A shared practice
Compassion
S
Created bySean Fargo
Day 21 of Sean's original 28-day mindfulness series — recorded in his own voice.
In Sean Fargo’s own voice8 min
Read along — the full script
Mindfulnessexercises.com. Your 28-day mindfulness challenge. Day 21. Compassion. Today we'll be practicing a walking meditation. First, find a place for your mindful walking practice. It's simplest to start wherever you are right now.
But if you'd like to, though, you can take this recording with you to a park or somewhere else you'd like to be. Find a place to walk that allows you to listen safely to these instructions, perhaps a smooth path without traffic. Before you start walking, take a moment and notice yourself standing.
Feel your feet on the ground. Notice how you're standing. And just as we do with sitting meditation, invite your spine to lengthen and your shoulders to soften. Stand in a way that feels upright, relaxed, and present. And bring attention to your breathing, taking a deep breath in through the nose and a long, slow breath out through the mouth.
And notice where you are right now, what sensations you're experiencing in your body. What do you see in front of you? Perhaps you can notice specific colors, shapes, lights. And what sounds do you hear? Can you feel warmth or coolness?
Is there a breeze, or is the air still? And what sensations do you notice in your body as you stand? And now consciously begin walking at whatever pace feels right to you. Can you notice the physical sensations of lifting your foot?
Sensations of your foot making contact with the ground? Continue walking for a few minutes, just focusing on the very particular experience of each foot making contact with the ground, from the heel to the arch to your toes. If it helps, you can say to yourself, "Contact," as your foot touches the ground.
Contact. Contact. Contact. And begin to widen the focus of your awareness over time to include the experience of your whole body walking. Just noticing what it feels like for the body to be moving in this way. What are the range of sensations that you're experiencing?
While still being aware of your body, expand your awareness even further. Include the range of everything that you're experiencing in your environment around you, from sights and sounds to smells and sensations. Can you be fully aware and present of walking in the middle of this very dynamic, moving experience?
And continue walking in this way as long as you'd like. You may try alternating your focus from the contact of your feet on the ground to being aware of your whole body, to being aware of the wider environment around you, or simply pausing to appreciate something in your path. And when you're ready to finish, just come back to standing still with both feet flat on the ground side by side.
Noticing your posture, noticing your breathing, feeling the weight of your body on the ground, and finishing with a full deep breath in through the nose and a long slow breath out through the mouth .
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