Kinhin: ‘Walking Zazen’
You may wish to add 5 or 10 minutes of “Kinhin” (Walking Zazen) to your sitting,
either after seated Zazen or between periods of Seated Zazen if sitting more than
once. Kinhin is a continuation of seated Zazen into movement. To practice Kinhin,
first take the fingers of your left hand and wrap them around the thumb, making a
gentle fist. Place this against your abdomen, around the middle of the chest (as in
the pictures below). The right hand is then placed over the left. Your forearms are
parallel to the floor, and the elbows and upper arms are held sideways or gently
rest against your sides.
This Kinhin Mudra (way of placing the hands) is called Shashu, and helps to
maintain a settled and dignified demeanor while walking Kinhin. The back is straight
(but not too rigid), the head is held upright, and the eyes are open (half or onethird)
but lowered looking downward and ahead.
Kinhin can be done at any speed, but in Soto Zen a very slow pace is typical. You
can of course walk your own pace when practicing alone, but if you are with a
group you have to maintain about the same pace and spacing between people as
everyone else. The basic form of practice is to take a half step at the top of each
inhalation breath, walking around the edges of the room (although you will likely
only move a few meters in the allotted time). The mind should be just as in seated
Zazen, allowing thoughts to come and go without latching on or judging things. In
fact, in this kind of walking ... unlike most of our walking in life ... we drop all
thought of some "someplace to get" or finish line, and each step is Complete and
Total Arrival of its own ...
… just this step, then this step, and this …
The breath finds a natural (usually slow) pace with nothing forced, and as in Shikantaza, there is no labeling. It is the same Way of Shikantaza as described in our "we're all always beginners" video talks ...
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