Stuff that Comes Up when Sitting

The past couple of times I've done sitting practice, I've had strange physical reactions that I've never had before.

At the temple last week, I kept getting these spasms in my lower back. This morning, when I got close to the 20-minute mark, I felt like I was hyperventilating. My mental reaction in both cases was to adjust... shift my back a little... slow my breathing a little... DO something about it.

I'm smiling as I write this because the last Dharma talk I heard mentioned something about not giving in to the need to itch because there's always another one that follows... once you scratch that itch, within minutes another comes in its place.

I guess my urge to "do something about it" was because these sensations were sp foreign to me. Normally, I sit without any discomfort in my back. Normally, my breathing is steady. My legs fall asleep. My feet fall asleep. My mind wanders at times. Those are the things I am used to. Is it strange that this "other stuff" brought up a sense of panic... an urge to stop?

That's why I wanted to review the six points of posture in today's Daily Dharma entry. I have a hard time remembering them... Legs I remember because mine always fall asleep. Hands... sitting zazen we hold our hands in the dhyani mudra... Eyes I remember. I get fuzzy on the other ones.

I don't ever expect to be completely comfortable when sitting... maybe remembering these points will resolve some of the recent strangeness. Maybe not.