Seated meditation can be done in any position, however, if you choose to practice with your legs in the classic position, opening the hips first can help.
Many people use meditation to relieve stress. However, if you choose to meditate while sitting in the classic cross-legged posture known as the “Lotus Seat,” it could cause damage and pain to the body—particularly to the knees. How do we prevent knee injuries when choosing to meditate in this position? The key is to open your hip joints.
Some meditation practices suggest particular ways of sitting, such as with loose crossed legs, a single crossed leg, or double crossed legs. The “lotus seat,” often featured in yoga, requires the double-crossed leg posture. A
national survey in Australia with responses from 2,567 yoga practitioners analyzed the proportion of injuries related to yoga postures and found that one of the top three postures, when done incorrectly, was the seated cross-legged position at 5.3 percent.
Release the Hips to Reduce Knee Pain
If you can relax your hip joints before performing these types of sitting styles, you can effectively reduce knee pressure and the risk of injury. This is closely related to the structure of the human body.
The hip joint is a ball-and-socket joint that can rotate in multiple directions and offers an extensive range of possible motion. On the other hand, the knee joint is a hinge joint that can only extend and flex, and cannot rotate as freely.
When the hip joint is not flexible, but you force your legs to be folded, the knee will be forced to increase the twisting angle, causing friction between the medial cartilage and the meniscus, which can cause pain over time. Therefore, improving the flexibility of the hip joint before meditation can effectively reduce the compensatory pressure on the knee.
3 Postures to Open the Hip Joint
The following are three exercises to help open the hip joint and allow you to enter the sitting position safely.1. Butterfly Push-Up
Step 1: Sit with the soles of your feet facing each other and use your hands to gently pull the soles as close to your body as possible.
Step 2: Sit upright, and with your back straight, press your knees towards the floor.
Variation 1: Keep your back straight, bend forward, and try not to hunch your back.
Variation 2: Put your hands behind your body, use your thighs to close and then open your knees.
2. Frog Legs
Step 1: Kneel and open your knees out as far as they go. Turn the soles of your feet face to each other.
Step 2: Slowly move your abdomen closer to the ground and hold for 20 seconds.
Step 3: Lunge and turn your hips to press your legs.
3. Lunge and hip press
Step 1: Step one leg forward into a lunge and straighten your rear leg.
Step 2: Keep your lower rear leg and foot on the ground, and press your body forward.
Step 3: Cross your forward leg in front of the body, resting it on the floor. Lengthen your spine and lean forward as far as you can keeping the spine long. Turn the rear leg’s knee as far as possible to the outside of your body.
How to Increase Synovial Fluid in the Joint
The knee joint is normally wrapped in a joint capsule. Synovial cells on the inside of the joint capsule secrete synovial fluid, provide nutrition to the cartilage, metabolize waste, bring lubrication to and help repair the inside of the knee joint.In his book “Knees for a Century,” Ichiro Tatsumi, a well-known Japanese orthopedic physician, recommends practicing “swinging calf gymnastics,” to stretch and contract the joint capsule and promote the secretion of synovial fluid in the joint.
To relieve knee pain and enhance knee joint health he recommends sitting on a chair or bedside and holding the area between the thigh and the knee with both hands. Relax the leg and let it hang naturally from the hands. Swing the calf forward and back to move the knee joint.
Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times. Epoch Health welcomes professional discussion and friendly debate. To submit an opinion piece, please follow these guidelines and submit through our form here. 
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