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| Forest Of Light - Artwork by Sofan Chan |
The simple instruction in walking mediation is like this - Be mindful of every single step as the foot get lifted up from the
earth, carried in the air while the body weight is supported by the
other leg, gently get placed on the ground with the sole of the foot
touching the ground first and the front part of the foot easing into
the ground slowly.
Although walking is a everyday mechanical function of the body, we
don’t have to consciously instruct the feet to walk. Walking is a
learnt mechanical bodily function. There is a way we walk, some walk
quickly, some walk slowly, some walk waddly, some walk with
certainty, some walk bouncily, etc. In general, we are not giving any precise instruction to every muscle, bond or even the blood vessels involved. We just walk. It happens to life as well; rarely we give precise instructions to how to live a wholesome life. We eat, excrete, make a living, procreate, drink, play and do everything else possible to forget how to live a life full of joy, love and spiritual development.
Walking meditation is down-to-the-earth spiritual practice in using a everyday mechanical function of the body to bring in a quality of spirituality to it. In doing so, we create beauty, joy and peace in every step we walk and it is certainly a challenge. As the mind loves to do everything and anything mechanical at its best.
In practising walking meditation, the mechanical function of the body has to
slow down, so the awareness can take place in the body – what the body is feeling, what are the thoughts streaming through the mind, what are the sensations in the body and the mind.
Awareness then can expand into our thoughts –
noticing how thoughts coming and going like wind passing through the
leaves of the trees, thoughts have their own movement though time and
space. Next what will happen in the walking meditation is the awareness will slowly expand into the surrounding, through
the sights and sounds.
Whenever sounds occur, our consciousness immediately go out to detect
and examine what it is, like a faithful guard dog. Simultaneously whenever there are moving
objects, or just physical object around in term of colour, words or
any kind or visual elements that the mind is interested in – the
same thing happens, our bodily consciousness goes out and examines what
it is or maybe taking fancy of what it is. The awareness which has
been concentrating on walking shifted to other sounds, visual
elements or thoughts. Momentarily, the concentration is distracted by inner factors –
thoughts and bodily sensations, or external factors – sights and
sounds.
In the beginning of the walking meditation, the body was tensed and
was still in its own habitual way of walking, When we consciously
place the awareness in every step of the walk, the body resists a new
way of walking. The body, the mind and the consciousness all have to
working together with huge effort in concentrating on the slowly
movement of the walk. Walking conscious in life is the same, slow down and be aware every doing and every events that we created - what is our motivation behind it all? Wholesome? Or unwholesome?
As the mental and the bodily faculties in such a heightened
concentrated in the new way of meditative walking, our consciousness expands in the inner world as well as the external world. The
consciousness becomes an observer who observes the event which is
taking place in walking as walking, the bodily sensations as bodily
sensations, the sights of the external visual elements as external
visual elements without reacting to each of every events, thoughts and
sensation that happening external and maintaining the equanimity internally.
As we walk through life as a practice of walking meditation. The body becomes calm, there is inner peace arises.
As we are consciously placing no resistance to the sights, sounds, bodily
sensations and thoughts as they happen; we are in fact creating inner calmness in
the walking meditation as inner peace and joy arise from within. Every step becomes our inner peace imprinted onto our trusty earth, both benefited.
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