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Dennis
USA
83 Posts |
 Posted - Oct 26 2015 : 12:46:29 PM
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Hi,
I've been doing SBP and DM for about 7 months, sitting cross legged (Lotus pose?). Going well. I recently had a minor lower back problem and can't sit cross legged without pain. So I've been doing SBP and DM sitting in an upright chair with feet flat on the ground. I feel I'm getting better results sitting in the chair.
I know Yogani recommends sitting cross legged but also allows sitting in a chair. I don't know if I should continue in the chair if I get better results. When my lower back gets better, I'll try cross legged again to see if the chair is still better. Any thoughts on this?
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BillinL.A.
USA
375 Posts |
Posted - Oct 26 2015 : 1:19:23 PM
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I think its totally up to you depending on what works.
I do both. Its fun having the variety. When sitting in a chair I use a tennis ball instead of my heal to emulate the siddhasana stimulation.
Good luck with your back! |
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Dogboy
USA
2294 Posts |
Posted - Oct 26 2015 : 4:28:35 PM
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| I sit astride a bolster, as if on a saddle (thunderbolt style) and like Billin, use a hacky sack as a perineum ball. I've meditated in chairs, in cars, planes, and trains, on rocks in the woods and at the shore, even lying in bed. knowing that you could meditate anywhere, if even for just minutes, allows you freedom. That said, having a consistant comfortable upright seat in your home sustains your practice. |
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Ecdyonurus
Switzerland
479 Posts |
Posted - Oct 26 2015 : 4:39:28 PM
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Hi, due to bad knees I have no choice but to sit on a chair. Seems to work fine. 
Also, we should consider that the cross legged postures are certainly "natural" for practitioners living in countries where people traditionally sit on the floor, but not that "natural" for Westeners who usually sit on chairs and couches. |
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Dennis
USA
83 Posts |
Posted - Oct 27 2015 : 01:25:37 AM
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| Thank you all for your feedback. I think I will test it out and do what brings the best results. |
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Ecdyonurus
Switzerland
479 Posts |
Posted - Oct 27 2015 : 03:18:28 AM
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| Good idea, IMO. Forgot to mention that I don't care about using exactly the same chair. I use mainly two different ones, depending on the room I happen to do my practices. Also, when particularly tired I also do my practices on a couch or even on my bed, in a savasana-like posture - works fine. |
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Prem
Canada
90 Posts |
Posted - Oct 30 2015 : 06:47:33 AM
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Hi Dennis
I teach a small DM group and we started in January sitting crosslegged with backs against wall. All of us are pushing 60 and some found discomfort/distraction so we began using chairs and everyone agrees their meditation experience is better. Sometimes we have to be creative and explore what works for your body. i have meditated in car (not drivIng ), in parks, in bathroom stalls, in the woods at the beach. Often your intuition is correct. All the best. |
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Ecdyonurus
Switzerland
479 Posts |
Posted - Oct 30 2015 : 07:43:38 AM
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| In his writings about metitation pratcice, Swami Rama states very clearly that the first step before one begi s to meditate is to find and learn a good sitting posture. He even recommends spending one month (if not more) practicing just this posture, without any other practice. For S. Rama, sitting on a chair is also a good posture. |
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Prem
Canada
90 Posts |
Posted - Oct 30 2015 : 08:52:16 AM
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Good thought Ecdyonurus. I also wanted to add when I began YTT at age 55 sitting in sukhasana was quite excruciating. It does get easier with time.
Even today often I tuck a zafu (buckwheat hull-filled cushion) under my sit bones if I'm feeling stiff or my knees are wonky |
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Charliedog
1625 Posts |
Posted - Oct 30 2015 : 09:06:16 AM
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Good sitting posture, padmasana or lotus is not easy. In fact all asana's are there to prepare the body to stay in meditation pose without the distraction of pain... (Patanjali)
If you would like to sit crosslegged ( this is not lotus or padmasana) then it is important that your knees can rest, you can place a cushion under each knee)
If one feels that the lower back becomes painful or tired, it can help to sit on a cushion so that the lower back is in better posture. Or sit astride like dogboy mentioned.
If it feels best for you to sit upright in the chair, then that is how it is at this moment. It is also possible to meditate lying on your back, IF you are not sleepy (I did this for a long time, for me it worked in that time best)
Feel what works the best for you, and practice meanwhile to make the body strong!   |
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Dennis
USA
83 Posts |
Posted - Oct 31 2015 : 02:21:31 AM
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Thanks everyone. It's not that I'm uncomfortable in padmasana, I find it easy and without distraction to sit that way (years of Hatha yoga earlier in my life). But when I started to sit in the chair, it seems easier to do mulabandha and DM seems to take me deeper. The only reason I asked is that in the lessons, the progression is from chair to padmasana, suggesting that it's more effective to sit that way if you can (and I can).
So that's why this thread. To ask if it's long term more effective in padmasana.
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Ecdyonurus
Switzerland
479 Posts |
Posted - Oct 31 2015 : 06:00:58 AM
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Hi Dennis, I think you misunderstood the lessons: the recommended posture is siddhasana, not padmasana.
Your exoerience that mulhabandha is easier when sitting on a chair than in padmasana is correct. Actually, padmasana is a posture that is not "mulhabandha-friedly". Siddhasana is. But sitting on a chair also is. |
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Christi
United Kingdom
4514 Posts |
Posted - Oct 31 2015 : 09:37:26 AM
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Hi Dennis and all,
The recommendations in the lessons are to sit in a comfortable position for pranayama and meditation. This could be in a chair if necessary, or on the floor on a cushion with back support if necessary, or on the bed with a pillow behind you if you need that and are practising at home in your bedroom.
Then, the guidance is to try and work towards bringing your legs into a cross-legged position with one heel close to your perineum if you can do this with comfort.
See here:
"Meditation works just fine while sitting on a soft surface with back support. An easy chair is good. Being on a bed with a couple of pillows behind us is better, for reasons that will become clear shortly. Don't meditate in a reclined position, as this can result in sleep rather than meditation. The idea is to be sitting upright comfortably. We don't want unnecessary discomfort in the body competing with the simple procedure of meditation. If it is natural for you to sit on a hard surface without back support for twenty minutes or more, this is okay for meditation. But few will be able to do this, and it is not necessary. Less comfort is synonymous with unnecessary distraction in meditation. So keep it comfortable.
Having said all that, here comes a curve ball. Once you are steady in your daily meditation routine and feel you are ready for the next step in your yoga practice, it is a good idea to put your legs in a crossed position while you are meditating. This is where the bed comes in handy. If you can get one leg in so the sole of your foot is against the inside of your thigh with your heel near your crotch, this is good. The other leg can come in with its sole resting under the shin of the first leg. It doesn't matter which leg goes inside first to the thigh. It is your choice. Over time, you can develop the ability to switch legs, so that either one can be the inside leg during meditation. Comfort will be the determining factor on which leg to use on the inside." [Yogani]
From here:
Lesson 33 - A New Way to Sit in Meditation
So with the legs brought in with one heel near the perineum, this is sukhasana rather than padmasana. This can be done both in a chair if it does not have side arms, or sitting on the floor using a cushion if necessary. Then at a certain point in the lessons it is advised to try using siddhasana, where the heel is brought right under the body so that it is actually touching the perineum. Again this could still be done in a chair if necessary or on the floor with back support if needed.
What happens in practice for most people is that they find that even if a chair and/or back support are helpful at a certain stage, after a while the body begins to become self-supporting during meditation, and sitting cross-legged becomes easy, so no chair or back support is needed.
See here for full instructions on coming into siddhasana:
Lesson 75: Siddhasana: Living in a fountain of ecstasy
And here for a discussion on the difference between using siddhasana and padmasana:
Lesson 127 - Siddhasana or Padmasana?
Christi |
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Dennis
USA
83 Posts |
Posted - Nov 01 2015 : 02:34:07 AM
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Thanks Ecdyonurus, I didn't know that about padmasana and mulabandha.
I can bring my heel to my inner thigh but not to my perineum. I have tried but I fell like I'm sitting up in the air above my leg and imbalanced. I thought that siddhasana was a little further down the line lesson wise (just started mulabandha with SBP) but if it helps mulabandha, I'm all for it. I know I can try a rolled up sock so I will try that.
In addition, when I do DM in the chair, I feel like I go deep (almost like sleeping) for almost the whole session so I'm wondering if I am sleeping. Not the first time I've fallen asleep in a chair (while not meditating).
So when my back gets better, I'll go back and compare and perhaps try siddhasana.
But my original question remains. If I'm totally comfortable in siddhasana or padmasana, is that more long term effective than sitting in a chair.
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Edited by - Dennis on Nov 01 2015 03:12:18 AM |
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Christi
United Kingdom
4514 Posts |
Posted - Nov 01 2015 : 06:17:11 AM
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Hi Dennis,
quote:
But my original question remains. If I'm totally comfortable in siddhasana or padmasana, is that more long term effective than sitting in a chair.
If by "sitting in a chair" you mean sitting in a chair with your feet on the floor, then yes, over the long term, siddhasana or padmasana will be more effective. Siddhasana will be much more effective.
And you are right, siddhasana is further down the lessons than you are at now if you have just added mulabandha, so best to add it when you get to it in the main lessons.
Christi |
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lovethph1
USA
1 Posts |
Posted - Jan 16 2016 : 10:11:53 AM
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| overcome all |
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SBP and DM sitting in a chair
