I live in New York City and, as many New Yorkers, I don’t own a car, I don’t need it most days, and parking is a real pain in the a**.
Since the first time I visited this city, I felt that the best way to feel its vibe is to walk.

As I move around running errands instead of looking at my phone and locking myself again in the virtual world of the internet, I take advantage of those moments to do walking meditations. Walking meditation is my favorite mindfulness practice. Life swirls around me in all its variety and dynamism and I enter this soul-nourishing flow with the intention I set, or as it emerges, in my morning meditation.

How to prepare for a walking meditation

First thing: wear comfortable shoes, or even better go barefoot if the terrain allows it.

As you step out, become aware of your feet, the soles of your feet touching the ground (or the inside of the shoes).

Stand erect and still for a moment. Take in what’s in the air around you. Open your heart and all your senses and start to walk or float ;).

The meditation

As i start walking I always look up at the sky and I return to it frequently as I stroll, it is a way to open up to the Universe. Too many people keep their eyes on the ground or on their phones

I sometimes play music in my earphones, if a specific inspiration or mood are calling me. I mostly just go with the acoustic flow, whether it’s the hustle of city streets or the sweet sounds of nature.

Whether I walk in the city or in nature, I often find myself opening up to the wondrous world around me by mentally reciting an ancient Dine’ (= the Navajo in post-Columbus terms) prayer. It is very simple and it never fails to bring me in the now and filling me with gratitude and joy, by tuning in the beauty of all life around me.

I usually recite just the first verses, repeating them a few times, sometimes accompanying them with hands and arms gestures.

In beauty I walk
With beauty before me I walk
With beauty behind me I walk
With beauty above me I walk
With beauty all around me I walk

The full prayer is also very powerful and ineffable, definitely worth reading frequently.

In beauty I walk
With beauty before me I walk
With beauty behind me I walk
With beauty above me I walk
With beauty around me I walk
It has become beauty again
Hózhóogo naasháa doo
Shitsijí’ hózhóogo naasháa doo
Shikéédéé hózhóogo naasháa doo
Shideigi hózhóogo naasháa doo
T’áá altso shinaagóó hózhóogo naasháa doo
Hózhó náhásdlíí’
Hózhó náhásdlíí’
Hózhó náhásdlíí’
Hózhó náhásdlíí’

Today I will walk out, today everything negative will leave me
I will be as I was before, I will have a cool breeze over my body.
I will have a light body, I will be happy forever, nothing will hinder me.
I walk with beauty before me. I walk with beauty behind me.
I walk with beauty below me. I walk with beauty above me.
I walk with beauty around me. My words will be beautiful.
In beauty all day long may I walk.
Through the returning seasons, may I walk.
On the trail marked with pollen may I walk.
With dew about my feet, may I walk.
With beauty before me may I walk.
With beauty behind me may I walk.
With beauty below me may I walk.
With beauty above me may I walk.
With beauty all around me may I walk.
In old age wandering on a trail of beauty, lively, may I walk.
In old age wandering on a trail of beauty, living again, may I walk.
My words will be beautiful…

Here you can listen to it in its original language

I believe beauty is harmony among different elements, beauty is love radiating, beauty is joy cascading, beauty is whatever resonates with our soul.

Beauty is an expression of the Divine. Reciting this simple prayer never fails to tune me into the Divine which always surrounds me.