emotions that arise from the subtle senses.
So in a way,
Being able to be mindful of the quietness of the breath is the beginning step of everything else.
At the same time,
It is everything else.
So Buddha has not said outright that he followed these exact kind of steps of his own methodology.
It looks like that he followed several different paths.
But based on his experiences as he got to his enlightenment,
I think he came up with this kind of pedagogy of how to best approach enlightenment.
So I don't think we can say that he followed the right path.
So I don't think we can say that this is the only way.
But I think it's reasonable to say that this way that Buddha taught is probably the easiest and the simplest to go about it.
