Dear People,
I recently spoke about walking meditation on the radio in my Dutch Spiritual Column, but I'm sharing some more thoughts and exercises about this technique today. I love so many forms of meditation, but walking meditation is so suited to many people, that I want to share more about it. I've also already written about my own meditation practices, but today I'm writing more specifically about walking meditations.
Why try a walking meditation?
For a lot of us - the idea of sitting still and meditating is quite daunting. We keep feeling distracted by our body, our thoughts and our position. Sitting still is definitely not everybody's cup of tea. Yet, a lot of us have felt the freeing clearheaded feeling that can be created when our body is in motion. It might be while we are running, using a swing set or rocking a baby. Repetitive motion can help us get into a trance like state.
So it's no surprise that a walking meditation is an easier way to get into a meditative trance for a lot of people. And, of course, in our busy lives, it's nice to have the additional benefits of walking on top of the benefits of our meditation practice. So even if you've been discouraged with other ways of meditation, I highly recommend you at least give walking meditation a try.
Basic needs for walking meditation
Yourself and a place to walk are basically the most important things. I recommend wearing clothing and shoes that are comfortable for you and no jewelry. That means you won't be distracted by tight fitting clothing or sounds as you walk and your feet won't hurt. And if you want to sit and rest after your walk, you are comfortable and can extend your trance like state.
As for the place: you can do walking meditation everywhere, even in your own living room. I do recommend that you walk somewhere safe. Especially if you want to walk with your eyes closed. So while technically you can do a walking meditation by walking in your neighbourhood, if it's busy, I don't recommend doing it. Not only are busy streets distracting, you can also harm yourself if you do reach a meditative trance.
Best place outside for me is usually the beach when it's not busy (spring/fall season), because you have a wide open space with not much people. That means that you have a lot of visibility. Sounds of the sea/ocean also work to help bring me in a meditative state. Another good option is usually a park or forest when there aren't much people. Or a mountain path or pasture. Being in nature means it's easier to be meditative, but please be mindful of your safety.
If you want to walk inside your own home, make sure to clear a space around you. If your walking meditation keeps getting disrupted because you need to step over things or turn very quickly, that usually doesn't work. We all like to have at least a couple of strides in each direction.
A basic walking meditation
- Prep: wear comfortable clothing, shoes and no jewelry. Bring a snack and a bottle of water (or other beverage)
- Select (or prepare) a safe area in which you are going to do your meditation
- Start walking in your natural pace
- Become mindful of your pace, your body and yourself
- Walk in a soothing rhythm or pace that allows you to walk for a length of time and to 'zone out with your thoughts'
- Once you are at peace - sit down, eat and drink something
- If needed, do a grounding exercise
Deepening your walking meditation practice
Once you have the basics down and feel that walking meditation is something you'd like to do more often, there are many variations you can do to see what works best for you. You can also change your walking meditation practice depending on what your goal is for the meditation.
Here are some tips on what to try:
- Walking with your eyes closed or open. If you do closed, the best way to do this is to create a circle and walk safely in it or to create a square (for example, 4 steps forward, turn right, 4 steps forward, turn right, 4 steps forward, turn right, 4 steps forward and you are back at your beginning). I do not recommend walking with your eyes closed if you have not set a safe path for yourself!
- Changing the pace of your strides. Going from fast to slow or standstill if you need more peace or moving from a stressful pacing towards a more relaxed stride. It's also possible to move from slow to increased pace, for example if your goal is to accelerate something in your life. It's much harder to reach a meditative trance by going faster though. Changing pace during the meditation can also help, if you want to get more in touch with the cycle of life. Or just noticing you do this subconsciously (speeding up or slowing down).
- Stopping and starting at places in your meditation. You can do this to get more viewpoints, tune into your body, take time to see what your natural pace is, acknowledge what's changing during the meditation and for many other reasons.
- Walking in a pattern. Different patterns help us with different things. A square helps with feeling solid, a circle is a closed loop, a spiral inwards can help introspection and one outwards can help with goal setting and connecting with life, a triangle can help with different viewpoints or with different aspects of ourselves or a problem. Or walk a trail with your eyes open and acknowledge what you see, hear and feel during it.
- Walking with intention - you can do a mantra during the walk or bring an energy with you (for example by drawing one of my 100% Positivity Oracle Cards - which you can do for free on my website).
- Walking with a question or with a issue, allowing inspiration and higher power to solve it for you.
As you can see, walking meditation is quite versatile. I'd love to hear how you experience walking meditation! Post a comment here on the blog or send me a
message on the Facebook Fan Page or on Instagram. Or listen to my Dutch Column: Spiritueel Moment Loopmeditatie and leave a comment there! I sometimes host walking meditations or other meditation in my practice in Delft, The Netherlands or the surrounding area. If you are interested, sign up to the Monthly Newsletter to be the first to know of any meditation events.