Walking Meditation: Harmonizing Breath, Step, and Awareness
What is walking meditation?
It's a discipline often interspersed with sitting meditation to give yourself a break from the physical stress of sitting. You take the principles of sitting meditation and apply them to a walking environment.
Only now are we focusing on our steps and each sensation we feel as we move across an area? This can be interesting because, in walking meditation, you have the option to notice each step, each breath, or any combination thereof.
You can control the cadence or the speed of your walk so you can slow down or speed up to kind of accommodate what you're doing or any body limitations. And if you get distracted, or your mind wanders, or you start focusing on anything other than your breath or your step.
Then, you simply do what you would in any other meditation: redirect and bring your attention back.
It doesn't matter if you have a lot of space or a little space to work with because you can pace a little with this technique. So if you want to try it, you're in an area where you're free and safe to walk around.
You can simply get up and start to take a walk, focusing on each step that you may. One of the other things you can focus on is your actual breathing. Feel your breath in the center of your chest as you move, and notice the rhythm of your breath in conjunction with the rhythms of your step.
Give it A try
Decide where you want to focus your attention. If you don't have an area or a path to walk along, find a small area where you can move back and forth, pacing and paying attention to your steps.
As you begin the walk, notice the speed at which you're walking and how applying your attention to walking influences the speed at which you're walking.
Feel the next step as the ball of your foot touches the ground or your heel strikes. Where is the weight being distributed in your legs?
What and how does your breath feel as you're walking?
Notice that your attention is not just held to the sensations of each step or breath, but it's distributed. So, hear the sounds and rhythm that surround you as you move through the space and when you get distracted because chances are you will.
That's the practice where you can simply return to the observation, the observation of your breath, the observation of your step, and the rhythm of your experience