“It is also called the jeweled vajra sitting position. It is also called the bodhi position. Although there are many names, they all refer to this one position. If you sit in this position it is easy to enter samadhi. It is also easier not to doze off.

“When you sit, your body should be held upright. Don’t lean back with your neck cocked backwards. Don’t lean backwards or forwards or slouch to the right or left. Sit straight but not stiff as a board. Don’t sit so stiffly that it seems you are hemmed in on all sides by stiff boards or iron bars. I say this because I know there are certain people who, when they sit, immediately sit up as stiff as boards. They pose like wooden statues. It takes a tremendous amount of effort to maintain yourself like that. That is not the way to subdue your body and mind. Subduing the body and mind should be very natural. Don’t display some special style.…When meditation is done naturally, there is not any force at all about it. You just sit there very relaxed, and you feel quite comfortable.

“When you are sitting, you want to make your breath even. For instance, you don’t want to make a point of taking very deep breaths…like a cow.…On the other hand, you shouldn’t breathe like a mosquito— so shallowly that it’s barely audible.…You breathe in when you need to breathe in, and you breathe out when you need to breathe out. It’s very natural and you make your mind pure and don’t have any false thinking.

“Put the tip of your tongue on the roof of your mouth. That way the saliva in your mouth will flow directly into your stomach. That is why it is best for people who meditate to refrain from smoking, drinking, and taking other intoxicants. Don’t rely on external conditions to aid you. If you don’t smoke and you don’t drink, then your saliva won’t be scorched and bitter, and you will be able to swallow it into your stomach, where the saliva helps in harmonizing the energy and the blood.

“When you are sitting, don’t be afraid of the pain. Perhaps you can sit for half an hour before the pain starts, but when it does begin you should be patient. It is at that point when patience is of the utmost importance. The more it hurts, the more you are patient...When your legs hurt, you should bear it, and then pretty soon you will be able to sit for an hour, two hours, three hours. You will sit there in a state of unmoving suchness, and there in that unmoving state several hours will pass very quickly. That means you have experienced a little bit of ‘light ease,’ and you should continue with your cultivation. If you continue with your cultivation, then you can obtain genuine samadhi power.

“Some people are really worried.…They say, ‘Well I’d like to investigate Chan, but I can’t sit in full-lotus posture, so it is useless.’ Don’t worry; if you can’t sit in full lotus you can sit in half lotus. That’s putting your left leg on top of your right thigh. Why does the left leg go on the right leg?…The left leg is yang and the right leg is yin. The left leg represents heaven and the right leg represents earth. And so heaven is on top and the earth is on the bottom. You can sit that way.

And if you can’t manage half lotus, you can sit in any way that is comfortable. Subdue your body and mind. Cause the body and mind not to lose their tempers, so that no matter how long you sit there is no fear of pain, and they don’t get angry.…” (TD 66)

To sit still for a single moment,
Is worth more than building as many pagodas of the seven gems
As there are grains of sand in the Ganges River. (TD 67)

雙跏趺坐