Can you meditate lying down or is sitting better?
We spoke with Inhere the excellent online guided meditation website about this big question and they kindly let us repost their answer!
Even though one can meditate in either position, Inhere would advise most people to meditate sitting.
There are tworeasons for this:
- it lessens the chances of you falling asleep during meditation, and
- sitting with the back and the neck straight with the crown of the head pointing up, helps the breathe to move freely around the body and keeps the mind alert during meditation.
These reasons are linked to the crucial point that meditation is different from relaxation. Relaxation is an important by-product of meditation, however in itself meditation is a practice for exploring and relating to the mind. This exploration is easiest and most effective when one is relaxed and alert.
This is why most meditation classes offer only sitting options.
The reason we’ve launched a lying option for our evening meditation sessions is because we realise how important it is for busy Londoners to relax as well as to meditate. Our evening meditation sessions are designed to bring deep relaxation at the end of the day, so they are the most relevant sessions to accompany a lying down option.
Experienced meditators who are used to meditating with an effortless alertness, without falling asleep, may be fine to lie down for meditation.
Additionally, one can meditate even when moving, walking, dancing, eating, or washing the dishes – as it is a state of mind when one is paying attention, on purpose, with openness and compassion, fully absorbed in the activity. We intend to bring movement meditation classes to London in the near future.
So we hoped you like the answer! Do check out inhere for their excellent meditation classes!
