Meditative walking is a powerful technique to connect with God

Meditative hike in Colorado Foothills.            Photo by Alex Marcoux

Meditative walking is a powerful technique to slow down, to be in the moment and feel the presence of the One Life, God. By slowing down, and being in the moment you recognize the One Life which flows through all life, including your life.

In earlier articles I discussed Meditation, Mindfulness and Visualization as methods to quiet your mind and facilitate a more intimate connection with Spirit. The fourth slow down to speed up tip is to explore meditative walking or hiking as a means to be in the moment and connect with Spirit.

Meditative Walking or Hiking

First, select a safe place to stroll or hike. Start walking and begin breathing deeply, feeling the inhalation and exhalation of each breath. While breathing in affirm, ‘God IS’, and as you exhale affirm, ‘I AM’. ‘God Is – I Am,’ or ‘Quiet mind – open heart.’

You want to slow down the brain wave activity of a normal conscious mind. As it slows, a gateway to deeper consciousness and creative energy is formed.

When you have quieted your mind, begin a sequence in which you pay attention to only one sense at a time. Focus on the one sense (smell, taste, hearing, touch, seeing, and even intuition) by identifying your impressions and fully experience the beauty each produces. Before beginning the next sense, express gratitude that you have the ability to experience each.

• While breathing in, sense the fragrances around you; perhaps the aroma of flowers, the smell of freshly cut grass, maybe even the reek of a nearby trash can. Whatever the experience is, take it in.
• Then turn your attention to taste. Maybe the flavor of your morning coffee lingers, the taste of pollen in your mouth, or the tang of something you can’t distinguish on your tongue. Whatever it is, just allow it to be.
• What do you hear? Note the singing of birds, the flapping of wings in flight, the rustling tree leaves from the breeze, the engine of a lawn mower, the hum of a distant plane. Even hear the rhythm of your shoes against the ground. Be amazed by the sounds you commonly miss.
• Pay attention to your sense of touch, feel the pressure of the breeze against your skin, the warmth of the sun and coolness of shade, perhaps even the warmth, tingling or pressure of energy circulating at your heart; signifying your open heart chakra.
• After sensing the heart opening, marvel at what you see. Truly experience the beauty and awe before you. See the butterflies swirling, the squirrels chomping nearby, the ants marching, and the birds soaring by.
• Finally, remind yourself that there is One Life and that life runs through everything and be amazed by the beauty of your tapestry. Turn inward and sense what is calling to you intuitively. What message is Spirit sending you?

This morning as I finished my meditative walk I was amazed by the number of birds around me. Some were soaring by. Others were perched in nearby trees, on roofs, and on the lawns beside me. One bird was even walking in the pathway before me. I laughed as Karen Carpenter’s lyrics ran through my head, “Why do birds suddenly appear…”

Then the scientist within emerged, ‘Could this be normal?’ I started counting the birds. ‘22, 23, 24-.’ Before I finished counting, the birds started to scatter and I realized my intellect had brought me out of the moment.

Experience the beauty that life has given you and remain in awe.
 

Meditative walk is a powerful technique to sense the One energy that runs through everything. Remember that energy is God and it flows through all life, including your life, as you.

Namaste.

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