In early stages of walking meditation, there is a lot of stopping and beginning. When we discover we've forgotten something or our minds have wandered, we come to a halt. We also take deliberate breaks to deal with distractions.
- This kind of “stop-and-go” meditation is quite acceptable. In reality, everything is as it should be.
- Forgetting and mental wandering will become less and less common, just as they do in sitting meditation.
- Furthermore, distractions that may have previously drew your attention enough to justify an intentional stop are now well-known via peripheral awareness.
- You won't be stopping as often as you used to.
Begin the habit of "checking in" when you find yourself strolling for many minutes between interruptions.
- Instead of immediately continuing to walking after stopping to examine a distraction, check in on everything else in the same sensory area as the distraction.
- If you paused to listen to a bird, for example, after you've finished with the birdsong, take in and explore the whole soundscape before continuing on your way.
- As the number of distractions capable of capturing your attention decreases, don't wait for one to appear before checking in.
- After a few minutes of carefully monitoring the feelings of walking, for example, take a moment to check in on all of the other bodily sensations that are there in addition to those in your feet and legs.
- Spend a minute or two meditating on them, then continue walking with your focus on your feet. Switch to other senses after many repetitions with bodily feelings.
- Spend some time meditating on the noises around you. After a few repetitions, transition to visual experiences.
For as long and as frequently as you find helpful and pleasant, alternate focusing on the sensations of walking with pausing to concentrate on the contents of these three sensory regions.
- You may have ideas regarding the content of these sensory areas when you check in.
- In fact, you'll likely hear a lot of self-talk about what's going on and how your practice is progressing.
- To some extent, self-talk may help you remain on course, but by the time you're well into Stage Three, you should be using as little verbal thinking as possible.
- Silently practice being in the present moment.
- Allow your ideas to become words and then let them go.
- Of course, there will be some forgetting, which will lead to discursive verbal thinking as well.
- Just be grateful you become aware of these vocal ideas when introspective awareness exposes you to them.
- Then, instead of focusing on the words, turn your attention to the feelings in your feet.
You're not attempting to silence your mind or prevent ideas from emerging in the first place.
- Allow the words to come and leave at their own pace.
- Just don't pay attention to them.
- Learn how to watch, analyze, and even think without using words.
- Enjoy the journey of discovery!
Always keep in mind that at every stage of walking meditation, relaxation and enjoyment should take precedence.
Consider walking as a way of "staying in the present moment."
What started as a slip of the tongue has now evolved into my preferred method of expressing walking.
