𝐋𝐞𝐭'𝐬 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐢𝐭 ...

 

Let's learn to sit ...

Really? What's there to learn about how to sit? I sit! Everybody sits. C'mon, Man!

As you may know by now, I am a professional teacher in the field for learning basic life skills. Breathing. Sitting. Standing. Walking. Living with a centered stance balanced in alignment with the force of Gravity. As far as my competence is concerned, I'd say I'm not bad. Make of that what you will.

Look, I can't teach you something you may not think you need to learn. Just to say that there's a way bit more to sitting than to simply plunk your ass down in a chair. 

There's passive sitting like in a cushy sofa that gobbles you up and turns you into a couch Potato.

There's sitting slouched, or over a laptop with your head bent down and forward. Sure, you're sitting. But, all in your head, disconnected to the rest of your body, and to the world around you. 

Then there's supported sitting. You know about that? If so, who taught you? Supported sitting is sitting in a healthy balance. Awake and aware. 

If you want to learn more on this, you'll have to first learn how to breathe. CLICK here to get that lesson on breathing under your belt. Then come back and we can get into sitting. 

In the hustle of everyday life it is probably not an easy sell to encourage people to spend time simply sitting and breathing. They say, if you don't have even five minutes a day to meditate, you should spend an hour. Priorities. If I teach anything about balance it's about there's a balance between the outer and the inner. The deal with that is if you don't know the inner, you're living in default of unknowingly projecting that inner landscape out into the world.

Kapische?

Supported sitting. What does it support? Besides supporting your body in a healthy physiological posture, it supports being awake; the psychological posture. All those kids' heads buried in their smart phones, do you think that is awake? After so much time habituated to being lost in thought engaged with videos and games, do you think they snap out of it and become instantly present to the moment when they pocket their devices? You have to have a little self awareness yourself to get that the Matrix appears real to those enthralled with its machinations. 

Sitting 101 ... all you need to know to get started.

Now, to sit. And, by sit, we're talking about just sitting. Nothing else going on, but just sitting. 

By "just sit" that means sit still and don't think. By "don't think" that means don't harbor thoughts; let them come and go. By all means, do not try to stop thinking. That's just another thought. Simply sit in presence awareness. Choiceless awareness. If you're new to do this it's typical at first for the mental activity to crank up the noise. Let that be. Letting it be — props to John Lennon — lets the mind wind down. So watch the mind. You're not your mind, so no worries. 

The last thing on this sitting thing is to do it regularly. Daily. First thing in the morning when the mind is quiet. Last thing before bed to settle thoughts; you'll sleep better too. And at times during the day. A few minutes is enough. Take as much time as you like. In time the practice will become a habit and then you can enjoy the myriad unfolding benefits of just sitting. 

Now, be a good boy ... Sit! Stay!