We can think of meditation as a three-legged stool – composed of a posture, a practice, and engagement. When meditating, posture is the structure within which we investigate ‘thinking rightly’ and ‘seeing clearly.’ It has two requirements:
- To reduce distractions and
- To encourage alertness.
And over the thousands of years of people meditating, balancing these needs has resulted in the classic meditation posture – sitting cross-legged with hands folded near the navel and eyes half-closed.
But what is really going on here?
Let’s begin by looking at the first of the two requirements: to reduce distractions.
There are four elements to a distraction-free posture:
- A Quiet Setting: If a lot is happening around you, that is a distraction.
- Stability: If you must constantly work to maintain your balance, that is a distraction.
- Comfort: If your posture is painful, that is a distraction.
- Ease of Breathing: If breathing is an effort (especially the occasional deep inhale), that is a distraction.
Why mention these? Because understanding these four elements will allow you to pinpoint and correct any difficulties with your meditation experience. There is no one ‘absolute’ posture, but every posture must demonstrate these four characteristics. Pay particular attention to the notion of comfort … meditating is not ‘mind over matter’ – of powering through pain.
In short, when meditating, find a quiet spot, be stable, be comfortable, and breathe easily.
Next, let’s look at the second of the two requirements of a meditation posture: to encourage alertness.
To encourage alertness, your posture should require regular attention. Here, it might be helpful to consider a posture that reduces distractions but does not encourage alertness: lying down in a darkened room. We can see that lying down is stable, comfortable, and indeed allows for ease of breathing – and the darkened room does represent a quiet setting. But the posture will be of little value if you fall asleep. Thus, we should expect (and want) our posture to manifest a somewhat simple form that must be occasionally attended to.
Finally, let’s put it all together.
And so we arrive at the details of the meditation posture. We can summarize it as having six parts:
- Harmonious Surroundings: First, find a place that is conducive to meditating – quiet but not totally deprived of activity.
- Stable Base: When sitting cross-legged, stability is provided at three points – the knees and the butt. That is, both knees should be on the zabuton (mat), and one’s butt should be propped on the edge of the zafu (meditation cushion). For those sitting in a chair, the three points of stability are generally provided by the feet on the ground and one’s butt in the chair. In short, stability, yes … and comfort, too.
- Sitting Tall: Here, we are focused on an elongated spine. For some, the image of holding up an imaginary ceiling with the crown of the head is often helpful – pushing up. For others, the idea of being suspended from a string connected to the crown of the head works better. Recognize that a stable base combined with sitting tall encourages alertness while aiding with ease of breathing.
- Energized Center: By center, we mean the hands and elbows. And by energized, we want to emphasize gentle energy. The hands are held in mudra – left on top, the right hand’s middle finger touching the left hand’s knuckle, and the thumbs gently touching (not pressed together or collapsed). Hands are up off the lap, with the pinkies gently touching the belly below the navel. The hands are gently rolled forward (so that the thumbs do not contact the belly.) Finally, the elbows are held gently away from the body (not falling in and yet, not thrown out). With its specific form, an energized center is vital in encouraging alertness.
- Proper Breath: Breathe from the belly (in/out) and not the shoulders (up/down).
- Proper Eyes: Eyes are always open (half-open), maintaining a soft gaze directed slightly downward (not at the horizon). Keeping the eyes open helps in encouraging alertness while manifesting engagement.