A few weeks ago, I wrote about the benefits of wandering. Recently, at the meditation and writing retreat with Natalie Goldberg, we practiced slow walking before writing, and I mean very slow, at about a quarter of our regular speed. Natalie writes in her book, Thunder and Lightning,
The walk is not a hike; I might just circumambulate my room. I probably look like a zombie, but I’m not in a trance; I’m actually paying very close attention to my feet. I’m feeling my right foot flex – those adorable toes spreading, the light spongy mass of my heel lifting, my weight shifting to the left side. Then I sense my knee bending, my right hip dropping, my body falling forward as I move my foot a small space above the floor, then settle it on the ground again. As I slow down, space becomes immense, time is huge. Lifting, bending, placing – who am I? In this unhurried, compassionate life, what is it I want to say?
We practiced slow walking around the perimeter of the Zen center at Upaya; 70 of us in slow motion, occasionally stopping to check in with ourselves. In this unhurried place, we can see better what’s right in front of us. We can hear what we have to say.
Goldberg said that most of the time when we walk, we’re focused on the destination. Our minds are already at this future place, imagining or planning what we’ll do when we get there. Slow walking is a practice that helps us to focus on the journey, not the destination.
She advised a radical reframing – receive the world as it comes, one step at a time, and respond accordingly.
In terms of photography, slow walking gives us the time and space to see what’s calling to us to photograph in the moment, instead of looking for something in particular. Sometimes we need a practice like this to slow us down, not just physically but mentally as well.
Try a slow and purposeless walk sometime soon and notice how it changes your experience.
** Books mentioned have Amazon or Bookshop affiliate links, meaning I make a few cents if you purchase through my link. I only recommend books that I’ve read.
How to Slow Down – a short video with Bill Murray
The Slow Death of Purposeless Walking – Finlo Roher at the BBC
I slow walk often in my yard; pausing, looking up, down, all around; watching the play of light and listening. I know my neighbors must wonder about me! I’ve not been “slow-walking” in more public places. I think that would be an interesting thing to try; to see if I could shut out my fears of crowds and just see. I also want to let you know how much I enjoy the links you provide. You’re always find just the right articles to accompany your post!
Thanks, Cathy. I slow walked to the coffee shop the other day and was a little self-conscious about it. There weren’t too many people around, luckily. Carrying a camera in a tourist town doesn’t make it too conspicuous.
Loved this and the experience. You find your place again. Slow walking brings me back to myself and I hear my body speaking to me in whispers, in daily wisdom.
I like that – you find your place again. And yes, the body speaks in whispers.
Slow walking is wonderful and something I really love to do. We become so much more aware of sensations, everything appears new to us and we are transported into a world we want to visit more and more!
I loved reading about your personal experience and thank you for the links!
Kim, you may enjoy “Walking Meditation” by Nguyen Anh-Huong and Thich Nhat Hanh. It’s all about slow walking and walking in mindfulness.
This is very reminiscent of Thich Nhat Han’s teachings. Also Eckhart Tolle. Being in The Present is how we can truly live creatively and love compassionately and have any hope of leaving this world a better place than it was when we arrived.