Positions/Plate VIII
Kneel
Also called: Kneeling, Back on heels, seiza, sitting on the heels
Kneeling, sitting back on your heels, hands flat on your thighs: the basic position, the one that says “I’m here”.
How to take it
Kneel on a cushion, knees almost together, and let your pelvis sink onto your heels. The tops of your feet rest flat, big toes close to each other. Lay your hands flat on your thighs, fingers pointing forward. Your back is straight without stiffness, shoulders low. Your head stays upright, eyes ahead of you or on the floor, depending on what you have agreed.
What it says
A calm availability: you wait without impatience, ready to receive an instruction. It is the position you come back to between two moments, and the one from which most kneeling positions start.
Variants
- Knees hip-width apart, more stable.
- A cushion slipped between your buttocks and heels, to ease the knees and ankles.
- On the edge of a chair, back straight, hands on your thighs, when your knees won’t cooperate: protocol is about intention, not height.
The call“Kneel.”