Walking Meditation This is a practice to visit to remember the feeling of emotion and be fully present with it.
In times of inertia or feeling stuck in timelines and trajectories,
Let this be a place where you can remember what it feels like to move.
In this practice we'll be bringing our awareness to the movement of walking,
The seemingly simple act of moving ourselves with our feet to somewhere we're going or just for the act of being on a walk.
Wherever walking happens in our day,
We're often distracted,
Maybe we're on the phone,
Lost in thoughts,
Perhaps thinking about our destination or things from the past pondering on the future.
In times of waiting or difficulty we can be more in thought than in body.
So this walk is a space to move from the thinking mind to the listening present mind,
A diversion back to now.
Today we're going to be fully present with the simplicity of the act of moving one foot in front of the other,
Being fully present with our action.
Walking from one moment to the next,
Footstep by footstep.
You can choose where to take this walking practice.
It may be that you take a walk from your home or work in nature or more urban places or you could choose to walk in your home around the spaces you live and rest in.
Landscape itself doesn't really matter.
We begin by noticing our standing body.
Be aware of the feet on the ground below.
Notice the scaffolding of your bones,
The spine and the wonder of this act of being stood.
While we often describe it as simple,
It's anything but.
It's tens of thousands of intricate messages and coordinated movements to place us in motion.
So bring your gaze ahead to what you can see in front of you,
Nearby and further afield.
If you spent time today looking gaze down a screen,
Notice the open expansion of looking ahead towards the horizon and we walk.
Thinking of this as a sacred act of intentional movement.
Be aware of your breath as you're walking.
Notice the shape and quality of the inhale.
Notice the exhale.
Being aware of your breathing without any effort to change it.
Simply allowing the breath to come and go.
Be a witness to your body in motion,
The rhythm of footsteps,
The chosen direction of travel.
As you walk,
Engage now with the sense channels of your body.
Notice the things you see,
The multiple images of your surroundings.
Be aware of the nature of the light that meets your eyes,
The weather.
Be aware of the ordinary things that surround you that might otherwise have been missed.
Be attuned to the beauty in the everyday ordinary,
The details.
Let them pass by you.
Let loose any stories or narratives that want to become attached to them.
And now let the auditory background be at the forefront,
The soundscape.
Beginning with the sound of your feet,
Perhaps the rustle of your clothes,
The sound of my voice.
Then saffé further afield to the sounds of the community you're walking in.
Communities of nature,
Of people,
Of your surroundings.
Sounds we can't see and sounds that we can.
Notice anything you can detect as a smell,
A scent.
And as you notice anything or an absence of anything,
Be aware of the breath and the way the breath meets your nose.
The simplicity and complexity of your breath,
Breathing your body with the breath body walking,
The orchestrated symphony of movement.
A step,
Then another,
Moment to moment,
Intentional presence in this small portion of your day.
And as thoughts arise and ask to walk with you,
Acknowledge them and return to the motion of your legs,
Your stride,
Your in-breath and your out-breath.
And notice the gift of immersing fully into an often taken for granted experience,
The intricate wonder of your body moving in the scene that is our earth.
And let all of these things merge.
The view,
The backdrop of sound,
The atmosphere,
The motion,
The breath,
The heart beating.
All of it.
And you might choose to keep walking in this way now.
Return into the aspects of noticing that felt most resonant to you.
You might revisit the images,
The auditory,
The movement or the breath.
They're all reminders of the now.
Anchors to return to.
You are moving.
Enjoy the remainder of your walk.
Enjoy the rest of your day.
Enjoy the rest of your day.
Enjoy the rest of your day.
Enjoy the rest of your day.
