Hi all,

I was hoping to get some advice. Pretty much every time I sit, by the end of the session the foot up on my thigh (I sit in the half lotus) goes numb/falls asleep. It seems that I cut off circulation to the raised foot during sitting and then I have some quite painful pins and needles as the blood re-enters the foot. It happens so often that I am used to it now and don't really think about it, but it has occurred to me that perhaps this is happening because my posture is incorrect. It doesn't matter so much at home, but when I am at the Sunday Zazenkai with the group Kinhin is a bit of a challenge!

Is a numb foot just an unavoidable part of Zazen, or is there something I can do about this? Do others experience the same? Perhaps it's that I still lack flexibility and getting my knees firmly to the floor causes my raised foot to be pushed down hard onto my thigh, thereby cutting off the blood supply...?? Will this stop happening as my body gets more accustomed to the half lotus?

Thanks!

Gassho,
David