Decided to increase the length of my sittings

[A human Being]

Originally Posted by Halloween Jack

Instead I lay on a bed with a meditation cushion for a pillow (so as to not get too comfortable) and find that it works absolutely fine - no difference from the sitting meditations. I meditate for an hour every morning. Perhaps you could try this approach for occasional meditations in order to give your feet a rest.

Thanks for the suggestion, I'll give it a try and see how I get on. I've heard that meditating whilst lying down is liable to make you fall asleep, have you not found this to be the case?

[Halloween Jack]

Originally Posted by A human Being

Thanks for the suggestion, I'll give it a try and see how I get on. I've heard that meditating whilst lying down is liable to make you fall asleep, have you not found this to be the case?

Yes, I’ve heard that too. I think the key is to not get too comfortable. Don’t get in the bed and don’t use fluffy pillows. :) A yoga mat on the floor might be a better option for someone with that issue.

[A human Being]

Originally Posted by Halloween Jack

Yes, I’ve heard that too. I think the key is to not get too comfortable. Don’t get in the bed and don’t use fluffy pillows. :) A yoga mat on the floor might be a better option for someone with that issue.

Right, that makes sense to me.

[iamthat]

Originally Posted by A human Being

Interesting, I'll have to look into that - thanks for the tip.

Two obvious natural aids which come to mind are turmeric (available in capsules) and MSM.

MSM is Methylsulfonylmethane which is actually sulphur, or an organosulphur compound. It comes in white granules which you can stir into a glass of water.

Peace

[A human Being]

Originally Posted by iamthat

Two obvious natural aids which come to mind are turmeric (available in capsules) and MSM.

MSM is Methylsulfonylmethane which is actually sulphur, or an organosulphur compound. It comes in white granules which you can stir into a glass of water.

Yikes, that's a bit of a mouthful. Think I'll stick to calling it MSM.

Very interesting though, thanks again!

[Gem]

Originally Posted by A human Being

At the moment I'm all right up to about the forty-five minute mark, then I start to feel restless and I start to feel discomfort in my feet and ankles due to the way I'm sat. So that's about it for now. It's early days, obviously, but I already feel like the longer sittings have been beneficial.

Yup. It's supposed to feel a bit restless and uncomfortable (I know that's counterintuitive and everyone tells you different), and like you say, after 45 mins it takes a bit of determination precisely as you describe. That's when your equanimity really starts getting tested and those later minutes really valuable. Exactly as you say. Very good ideas. Your intuitions are right.

In the thread I notices people like to give tips and so forth, but from my perspective, such a thing as discomfort setting in, OK possibly find a more comfortable way to sit, but I think you understand that our issue of reacting to feelings agitates the mind, and our sitting time is only relecting this tendency to us as we react and get agitated all the time in our daily lives. Hence I have no more comfortable suggestions and can only mention the psychological aversion issue.

Timing the session is a good idea for the perseverance reason you say. And when people hear you have discomfort they all want to help it go away, because of course that aversion is there for all of us. I just say if your sitting is good and you aren't doing yourself an injury, then everything is OK and keeping mindful balance with some pain is good - It's meant to be that way, and it is that way in everyday life.

I like HJ a lot because he is saying be less comfortable on the hard mat, but TBH, it sounds to me like your sitting is fine and you don't really need to be more comfortable so I have no suggestion about that.

Good I know I talk too much. Your ideas are best. Nothing to say here.

[A human Being]

Originally Posted by Gem

I just say if your sitting is good and you aren't doing yourself an injury, then everything is OK and keeping mindful balance with some pain is good - It's meant to be that way, and it is that way in everyday life.

Right, I think that's what it comes down to in the end, and I've always meditated in the half-lotus position without developing serious physical issues (it actually had the unforeseen but greatly appreciated side-effect of resolving a long-standing lower-back complaint I'd had) so I think I'll stick with it for the time being and see how it goes.

I also liked the point you made about how those later minutes when you're feeling restless, agitated, etc., can be the most valuable if you persevere with the practice, I used to feel like those sittings where my mind was very busy and I was struggling to settle were a waste of my time but I've since come to think that they can actually be the most valuable sittings. That does seem very counter-intuitive, as you say, and people can become very disheartened if they're not experiencing calm and serenity, but the whole point of the practice as I see it is precisely to allow the arising of what had previously been repressed and/or unconscious. I've personally found it helpful in those more challenging moments to notice any points of tension in my body, and just allow them to release and allow my body to breathe.

Many thanks for your input and reassurance, it's very much appreciated.

Originally Posted by A human Being

Thanks for the suggestion, I'll give it a try and see how I get on. I've heard that meditating whilst lying down is liable to make you fall asleep, have you not found this to be the case?

Hello a Human Being,

Yes at first lying down may bring someone to fall asleep, but the sleep then is very different than just lying down for sleeping. With time it may bring one to learn how to stay conscious even while sleeping, until there is no more falling asleep. We learn to stay conscious, even if there is nor more 'pain' or sensations coming from the physical body being in a comfortable position.

On the other extreme, like in Shaoling Kung fu, none moving special positions are taken for a long period of time that bring extreme pain in the muscle from lack of oxygen being brought to them by the small small blood capillary. With a lot of time and constant practice those capillary expand and can still bring oxygen to the muscle that is contracted for a long period allowing the meditator to not experience physical pain anymore from the muscles and stay in those position indefinitely. On the martial art level this also is interesting because those non moving special position make the muscles much stronger than any weightlifting exercise may do.

Any position taken to meditate as its good and bad, the important is being able to See and Be from the Source in any of them, would it be simply walking.

Enjoy!

[A human Being]

^^Very interesting, Legrand, thanks for sharing!

Sitting for longer has definitely been an interesting experience given my particular energetic state at the moment - for a while now I've been experiencing a lot of pressure in both my head and my heart (the pressure in the two areas appears to be very much linked, though what the exact relationship between them is I'm still not really sure), and this is only being heightened by the longer sittings I think, which might sound a bit concerning but I've been dealing with this energy for a few years now and I'm managing fine. Kundalini energy can be a seriously powerful and destabilising energy when it starts to awaken within you, it took me a long time to entrain my nervous system so that it could handle that level of energetic charge.

So I'm just keeping an eye on that (I've only done two half-hour sessions so far today), in the past I tried to force the issue and it just ended up setting me back in the long-run. Sometimes tricky to find the balance between being lax in your practice and pushing yourself too hard, but I'm just taking it one session at a time.

[Halloween Jack]

Originally Posted by Legrand

Any position taken to meditate as its good and bad, the important is being able to See and Be from the Source in any of them, would it be simply walking.

Yes. And yes, walking meditation (or even just walks in nature) is a good way into this insight.