Hello,
My friends.
This is a guided meditation for mindful walking.
In a mindful walking meditation,
The only destination is here and now.
Don't lose yourself in life.
Find your life in walking.
Walking is life.
You can do this walking meditation anywhere and anytime you're able.
It's lovely to do mindful walking in a forest or near a body of water,
But it can also be done on a sidewalk along a city street,
Around your kitchen,
Or even in a prison cell.
This meditation focuses our attention on the body and the breath with every rhythmic step we take on this earth.
It will help you connect with the fullness of life in and around you and connect with the earth.
Remembering this is the one relationship that remains with you from birth to death.
A slight smile can help us connect with the happiness that is always available to us through our loving awareness,
And through this,
We can help relieve the suffering of the world.
Let's start by pausing in stillness for just a moment.
Imagine yourself as a great tree,
Roots grounded deeply into the earth.
Feeling stable and nurtured by this connection to earth.
Sense energy flowing between the earth and your feet,
Up into your legs and up into your trunk.
Breathing in the healing energy of our planet,
And exhaling out,
Discarding all your worries,
Anxieties,
And sorrows for right now.
Notice if your neck is aligned and drop your shoulders.
Spine elongated upward,
Hips strong and steady,
Yet loose and movable.
Allow your legs and arms to be fluid and flexible,
Keeping your elbows and knees protected,
Mindful of their positioning.
Soften your face,
Jaw loose,
Brow unfurrowed,
And welcome a slight smile.
Breathe deeply into the belly,
And then shift your weight side to side,
Allowing each foot to sink into the earth.
And with the next breath,
Move one step forward.
Breathing in one step,
Breathing out one step.
Breathing with your feet,
Each step one breath.
With each step,
Settle into a balanced body,
Relaxed and free-flowing,
Full of spaciousness and welcoming in,
A sense of joy and curiosity.
And with each step,
It's as if you're kissing the earth.
Now start to walk at your own casual pace,
Perhaps two or three slow steps for every long in-breath,
And three steps for every elongated out-breath.
Find a breathing rhythm that feels right for you.
Notice the contact between your foot and the earth or the path or floor below.
Feel how your foot rolls with each step.
Feel the movement of the legs and the whole body.
Notice any air flowing around you and how it feels on your skin.
Take in all the sensations of walking where you are with open awareness.
Open your ears and notice the sounds in your environment.
Allow any sounds that float to your ears just be acknowledged and continue to pass by.
Notice how you may be reacting to certain sounds and do not attach to them any judgment.
Open to curiosity and spaciousness as you simply notice the sounds around you and the life all around you.
You may say with every step,
Breathing in,
I am here.
Breathing out,
I am in this moment.
You may notice what you see in your environment.
Deeply see whatever is there before you,
Opening your wide peripheral vision.
Taking in the life that surrounds you.
Noticing colors,
Shapes,
Textures.
Take them all in.
And letting go of judgments on these things.
Instead open to curiosity and spaciousness as you simply notice what you see.
Bringing attention to the breath and the steps,
You may say,
Breathing in,
I am alive.
Breathing out,
The world is alive around me.
As you breathe in,
You may notice smells as they come to your nose.
Recognize the connection to life in the sense of the world.
Again,
Letting go of judgment,
Our likes and dislikes.
And just allow it all to be just as it is.
Breathing in,
Open mind.
Breathing out,
Patient mind.
If any strong emotions arise during your walk,
Acknowledge them with compassion and allow them to ebb and flow like waves within each step,
Within each breath.
Relax the body and reconnect with the healing energy of the earth through each step.
Breathing in,
I am here.
Breathing out,
I am calm.
Continue this walking meditation for as long as you are able.
Continue to focus on your breath and counting your steps.
Maintaining neutral awareness of this present moment with curiosity and spaciousness.
If you notice tension arise in the body,
Release it with every exhale through every step.
If you notice thoughts or emotion arise,
Simply acknowledge them and let them pass by.
If you notice the tendency to rush your steps,
Simply return your concentration to this moment.
This breath and this step.
Remember we are living in this moment rather than rushing to the next.
Breathing in,
I have arrived in this moment.
Breathing out,
I am home in this body.
Breathing in,
I am present.
Breathing out,
I am connected to all things.
