I started walking meditatively by accident … or maybe divine intervention! When did it start working? The moment I integrated exercise walking and tia-chi walking I was practicing walking meditation. My senses went straight to go, and I knew I had something that was deep, life changing and enjoyable!
My tai chi instructor was focusing on tai chi walking, which is a way to create balance, body awareness, environmental awareness and a higher sense of consciousness. I started practicing tai chi walking during my morning exercise walk and really liked it. With the integration of exercise walking with tai chi walking came a welcome newness. In keeping with the energy of tia chi, I would just flow into a meditative walk, concentrating on how my feet felt as they moved across the sidewalk, the movement of my whole body through space and the beauty of nature. Walking Meditation, Janet Style, was born. I was hooked.
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I began extending my meditative walks on weekends. I usually had my dog Petie with me, and it was pure joy. We began walking in the woods along trails, sometimes beginning our walk around
6 AM when the dew was still sparkling in the early morning sunshine. It was an earthy, healing experience and I began to feel very contented and at peace with life. I understood the process of creating an intention, so I began establishing desired outcomes before each walk. I started each walk with a tai chi standing exercise called wu chi (standing in emptiness). This helped me center. Sometimes my desired outcome would be something like “I want to feel happy and content at the end of the walk”. At other times I'd create another kind of outcome “My breathing will be strong as I increase my physical endurance”. I actually thought I'd invented something new! Eventually I learned that I had stumbled onto an art form that had been around for centuries.
Walking Meditation, as a practice, probably began over 5000 years ago within two Asian religious groups: Buddhists and Taoists. Today in the United States walking meditation is not so much a religious practice but a practice used for personal growth and spiritual expansion. The practice helps us focus, calm our chattering minds and relax. It is a very peaceful practice, with scientifically proven social-emotional and physical health benefits.
