A meditation pillow is an om-azing accessory designed with your comfort in mind during your mindfulness practice.
For a better meditation experience, keep reading to see our top six recommendations for expert-approved meditation pillows.
What Is a Meditation Pillow?
A meditation pillow supports your body during meditation. The cushion rolls your hips slightly forward to keep your spine’s natural curve intact, for optimal comfort.
A meditation pillow is often filled with firm, hearty materials like buckwheat so that you avoid slipping and slumping against the floor.
“A meditation pillow creates the correct physical posture to elongate your spine and relieve tension from your body, allowing you to feel more relaxed and experience less physical sensations or distractions,” says Jennifer Fuller, E-YRT 500, yoga instructor in Lake Tahoe, California. “Sitting with a tall, elongated, erect spine helps move energy more freely.”
When you sit on a pillow designed specifically for meditation, you can avoid putting excess pressure on your joints.
You also allow your sacrum to point at an angle, which studies show is excellent for lumbar comfort.
Do I Need a Meditation Cushion?
Have you ever experienced dull aches in your low back or pins and needles in your legs and feet after sitting for too long?
If so, you’ll understand why you need a meditation cushion.
“I encourage some type of cushion or pillow when seated for meditation,” says Fuller. “Your meditation experience is greatly enhanced by the addition of a meditation pillow that elevates the hips above the knees, and helps restore blood flow to the legs and feet.”
Your knees bear pressure when placed in a flexed position for too long without anything to buffer the pain.
According to Fuller, your meditation cushion is a prop that can help alleviate knee pressure while you sit, so that you feel relaxed and at ease to meditate.
After all, how can you possibly be mindful when your body is aching and screaming at you?
Whether you choose to sit silently or use Beachbody On Demand Sound Meditation, with soothing frequencies to shift your brain into a more relaxed, meditative state, you’ll be grateful for the added comfort.
The Best Meditation Pillows to Support Your Practice
Fuller prefers simple, round meditation pillows for her practice, but she believes that choosing the right meditation cushion for you is essential for an enjoyable meditation session.
Key features that Fuller recommends looking for when choosing a meditation cushion include:
- Height
- Stability
- Leg comfort
- Design aesthetics (color, shape)
- Price — more expensive does not necessarily mean better
1. Brentwood Home Crystal Cove Oval Meditation Cushion
The Crystal Cove oval meditation cushion, designed by yoga instructor Angela Kukhahn, is excellent for the health-conscious yogi with its soft, stretch fabric exterior made with formaldehyde-free materials. The cushion has a sturdy buckwheat-filled base that will form to your body for a luxurious meditation experience.
Where to buy it: Brentwood Home
2. Walden Cushion Set
The Walden set comes with a meditation cushion and a meditation mat. In this set, both items are super soft, filled with organic and hypoallergenic materials, and they’ll adapt and mold to your body. They also have gel-infused memory foam top layers for the yogi who loves to relax.
Price: $245
Where to buy it: Walden
3. DharmaCrafts Luxe Woven Zafu Zabuton Set
The luxe woven zafu zabuton set is for the versatile yogi/meditator who enjoys exploring the many different benefits of meditations out there and loves elegant aesthetics.
The set comes in three different colors and contains all-natural, chemical-free cotton that’s tufted to form a permanent inner cushion.
Price: $189
Where to buy it: Sugarmat
4. Gaiam Halfmoon Crescent Meditation Cushion
Gaiam’s crescent meditation cushion guarantees spinal support. Designed by yogis for yogis, it’s packed tightly with malleable buckwheat that will conform to your size/shape.
Price: $44.98
Where to buy it: Gaiam
5. Florensi Meditation Cushion
You’ll want to stay within your zen zone with the Florensi meditation cushion. Made with long-lasting materials, it will withstand the most dedicated practitioner’s usage for years to come.
Where to buy it: Amazon
6. Alexia Meditation Seat Vegan Leather
Need extra support to get your through your meditation practice? Let the Alexia Meditation Seat hold you as it adapts to the natural curves of your spine with its amazing ergonomics.
Price: $319.95
Where to buy it: Alexia