Meditative postures ormeditation seats are the body positions orasanas, usually sitting but also sometimes standing or reclining, used to facilitatemeditation. Best known in theBuddhist andHindu traditions are thelotus andkneeling positions; other options include sitting on a chair, with the spine upright.
Meditation is sometimes practiced while walking, such askinhin, doing simple repetitive tasks, as in Zensamu, or work which encouragesmindfulness.
TheYoga Sutras of Patanjali describeyoga as having eight limbs, one beingasana, the meditation seat. The sutras do not name any asanas, merely specifying the characteristics of a good asana, stating:[1]
स्थिरसुखमासनम् ॥४६॥
sthira sukham āsanam
Your [meditation] seat should be steady and comfortable.Yoga Sutras 2:46
TheSutras are embedded in theBhasya commentary, which scholars including Philipp Maas now believe are by the same author;[2] it names 12 seated meditation asanas, possibly all cross-legged, includingPadmasana, Virasana,Bhadrasana (now called Baddha Konasana), andSvastikasana.[3]
Sitting positions, often cross-legged, provide a stable base formeditation, and have been used for the purpose in Buddhism and Hinduism for many centuries. These includePadmasana (full lotus), Ardha Padmasana (half lotus),Siddhasana or Muktasana (also called Burmese posture, sitting with the knees on the ground and the feet tucked in close to the body),[4][5] andSukhasana (any easy cross-legged position).[6] Other possibilities are the kneeling posturesVirasana (sitting between the heels) andVajrasana orSeiza (sitting on the heels).[7] Another sitting posture,Baddha Konasana (Cobbler's Pose), is suitable for people who can sit with the feet together and both knees on the ground;B. K. S. Iyengar states that to meditate in this position, the palms should be held in prayer position over the chest, which demands some practice for balance.[8] Seymour Ginsburg, describingGurdjieff meditation, suggests that such compact positions help the meditator to "include the entire experience of ourself in our attention."[6]
The lotus position in particular can be extremely uncomfortable for Westerners who have not practised sitting cross-legged since early childhood. They may, in the words of the yoga and meditation teacherAnne Cushman, be practising "self-torture ... apparently believing that bruising your inner thigh with your ankle is crucial to spiritual awakening."[7] The pose can cause beginners knee pain[8] and injury.[9][10] Baddha Konasana is a safer alternative, provided the knees are not pushed down.[11]
Cushman notes that since meditation is not a posture, no particular posture is required. All the same, she writes, a formal method is helpful, and the asana chosen needs to be stable and comfortable, as theYoga Sutras state: on the one side, few people would wish to hold strenuous postures likeDownward Dog for half an hour or more; on the other side, a restful posture likeSavasana (Corpse Pose) might be comfortable but would more likely lead to sleep than meditation. The cross-legged postures are simple and stable, restful for the muscles, but active enough to keep the practitioner awake. Thespinal column needs to be erect and in balance; this poise lets the muscles of the back relax, and this in turn allows the attention to be focussed on the breath.[7] These conditions can be met by a variety of postures with or without support, whether a cross-legged posture such as Muktasana, a kneeling posture, or sitting on a chair with the back vertical and the feet on the ground.[7] The traditional support for sitting meditation is azafu cushion; this elevates the hips above the knees, allowing practitioners with stiff hips to have the spine straight and upright.[7]
Beyond traditional cushions, modern mindfulness practice makes use of other seats like chairs and kneeling meditation benches. A comfortable chair is often recommended for people with back pain or difficulty getting up, while a meditation bench can help beginners optimize spinal alignment. A 2018pilot study scientifically compared the physical stability offered by a zafu, a chair, and a meditation bench. It found that the only statistically significant difference was in side-to-side sway, where the zafu provided the most stability. For other measures, including front-to-back sway and small, rapid postural tremors, no significant differences were found among the three seats. The researchers noted that the zafu's superior performance in providing stability is "in keeping with the oriental tradition" and consistent with research into Zen sitting postures. The principles of using a zafu to maintain a fixed posture have been applied in other fields, such as in designing chairs formicroscopic surgery and for improving children's classroom posture. However, the study also highlighted that practical considerations like comfort are crucial for beginners, noting that some participants reported ankle pain while using the meditation bench, a type of low seat. The study concluded with a general recommendation that "beginners could start practicing meditation in chairs or meditation benches, although a transition to the zafu is recommended for a medium term".[12]
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In various traditions people meditate in other postures. People who find sitting cross-legged uncomfortable can sit upright on a straight-backed chair, flat-footed and without back support, with the hands resting on the thighs, in what is sometimes called the Egyptian position.[6]
Orthodox Christians may practice the meditation ofhesychasm sitting on a stool, as was recommended bySaint Gregory of Sinai.[13]
Theravada andZen Buddhists sometimes vary their sitting meditation by meditating while walking, often very slowly so as to be mindful of each movement.[14]
Standing meditation orzhan zhuang is practised in the Chinese martial art training systemYiquan.[15]
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