By Jayne Summersby
I can't stress enough how important it is to get your meditation posture right. If it's not right, your meditation can become a test endurance as you grit your teeth and try to ignore the pain.
I'm going to talk about 3 different methods of sitting in three separate posts. In this one, I'm going to go for the simplest - using a chair.
There is nothing wrong with using a chair. Some people seem to think that it is more "spiritual" to sit on the floor like Buddhist monks. But, let's face it, how many people over the age of 16 can do the full lotus? Not many. And not me.
If you want to sit comfortable in a chair to meditate, here's what you do:
1. Find a straight-backed chair like a dining chair. (Don't use an armchair or anything to soft as you will probably fall asleep!)
2. Place a mat or blanket under the back two legs of the chair so that the seat is tilted slightly forward.
3. Sit on the chair with your back upright but not touching the back of the chair. This should be made much easier because the chair is tilted slightly forward.
4. If your feet don't rest comfortably, flat down on the floor, place a cushion underneath them - don't have dangly feet or just your toes on the floor.
5. Place another cushion on your lap and rest your hands on it, palms upwards. This should support the weight of your arms.
Adjust as necessary until you feel that you are able to sit comfortably with:
- your back and head upright
- the weight of you arms supported by the cushion in your lap
- your feet planted flat on the floor (or cushion)
- most of your weight supported by your bottom on the seat.
Next post: Kneeling posture
I can't stress enough how important it is to get your meditation posture right. If it's not right, your meditation can become a test endurance as you grit your teeth and try to ignore the pain.
I'm going to talk about 3 different methods of sitting in three separate posts. In this one, I'm going to go for the simplest - using a chair.
There is nothing wrong with using a chair. Some people seem to think that it is more "spiritual" to sit on the floor like Buddhist monks. But, let's face it, how many people over the age of 16 can do the full lotus? Not many. And not me.
If you want to sit comfortable in a chair to meditate, here's what you do:
1. Find a straight-backed chair like a dining chair. (Don't use an armchair or anything to soft as you will probably fall asleep!)
2. Place a mat or blanket under the back two legs of the chair so that the seat is tilted slightly forward.
3. Sit on the chair with your back upright but not touching the back of the chair. This should be made much easier because the chair is tilted slightly forward.
4. If your feet don't rest comfortably, flat down on the floor, place a cushion underneath them - don't have dangly feet or just your toes on the floor.
5. Place another cushion on your lap and rest your hands on it, palms upwards. This should support the weight of your arms.
Adjust as necessary until you feel that you are able to sit comfortably with:
- your back and head upright
- the weight of you arms supported by the cushion in your lap
- your feet planted flat on the floor (or cushion)
- most of your weight supported by your bottom on the seat.
Next post: Kneeling posture
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