Sit-a-Long with Jundo: Zazen for Beginners (8)
http://dharmanet.org/coursesM/22/images/chair.gif
We continue our discussion on the postures of Zazen.
One size need not fit all.
When there is physical need or restrictions, one may sit in several alternate ways.
Remeber, the basic rule of thumb is that if a particular way of sitting feels balanced and comfortable, allowing the body to sit stably, not to slumpingly loose and not too rigidly stiff, letting you sit for long periods of time without being distracted by discomfort in the body ... then that is probably a good way to sit for you!
And also remember that Zazen is to ultimately sit "As What Is." If, do to physical or medical conditions, pain and discomfort is unavoidable ... we sit with that too, pushing acceptance to the limit. If we need to sit and moan, then just sit and moan ... each moan just a Buddha's moaning. (We will have more on sitting with physical pain in an upcoming talk in this series.)
