The Long Road Turns to Joy: A Guide to Walking Meditation

Rating:
Summary: "Walking just for walking."
Review: "We walk slowly, in a relaxed way, keeping a light smile on our lips. When we practice this way, we feel deeply at ease, and our steps are those of the most secure person on Earth." -Thich Nhat Hanh

In this beautiful, pocket-sized book, Thich Nhat Hanh teaches his well-known method of "walking just for walking." Learn to enjoy each step, each breath, the blue sky, and the many sights and fragrances along the path. In his inspiring commentary, Thich Nhat Hanh reveals how this simple practice has helped him regain peace and serenity in difficult moments.

Written in the clear, accessible style for which Thich Nhat Hanh's work has become well-known, The Long Road Turns to Joy offers an important practice that brings a spirit of gentle mindfulness into our everyday lives. Includes photos of walking meditation from around the world.

"Try it, your walking will never be the same!" -Yoga Journal

Rating:
Summary: Walking is the essence of life.
Review:

Although we have our automobiles and bikes, elevators and escalators, walking is something that we cannot avoid in this society. Many of us may rush off to business meetings or appointments and forget about the beauty of nature that surrounds us everyday.
This book teaches how to put our mind on the simple things of life again in order to recover our peace of mind in our "instant" society. This Vietnemese Zen Master teaches "walking just for the sake of walking"; something I think we all should learn.

Rating:
Summary: Walk in Joy
Review: A practical, inspirational, instructional guide to walking meditation. The book is small enough to carry with you. Refer to it often as a reminder to walk in joy.

Rating:
Summary: Every pocket should have one!
Review: Do you think that walking is boring? Or simply a means of getting from A to B as quickly as possible? Make life real with every step you take! In this lovingly written, pocket-sized book the Zen master, teacher and poet Thich Nhat Hanh explains how walking can become a form of meditation, revolutionizing your daily life. Let this book be your companion and discover the way to walk for the sake of walking; unify your mind, body and breath; really see and appreciate your surroundings; and most of all, enjoy yourself! Print your footsteps in peace, joy and happiness. You are your path in life - so take a breath and start to walk!

Rating:
Summary: Every pocket should have one!
Review: Do you think that walking is boring? Or simply a means of getting from A to B as quickly as possible? Make life real with every step you take! In this lovingly written, pocket-sized book the Zen master, teacher and poet Thich Nhat Hanh explains how walking can become a form of meditation, revolutionizing your daily life. Let this book be your companion and discover the way to walk for the sake of walking; unify your mind, body and breath; really see and appreciate your surroundings; and most of all, enjoy yourself! Print your footsteps in peace, joy and happiness. You are your path in life - so take a breath and start to walk!

Rating:
Summary: It works!
Review: Hanh's version of walking meditation is "natural", only a bit slower than normal walking pace. You will be in the groove from the first time you try it. This is nothing akin to "slow walking" (slow motion methods). If you are a habitual walker, take your usual route. You will return a bit later, but unconcerned about finishing your walk or how long it takes. Let's go for a walk....

Rating:
Summary: It works!
Review: Hanh's version of walking meditation is "natural", only a bit slower than normal walking pace. You will be in the groove from the first time you try it. This is nothing akin to "slow walking" (slow motion methods). If you are a habitual walker, take your usual route. You will return a bit later, but unconcerned about finishing your walk or how long it takes. Let's go for a walk....

Rating:
Summary: Walk this Way
Review: I've been waiting for an author to capture the experience of walking meditation. For years I have been baffled by those who say that walking is boring and that running is preferable. I have always found meditative walking to be joyful and now there is one who paints such a lovely picture of this mystical experience accessible for so many.

A soul-enriching work in every sense.

Rating:
Summary: This Book Could Change The World . . .
Review: Or at least your little corner of it. Thich Nhat Hanh has made walking meditation accessible, and more importantly, enjoyable. This methhod is very different from the traditional model practiced between periods of sitting in a retreat. Thay takes us outside - preferably to a park or other beautiful setting - and encourages us to slow down, smile, and follow our breathing. He also shares many other keys(for lack of a better word), such as trying to visualize a lotus flower blooming under each step, and "gathas" or phrases to match to our breathing to help us arrive in the present moment, our true home.

While sitting has sometimes been challenging for me, walking meditation is sheer joy. This summer I've enjoyed nothing more than kicking off my shoes and walking barefoot around the backyard of our little farm. The wet grass, lilacs, and gentle breeze that I missed before are suddenly alive and real to me. Or perhaps the sight of a butterfly landing on the dung heap makes me stop and consider how I separate life into "beautiful" and "ugly". No matter what I encounter, I always return to the house relaxed and refreshed. What more could I want than the life that I have?

While on the surface this book seems to be written with childlike simplicity, I feel it is one of Thay's most mystical works. Ponder deeply his saying that if we practice wholeheartedly our friends and families will see fields of lotus flowers blossoming behind us wherever we go and you'll see what I mean. This book is so beautiful, so sublime, it really could change the world. If enough people were to pick it up, take it to heart and take to the streets - walking in mindfulness, enjoying their breath, printing love and compassion on the earth, I've no doubt, our future would blossom with each joyful step.

Rating:
Summary: Walk this way!
Review: Reading the Suttas, one gets the idea that the Buddha did quite a lot of "walking meditation". There are several methods of walking meditation, but I like this one best because it is the most natural: slightly slower than your usual pace, arms swinging naturally at your sides. Within that context, Hanh provides several graduated steps of practice, from an easy beginning to extras that deepen the experience.