« back | contents | next »
Walking Mindfully (Jongrom)
Walking 'Jongrom' is a practice of concentrated
walking whereby you're with the movement of your feet. You bring
your attention to the walking of the body from the beginning of the
path to the end, turning around, and the body standing. Then there
arises the intention to walk, and then the walking. Note the middle
of the path and the end, stopping, turning, standing: the points
for composing the mind when the mind starts wandering
everywhichway. You can plan a revolution or something while walking
jongrom if you're not careful! How many revolutions have been
plotted during jongrom walking ...? So, rather
than doing things like that, we use this time to concentrate on
what's actually going on. These aren't fantastic sensations,
they're so ordinary that we don't really notice them. Now notice
that it takes an effort to really be aware of things like
that.
Now when the mind wanders and you find yourself off in India
while you're in the middle of the jongrom path, then recognise -
'Oh!' You're awakened at that moment. You're awake, so then
re-establish your mind on what's actually happening, with the body
walking from this place to that. It's a training in patience
because the mind wanders all over the place. If in the past you've
had blissful moments of walking meditation and you think, 'On the
last retreat I did walking jongrom and I really felt just the body
walking. I felt that there was no self and it was blissful, oh, if
I can't do that again ...' Note that desire to attain something
according to a memory of some previous happy time. Note that as a
condition; that's an obstacle. Give it all up, it doesn't matter
whether a moment of bliss comes out of it. Just one step and the
next step - that's all there is to it, a letting go, a being
content with very little, rather than trying to attain some
blissful state that you might have had at some time while doing
this meditation. The more you try, the more miserable your mind
becomes, because you're following the desire to have some lovely
experience according to a memory. Be content with the way it is
now, whatever it is. Be peaceful with the way it is at this moment,
rather than rushing around trying to do something now to get some
state that you want.
One step at a time - notice how peaceful walking meditation is
when all you have to do is be with one step. But if you think
you've got to develop samadhi from this walking practice, and your
mind goes all over the place, what happens? 'I can't stand this
walking meditation, get no peace out of it, I've been practising
trying to get this feeling of walking without anybody walking and
my mind just wanders everywhere' - because you don't understand how
to do it yet, your mind is idealising, trying to get something,
rather than just being. When you're walking, all you have to do is
walk. One step, next step - simple ... But it is not easy, is it?
The mind is carried away, trying to figure out what you should be
doing, what's wrong with you and why you can't do it.
But in the monastery what we do is to get up in the morning, do
the chanting, meditate, sit, clean the monastery, do the cooking,
sit, stand, walk, work; whatever, just take it as it comes, one
thing at a time. So, being with the way things are is
non-attachment, that brings peacefulness and ease. Life changes and
we can watch it change, we can adapt to the changingness of the
sensory world, whatever it is. Whether it's pleasant or unpleasant,
we can always endure and cope with life, no matter what happens to
us. If we realise the truth, we realise inner peacefulness.
« back | contents | glossary | next »
http://amaravati.org/abmtrial/documents/mindful/07ins4.html
