Walking Meditation: Thich Nhat Hanh
“People say that walking on water is a miracle, but to me, walking peacefully on the earth is the real miracle. The Earth is a miracle, each step is a miracle. Taking steps on our beautiful planet can bring real happiness.
As you walk, be fully aware of your foot, the ground, and the connection between them, which is your conscious breathing.”— Thich Nhat Hanh, The Long Road Turns To Joy, a Guide to Walking Meditation
For many years, I would walk around the block in my neighborhood for twenty minutes before going to work at the hospital. The quiet walk seems to calm the committee meeting in my head. Putting my feet on the earth, even the pavement of the street, appears to reconnect my head to my body as I become “grounded.” When I am outside, I always realize there is a world more significant than the one I live in.
There is a power greater than myself. I have trouble meditating by simply sitting, but some movements, such as walking, can lead me into that meditative journey. The Vietnamese Buddhist, Thich Nhat Hanh, is one of the most well-known meditative walkers. This pocket-sized book contains simple mindfulness exercises to think about as we walk.
Thich Nhat Hanh introduces us to several methods of following and listening to our breath as we walk. My pattern became breathing in on the right foot and breathing out on the left. This was similar to walking the labyrinth and paying close attention to the path. In mindful walking, as I stayed with my breath, I saw no more rooms available for that committee to meet in my head.
Thich Nhat Hanh compared walking to eating, nourishing our bodies with each step. With each step, we massage the Earth. When the baby Buddha was born, he took seven steps, and a Lotus flower blossomed under each step. Thich Nhat Hanh suggests we imagine a flower blooming with each step.
We can also practice mindful walking anywhere, between meetings, in hospitals, at airports, and walking to your car. The Buddhist monk also offers several poems to recite while walking: “I have arrived, I am home, in the here, in the now. I am solid. I am free. In the ultimate, I dwell.”
Murfee Labyrinth, El Dorado Arkansas
Joanna. joannaseibert.com