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Sitting and walking meditation for a first-time visitor

Meditation (thiền) is training the mind by paying steady attention. In Vietnamese Mahayana temples it ranges from quiet sitting at the back of the main hall to full retreats. For a first visit, sitting quietly for a few minutes is plenty. You do not need any experience, belief or special posture.

Sit quietly

Sit on a cushion or chair in the hall, back upright and hands resting, and rest your attention on your natural breath.

  1. Find a place. Choose a cushion, a bench or a chair at the back or side of the hall, out of the way of those who are bowing or walking. Take off your shoes where the custom is kept.
  2. Settle the body. Sit with a straight but not stiff back. On a cushion, cross your legs in whatever way is comfortable, and sit on the front edge so your knees are lower than your hips. On a chair, put both feet on the floor.
  3. Place the hands. Rest them in your lap, one over the other, palms up, thumbs lightly touching, or simply on your knees.
  4. Soften the face. Let the jaw loosen and the shoulders drop. Your eyes can be lightly closed or open and lowered to a point on the floor.
  5. Breathe naturally. Do not control the breath. Feel it at the nose, chest or belly, wherever it is clearest.
  6. Count if it helps. Count each out-breath from one to ten, then start again. If you lose count, begin again at one without scolding yourself.
  7. When thoughts come, and they will, notice them, and gently return to the breath. Returning is the practice.
  8. Finish slowly. After five to twenty minutes, take a few deeper breaths, move your fingers and toes, and bow slightly before you stand.

Varies by temple and tradition: some Zen halls sit facing a wall, some Pure Land temples sit with a quiet repetition of the Buddha's name, and some hold sitting as part of a longer sequence of chanting and walking. Follow the hall's practice if there is one.

If it is uncomfortable

Pain in the knees or back is common for beginners. Shift, use a chair, lean against a wall, or stand for a while. Meditation is not endurance. If you feel strongly distressed, open your eyes, take a breath and, if you need, stop and leave quietly. Meditation can bring up difficult feelings in some people; a teacher or health professional is the right person to speak to if they persist.

Walking meditation (kinh hành)

Walking meditation uses the same attention as sitting, in slow motion. It is often done between sitting periods to rest the legs.

  1. Choose a path a few steps long, or follow the circuit in the hall or the garden.
  2. Stand with palms together or fold one hand over the other at your belly, and breathe in once.
  3. Walk very slowly. Lift, move and place each foot, and feel the contact with the floor.
  4. Match steps and breath. For example, take one step on each in-breath and one on each out-breath, or whatever pace feels natural.
  5. Keep your eyes lowered a short way ahead, not on other people.
  6. At the end of the path, stop, breathe, turn slowly and return.

In a group, walk in the same direction and at the same pace as the others, and do not overtake.

Etiquette

Where this sits in a visit

Sitting comes at the end of the hall visit, after bowing and the bell. The whole sequence is in how to pay respects. For the idea of right concentration behind meditation, see the basics, and for meditation words, see the glossary. If you are wondering whether meditation is religious, the questions page may help.

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