In Japanese, a square cushion for sitting on is called a zabuton 座布団 and a round cushion used for meditation or zazen is called a zafu 座布. I’m not religious or anything but I enjoy meditation, without all the strict ritual. Believe it or not, it’s hard to find a good zafu in Japan, land of Zen, while in North America meditation as a practice is more common amongst ordinary people and so you can find them easily online. The other day, while searching for something else on Rakuten, I found this zafu which had very good reviews so I decided to get it. The small size I got is really small. It’s a lot smaller than the average zafu they have at temples but when I sat on it I could immediately understand why this had good reviews.

Unlike a regular cushion, this zafu is jam-packed with padding and feels rather hard. The firmness of the cushion helps maintain stability and correct posture for long periods of time. It keep your butt at a higher position than your legs and takes some of the strain off your lower back. It might take me a while to get used to the hardness though. As you can see from the side view it’s very thick and round in shape. The white part is for writing your name on it so your zafu doesn’t get mixed up with the other monks’ zafus. The shop also sent me some incense, candles and instructions on how to sit and do zazen. How nice of them!

Here are some photos with other things to give you an idea of the scale. Even if you aren’t into meditation I think using a cushion like this regularly is good for your back and may help improve your posture. The small size is perfect for me (166cm) but if you’ve got a big butt you might want to go a size or two larger.