Mindful Walking Audio Transcript


In this practice, we'll be doing some mindful walking. So to begin the practice, finding a path of 5 to 10 paces that you can walk up and down where you'll not be overlooked or disturbed. If you want to, removing your shoes and socks so that you can feel the floor if that feels comfortable. Standing still at one end of the path with your feet parallel to each other, hips width apart, and with your knees slightly flexed. Allowing your arms to hang by your sides, or holding your hands loosely together in front or behind the body, and directing your gaze softly straight ahead.

When you are ready, bringing the focus of your awareness to the bottoms of your feet. Getting a direct sense of the physical sensations of the contact of the feet with the floor or ground, and of the weight of your body carried through your legs and feet to the ground. And now, allowing the weight of the body to shift gradually to the right leg, Then allowing the left foot to lift from the ground and moving it forward, placing it and landing. Experiencing the weight of the body shifting forward now onto the left foot, as the right foot comes off the ground, Moving it forward, placing it, and landing. Focusing your attention on the whole of the right foot now, as it takes the weight of the body, and then noticing the rising of the left foot beginning again.

Continuing to walk slowly in this way from one end of the walking lane to the other. There's no need to make this very slow. Choosing a pace that for you allows you to focus most clearly on the lifting, moving, placing, and landing of each foot in turn. If you wish, you can say to yourself silently, lifting, moving, placing, landing. When you come to the end of your path, pausing, turning slowly around, appreciating the complex pattern of movements through which the body changes direction.

And then when you've turned, perhaps pausing again before continuing to walk up and down your chosen path. Really feeling the sensations of the feet, as each in turn lifts, moves, is placed, and lands. Perhaps doing this in time with your breath. On the in breath, lifting and moving. On the out breath, placing and landing.

Experimenting with this if you choose. If you notice at any time that the mind has wandered away from the sensations in your feet, acknowledging where the mind went, then gently escorting the focus of attention back to the feet. Using the sensations as an anchor to bring your mind back to the body and to the walking. If your mind is very agitated or keeps wandering away from your intended focus, it's perfectly fine to stop for a moment and just stand here. Feet hips width apart, in touch with the breath and the body as a whole.

Then gathering the attention that has been scattered, and resuming the mindful walking when you're ready. At a certain point, if you choose, you could expand the focus of your awareness to the whole of the body as it moves in this way. Noticing what other sensations there are in your body as you walk, always remembering that you can return to the sensations of the soles of the feet if the mind begins to wander. At a certain point, feeling free to expand the awareness around the body, to notice the air on the skin as you move, the sounds around you, the sense of the body moving through space. Always remembering that if your mind keeps wandering, you can pause at any time.

Or simply coming back to the sensations of the soles of the feet making contact with the ground as you walk. And as this practice comes to a close, reminding yourself that you can ground yourself at any time as you move around during the day outside or inside by bringing the same kindly awareness that you've been cultivating here to your normal everyday experiences of walking.