“Peace is every step.” Thich Nhat Hanh
What is walking meditation?
Medical doctor Jon Kabat-Zinn teaches meditation to his patients. He writes: “I know people who found it difficult to sit, but got deeply into meditation practice through walking. Even in traditional monastic settings, periods of sitting meditation are interspersed with periods of walking meditation. They are the same practice. The walking is just as good as the sitting. What is important is how you keep your mind.”
The Vietnamese Buddhist teacher Thich Nhat Hanh teaches walking meditation like this: “When we do walking meditation, we walk a little slower than our normal pace, and we coordinate our breathing with our steps. For example, we may take three steps with each in-breath and three steps with each out-breath. If your lungs want four steps instead of three, give them four. If they want only two, give them two."
“Be aware of the contact between your feet and the Earth. Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet. We can walk alone or with friends, and if possible, in some beautiful place. The purpose is to be in the present moment. If you feel happy, peaceful and joyful while you are walking, then your are practicing correctly.”
Jack Kornfield teaches mindfulness meditation, both sitting and walking. He writes: “After some practice with walking meditation, you will learn to use it to calm and collect yourself and to live more wakefully in your body. You can then extend it in an informal way during your daily life. You can learn to enjoy walking for its own sake instead of the usual planning and thinking, and in this simple way, begin to be truly present, to bring your body, heart, and mind together as you move through your life.”
Books Available from Amazon
Wherever You Go, There You Are: Mindfulness Meditation in Everyday Life, by Jon Kabat-Zinn ($11). Dr. Kabat-Zinn has taught this Buddhist method of relaxation to thousands of patients in his Stress Reduction Program at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center. The book blends stories, anecdotes, poems, images, and scientific observations with easily followed meditation instructions.
Full Catastrophe Living: Using the Wisdom of Your Body and Mind to Face Stress, Pain, and Illness, by Jon Kabat-Zinn ($19) This book is a terrific introduction for anyone who has considered meditating but was afraid it would be too difficult or would include religious practices they found foreign.
Peace is Every Step: The Path of Mindfulness in Everyday Life, by Thich Nhat Hanh ($11) Commentaries, meditations and anecdotes.
The Long Road Turns to Joy: A Guide to Walking Meditation, by Thich Nhat Hanh ($8) short meditative verses and personal observations to facilitate the practice of "walking peacefully."
A Path With Heart, by Jack Kornfield ($12) A meditation teacher and social activist, Kornfield offers practical advice and personal anecdotes about meditation.
Meditation for Beginners: Six Meditations for Insight, Greater Clarity and Cultivating a Compassionate Heart, by Jack Kornfield ($20) hardback book with CD or CD without the book. Kornfield uses clear language and step-by-step demonstrations to show how simple it is to start - and stick with - a daily meditation practice. In this complete beginner's course, Jack introduces the "Insight" tradition of Buddhist meditation.
Links
Thich Nhat Hanh founded a practice center called
Plum Village. Their site has information about him and his teaching schedule. Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care, and Society (CFM), founded by Jon Kabat-Zinn, has information about him, his teaching schedule, and his meditation techniques. www.umassmed.edu/cfm
Many Vipassana meditation centers, some of them founded by Jack Kornfield, offer meditation instruction. Check with these two: the Spirit Rock Meditation Center www.spiritrock.org and the Insight Meditation Society www.dharma.org
