I am curious how they keep themselves upright and stable, like against a wall or a post, or if they do not.
If they do not, do they keep their posture properly upright, or do they slouch?
Maybe they get another monk to hold and keep them upright.
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If they slept in shifts, it could work. Curious about the case when itâs only a single monk.
I can tell you how a nun did itâŚ
I guess we can assume the same applies to monks 
The day was very structured: four times a day I would sit and meditate in a traditional meditation box for three hours, and thatâs where I slept, sitting up.
'I spent 12 years in a cave' | Buddhism | The Guardian
*picture is not Ven. Tenzin Palmo
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Thanks for the article; I remember reading this one, long ago, but didnât remember any details except the deportation.
I guess, to be clearer, the question I have is: What does sleeping sitting up entail? Does one lean back on something, or do they sit by the power of the body alone?
The photo you uploaded, @Cara, may suggest the leaning back idea; unless itâs being used purely as a place to hang the cloth.
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The Visuddhimagga describes three grades of strictness in the observance. The monks Iâve known who undertook this practice were all doing it in the milder second or third ways.
This has three grades too. Herein, one who is strict is not allowed a back-rest or cloth band or binding-strap [to prevent falling while asleep]. The medium one is allowed any one of these three. The mild one is allowed a back-rest, a cloth band, a binding-strap, a cushion, a âfive-limbâ and a âseven-limb.â A âfive-limbâ is [a chair] made with [four legs and] a support for the back. A âseven-limbâ is one made with [four legs,] a support for the back and an [arm] support on each side.
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Thank you, Phra Ajahn!
And thank you for the source. I did not realize it was stated in the Visuddhimagga; Iâll have to refresh my memory of its contents.
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I remember being told the Webu Sayadaw used âchin restsâ with his students.
To become his student, one had to be able to not lie down for a month straight if I remember properly. There were no beds in the rooms, only âchin restsâ where they could hold their chin while being asleep. This is from memory. Perhaps someone can fact check me on this.
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Doesnât seem that far fetched. Googling âsleep standing upâ yields quite a bit of information, including sitting. Several types of animals can sleep not lying down, even moving. An example hit from that search:
If a monks sleeps for just 4 hours or so (that â2nd watch of the nightâ thing from sutta-s?), the health risks (thrombosis, etc.) may not be that significant.
I myself found, after a couple years of sitting practice and samadhi development, that I could sleep, or at least nap, while sitting very erect and in physical equilibrium.
This was useful while attending all-day âcontinuing-educationâ classes that were boring, especially during that post-lunch period when digestion (parasympathetic nervous system) wants priority over the sympathetic NS (fight-or-flight type alertness). I would take a seat in the back-most row, get into a very stable, balanced, upright position, and doze-off for half-an-hour or more.
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I suggest we research on whether and how the Jains take on that practice nowadays (or in the past).
This is for theyâre one of the few Indian spiritual communities with practices possibly traceable as far back in the past as the Buddhist ones.
Has anyone heard of a vow or penance similar to this one being observed or pursued by our Jain equivalent?
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Re: keeping body upright- there are a couple of ways to do this.
The reason I know is because I use back support for regular meditation for health reasons. This is actually quite similar to doing it for sleeping as given a surface that allows relaxation and a sufficient degree of tiredness, one can fall asleep in any supported posture.
You want some kind of leaning surface with a 20- 40 degree back incline, not 0 degrees back chair.
Method 1:
Get a decently supportive chair, like one of those Ikea poang type things or a recliner.
Possibly the more obvious option, but no Ikea in ancient Asia.
Method 2.
- Get a tall, body-width board (more like door size than plank) and lean it on a wall & pad it with something e.g. a thin mattress or meditation cushion set foam squares. I have also had success with putting a leaning board between a wall and a camphor chest. I padded the top of the chest with a blanket for sitting on and added a pillow for lumbar support/gap fill.
This one is good for adjustable incline as you can move the chest forward for more incline according to preference. More incline=more relaxed.
The Pali commentaries are familiar with leaning boards in other contexts. If you were more flexible than me the chest might be overkill though, it can go directly on the ground.
If you go for the âboardâ style, you could theoretically tie a scarf behind the board at head height to support the head. Or use a travel neck cushion. I have tried this but I donât like stuff touching my head.
Method 3:
I had read about a Japanese monk who padded himself upright by tying blankets on himself with assistance from others but have not been able to replicate this. It might have been a mysterious âclass 1 dhutangaâ attempt. Not sure (also not sure if the first class dhutanga is reality or fiction).
Method 4 (involuntary):
Sleep in plane or bus.
@Gabriel_L I have searched for photos of Jains for a long time, but what I have seen seems to mostly be sallekhana photos. They seem to use cloth ties and whatever is available, I saw one tied to the window grill?
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There are certain Hindu sadhus or babas who have taken vows of penance and renounce worldly pleasures such as lying down. They build contraptions sort of like swing sets for children that contain a platform at elbow level where they rest their torsos while sleeping. This YouTube video shows one of the âStanding Babas of Mumbaiâ demonstrating one of the contraptions. You can skip the introduction and start watching around the 1:20 time mark to see a demonstration:
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I have been known to sit cross legged and put the top of my forehead on the floor or on my arms, with my back arched forwards, so that it rests a handspan in front of my shins. Mostly Iâm not sleeping, I just find it a comforting posture, like cross legged âchildâs poseâ. However, I donât think hips are meant to be kept in such a position for a long time. Sorry hips
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