How to Meditate

The practice of meditation is simply to sit, with awareness and attention, noticing whatever is happening without judgment, attachment or expectations. We are practicing becoming intimate with who we are, just as we are.

We hope these instructions will help you to develop a meditation practice that supports your life.

Zazen, or Zen Meditation, usually refers to seated meditation, though we can practice zazen even in the midst of daily life activity.

Regular practice of zazen can generate true stability in the midst of the many challenges of human experience. Meditation disciplines the mind so it doesn’t jump from thought to thought all the time — like a wild monkey jumping from branch to branch or a puppy running around from place to place.

We begin this practice with seated meditation, then expand the practice to walking, moving, working, developing our ability to be fully present with awareness in whatever we are doing.

In Zen we call this “ordinary mind.” Even in times of difficulty, there is ease and equanimity, a natural functioning that arises which is our true nature. By practicing with whatever arises while sitting meditation, we notice that we are developing a more accepting relationship with everyday life.

Below are some pointers to get you started.

The three fundamentals of Zen meditation are body, breath, and mind.

Body

There are five different seated meditation postures: full lotus, half-lotus, Burmese, and seiza, or kneeling or seated in a chair. You can try different ones and see what works best for you at any time. The most important is to find a position which you can maintain and stably with three points of contact (legs and bottom). Most of us can tolerate some minor discomfort, but if a particular position is unduly painful, find another one that isn’t. Weight, flexibility, and body type all influence your experience of sitting, so be mindful of your body.

Sit on the forward third of your zafu (sitting cushion) or on a meditation bench or chair. The size of the zafu, bench or chair required will depend on the physiology of the practictioner.

In the Full Lotus position, the right foot rests on the left thigh and the left foot rests on the right thigh. In Half-Lotus, the left foot rests on the right thigh, while the right leg is folded under the left leg.

In Burmese position, both legs are folded, resting on the square mat (zabuton). One variation of this position places the left foot upon the right calf.

In Seiza or kneeling position, knees are shoulder-width apart while buttocks are supported either by the heels, a zafu turned on its side or other cushion, or a low sitting bench.

Using a chair, avoid slouching but sit upright. If you have back trouble, a firm cushion can be used to support your lower back. Keep your feet shoulder-width apart on the floor. If the chair is too high for you, place a zafu on the floor to support your feet. Make sure your hips are higher than your knees.

In each of these positions:

Seat yourself on the forward third of your cushion (or chair), using an extra cushion if needed, so that your hips are slightly higher than your knees. It helps to position yourself so that your pelvis tips slightly forward. This creates the natural curvature and alignment of the spine extending upward and your skeleton (and not the muscles) carries as much of your weight as possible in a relaxed but alert position.

Tuck your chin slightly and make sure your nose is aligned with your navel and your ears aligned with your shoulders. Your head should extend up from your spine and not tilt or lean in any direction. If you notice any tension in your shoulders, relax them. Center your balance in your lower abdomen. Avoid straining or tensing either your back or abdominal muscles. Pull your shoulders up and back together and then allow them to soften and drop, opening your chest.
To center your body, sway several times from the hips in decreasing arcs until you drift to a stop. In this position, your posture is upright, leaning neither left nor right, forward nor backward.
Lower your eyes to gaze to the floor at approximately a 45° angle, neither fully open nor fully closed, unfocused, gazing toward the floor about 3’ to 4’ ahead. If you are looking at a wall, then look “through” it to where the floor would be. This allows us to maintain our perception of the visual field without actively engaging with what we are seeing, and minimizes blinking and daydreaming.
Close your lips and teath, but avoid tensing your jaws. Place tip of tongue against the roof of your mouth, just behind the front teeth. Swallow any saliva in your mouth, and evacuate the air so there is a slight vacuum. This inhibits salivation.
Place your hands in the form of the cosmic mudra: active palm up, resting against abdomen; your other hand palm up resting on active hand. Thumb tips touching lightly, forming an oval. Rest your arms in the crease where the legs attach to the torso. This mudra can serve as a barometer for your attention.
Maintain stillness as much as possible during zazen. If you need to adjust, do so quietly in one simple movement.

Breath

Take a few deep, slow breaths through the mouth, exhaling freely to settle mind and body, breathing from your abdomen. Then let your breath settle into a natural rhythm, breathing silently through your nose. Pay close attention to your breathing, to the sensations of breath leaving and entering your body with each exhalation and inhalation. Be aware of the movement of your lower abdomen. As you inhale, notice it expand; as you exhale, notice it contracting. Direct your awareness to the center of your lower abdomen, about two or three inches below the navel often called the hara (Japanese), dantien or tan tien (Chinese).

Initially, we develop concentration by practicing holding our attention on the breath and mindfully returning the attention back to the breath when it wanders off in thought.

A preliminary practice to support this is counting breaths:

Silently count your exhalations from one to ten. Then start over again. If you lose track and your mind starts to wander, return to “one” and start over again. If you find that you are counting higher than ten, start over again. When you notice your mind wandering or pursuing thoughts, memories, emotions, etc., simply notice this and return your attention to counting your breath in the present moment.
Maintain the counting each exhale/inhale cycle as one breath as best as you can, without judgment. The point here is not whether you can count from one to ten without a miss; the point is to discipline the mind so that, more and more, you can maintain your attention in the present moment without fantasizing about the future or reminiscing about the past. Pay close attention to the point of transition between inhaling and exhaling. This is where the mind’s concentration is the weakest.
After some time of counting breaths, when the mind has become more concentrated and less easily distracted, you can let go of counting. Simply follow the breath as it comes in and goes out. Notice the sensations of the belly and chest moving, air moving past the nostrils and lips, and any other sensations involved in your breathing.
When thoughts arise, let go and return your attention to the sensations of the breath. If the mind is more active during a period of meditation, you can always return to counting breaths.

Why Count to Ten?

There is nothing magical about the number ten; it is simply a reference point that helps us notice what we are doing with our attention.

On the exhalation, your whole body and mind are concentrated on the sound of the number: “wooooooooooooooooooon.” Then, your whole body and mind concentrate on the sound of the number two: “tooooooooooooooooooo.”

When you put all your attention and energy into counting the numbers of exhalations, extraneous thoughts cannot arise.

Mind

Thoughts are natural secretions of the brain, not so different from digestive enzymes secreted by the stomach. One of the purposes of zazen is to retrain the mind to put less attention to the thoughts and more attention to the myriad other experiences of the present moment. In meditation, you learn to hold your mind like the great sky, which allows the clouds to drift by without trying to hold onto them or follow them.

Let your attention remain with your breath. Be patient with yourself, as it may take some time before you can reliably focus your attention for an extended period of time.

Working with Thoughts

In Zen we are practicing with what is known as the “first order” of our experience, or first arrow. We notice all the sensations, thoughts, feelings and experiences as they arise, and practice not attaching or identifying with any of them and not adding anything to them (second arrows).
When thoughts arise (and this will happen) and you find yourself caught up in them, simply let go of the thoughts, gently, and return your attention to the breath. Sometimes you may be able to count to ten without distraction, and sometimes you will not be able to get to two. That’s okay! Just keep letting go and returning to the breath. Little by little – by concentrating on your breathing and focusing your attention – the mind and the body will settle down.

Working with the Mind in Relation with Feelings

Sometimes feelings and emotions arise during zazen. It is important to learn how to just feel emotions without rationalizing them or explaining them. It is also very important that we do not try to find a ‘solution’ that will make the feelings disappear. Do a body scan – mindfully bringing attention to any feelings and identify the nature and location of how these feelings show up as sensations in your body. Breathe gently through your heart into the areas where the feelings manifest. Let the sensation permeate through your body and just experience it without judging.
Sometimes early in practice, one has not developed the ability to stay concentrated with a feeling or emotion without getting caught up in the storyline of the emotion. Getting sucked into the passion of the story only adds fuel to the fire. If you find that you just do not have the ability to continue letting go of the thoughts and returning to the sensations of the emotion, it can help to return to counting breaths to give your mind something else to focus on instead.
There can be a tendency to use spiritual practice as a means of avoiding dealing with emotional or life issues, known as “spiritual bypassing.” At Eon Zen, we are encouraged to see our emotions and daily life challenges as wonderful opportunities to further dive into our experience as an intrinsic part of spiritual practice with the support and guidance of a teacher and sangha.

Working with Physical Discomfort

Zazen is inevitably uncomfortable at times, especially in the initial years of practice. Some masters say that it takes at least two years of continued practice to “find one’s seat.” How we work discomfort and pain in seated meditation is important. Here are some simple tips:

Check your posture first, making any necessary small adjustments. Aligning the spine, adjust the lower back and tip the pelvis slightly, making sure that the chest is open and that the shoulders are dropped back and relaxed.
If posture is not the issue, then, allow your awareness to include the sensations of the pain. When the knees start to pulsate, let the mind be absorbed by the pulsations, letting go of the thoughts and stories that may be arising.

Look into the sensations of the pain. Find the source of them. Who is it that is feeling the pain? Notice what is happening in the rest of the body when pain arises in certain places. Work with the painful sensations as if they were thoughts, letting go of them and returning to the breath.
When the legs fall asleep, notice the thoughts and story that arises. It may be uncomfortable, but what a great opportunity to sit with and directly experience the sensations. What does numbness feel like? If your leg has fallen asleep and it is time for kinhin (walking meditation), remain seated and rub your legs until you can walk on them.
If the pain is too much and it is truly distracting you and possibly others with shifting around, change your position. We do not want to injure ourselves. Move into a more sustainable position quickly and quietly.

Trauma-Sensitive Practice

The growing intersection of meditation, psychology, and neuroscience is continuing to shape our understanding of the human nervous system and the dynamic relationship between meditative practice and trauma. The majority of us will experience a traumatic event in our lifetime, and up to 20% of us will develop posttraumatic stress (as well as post traumatic growth). Anywhere meditation is being practiced, someone in the room is likely working through trauma within their nervous system.
Meditation can help us create a bit of space around these experiences and navigate them more effectively. It can also increase the intensity or activation of trauma in our bodies as we bring our awareness to our inner emotional and somatic experience. This can lead to overstimulation or dissociation and carries potential risk for retraumatization.
To navigate traumatic symptoms, grounding practices or modifications can help support and stabilize your nervous system so you can engage with the power and practice of mindfulness in a safe, transformative way. You may also want to have other resources for support. Zen practice is not a substitute for therapeutic treatment of trauma, though it can assist with the healing process over time. Our teacher and practice leaders can offer guidance in trauma-informed practices.

Developing a Regular Practice

At first, you may only sit a few times a week, for a few minutes. At your own pace, gradually increase the frequency and duration of your sitting until you can sit daily for 30 to 35 minutes at a time. Don’t rush this process, but allow your mind and body to gradually adjust to the regular practice.

Some people prefer to sit in the morning, others at night, and some do both. Experiment to find which of these works best for you, then make it your own regular practice.

It can be useful to sit in the same place and at the same time of day, if possible. Sitting everyday is more beneficial than sitting for a longer period once a week.

Patience, consistency, and perseverance are important in establishing and settling into your practice.

We also strongly recommend regular sitting with a practice community and to work with a qualified Zen teacher for guidance.

More in depth-instructions are provided in the Eon Zen Members Handbook in the Members Area. Illustrations from Zen Meditation In Plain English by John Daishin Buksbazen, Wisdom Publications.