February/March 2007

Creating Green-Collar Jobs
Van Jones & Ben Wyskida

Bringing Democracy to Life
Frances Moore Lappé

The War Within Islam: Interview with Reza Aslan
Arnie Cooper

US Gas Tanks and Iraq's Hydrocarbon Law
Stan Goff

Restorative Justice: The New Hope for Reviatlizing Community
Pip Cornall

A Unique Model of Green Architecture
Jody Woodruff

Exploring Uncertainty and Paradox
Marla Estes

The Energetic Properties of Crystals
Robert Simmons

The Storm Hasn't Stopped: A First Person Account of the Aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and Rita
Carol Hwoschinsky

Healing Energy: In a Vibrant Field, Energy Medicine Flowers
Gaea Yudron

Intuition and Heart
Swami Dhayana Giten

Walking Meditation
Thich Nhat Han & Nguyn Anh Huong

Mixed Media Reviews
Debi Weiss

Cosmic Calendar
Salina Rain

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Walking Meditation

By Nguyen Anh-Huong & Thich Nhat Hanh

“Walking meditation is meditation while walking. We walk slowly, in a relaxed way, keeping a light smile on our lips. When we practice this way, we feel deeply at ease, and our steps are those of the most secure person on Earth. All our sorrows and anxieties drop away, and peace and joy fill our hearts. Anyone can do it. It takes only a little time, a little mindfulness, and the wish to be happy.”

What if every step you took deepened your connection with all of life and imprinted peace, joy, and serenity on the earth? The following excerpt from Walking Meditation can assist you in walking with the presence and peace of mind offered by this serene spiritual practice—whether in nature or on a busy city street. Esteemed Buddhist master Thich Nhat Hanh and one of his principle students, Nguyen Anh-Huong, together illuminate the central ten-ets of this powerful art, including how to recognize the miracle in simply walking—not as a means to an end, but as the opportunity to touch the fullness of life—helping practitioners from every spiritual tradition to rediscover “our home in the here and now, as the long road we all must walk turns to quiet joy.”

• • • • •

Meditation is not meant to help us avoid problems or run away from difficulties. It is meant to allow positive healing to take place. To meditate is to learn how to stop being carried away by our regrets about the past, our anger or despair in the present, or our worries about the future. By practicing the art of stopping, we can enter the present moment and be nourished by the beauty and wonder of life in and around us: the smell of flowers, the warmth of sunshine, the color of the sky. To practice mindfulness is to begin to realize that we have a choice—to stop and rest or run, to be angry or happy. Once we choose to stop, everything will be okay.

Before learning walking meditation, we begin by learning how to breathe Mindfully. This is the best way to help us learn to rest and stop. When we breathe and know that we are breathing, our wandering mind begins to rest on the pillow of our breath. A feeling of calm and ease then naturally arises. The fundamental practice of conscious breathing meditation is to nourish your mindfulness and learn how to keep it present, alive, and strong. When you learn how to generate the energy of mindfulness and allow it to penetrate everything you do, understanding, compassion, and loving kindness will naturally flower in you. At the beginning you may think that you are practicing mindfulness only while walking, but then one morning you might make some tea; you pick up the mug and suddenly you can smell the tea more keenly than ever before. And as you take a sip, the tea becomes more delicious because the energy of mindfulness that you have developed allows you to taste it more directly and deeply

Your breath is part of your body, so when your mind is in touch with your breath through mindful breathing, it is also in touch with your body True rest and peace are the natural result of conscious breathing in which body, breath, and mind come into unity.

To practice basic conscious breathing meditation, sit comfortably and let your weight sink into the ground. You can also practice conscious breathing while standing, walking, or in any other position, or even while jogging. If you have physical limitations and cannot sit or stand comfortably, you can lie on your back. Whether you walk or jog, sit or stand, as long as you remain mindful of your breathing, peace and serenity are always with you.

Sit in such a way that you can enjoy each moment of your sitting. You can sit on a chair if sitting on a cushion is difficult for you. If you experience a lot of restlessness or resistance in your sitting, lie down instead.

Whether you are sitting or standing, keep your head and neck aligned with your spinal column by dropping your shoulders completely. If you are lying down, let your arms rest alongside your body at an angle that enables your shoulders to fully relax. Your hands can rest on your belly or on the floor. If you need to use a pillow, choose one that is thin enough to support your head without tensing your neck. To loosen your jaw, open your mouth as wide as you can three times, followed each time by a deep breath. Now, close your eyes and allow your facial muscles to relax completely by keeping a half-smile on your lips. A half-smile helps bring you back to the source of love, joy, and compassion within you. Let your breath flow naturally and allow the river of your breath to carry your gentle smile to every part of your body.

Your elbows and wrists should be loose. Relax each of your fingers. If you are sitting, you can place one hand on top of the other, interlock your fingers, or let your hands rest naturally on your lap.

When you feel settled in this sitting or lying position, put your hands on your belly and continue to breathe naturally. With your in-breath, allow all of your thoughts to move down to the level of our abdomen and settle there. As you breathe out, allow your whole body to feel softened and cleansed as tensions and stresses in your body are released. As you breathe in, quietly say “Resting” while allowing all of your mental activities to rest in your abdomen. Then, during the whole length of your out-breath, quietly say ‘Softening” as your body relaxes and becomes as soft as a baby’s. Practice this exercise—breathing in, “Resting”; breathing out, “Softening”—for a few minutes or as long as you wish until you experience a sense of deep ease and calm.

Your mind has been resting on the soft pillow of your breath and because of that your breath has become deeper, quieter, and slower. Now, give your gentle and complete attention to your breathing and nothing else. Place your hands on your abdomen so you can feel it rise and fall with your in-breath and out-breath. Have you noticed that it rises as you breathe in and falls as you breathe out? This is healthy breathing. When we are tense or taken over by a strong emotion, our breathing becomes short and shallow, and our belly does not move at all.

Now, as you breathe in, follow the air that enters your body through your nose, feel the rise of your abdomen, and quietly say, “In, one.” With your out-breath, feel the fall of your abdomen and quietly say, “Out, one.” Say “In, two” on the second in-breath, and “Out, two” on the second out-breath. Continue for ten full breaths. Counting your breath in this way helps you to cultivate mindfulness and concentration, which are crucial for nourishing peace and happiness.

At first you may find it difficult to remain mindful for as many as ten breaths, but once you are able to take ten conscious breaths in a row, you can continue until you reach fifteen. And if you want to do more, you can continue until you reach twenty breaths

Although conscious breathing will eventually become very natural and enjoyable for you, it takes some effort at the beginning. But if you practice a short period of mindful breathing for ten breaths twice a day—after you wake up in the morning and before you go to bed at night—the practice will grow stronger in you over time. One day you will wake up and remember to breathe naturally, because you will have sown the seed of mindful breathing and watered it daily.

In meditation, the practice of calming, resting, and dwelling happily in the present moment can be difficult at first because our minds are always racing. The more you try to stop your racing mind, the more it resists. Mindfulness is not meant to suppress or get rid of the racing mind, but simply recognize its presence. First you need to acknowledge that thinking nonstop has become a strong habit for you. The easiest way to keep that habit from taking you over is to learn how to breathe in a sitting position for a short time, for just five or ten breaths. If you think you have to practice meditation for too long a period of time, there is no way you will maintain a daily practice. Instead, throughout the day you can use the ringing of the telephone or the sound of your watch or any other cue to stop all doing and thinking for a moment. Just enjoy your breathing. Our son started sitting when he was three or four years old. Before he went to kindergarten, he sat for ten breaths every morning. And if a little child can do that, I am sure we grown ups can do that as well.

If anxiety, sorrow, confusion, or fear happen to arise while you sit, greet them with a gentle smile; and if you are a visual person, invite them to rest in your lap or next to you as you sit. Return to the practice of conscious breathing: “Breathing in, I feel (or rest on, or smile to) my in-breath”; “Breathing out, I feel (or rest on, or smile to) my out-breath.” Practicing in this way will help calm both your body and your emotions, and as a result you will begin to experience the peace and joy of sitting.

There is a wisdom inside of us that tells us what to do at certain moments. We can wake up that wisdom through meditation practice until, eventually, the process becomes quite natural for us and takes place on a subconscious level.

You have just learned how to stop and rest in a sitting or lying position. You will now learn how to stop, rest, and become fully present and alive as you walk. This is called walking meditation, or mindful walking.

The primary purpose of walking meditation is to completely enjoy the experience of walking. We walk all the time, but usually our walking is more running. Our steps are often burdened with our anxieties and sorrows. When we walk in forgetfulness, we imprint our anxieties and sorrows on Earth and on those around us. But when we walk in mindfulness, each step creates a fresh breeze of peace, joy, and harmony.

When we practice walking meditation, we do not try to arrive anywhere or attain any particular goal. Our destination is the here and now. The Buddha said, “The past no longer is. The future has not yet come. Looking deeply at life as it is in the very here and now, the practitioner dwells in stability and freedom.” We do not put something in front of us and run after it, because everything we have been looking for—peace, joy, love, transformation, healing, enlightenment—can only be found inside us in the present moment. Where are we going? Why do we need to hurry? Where is our final destination? These are questions that help us to put things into perspective so that we know where we are and where we want to go from here.

We may believe that we can do anything except return to the present moment because we fear that the pain in the present moment is unbearable. Deep inside us we harbor the belief that there is nothing else in the present moment

besides despair, confusion, and suffering. Please ask the Earth, the trees, the birds, the sunshine, and friends who are already on this path of mindfulness practice to help you make this gentle, loving step without struggle. You will learn that the air, the trees, the birds, and the flowers are always there for you. Each time you take a mindful step, you are back in the arms of your Mother Earth and are reminded of your true, sweet home in the here and now.

When people come to practice with us, we always begin every day with a short sitting meditation, some mindful stretching, and a slow, mindful walk. By begin-ning each day this way, our students find peace, joy, love, and stability, and these qualities permeate the rest of their day. They learn that the practice works, and since it works, they will continue it. You have to taste it first before you know whether or not you want to continue. Once you taste it and then miss it when you do not have it, you will feel the need to return to the practice.

Whenever you do slow walking indoors, I recommend that you take off your shoes. You can feel the floor and connect with the Earth more easily without shoes. The flow between you and Mother Earth then becomes stronger. The longer you practice walking with this connection, the more your heart will be softened and opened, and the more you will feel nurtured, solid, and taken care of by the Earth. Once again, do not start with an unrealistic goal, such as practicing for an hour or so. But if you can take one peaceful step, you can take two, three, four, or more. As you continue to walk and breathe in this way, the process of softening and nurturing will take place in you, and your heart will begin to open to life, to all that is. You will feel nurtured every time your foot kisses the floor or the Earth as the solidity of the Earth springs up into your body and heart. You will also learn how to silently say certain words in your heart as you walk, and you will find yourself naturally becoming more kind, loving, and peaceful.

In Buddhism, there is a word, apranihita. It means wishlessness or aimlessness. The idea is that we do not put anything ahead of ourselves and run after it. When we practice walking meditation, we walk in this spirit. We just enjoy the walking, with no particular aim or destination. Our walking I is not a means to an end. We walk for the sake of walking.

A.J. Muste said, “There is no way to peace, peace is the way.” Walking in mindfulness brings us peace and joy, and makes our life real. Why rush? Our final destination will only be the graveyard. Why not walk in the direction of life, enjoying peace in each moment with every step? There is no need to struggle. Enjoy each step. We have already arrived.

We can practice walking meditation by counting steps or by using words. If the rhythm of our breathing is three steps for each in-breath and out-breath (3-3), for example, we can say, silently, “Lotus flower blooms. Lotus flower blooms,” or “The green planet. The green planet,” as we walk. If our breathing is two steps for each in-breath, and three steps for each out-breath (2-3), we might say, “Lotus flower. Lotus flower blooms.” Or “Waking on the green planet. Walking on the green planet,” for 5-5. Or “Walking on the green planet, I’m walking on the green planet,” for 5-6. We don’t just say the words. We really see flowers blooming under our feet. We really become one with our green planet. Feel free to use your own creativity and wisdom. Walking meditation is not hard labor. It is for your enjoyment.

If you experience a lot of difficulty in your practice of sitting and walking meditation, it is best to practice lying-down meditation for about five or ten minutes before you begin. While lying down, become fully aware of your body from the top of your head to the tips of your fingers and toes as you breathe in, and smile to your whole body as you breathe out. Keep in mind that the air you breathe in is a gift coming to you from the whole Universe—this can help you feel deeply nourished and refreshed every time you breathe in.

Once again, it is important not to set unrealistic goals. You can begin your walking practice by saying, “I will take ten steps, and ten steps only.” Allow yourself to relax into your breathing and your steps. Take one step with one breath at a time. If you can take one peaceful step, you can take another, and another. Place your mind at the sole of the foot as you step. When your foot kisses the Earth, your mind also kisses the Earth.

When people come to their first mindfulness retreat, they often feel tired at the beginning. They have doubts about whether the practice will work for them. But as the retreat goes on, they always feel stronger, lighter, and happier. When our minds cannot stop thinking, we do not realize how tired and emotional we may be. For this reason, when you begin the daily practice of mindful walking, you may feel a little emotionally unstable. Not to worry! Just keep practicing.

If you have difficulty maintaining your balance while practicing slow walking, it is understandable because the only time you previously walked slowly was when you were a toddler. Be patient! These difficulties will pass once you become used to mindful walking and begin to enjoy it. Imagine for a moment that this morning was the first time you got out of bed and started standing and walking after being bedridden for many months. You will see that it is a great miracle to be able to stand upright and take steps on the Earth. You will deeply savor every step you take.

Thich Nhat Hanh is a Zen master in the Vietnamese tradition, scholar, poet and peace activist. He is the author of more than 40 books in English, including Peace is Every Step and Anger. Jguyen Nh-Huong one of the first students ordained as a dharma teacher by Thich Nhat Hanh. Walking Meditation (Sounds True, 2006) combines a book with a DVD and an audio CD.

Thich Nhat Hanh

Nguyen Anh-Huong