Back problem

Question: 
I have back trouble; should I meditate?
​
Answer:
It doesn’t hurt to try. But do not overdo it: instead of going for two additional minutes each time you have pain, be more conservative.

​One of my students had back pain, but valiantly continued to come to our weekly Pure Land assemblies. It’s not easy, because our supervised sits at these kind of sessions last for over forty minutes (although we do not sit for a full hour, this is still a reasonably long period). She would only tell me about the pain afterward. I was impressed with her tenacity and taught her a personalized technique to handle her pain. She tried it and it worked. Success has its price.

I also had another student, who at one time was bed-ridden for months with back pain. She tried Western and Eastern medicine for years. When she came to the temple, she could move about and function normally but had constant pain. After a few months of practice, she said that her posture improved, and her back no longer hurt.
​
My general answer is that meditation, under a competent Good Knowing Adviser, can resolve the back pain issue.