Most people describe the meditative experience as one of "cleansing the mind"; that is, usually after assaulting Songshan mountain behind the temple, after climbing the hundreds of stairs, one would sit in a cross-legged position, with hands splayed, palms up on the thighs, eyes closed, body completely relaxed, and just think of absolutely nothing, other than trying to move the qi around with each purposeful but well controlled and shallow breath.

I usually think about how much my damn legs just hurt me. 

Oh, and I also think about all those Chinese tourists down in the valley looking through those Russian-made long-distance military grade binoculars, for a ridiculous fee, up at some big bald guy sitting down in the dirt at the top of the mountain with his hands on his thighs in obvious terrible pain. To think that they pay money for that.