Meditation in Motion

Kinhin is the walking meditation of the Zen tradition, practised between periods of seated meditation as a way of carrying the same attentive presence into movement. In the meditation hall the practitioners rise from their cushions and walk in slow procession around the room, maintaining the composure and awareness of the sitting they have just left, before returning to sit again. Its immediate purpose is practical, to relieve the legs and refresh the body during long hours of sitting, but it is meditation in its own right, not merely a rest from it, and it trains the continuity of practice through activity rather than only in stillness.

The forms differ by school. In the Rinzai tradition kinhin is often brisk and vigorous; in the Soto tradition it is characteristically very slow, the walkers advancing perhaps only a half-step with each full breath, hands held folded against the chest, attention on the coordination of step and breath. In both, the aim is the same: to keep the mind gathered and present as the body moves, so that meditation is not confined to the cushion.