Welcome to a Beltane walking meditation.
My name is Jenny C.
Bell,
And I have been a witch for three decades.
You do not need to be a witch to tune in to Beltane Energy or to do this meditation.
Beltane is considered a cross-quarter day on the Wheel of the Year,
And it lands about May 1st.
But really,
Doing this meditation any time between now and summer solstice will be perfect.
But really,
It can be practiced at any time.
So I chose a walking meditation for Beltane for this series because it's my favorite type of meditation,
And for the majority of us,
The Beltane time is ideal for walking.
It's not too hot,
It's not too cold.
There's lots of spring activity,
Lots of things to notice.
So you will need to be outside for this meditation.
So if you are not,
Please pause and head outside.
And you do not need a huge walking space for this meditation.
If you wanted to,
You could just continue,
Make a little path in your yard or in front of your home,
And do this meditation kind of back and forth for several paces.
Or you can take me on a walk,
And when the meditation finishes,
Finish the walk with the practice in mind and in silence without any other kind of distraction.
So the first thing we're going to do before you walk is I would like you to take a deep breath and put your attention on your feet.
So let's take a deep breath,
Let it out slowly,
And then bring your mind's eye,
Your attention,
Your focus to your feet.
And just notice,
No judgment,
Just how your feet feel on the earth.
If you're barefoot,
Notice that.
If you're wearing shoes,
Notice that.
Just take in a moment to notice your feet.
And what I want you to do is if you can,
I want you to lift all of your toes and then put them back down.
I want you to lift your heel,
Put it back down.
I want you to rock your foot to the left side,
The outside of your foot or feet,
And then put them back down.
Rock them inward on the right side of the feet,
Put them back down.
Maybe bend your knees a couple times,
Roll back your shoulders,
And really tune in to your body for walking.
Now a walking meditation is a slow meditation.
So it's one foot in front of the other.
And that's why we're taking the time to really feel our feet,
Right?
You might want to check your posture now.
So are you standing tall?
Are your shoulders back?
Is your head straight?
You might want to pull in your abs.
You might want to take another deep breath and really make sure that your posture is feeling as comfortable as it can be for your walk.
I know we're a couple minutes into the meditation and you haven't even walked,
But that's part of the mindfulness,
Part of being present,
Right?
So I want you to begin walking,
And I'm not going to have you set a pace yet.
I just want you to walk at what you consider to be your regular pace.
And while you're walking,
I want you to notice some things.
I want you to notice how it feels to move your body.
I want you to notice how fast you're going.
And if you're going pretty fast,
I'm going to ask you to slow down.
It's going to feel more like maybe moseying or strolling,
Right?
This isn't a walk for exercise or getting our heart rate up.
So slow it down.
Now I want you to notice the temperature.
Take a moment,
Really tune in without looking at your phone at the weather,
Right?
What does the temperature feel like to you?
Is there a breeze?
Is it humid?
Is it dry?
Is it warm?
Is it cool?
Is it just right?
And then I want you to notice time of day.
Are you walking in the day or are you walking at night?
If you're walking in the day,
Is the sun shining?
Where is the sun in the sky?
Notice the sun.
Is it feeling warm?
If you're walking at night,
Where is the moon?
If she's there,
What phase is she in?
Are there any stars?
Are there any clouds?
Is it raining?
Do you feel rain?
Do you feel moisture?
Do you feel wind?
So we noticed our body.
We noticed the temperature.
We noticed the outside.
Now,
I want you to start to take your gaze and as safely as you can be mindful of traffic and things like that.
Start to take in your surroundings.
What do you notice?
Do you notice plants and trees?
Do you notice flowers blooming?
Do you notice insects and bugs?
Do you see other people,
Cars,
Animals?
Just start to walk slowly and gaze around.
And it's very human.
It's very normal,
Very natural to want to name everything,
Right?
So you're,
This is this kind of tree and this is that kind of tree.
But let's try instead just to notice.
So you're looking,
You just see the tree,
But you're not concerned about what kind of tree.
If you're in your own yard,
You may see,
You know,
I really need to cut this,
Cut the grass or trim this tree.
But we're going to let that go.
We're not going to look for problems to solve.
We're just going to notice what's around us.
Then I invite you to take another deep breath.
I'd like you to take a moment,
You might need to stop to do this and gaze upward above eye level,
Scanning the treetops or the tops of buildings,
Scanning the sky,
Looking all around as all around as you can.
So looking over your left shoulder with your eyes above eye level,
Looking over your right shoulder,
Looking all around.
And then I want you to take your gaze down.
So maybe nodding your head a little bit and looking at the ground beneath your feet.
You know,
What's the texture of the ground?
Where are you walking right now?
Are you on a sidewalk?
Are you on asphalt?
Just really noticing your surroundings.
And then you can let your gaze return to normal and begin walking again if you stopped.
You're remembering to breathe.
So take another deep breath.
Slowly let it out.
And then I want you to feel in your body more than try to think about this.
And that's difficult for a lot of us.
So I want you to try to feel in your body how you know it's springtime.
And this might be temperature.
This might be allergies.
It might be more energy.
It might be a little sense of happiness or possibility or joy.
But I want you to try to figure in your body how you know it's springtime.
Then I want you to let that go.
I want you to take another deep breath and continue to walk slowly.
And I want you to think as a way of letting go of mundane thoughts.
Right foot,
Left foot.
So as you pick up the right foot,
Think right foot.
As you put it down,
Think right foot.
Continue.
And now you pick up the left foot.
As you put it down,
Think left foot.
Or maybe you think up,
Down.
One foot up,
One foot down.
Or maybe you're thinking forward.
Or maybe you're good with direction.
You know,
You're walking north and you're thinking northward.
But as you continue this practice,
And you continue walking on your own,
The meditation is going to end soon.
But I would like you to continue on your own.
So once the meditation is over,
Let it be done.
And continue to walk five minutes on your own in complete silence the best you can.
And if thoughts arise or worries arise,
Or am I doing this right?
Go back to either up,
Down,
Or right,
Left,
Or gazing.
I gave you lots of tools,
Right?
You can gaze around you,
Above you,
Below you.
You can sense into your body.
These are all tools to help you become mindful and present during your walking meditation.
And don't be upset if thoughts come up.
That's okay.
Recognize them and let them go.
But I really suggest,
Encourage you to do this meditation a few more times.
Really lean into walking meditation as a practice,
As a way to nourish yourself,
As a way to help open yourself up to the fertility and possibility of Beltane season.
Thank you so much for practicing with me.
Blessed be.
