Mindful Walking

Mindful walking is also called walking meditation; while walking, we know we are walking. It means we pay attention to our walking, specifically our steps, each step, along with our breathing. We practice like that because our habit is always to do many things simultaneously; The mind can go in a thousand directions. We tend to lose ourselves in sadness, despair, regrets about the past, or worries about the future.

              Walking meditation is one of the practices to help us have more concentration and cultivate the energy of mindfulness, be in the present moment, right here and now. Mindfulness is a source of energy, a state of awareness of what is happening in our bodies and minds. When we have the strength of mindfulness, our life will be more profound. We know that we are still alive, still walking on our own feet. Master Linji, a famous 9th-century Zen master, said: “The miracle is not walking on embers, but walking on the ground.” 

              We walk without worry, without thinking, putting full attention on our walking. When we walk in mindfulness, we can see the miracle of life and its many manifestations around us. When we walk, we can count our breath: three steps with breathing in, three steps with breathing out (depending on the length of our breath); or sometimes we can follow the song: “I have arrived, I am home, in the here, in the now, I am solid, I am free”; or you can call the name of your beloved one; your dad, mom, or brother, sister, etc. From time to time, we can stop, look around, and see how vast life is: beautiful trees, hummingbirds, sky, and mountains around us. As we walk, we imprint our gratitude and love onto the earth. Whether short or long distance, every journey is an opportunity for us to practice. So let us walk as a free person, and recognize that we are still alive.

Phap Tuyen

Mindful Walking (cont)

Mindful walking and healing