Zafu

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Zafu in a Japanese Zen monastery
Typical modern zafu

The Zafu ( Japanese 座 蒲 , Chinese  蒲团 , Pinyin pútuán ) is a traditional seat cushion that is used for sitting meditation . The name means "seat of cattail " whose fibers in China, the country of origin of Zafus served as raw material.

The Zafu is round, around 35 cm in diameter and 10 to 15 cm high. The cover is made of sturdy cotton, in traditional Zendōs always black. The cut comprises two circular top surfaces and a circumferential, rectangular side part with vertical expansion folds. Often a ribbon and a name tag are sewn in. The pillow is traditionally filled with kapok , western variants also with spelled or buckwheat chaff . Since the kapok filling is only partially elastic, the zafu has to be brought back into shape by hand after each use and occasionally refilled.

The Zafu is usually on a rectangular padded seat mat, the Zabuton used. You sit on the front half of the zafu with your legs crossed, preferably in a lotus position . The Zafu causes the pelvis to be in an elevated, slightly forward inclined position and thereby promotes two main features of an effective meditation posture: contact of the knees with the floor and an extended spine.

The zafu is both a tool and a symbol of zazen . Before and after sitting in the zendō (meditation room), the neighbors are greeted with a gassho tetto (bowing with folded hands) in the direction of their own zafu, followed by a gassho tetto to the opposite side of the room.

Web links

  • Sotozen-Net - detailed instructions for sitting in zazen