Why Do Sitting Meditation When You Can Do Hiking Meditation?

[r0ckyreed]

What I’m really asking is why would you choose to sit on your ass for 10 days when you could instead be hiking in the forest?

Why would you confine yourself to sitting to meditate if hiking is also a meditation?

I hope you can understand my question. 

This is one of my main thoughts that holds me back from doing a 10 day meditation retreat. After all, I think I would get more out of a 10 day hike in Yosemite than a 10 day sit in my room. 

The longest I ever meditated was 5 hours and didn’t feel like I gained much from it. Compare that to a 5 hour hike in Yosemite, and I got so much more out of that. I had a stillness and gratitude like no other, and I got in some exercise.

I think I would have regrets of wasting my time if I did sitting meditation for 10 days. Imagine 10 days of hiking. That would be quite the adventure. Adventure is a deep value of mine. I see limitations of sitting meditation. It’s not good for your back or for your mind long term because your spirit will long for adventure. If you just sat in one place and meditated, it would be as if you were already dead. 

Edited Wednesday at 03:47 AM by r0ckyreed

[r0ckyreed]

I think I made a good point. It makes no sense sitting for 10 days straight when you can travel the world, hike through a forest, or run a marathon for 10 days. I don’t understand why the modern conception of meditation is sitting. Afterall, there is walking meditation. Why is walking meditation not as popular as sitting meditation? Walking is so much healthier than sitting.

[Ishanga]

@r0ckyreed With Sitting Meditation, You could say its the most serious sort of Sadhana one can do, the other ones are serious too but not in the same way.  Like Temples, not all Temples are meant for the same purpose, its the same with certain Sadhanas and Meditations, some have specific goals, general wellbeing, clearing of the chakra paths and sushumna, prana intensity, Kundalini activation, etc etc, so Sitting Meditations/Sadhana are for the serious practitioner, that wants to go all the way, total Liberation and Moksha, Annihilation of Individuality and Union with Absolute, the activities You mentioned are not for this, they are for General Wellbeing, maintaining the Body, Mind, and Human aspect of what You are, Pleasure and Enjoyment, much different than wanting Enlightenment and Liberation/Moksha...

[r0ckyreed]

Thanks for your answer. 

Couldn’t marathon running meditation be a serious form of meditation that could lead to genuine insight?

If sitting meditation is for serious meditators who want to go all the way, then is eyes closed meditation for those who go all the way vs eyes opened meditators? You see where I’m going with this? If I can stand and meditate vs sit and meditate, and if I can have eyes open vs eyes closed, then what really is meditation? If I can meditate while I run, walk, and go shopping, then the concept seems to lose meaning. When someone says meditation, I think of a monk sitting cross legged with eyes closed. What I’m asking is why is that the automatic picture or most common conception of meditation? If you asked 10,000 people to draw a person meditating, they will draw a person sitting cross legged with eyes closed. But you could also draw them running or working out, and that could be meditation as well? Osho says everything is a meditation because meditation is all about witnessing.

[Javfly33]

Technically speaking, with sitting meditation is galaxies easier to go more profound, because you are closing most of the external stimulus, which is an important factor for the Mind to lose concentration, and several karmic memories activates in response to that stimulus, which creates another important internal distraction

However, if you are not confortable with sitting and you Will have a bad time while hiking outside in the beatiful wilderness Will be a Joy for you, you might get more out of It than sitting on a room.

So know that technically speaking sitting on a place with eyes closed Will have significant better conditions for the intended work, but is not compulsory and the alternative of hiking can also provide some intense shift in consciousness.

Maybe you could combine the hiking with doing sits of 11/21 minutes in some place in the forest and meditate there. With the body calm by the exercise but Mind active, the results of the meditation could be astronomical.

Edited Thursday at 07:44 AM by Javfly33

[gettoefl]

Hiking is for jollies

Get the meditation sorted then the hiking will be next level

Retreats are often for jollies too for the one who is not serious

Do the first few 10-days retreats alone in your own home

Ego will hate this approach

[Evelyna]

I personally think it is absolutely reasonable to accept that hiking meditation can be as good as sitting one, here I think the effects of it will depend on your own believes more then anything else, if you have association that sitting down and focusing brings better results , then for you it will of course. I like to keep it flexible and get the same benefits from either type of meditation, why limit myself  I don't think this is really measurable or comparable as it will be dependant on the individual. 

[Javfly33]

1 hour ago, Evelyna said:

I personally think it is absolutely reasonable to accept that hiking meditation can be as good as sitting one, here I think the effects of it will depend on your own believes more then anything else, if you have association that sitting down and focusing brings better results , then for you it will of course. I like to keep it flexible and get the same benefits from either type of meditation, why limit myself  I don't think this is really measurable or comparable as it will be dependant on the individual. 

@Evelyna Suggestion or placebo works to a certain point.

That meditation has been usually practiced with the eyes closed and sit, was carefully designed like that because It was discovered human perception response widely different depending on how you sit, how you Breath, etc...

Is not Suggestion. Reality has hard rules. 

Try Meditating with your back like a noodle, and then with your back straight. See the difference.

Denying the rules of reality and how this human body works for the best consciousness possible IS to be very naive about this Creation is. This Creation is much Bigger and is orchesteated is much complex ways than the Suggestion/"whatever you belief It becomes real" new age narratives of humans.

I dont know about Buddhism, but Yoga has always been understood as the SCIENCE of how to align your body/how to Breath, etc...to enter the symettry of Life. 

It doesn't Matter if you believe or not, if you do certain things right certain perceptions Will open Up. And if you dont do them right doesn't Matter how much you want It, nothing won't happen because you are not pressing the right buttons.

Or you can just play like you know more than Life itself and see how that goes. Meditate with your back like a noodle.

[M A J I]

Whatever activity or non-activity allows you to remain "present" is meditation. Do what works for you, need not question it.

[Evelyna]

34 minutes ago, Javfly33 said:

@Evelyna Suggestion or placebo works to a certain point.

That meditation has been usually practiced with the eyes closed and sit, was carefully designed like that because It was discovered human perception response widely different depending on how you sit, how you Breath, etc...

Is not Suggestion. Reality has hard rules. 

Try Meditating with your back like a noodle, and then with your back straight. See the difference.

Denying the rules of reality and how this human body works for the best consciousness possible IS to be very naive about this Creation is. This Creation is much Bigger and is orchesteated is much complex ways than the Suggestion/"whatever you belief It becomes real" new age narratives of humans.

I dont know about Buddhism, but Yoga has always been understood as the SCIENCE of how to align your body/how to Breath, etc...to enter the symettry of Life. 

It doesn't Matter if you believe or not, if you do certain things right certain perceptions Will open Up. And if you dont do them right doesn't Matter how much you want It, nothing won't happen because you are not pressing the right buttons.

Or you can just play like you know more than Life itself and see how that goes. Meditate with your back like a noodle.

??? Placebo??? Suggestion ??? Where you getting this from? You misunderstood 

[WelcometoReality]

@r0ckyreed Why do just one when you can do both? 🙂

I've never done a 10 day retreat but to me it's easier to go deeper when I sit and do nothing. When walking or getting other stimulus it's easier to get distracted from going "inwards" toward rhe sense of self.

On the other hand if you can't maintain realization under day to day activities then what's the point? So having some sort of walking meditation or similiar practice to maintain it off the cushion might be a good idea.

[Javfly33]

4 hours ago, Evelyna said:

??? Placebo??? Suggestion ??? Where you getting this from? You misunderstood 

Your whole message basically says "doesn't Matter if is sitting or hiking, what matters is what you belief and the difference is not measurable is deeply personal "

 

[Ishanga]

JavFly is correct, and I can confirm this not only in regards to Yoga and Spirituality and how doing things right vs wrong makes a big difference, it is the same in Martial Arts, there are certain ways in which the Human Body works best, how one sits, walks, breaths, eats, moves their eyes, and hands and limbs, etc etc makes big differences in life, it is just that ppl do not pay enough or any attention to these small details but in the end everything is in the details.. Yoga is the Science of this, its over 80K yrs old, doing the practices correctly from Asanas to Very strict and detailed Breathing and Pranayama will get You the results and quickly, but one has to be open to It.. One can chose to Realize what Life is about within this Life span or have it take many Life Spans, the choice is up to You!!

Here Sadhguru demonstrates the simple difference btwn positioning the palms in an upward facing position vs downward facing position, how many times a day are you positioning Your hands in these ways and how Aware are You of it and the consequences of it??? Probably no Awareness at all, that is why most ppl are not even close to any sort of Realization of what Life is and how to make it Incredible!

 

[Evelyna]

Just now, Javfly33 said:

Your whole message basically says "doesn't Matter if is sitting or hiking, what matters is what you belief and the difference is not measurable is deeply personal "

 

Yes, but it is a lot different from using suggestion or placebo, or maybe we use suggestion and placebo thoughts all the time no matter the style of meditation, my point was about effectiveness more than anything. What you believe about the benefits of a particular meditation practice plays a role in how effective it feels to you. Meditation practices are subjective and not easily measurable because the effects are highly personal. When you doing your sitting type of meditation you can not tell me you have zero expectations, no intention, no thoughts , no emotions, and no knowledge and no opinion about the particular technique you re using,  all of those play a role in overall benefits, its not the meditation itself that brings about change or effect it is how you navigate it using all sensations and what you know or accept about its benefits, meditation is a tool, a system built by us humans. 

The main characteristic of a good meditation is that you feel better for having done it. The tradition or the style is not as important as the experience itself. A lot of confusion exists about the subject of meditation. Most of that is due to the fact that so many people associate the word with a specific form or a particular religion. Meditation is simply the act of putting your attention on a limited area of focus for a particular period of time and for the purpose of changing oneself in a particular way. This is what distinguishes it from mere reverie, daydreaming, fantasy, reading for entertainment or learning, and playing or observing a game. Most usually the word meditation refers to inner-directed attention, but there are exceptions to that, such as some Zen-style meditations for example . 

[Salvijus]

Pilgrimages have been a valid spiritual practice sinces forever. 

[gettoefl]

1 hour ago, Evelyna said:

Yes, but it is a lot different from using suggestion or placebo, or maybe we use suggestion and placebo thoughts all the time no matter the style of meditation, my point was about effectiveness more than anything. What you believe about the benefits of a particular meditation practice plays a role in how effective it feels to you. Meditation practices are subjective and not easily measurable because the effects are highly personal. When you doing your sitting type of meditation you can not tell me you have zero expectations, no intention, no thoughts , no emotions, and no knowledge and no opinion about the particular technique you re using,  all of those play a role in overall benefits, its not the meditation itself that brings about change or effect it is how you navigate it using all sensations and what you know or accept about its benefits, meditation is a tool, a system built by us humans. 

The main characteristic of a good meditation is that you feel better for having done it. The tradition or the style is not as important as the experience itself. A lot of confusion exists about the subject of meditation. Most of that is due to the fact that so many people associate the word with a specific form or a particular religion. Meditation is simply the act of putting your attention on a limited area of focus for a particular period of time and for the purpose of changing oneself in a particular way. This is what distinguishes it from mere reverie, daydreaming, fantasy, reading for entertainment or learning, and playing or observing a game. Most usually the word meditation refers to inner-directed attention, but there are exceptions to that, such as some Zen-style meditations for example . 

I would say that meditation is to switch off the one I think I am and to drop all the thoughts about benefits and feelings. Ego is the one who says, what's in it for me. The harder it is the better. Because the ego is the one who says, this is hard. Thus I am quelling my ego when it is hard. Just sit and simply forget. There is no method. There is no progress. There is no expectation. There is no goal. I know I am not a body-mind. I will sit with what I am. It reveals itself. It cannot be explained or described. I am that. Meditation as described above may be helpful initially. If my senses can perceive it, that needs to be dropped because that's not it. Everything that my eyes ears nose mouth and hands reveal to me is deception. The truth can be experienced and known. This is why I meditate.

[Javfly33]

1 hour ago, Evelyna said:

Yes, but it is a lot different from using suggestion or placebo, or maybe we use suggestion and placebo thoughts all the time no matter the style of meditation, my point was about effectiveness more than anything. What you believe about the benefits of a particular meditation practice plays a role in how effective it feels to you. Meditation practices are subjective and not easily measurable because the effects are highly personal. When you doing your sitting type of meditation you can not tell me you have zero expectations, no intention, no thoughts , no emotions, and no knowledge and no opinion about the particular technique you re using,  all of those play a role in overall benefits, its not the meditation itself that brings about change or effect it is how you navigate it using all sensations and what you know or accept about its benefits, meditation is a tool, a system built by us humans. 

The main characteristic of a good meditation is that you feel better for having done it. The tradition or the style is not as important as the experience itself. A lot of confusion exists about the subject of meditation. Most of that is due to the fact that so many people associate the word with a specific form or a particular religion. Meditation is simply the act of putting your attention on a limited area of focus for a particular period of time and for the purpose of changing oneself in a particular way. This is what distinguishes it from mere reverie, daydreaming, fantasy, reading for entertainment or learning, and playing or observing a game. Most usually the word meditation refers to inner-directed attention, but there are exceptions to that, such as some Zen-style meditations for example . 

If water boils al 100° celsius is that subjective or objetive?

Edited Friday at 02:07 PM by Javfly33

[integral]

Next: Bull Riding Meditation

Why sit and meditate when you can meditate on a bull? Why eat food at a table, when you could eat food on a bullllllll. Why sleep on a bed when you can sleep on a bullllllllllllll. CALL NOW 1-800-BULL, why have money when you could buy an F-iiiinggg BULL. 🐂 

Edited Friday at 02:18 PM by integral

[Salvijus]

1 hour ago, integral said:

Next: Bull Riding Meditation

Why sit and meditate when you can meditate on a bull? Why eat food at a table, when you could eat food on a bullllllll. Why sleep on a bed when you can sleep on a bullllllllllllll. CALL NOW 1-800-BULL, why have money when you could buy an F-iiiinggg BULL. 🐂 

🙌 Bull conciousness 🙌

[Javfly33]

4 hours ago, integral said:

Next: Bull Riding Meditation

Why sit and meditate when you can meditate on a bull? Why eat food at a table, when you could eat food on a bullllllll. Why sleep on a bed when you can sleep on a bullllllllllllll. CALL NOW 1-800-BULL, why have money when you could buy an F-iiiinggg BULL. 🐂 

 

3 hours ago, Salvijus said:

🙌 Bull conciousness 🙌

Bull Sadhana 🤣🤣