fandomhigh | Introduction to Meditation | Tuesday

"You've all probably heard of Zen meditation, or zazen," Bruce said as he settled onto a cushion at the front of the room in lotus position with his hands in his lap. "It's a practice of meditation that encourages clear-mindedness, and it's primarily practiced as a function of Buddhism. But, uh, for our purposes, we'll be adopting the technique for today without necessarily subscribing to the spiritual philosophy - that's a different class entirely. Essentially, zazen is described as the study of the self through union of body, breath and mind."

Bruce cleared his throat.

"Zazen actually means 'seated meditation,' so we'll all be sitting, but pillows are optional," he instructed. "The position that I'm in is called lotus, and it can feel a little, uh, painful, actually, if you sit this way for long periods of time, but it's also a very stable position - you physically don't stir as much, and when you're steady, you're free from physical distractions. On the other hand, if you'd rather pass on the knee pain, any seated position with your back straight is also fine, but I'd recommend against ordinary pretzel-style floor-sitting. You can also try kneeling, if you'd prefer, but that's not likely to make your knees feel any better than in lotus.

"Next you're going to cup your hands in your lap, palms up," he continued, "and whether or not your eyes are open is up to you. Then, begin breathing in through your nose, holding it for ten seconds, and then exhaling through your mouth. Try not to think about anything besides how many inhalations and exhalations you've gone through; if any other thoughts come to mind, dismiss them and then start counting over from one. When you can get to ten in a row, try for twenty. You probably won't get much further than that in the fifteen minutes we'll be meditating today."

He doubted anyone would get as far as ten, honestly. Zazen was hard.

"If you have any questions or want to take a walk in the hall before we start, now's the time," Bruce said, adjusting his position somewhat and stretching his hands out in front of him. "Otherwise, let's begin."

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

Zen!

Wheee.

As you do.

How did it feel? Was it easier or harder than expected?

Should they be present.

Who knows Zen meditation very well.

I'm boggling at some Mass Effect fancasts, check it out:

Anna Korlov

Anna had a question. Or, well, more like a statement with a question wrapped up in it: "Sir? I don't breathe."

Raven Darkholme

Korra

Jim Kirk

Jim thought he'd get to ten easily. It didn't sound very hard so he got himself seated (the lotus position was...a little difficult but he managed to get his legs there) and started breathing.

And then he thought about how easy this was which meant he had to start over. Okay. He took another few breaths and then thought about his legs getting stiff from this position and had to start over. Okay, this time he'd get it. He took a few breaths and then made the mistake of looking over at Natalie ~~if she was there~~. Aaaaand then he had to start over.

All right, maybe this wasn't as easy as he thought.

Edited 2013-07-30 12:11 (UTC)

"I thought it'd be easy," Jim admitted with a shake of his head. "I'm man enough to admit that it wasn't. It's hard not to think of anything."

Paddra Nsu-Yeul

Kitty would have really just preferred to forget Bruce existed and that nothing happened, but on an island this small, that wasn't really an option. Which meant that she was going to have to continue with the big girl pants thing, and then maybe she could really start moving on.

She waited till all the students had left after class and greeted him with, "So guess why I'm here."

Natalie was present, physically and mentally. And glad to have missed most of the weekend's drama.

Natalie chose to keep her eyes closed. That eliminated the distraction factor of Jim, at least. But not everything inside her head.

The furthest she got was four. But she was okay with that. Couldn't expect to be an expert the first time around.

"Oh." Well, that was an unexpected complication. "My apologies, Miss -- Korlov?" It had been a while since Bruce had last had to remember quite so many names. He looked thoughtful for a moment. "Hm. Do you mean that you don't need to, or you can't?"

Bruce knew. But being cornered wasn't something that he was historically a fan of, especially in his own classroom. He shifted on his feet, instinctively making more space for himself.

"How can I help you, Miss Pryde?"

"It is," Bruce agreed. He'd been having some trouble getting into that headspace today himself. "Tougher than the first week, I imagine. The counting can just be frustrating, giving you proof that you're doing poorly."

It wasn't fun for an overachiever like Bruce.

"Do you feel more relaxed now, or just annoyed?" he wondered wryly.

"You slept with my boyfriend," she said flatly. "If this is going to be a problem, I want to know up front."

Seriously, she hated so, so much that she even had to say that, but this all still hurt and she'd rather not freak out every time Bruce and Clint were even in the same room together.

"Not annoyed," he said, shaking his head. "Kinda determined to see if I can actually do it, though. So, maybe challenged is a better word."

Bruce startled slightly at the direct accusation - having his actions reported on radio still made him uncomfortable. But that was stupid, he supposed a moment later, because it was probably Barton, and not radio, who had told her about this.

In any event, he wondered why Barton hadn't mentioned that the... encounter had been completely involuntary.

"Uh, no," he said, scratching the back of his neck to better present the appearance of being wry and harmless rather than annoyed. "I wasn't... I have no interest in sleeping with Barton when I'm in control of my body."

Someone definitely needed to listen to radio more.

Kitty took this in and nodded. Then she said, "Good," and turned for the door again.

Darcy Lewis

Darcy was always a present. She was also there, trying to figure out why her finger was making a clicking noise.

Jackson Whittemore

Wow, that was a pretty awesome thing to hear as a teacher. "Practice," Bruce advised, in a good-humored tone that suggested that he knew Jim had probably expected that advice. "You'll get there."

Mordin Solus

Victor Mancha

"I don't have to. I can sort of mimic it," Anna admitted, "but I have to think about it."

Bruce nodded. "So, not completely conducive to clearing your mind," he noted. "Got it."

He thought about it for a moment, then mused, "Having the rhythm and something to keep track of while you're meditating is pretty important with Zen. Is there a small, physical thing you can substitute instead? Touching your tongue to the roof of your mouth, or rubbing circles on your palm? It's not ideal, but it's something."

Mercy Thompson

Shira

Introduction to Meditation | Tuesday | Period 1

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