The Art of Sitting - Sahaj Asana

​Dear All,

At an international seminar in New Delhi, India, some years ago, a local resident told me that he once had what can probably only be described as a 'cosmic' experience during his regular practice of sahaja yoga meditation.

Apparently, his kundalini shot up so strongly that he only remembered two things: the tremendous sense of peace, joy and the panoramic view of everything  and coming out of the meditation the next day; having sat on the spot for some twelve hours or more.

Being polite, I didn't enquire whether he had missed work that day and what excuse he had given to his employer. But it seemed pretty impressive that anyone could sit still in one spot for that many hours and not need a comfort break.

Reflecting on our friends experience and comparing it to any similar experiences we may have had ourselves, it seems that the key to any sustained sitting in meditation is not only how  comfortably we're sitting, but also how effectively we're sitting.

Indeed, there's an art of sitting as far as meditation is concerned and in Zen, the words for 'meditation' and 'just sitting' are combined in the word 'Shikantaza' . In Sahaja Yoga meditation the most comfortable sitting is the most effective by definition, because then you are not distracted by a forced sitting position, and that's why sitting on a chair to meditate, as a matter of convenience, is fine.

However, if you haven't already tried this at home, then experiment by sitting on the floor to meditate. The simplest cross-legged position to sit in is the 'Sahaj Asana' shown above in the photo of the sahaja yogis in Brisbane, Australia. This posture is both comfortable as well as  beneficial to the mooladhara(root support) and swadisthana(pure attention and creativity) chakras. You may straight away feel the effect of this on how easier your meditation becomes.

In the west, the practice of sitting cross-legged on the floor disappears in childhood, which makes it difficult to sit that way later on. By contrast, children in India, China and other Asian countries grow up regularly sitting cross-legged on the floor. Sitting in such a way that the crossed legs form a firm triangular base for an upright spine can only improve attention, concentration and groundedness.

To help ease ourselves into learning how to sit in Sahaj Asana, if our legs are a little stiff and also remembering that this month of September is National Yoga Month, we could do some hatha yoga. Here is Shri Mataji giving guidance on doing baddhakona asana  which increases flexibility in the thigh muscles and knees which then makes  sitting in Sahaj Asana very easy: click here.

 

See you at group meditation on Tuesday.