When I wrote about meditating in my post Buddhist Meditation I highlighted the pain I was experiencing that impacted on my concentration.

I decided that instead of opting for a chair, I would persevere and try to train my body to get used to the seated meditation position. At this point I am sure that it will take me some time to get into a full lotus position (if that is at all possible for me).

In the meantime I have been exploring ways to gradually get used to the position that most resembles the lotus position without me needing to cause harm to my ageing bones or tired ligaments.

Last week I took my back cushion from my couch and of course left it there at the temple. So the choice was to go back and get it the next day or buy a new couch.

After looking online at various commercial mats, pads and foam constructions, I couldn’t find anything that I thought would do the trick.

So, I went to Clark Rubber and selected a few offcuts to construct a multi density zoned seating cushion. A bit high tech I know but I had to overcome certain shortcomings in position and comfort of having a single layer of one foam.

My needs were:

  1. Higher density under my bottom to lift my pelvis a little higher than my ankles. I found this took pressure off my hip joints and allowed a more comfortable back position.
  2. A thin layer of medium density foam on top of that to let some blood flow to my previously fractured coccyx.
  3. A medium layer softer density foam for my ankles to rest on.

Offcuts were selected for these purposes and glued together in a tetris type pattern to form a tiered cushion.

Seeing as I need the cushion for tomorrow’s meditation class, and I don’t have a sewing machine or the time to make a cover, I used a pillowcase to cover my newly created masterpiece (civil construction project 101)

I will avid readers of my blog (all two of you) when I give it a test flight tomorrow.