Walking

Thay often talked about the practice of walking meditation. He said: “Walk as if you are kissing the earth with your feet”. You can do this practice by yourself or with others; it’s wonderful in nature, but you can do it in the city too. Even in your room. Simply, we have to notice each step, because each step made in mindfulness can bring us back to the here and the now. 

If you’re at home, or alone - perhaps in the woods - take one step with the in-breath and then one step with the other foot for the out-breath. Don’t try to control your breathing; allow your lungs as much time and air as they need. Breathe in and take a step with one foot; focus your attention on the sole of your foot. Then breathe out and take the next step with the other foot. If you’ve not been able to focus all your attention, then maybe don’t take the next step yet. If you’re on a city street, you might want to walk a little faster, but still bringing your body and our mind back together, peacefully.

Our dear friend Kaira Jewel Lingo says that when she practices walking meditation, she sometimes imagines that the sole of her foot is touching the sole of the foot of someone doing walking meditation on the exact opposite side of this globe that we are walking on.

And try to practice smiling too, a half-smile; that may help sustain your attention.

To be grounded on the earth, in the earth in this way is to feel its solidity in each step, reminding ourselves that we are alive on this beautiful planet, here and now. In this moment, we don’t need anything else. Life is only available in the present moment, and we have arrived at a place where life is available, breath by breath, step by step.

Doing this, we calm down. When our mind and body have calmed down, we see more clearly. You can think of meditation as having two wings, one of calmness and the other of insight; without both wings, we can’t fly. So we can calm ourselves with this practice. And when we then see our anger or our sadness more clearly, it dissipates. And we begin to feel more compassion for ourselves and for others.

MORE: read Thay’s guide to the practice of walking meditation