Part 4 - Walking Meditation

Take the walking meditation seriously. By merely doing the walking alone, it is possible to attain complete awareness (Arahantship).

Begin this practice by bringing your attention to the foot. Then note the step part by part as you follow the movement with sharp attention. Mentally noting "right,left"" as you make the steps while walking.

Keep the eyes half closed and fixed on the ground 4 to 5 feet ahead of you. Avoid looking at the foot during walking, or you will become distracted by it.

Do not let the head bend too low because this will very quickly create strain and tension in your posture.

The objects to be noted are increased gradually. That is, the number of parts of the steps observed, are gradually increased. At the beginning of a walking meditation period note one part only for about 10 minutes: "left, right"and so on. Then note your walking in 3 parts:"lifting, pushing, dropping", etc. Finally, increase the noting to "intending, lifting, pushing, dropping, touching, pressing".

Please consider this. The mind is sure to wander off quite a few times during a walking period of one hour. So do not look around here and there during walking meditation. You have had, and will have many more years to look around. If you do it during the retreat, you can forget about having concentration. The wandering eye is a difficult problem for the meditator. So take note very mindfully of the desire to look around.

For the practice to be effective, at least 6 hours of walking and 6 hours of sitting meditation each day is recommended.