user582: I would like to have a detailed list of the steps in Mindfulness of Breathing meditation. 
What is a good suggested duration?

user745: In the Theravada school there are sixteen steps in total:
"Now how is mindfulness of in-&-out breathing developed & pursued so as to be of great fruit, of great benefit?

"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 setting mindfulness to the
  fore.[1] Always mindful, he breathes in; mindful he breathes out.
"[1] Breathing in long, he discerns, 'I am breathing in long'; or
  breathing out long, he discerns, 'I am breathing out long.' [2] Or
  breathing in short, he discerns, 'I am breathing in short'; or
  breathing out short, he discerns, 'I am breathing out short.' [3] He
  trains himself, 'I will breathe in sensitive to the entire body.'[2]
  He trains himself, 'I will breathe out sensitive to the entire body.'
  [4] He trains himself, 'I will breathe in calming bodily
  fabrication.'[3] He trains himself, 'I will breathe out calming bodily
  fabrication.'
"[5] He trains himself, 'I will breathe in sensitive to rapture.' He
  trains himself, 'I will breathe out sensitive to rapture.' [6] He
  trains himself, 'I will breathe in sensitive to pleasure.' He trains
  himself, 'I will breathe out sensitive to pleasure.' [7] He trains
  himself, 'I will breathe in sensitive to mental fabrication.'[4] He
  trains himself, 'I will breathe out sensitive to mental fabrication.'
  [8] He trains himself, 'I will breathe in calming mental fabrication.'
  He trains himself, 'I will breathe out calming mental fabrication.'
"[9] He trains himself, 'I will breathe in sensitive to the mind.' He
  trains himself, 'I will breathe out sensitive to the mind.' [10] He
  trains himself, 'I will breathe in satisfying the mind.' He trains
  himself, 'I will breathe out satisfying the mind.' [11] He trains
  himself, 'I will breathe in steadying the mind.' He trains himself, 'I
  will breathe out steadying the mind.' [12] He trains himself, 'I will
  breathe in releasing the mind.' He trains himself, 'I will breathe out
  releasing the mind.'[5]
"[13] He trains himself, 'I will breathe in focusing on inconstancy.'
  He trains himself, 'I will breathe out focusing on inconstancy.' [14]
  He trains himself, 'I will breathe in focusing on dispassion
  [literally, fading].' He trains himself, 'I will breathe out focusing
  on dispassion.' [15] He trains himself, 'I will breathe in focusing on
  cessation.' He trains himself, 'I will breathe out focusing on
  cessation.' [16] He trains himself, 'I will breathe in focusing on
  relinquishment.' He trains himself, 'I will breathe out focusing on
  relinquishment.'
"This is how mindfulness of in-&-out breathing is developed & pursued
  so as to be of great fruit, of great benefit."

Source: http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/mn/mn.118.than.html
They aren't necessarily purely sequential however. Here's a list of several works by prominent Theravada meditation teachers on how to practice Anapanasati:
http://www.dhammatalks.net/Books11/Ajahn_Brahm-Mindfulness_Bliss_and_Beyond-Chapters1-5.pdf
http://www.dhammatalks.org/Archive/Writings/EachAndEveryBreath_v130123.pdf
http://www.dhammatalks.net/Books3/Buddhadasa_Bhikkhu-Anapanasati.pdf
Within classical Theravada the definitive guide to the practice of Anapanasati is found one of the Chapters of the Visuddhimagga, the great manual of Theravada meditation and doctrine. You can find the whole Visuddhimagga here: http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/nanamoli/PathofPurification2011.pdf Starting on Anapanasati on Page 317
Here is a basic introduction to Anapanasati by a Monk in the Ajahn Chah Thai Forest Tradition in a video playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8883E3B0A0F5587A

user5: Steps differ by every teaching lineage. But a basic outline would look like this:

Focus on the breath and recognize it as breath, without the thought, this is me, this is mine, this is what I am, this is good, this is bad, etc.
If the mind wanders from the breath, acknowledge the thought in some system of categorizing objects that arise in the experience. The Satipatthana Sutta outlines a neat and tidy system for categorizing such objects.
Return to focusing on the breath.
Repeat 1-3 for duration of practice.

As for duration of practice, do what your body and mind can handle, and work upwards from there. Start with 5 minutes, and if that's easy, try 10 or 15. Try 30 or 60 minutes. But there's no substitute for having a teacher.
On a meditation course, my teacher had me practice 50 minutes of walking meditation, then 50 minutes of sitting meditation, repeating indefinitely. Back in the ordinary world I tend to keep it at 30 minutes (15 walking, 15 sitting).
If you study under a teacher, you will find that every teaching lineage has their own specific steps. For example in the Mahasi Sayadaw school we don't just focus on the breath. We start with rising and falling of the abdomen, and then as skill develops we include recognition of sitting, and then recognition of various points on the body. Out of respect for the teachers I don't want to go into too much detail as I am not a meditation teacher, just a practitioner.
theravadasatipatthanamahasibreathing

582: <p>I would like to have a detailed list of the steps in Mindfulness of Breathing meditation. </p>

<p>What is a good suggested duration?</p>
 745: <p>In the Theravada school there are sixteen steps in total:</p>

<p>"Now how is mindfulness of in-&amp;-out breathing developed &amp; pursued so as to be of great fruit, of great benefit?</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>"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 setting mindfulness to the
  fore.[1] Always mindful, he breathes in; mindful he breathes out.</p>
  
  <p>"[1] Breathing in long, he discerns, 'I am breathing in long'; or
  breathing out long, he discerns, 'I am breathing out long.' [2] Or
  breathing in short, he discerns, 'I am breathing in short'; or
  breathing out short, he discerns, 'I am breathing out short.' [3] He
  trains himself, 'I will breathe in sensitive to the entire body.'[2]
  He trains himself, 'I will breathe out sensitive to the entire body.'
  [4] He trains himself, 'I will breathe in calming bodily
  fabrication.'[3] He trains himself, 'I will breathe out calming bodily
  fabrication.'</p>
  
  <p>"[5] He trains himself, 'I will breathe in sensitive to rapture.' He
  trains himself, 'I will breathe out sensitive to rapture.' [6] He
  trains himself, 'I will breathe in sensitive to pleasure.' He trains
  himself, 'I will breathe out sensitive to pleasure.' [7] He trains
  himself, 'I will breathe in sensitive to mental fabrication.'[4] He
  trains himself, 'I will breathe out sensitive to mental fabrication.'
  [8] He trains himself, 'I will breathe in calming mental fabrication.'
  He trains himself, 'I will breathe out calming mental fabrication.'</p>
  
  <p>"[9] He trains himself, 'I will breathe in sensitive to the mind.' He
  trains himself, 'I will breathe out sensitive to the mind.' [10] He
  trains himself, 'I will breathe in satisfying the mind.' He trains
  himself, 'I will breathe out satisfying the mind.' [11] He trains
  himself, 'I will breathe in steadying the mind.' He trains himself, 'I
  will breathe out steadying the mind.' [12] He trains himself, 'I will
  breathe in releasing the mind.' He trains himself, 'I will breathe out
  releasing the mind.'[5]</p>
  
  <p>"[13] He trains himself, 'I will breathe in focusing on inconstancy.'
  He trains himself, 'I will breathe out focusing on inconstancy.' [14]
  He trains himself, 'I will breathe in focusing on dispassion
  [literally, fading].' He trains himself, 'I will breathe out focusing
  on dispassion.' [15] He trains himself, 'I will breathe in focusing on
  cessation.' He trains himself, 'I will breathe out focusing on
  cessation.' [16] He trains himself, 'I will breathe in focusing on
  relinquishment.' He trains himself, 'I will breathe out focusing on
  relinquishment.'</p>
  
  <p>"This is how mindfulness of in-&amp;-out breathing is developed &amp; pursued
  so as to be of great fruit, of great benefit."</p>
</blockquote>

<p>Source: <a href="http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/mn/mn.118.than.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/mn/mn.118.than.html</a></p>

<p>They aren't necessarily purely sequential however. Here's a list of several works by prominent Theravada meditation teachers on how to practice Anapanasati:</p>

<p><a href="http://www.dhammatalks.net/Books11/Ajahn_Brahm-Mindfulness_Bliss_and_Beyond-Chapters1-5.pdf" rel="nofollow">http://www.dhammatalks.net/Books11/Ajahn_Brahm-Mindfulness_Bliss_and_Beyond-Chapters1-5.pdf</a>
<a href="http://www.dhammatalks.org/Archive/Writings/EachAndEveryBreath_v130123.pdf" rel="nofollow">http://www.dhammatalks.org/Archive/Writings/EachAndEveryBreath_v130123.pdf</a>
<a href="http://www.dhammatalks.net/Books3/Buddhadasa_Bhikkhu-Anapanasati.pdf" rel="nofollow">http://www.dhammatalks.net/Books3/Buddhadasa_Bhikkhu-Anapanasati.pdf</a></p>

<p>Within classical Theravada the definitive guide to the practice of Anapanasati is found one of the Chapters of the Visuddhimagga, the great manual of Theravada meditation and doctrine. You can find the whole Visuddhimagga here: <a href="http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/nanamoli/PathofPurification2011.pdf" rel="nofollow">http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/nanamoli/PathofPurification2011.pdf</a> Starting on Anapanasati on Page 317</p>

<p>Here is a basic introduction to Anapanasati by a Monk in the Ajahn Chah Thai Forest Tradition in a video playlist: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8883E3B0A0F5587A" rel="nofollow">https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8883E3B0A0F5587A</a></p>
 5: <p>Steps differ by every teaching lineage. But a basic outline would look like this:</p>

<ol>
<li>Focus on the breath and recognize it as breath, without the thought, this is me, this is mine, this is what I am, this is good, this is bad, etc.</li>
<li>If the mind wanders from the breath, acknowledge the thought in some system of categorizing objects that arise in the experience. The <a href="http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/mn/mn.010.than.html">Satipatthana Sutta</a> outlines a neat and tidy system for categorizing such objects.</li>
<li>Return to focusing on the breath.</li>
<li>Repeat 1-3 for duration of practice.</li>
</ol>

<p>As for duration of practice, do what your body and mind can handle, and work upwards from there. Start with 5 minutes, and if that's easy, try 10 or 15. Try 30 or 60 minutes. But there's no substitute for having a teacher.</p>

<p>On a meditation course, my teacher had me practice 50 minutes of walking meditation, then 50 minutes of sitting meditation, repeating indefinitely. Back in the ordinary world I tend to keep it at 30 minutes (15 walking, 15 sitting).</p>

<p>If you study under a teacher, you will find that every teaching lineage has their own specific steps. For example in the Mahasi Sayadaw school we don't just focus on the breath. We start with rising and falling of the abdomen, and then as skill develops we include recognition of sitting, and then recognition of various points on the body. Out of respect for the teachers I don't want to go into too much detail as I am not a meditation teacher, just a practitioner.</p>

<p><a href="/questions/tagged/theravada" class="post-tag" title="show questions tagged &#39;theravada&#39;" rel="tag">theravada</a><a href="/questions/tagged/satipatthana" class="post-tag" title="show questions tagged &#39;satipatthana&#39;" rel="tag">satipatthana</a><a href="/questions/tagged/mahasi" class="post-tag" title="show questions tagged &#39;mahasi&#39;" rel="tag">mahasi</a><a href="/questions/tagged/breathing" class="post-tag" title="show questions tagged &#39;breathing&#39;" rel="tag">breathing</a></p>
