Hi,
My name is Tim Mori and this is a walking meditation.
So many people have commented how much they've enjoyed the walking meditation and how easy it was for them to use it on their walk to work or just a weekend,
Sunday afternoon stroll.
Just an opportunity just to practice meditation in normal daily life.
So here's a slightly longer one that we can all do together right now.
As in normal life when we're walking around there are noises,
Sounds,
Sensations of the air on our bodies,
There is smells and we see things.
And so with traditional meditation we tend to shut ourselves out from life and just listen to the quiet of our mind.
And that's very powerful.
But so too is the practiced ability to be able to quiet our minds and enjoy the mental stillness whilst we are still fully functioning.
The creativity can be magnified.
In fact doorways to new ways of thinking have often been the result of having a meditative walk or just taking ourselves away from the habitual thinking.
Inspirational people throughout history have often commented,
Often been said to comment that sometimes you have to walk away from the problem to find its solution.
But even if we don't have any problems we need to solve or any inspiration we need to have,
Just experiencing quiet mind on the simple most basic function of walking can be immensely refreshing.
So as we're walking just listening to my voice,
Every time we hear noise either as part of this meditation or as we experience in our moment that we're using it,
We just acknowledge the noise and allow it to pass as it does the truth.
Every noise just passes by.
The truth is it is only our thoughts that become attached to the sounds and then they start a thinking process.
And so if we allow any sound or sensation,
Be it loud or quiet,
Sudden or prolonged,
Just allow our thoughts to let it go,
Let the sound pass.
Voices just pass through our consciousness,
Just like clouds across the sky or soap bubbles,
They appear and then they disappear.
And all we're focusing on is our breathing.
And as with many meditations that focus on the breath,
The sport meditation is no different.
We can focus on our breathing and we'll start off by taking a nice deep breath in and then a breath out.
A breath in and a breath out.
That's right.
Just breathing in and out.
Noticing the temperature of the air through our nostrils as we breathe in.
And the temperature of the air as we breathe out.
And every time a sound or a sensation or a thought catches our attention,
We just accept and allow and our awareness will come back to our breathing.
Just normal breathing in and breathing out.
Just walking and breathing.
Letting any noises,
Sounds,
Sensations pass by our attention.
Anchoring our attention to our breath.
For it is our thoughts about our experience that creates our world.
Experience comes and goes.
It is where our attention rests and triggers thoughts.
That creates the world as we see it and perceive it.
This awareness is very powerful because with the awareness of knowing how our reality is influenced by our thoughts about it,
It can lead us to be more peaceful by simply allowing experience to unfold without any particular thoughts.
It can free us from judgment where we become aware of how we assign particular thoughts to certain experiences and how this makes us feel or how it might limit us in our opportunities.
And also it gives us the power to be curious again with childlike curiosity.
To see how our life,
How our world unfolds if we are free from judgment.
If we simply become open and interested in our experiences.
The sounds pass us by.
You might notice we become unsettled,
Irritated.
Take a breath in and then out and let go of the judgment.
And see if the noise has passed us in that moment of breath.
As you let go of your attention to it,
The sound is gone.
It's no longer present.
Your breath is.
Continue your attention on your breath as you're walking and experiencing.
And as you allow sounds to pass,
As you're breathing and resting your attention on your breath,
You might become aware of more detailed sounds.
Sounds that were hidden.
Sounds that are buried beneath the noise.
Birds.
Maybe even the sound of each step that you make on the ground.
And as other noises arise,
Seek out the sounds beneath.
Seek out the sounds beneath those that have your attention.
You can always rest your attention on your breathing and listening to the breath as it comes in.
And it's okay if this feels like a challenge to start with.
Because our minds tend to focus very quickly on contrast.
And that is where our attention goes.
Attention goes to difference.
But beneath all the difference is the certainty and the comfort of that that is constant.
Your breathing and your gentle stepping or moving throughout your experience.
Just allow your attention.
Just take a few moments to allow your attention to rest upon your breathing.
And the orchestra of sounds that are in your experience right now.
The never-ending orchestra of experience passing through as your attention rests on your breath.
Just walking and breathing.
Just walking and breathing.
Just allowing the experience to unfold without judgement,
Just with curiosity,
Peacefulness and calm.
Allowing all sensations into your experience.
Just walking and breathing.
Now you already have all the skills you need to practice walking,
Meditation,
Wherever you feel comfortable.
And the more you practice when you're comfortable,
The more you build up the skills to practice when you're less comfortable.
Which is where the real power of practice and development of skill really come into play.
Is practice walking meditation or any kind of meditation whenever you feel tense,
Stressed,
All those moments when you simply can't be bothered.
All those moments,
Those times when you think,
Oh I'll do it tomorrow.
Not in the mood.
Because those are the times when the meditation practice will have even more profound impact upon your life.
Because whilst there is power and great benefits in practicing meditation when one is quiet and calm,
Whilst there is power and great benefits in practicing meditation when one is quiet and calm,
The life changing,
The life affirming true power of practice comes from applying it to everyday ups and downs,
Busyness,
Non-business.
Times when you don't want it,
Times when you don't need it.
They're the times when practice becomes mastery.
So as we're coming to the end of this walking meditation,
You can of course carry on noticing your breath,
Bringing your attention to your breath and your steps and the sound of your steps.
Just allow mental peace into everyday life.
And if you found this useful and how it helped you during your day,
I'm always very pleased and grateful to hear of your experiences.
And please tell your friends,
The world is a busy place and everyone is finding it hard at times.
And of course all we need to do really is just build in a basic practice of building mental peace into our lives.
Because peace starts within.
Thank you very much and have a marvelous,
Wonderful day.
