How I Meditate

post by Gordon Seidoh Worley (gworley) · 2021-03-08T03:34:21.612Z · LW · GW · 4 comments

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In "Fake Frameworks for Zen Meditation [LW · GW]" I offered some models for how Zen meditation works, but not really much in the way of practice instructions. Similarly, I've talked a bunch about the intersection of Zen and Rationality [? · GW], but again mainly from showing how things connect rather than giving you new things you might do.

So, let's say you want to practice meditation, specifically Zen meditation (zazen), and even more specifically shikantaza. How do you do it?

Well, a correct but not very helpful answer is to sit down, stare at a wall, don't move, and you'll eventually figure it out. Eventually might take a really long time and you might get lost, so here's my best attempt to explain what I do and maybe that'll be helpful for someone else trying to do the same or similar.

First, I bow to the cushion, then bow out to the room/world.

Second, I sit on the cushion. I normally sit seiza because there's something about my leg anatomy that prevents sitting easy Burmese style or full lotus. I sit on two buckwheat hull filled cushions called zafus stacked on top of each other and placed on a padded mat called a zabuton. This gives me enough height to rotate my pelvis in a way that keeps my back upright and straight without effort.

Third, I do a little something to start the meditation. If I'm with a group, this is probably someone ringing a bell. If I'm alone, I typically recite a short "prayer" (it's not really a "prayer" as that word is used in most religious contexts, but I don't know what else to call a short poem expressing aspirations for meditation practice; maybe a "dedication") then clap three times.

Fourth, I put my hands down into cosmic mudra and invite my mind to rest.

Fifth, I do the actual meditating. Here's what this looks like: I do a mental motion that's like opening your hands as if to allow a bird or butterfly to hand on them, although my actual experience of it is more like coming to a stop and landing on the ground. Then I wait. As I'm waiting, thoughts arise, and often at the start these thoughts catch the gear of what I think of as the flywheel of attention and I get lost in thinking about some thing. Then, I notice I've done this and, without any kind of judgement, simply perform the hand opening mental motion again.

During all of this some experience that's not quite getting caught on a thought and isn't quite just sitting still with hands open happens. It's more like something "lands" in my hands, although generally it's more like some bodily sensation shows up. I might gently invite these to hang out or not. I might gently gaze on them or not. Look too hard and they fly away. Get too excited and they fly away. It's like being an excited toddler trying to pet a cat: it's only going to work if you let go of all of your excitement and desire and just let the cat pet itself against you.

Finally, the meditation period ends, either becomes someone sounds a bell or a timer tells me it's over. I clap once, bow, stand up, bow to my cushion and then out to the room/world.

This is just one way to meditate, much of my description above is idiosyncratic, and you probably can't directly replicate it. But my hope is that it gives some flavor of what meditation can look like and might help you notice if you're doing something that might be helpful if you try. As always, I'm not a meditation teachers, just a friend sharing my experience in the hopes that it does you more good than harm.

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