After having done Acem meditation for twelve years (), I had to stop this because of kidney trouble. In Acem meditation you have to sit still, if comfortably, for half an hour to an hour: my kidney did not like this anymore, and distracted me with its complaints. So I decided to have a go at walking meditation.
I have been experimenting with this for about a month now and certainly my kidney is happier. I did some research and have recently, for practical reasons, been doing the stop-start walking meditation () where you walk 40 feet, just up and down. I prefer doing it outside for some reason; when it rains, I do it in our local church.
I'm still experimenting though.
I have also done just an hour's walk round the village, at 6 in the morning when it's still quiet. I liked that but it got too muddy!
Does anyone have experience of meditating this way?
Thanks! Love, Annemieke.
I find walking in the woods very good for meditation, glad you enjoyed yours 🙂
A great deal of my shamanic journeying is done while walking. Mud is an occupational hazard at this time of year.:)
Mud is an occupational hazard at this time of year.:)
The trouble with mud is that at the moment I can only wear sandals due to corns - and the corns came from wearing wellies for the mud! So the church it is.
Barefoot? In mud it feels great!
Today? In these temperatures?
Why not?
You first. It was -3 this morning when I walked at my customary time of 6 o'clock, before breakfast.
Well, tai chi is pretty much walking meditation... so yes, decades of experience. 😀
If you've got snow, then - yes, you can get pretty cold. But for the rest, the more you walk barefoot the less you notice the cold.
I understand the mud problem - not an easy solution.
But I think you are on to something with the walking meditation.
Maintaining your focus and general level of awareness on the feeling in your leg muscles, the impact of your feet on the ground, the sensations of your arms swinging etc etc - very powerful meditation.
And of course the peace and good health that comes from being in nature!
Anne you have got the right idea. Sitting down can be tricky for most people. Walking is great way to reconnect with yourself. Running, Dancing, jiggling around and laughing even better....and sometimes not doing anything at all is even better. In essence, the less you know you are doing it, the better it is. It's all about getting out of the way, and there are endless ways to do so.
Feels good to read your post
good luck with your personal time
My own focus is not on the feet but on the abdomen, as my yoga teacher recommended that for me.