Combining Movement and Stillness Is Conducive to Cultivating Meditative Concentration

Question: In the daily activities of walking, standing, sitting, and lying down, can one also cultivate "calm" (śamatha) and "concentration" (samādhi)? Because in movement one cannot control the body to be still and settled—how should one cultivate in that case? For instance, the preparatory concentration (anāgamya-samādhi) that you, Dharma Master, mentioned in your teachings—can it also be achieved while in motion? 

Answer: The purpose of cultivating meditative concentration is to cultivate the mind, to make the mind still. Although stillness of the body can reduce the mind's agitation and help the mind become still, if the mind is very pure in the concentration of bodily stillness, then when one's skill becomes proficient, one can likewise maintain mental stillness and mental concentration even while the body moves in a regular manner. It is somewhat more difficult, but it is possible to have the body moving while the mind does not move. When the body moves but the mind does not, one encounters more conditions, which better tests the mind's power of concentration; at the same time, the causes and conditions for realizing the Path also increase greatly, which is rather advantageous for investigating Chan. Even the eradication of the view of self (satkāya-dṛṣṭi-prahāṇa) can occur while the body is in motion—contacting conditions and encountering circumstances can spark inspiration, thereby realizing emptiness (śūnyatā). 

At the same level of meditative concentration, concentration with the body in motion demonstrates greater skill in cultivating concentration than concentration with the body still, and the power of concentration is more solid. This needs to be nurtured and maintained by the concentration of bodily stillness in quietude; cultivating both together will complement each other and mutually promote progress. Generally speaking, complete bodily stillness is also a kind of obstruction, unfavorable for strengthening the power of concentration. Therefore, after sitting for a period of time, one should rise and practice walking meditation (caṅkrama), moving about a little; the circulation of vital energy and blood becomes smoother, the mind becomes more tranquil, and the mind's thinking becomes deeper and more penetrating.