Duration: 21 minutes

This meditation is drawn from Zen. The Zen word ‘zazen’ means ‘just sitting’. The most difficult thing is to just sit, doing nothing! Your mind will come up with all kinds of arguments, reasons, or excuses for not doing this technique.

It will try to convince you that it is a sheer waste of time. If you persist, the mind will become sleepy, it will daydream, it may even start hallucinating.

The whole purpose of this meditation is to let the mind play all the tricks it wants. One day the mind is simply going to get fed up with playing these tricks on you. The mind will eventually realize that it can no longer control you with its games. Then the mind will simply drop of its own accord.

For this meditation, you can sit anywhere you will not be disturbed. If there is too much movement, it might disturb or distract you. Find a comfortable posture in which you feel you can stay without moving for at least half an hour. Use a mat or cushion if required. When the body is unmoving, the mind also falls still.

Keep your spine straight. Use support if required, but try to do without it. Rest one palm inside the other, with the thumbs touching to form a circle.

Watching nature is a good choice. Even from indoors, you can watch the sky through the window. Or you could sit facing a plain, white wall. Or you could simply face a corner of the room.

Don’t focus your attention on anything. Let your eyes be half-open and unfocused, with your attention diffused. Let your gaze rest softly in the distance. This will relax you. Let your breathing be relaxed and natural.

Remain alert and aware. Be receptive without allowing your attention to focus on any particular thing. Be present in the moment, moment to moment.

In the beginning it will be difficult to just sit, doing nothing. But in a few days you will start enjoying this tremendously. Layer by layer, you can actually begin to feel the mind drop. Finally, one day the moment will come when the mind drops altogether. You will glimpse the state of no-mind.

source: Living Enlightenment