Strong determination is crucial in sitting meditation, as it allows practitioners to navigate the inevitable discomfort and distractions that arise. The phrase "don't itch the itch" encapsulates this idea perfectly; when faced with an urge to scratch or shift position, resisting that impulse helps cultivate a deeper neutrality salve towards other sources of pain, anxiety, fear and activation. Try it at the next opportunity, meditating or not.

Of course other body pain can show up and that is just the light stuff when compared to the scale of things. This is why tuning your neutrality salve with strong determination is so important. See each discomfort as a challenge to tune neutrality. It is almost as if suffering (pain, itch, discomfort, unease) is needed in order to truely know what impermance and highly tuned neutrality is. You almost have to know it beyond the self that gripes, complains and desires comfort.

Moreover, the practice of patiently waiting for impermanence to reveal itself is fundamental to meditation. By allowing thoughts and sensations to come and go without clinging or aversion, meditators witness the transient nature of all experiences. This process not only deepens insight but also strengthens resolve, as it reinforces the understanding that discomfort is temporary. Ultimately, strong determination empowers practitioners to embrace each moment with clarity and neutrality, transforming the meditation practice into a profound journey of resilience to agreement and experiential reality.

Like water, you’ll path through a rough terrain from the mountains to the sea while embodying a fluid and neutral grasp of experience.