The Itch ( Whilst Meditating )
Shoshin
No one in particularNowhere Special Veteran
You're just sitting, minding your own business, then out of the blue an itch appears on some part of the body eg, the ear, nose, eyelid, back. etc etc... If left alone, after a while it begins to dissipate...
The Itch......Have you ever explored where it comes from ?
And where it goes ?
Is it physical or mental ?
Or both ?
In a past life ( as an Urban Pestologist ) I've dealt with people who had "Delusional parasitosis" they were convinced that there were tiny bugs crawling over their skin, making them itch....they would show you tiny pieces of material ( eg tiny bits of thread or a particle of sorts) saying that this was one of the tiny bug, and to try to convince them that there were no bugs there, they would look at you like you were delusional because you couldn't see them 
When an itch appears during meditation, if one sits patiently it eventually dissipates..Was something really there ? Or just imagination ?
Just some food for thought when an itch decides to join you on the cushion
BTW there are obvious causes for the itch..... hairs, clothing/fabric, 'real' tiny bugs, etc etc, but on many occasions there's just the itch sans obvious cause....
PS I bet some who read this will start to feel itchy
Comments
Mein Gott, man - have you no better sense than to post something like this?
Do you not know what you may unleash?
The body is an imperfect electrical system - neurons misfire all the time - a tic spasm of the eyelid, a twitch of the finger, a cramp in the toes! Some are random, some are triggered by suggestions like this one. I have to go look for a tree to scratch against now.
I guess to discuss itching is as contagious as yawning (" Mein Gott man 'Fräulein' BTW
)
Thanks a lot @Shoshin
On a more serious note:
Being able to slow down or change ones reaction into non action, (even something as Insignificant as an itch) is an important part of 'mind training' especially when one can develop this skill in meditation
One is, in a sense, developing a new habit pattern, one that has the potential to help to alleviate/prevent unwholesome situations from arising, whereas past habitual behaviour/reaction may have fuel the situation in an unbeneficial way ie, causing suffering.....
Ye.e.e.ers......
I just leave it be, and if it doesn't go, I just scratch it and move on.
You've got me scratching now.
@Shoshin said:
My apologies - I knew when I posted this that it would probably turn out to be incorrect, but chose the path of non-action over appropriate reaction. Laziness, I think.
It is interesting that if one really meditates on itching, it is found that at any given time there are 4 or 5 spots on the body that either itch or seem to be poised to start itching. I suppose that if you meditate on this exclusively, you end up with the 'delusional parasitosis' you mentioned.
A good point. You essentially replace the innate reaction with the new reaction of appropriate inaction.
The mental pathway that leads to this can be generalized through mindfulness to apply to many things of greater import.
so it has been written.
To observe the itch (resisting the desire to scratch) is all about training the mind to overcome mundane disturbances, ie, the practice of patience -witnessing the subtleness of anicca (impermanence) at work-gaining experiential understanding/knowledge
"To just 'know of' is knowledge...but experiential knowledge is power/wisdom !"
"Transient alas, is the component itch
subject is it to birth and then decay
Having gained birth; to death the itch flux does twitch
Bliss truly dawns when the desire to scratch dies away! "
Itching, excessive saliva, aches and pangs of hunger, the need to fidget like a monkey etc always arises in some form ...
Just relax attentively ...
http://liveanddare.com/meditation-tips-and-answers/
Number 4 @lobster is a good way for beginners to develop mindfulness in ones daily lives...(I guess for some experienced meditators too
)
"(4) INTEGRATION. How to take the space you find during meditation and integrate it in your daily life? Well, one activity at a time.
A Zen Master (Heyla Downey zenafrica.blogspot.com) once taught me: pick one new activity every week (like walking, eating, talking, dressing, etc.) and focus on bringing the meditation energy to that activity, whenever it happens, during the whole week. Then, in the following week, you keep doing it but add a second activity. Do this for 20 weeks, and mindfulness will have impregnated your life."
Indeed, that is a good plan.
I have been in physical mindfulness to the blink of an eye but would consider such integrated training, 'real practice'. Meditation, mindfulness and dharma study.
Soon we will be wise guys and gals. Hooray. The need is great.