It is very hard to describe a Vipassana course. One thing is for sure- it will leave a deep mark on everybody who takes the challenge, it might be a deep resolution to never do anything similar again, it might be a change in an attitude of living which will be for the whole life, or it might be a life-long devotion to this style of meditation, taking courses after courses and being very actively involved.
Here is a daily time-table of Vipassana:
4:00 am Morning wake-up bell
4:30-6:30 am Meditate in the hall or in your room
6:30-8:00 am Breakfast break
8:00-9:00 am Group meditation in the hall
9:00-11:00 am Meditate in the hall or in your room according to the teacher's instructions
11:00-12:00 noon Lunch break
12noon-1:00 pm Rest and interviews with the teacher
1:00-2:30 pm Meditate in the hall or in your room
2:30-3:30 pm Group meditation in the hall
3:30-5:00 pm Meditate in the hall or in your own room according to the teacher's instructions
5:00-6:00 pm Tea break
6:00-7:00 pm Group meditation in the hall
7:00-8:15 pm Teacher's Discourse in the hall
8:15-9:00 pm Group meditation in the hall
9:00-9:30 pm Question time in the hall
9:30 pm Retire to your own room--Lights out
As you can see- we were extremely busy!
Also we took a vow to keep these precepts:
1. to abstain from killing any being; (seemingly easy but challenging to keep an eye out for accidentally squashing bugs and insects)
2. to abstain from stealing;
3. to abstain from all sexual activity;
4. to abstain from telling lies;
5. to abstain from all intoxicants.
And as an extra for Hille as an old student:
6. to abstain from eating after midday;
7. to abstain from sensual entertainment and bodily decorations
8. to abstain from using high or luxurious beds.
The most important vow however was the vow of Noble Silence. We were allowed no contact with people at all, including eye-contact. We were relieved of all our reading and writing materials, music etc and men and women were strictly segregated.
All we had left was our minds, hour after hour observing our minds, our very crazy minds as it comes out!
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The meditation itself consists of 3 days Ana Pana meditation- sharpening ones mind with the tool of observing ones breath and the rest of the time Vipassana- observation and development of equanimity towards the biochemical and energetical reactions on ones body. It is a very interesting and certainly an extremely enlightening activity. Amazing how much we don't realise about ourselves.
Why is it so influential, this particular meditation? First of all it is definitely a hard challenge to the mind and to the body. One is constantly tired, hungry, stressed because of such a denial of human contact (that part was definitely the hardest, human being is indeed above all else a social animal!), and also the usual brain-food of entertainment. But the effects are palpable from the very start, the mind gets calm very fast, quiet and concentrated. And then it starts throwing up root causes of our past afflictions, this also is very difficult for some. Forgotten complexes suddenly overflow the mind, some people report just starting to ball their eyes out for no reason, some have panic attacks, the dreams are certainly extremely vivid and sometimes horrific. In theory this meditation establishes a contact to the subconscious mind by observing its reactions which are the sensations/vibrations on the body. When one has problems then they can always approach the teacher. The teacher is always calm and says something like- stay with this experience, this is the reality of this moment and your job is just to observe it, nothing else. In such a way and by never reacting to the pleasant experiences by craving or the unpleasant ones by aversion, but simply being a silent witness- the impurities, afflictions, complexes and suffering in general get eradicated after the Buddhist philosophy. And well from experience of two retreats I can say each time I have left about 10 kilos lighter, amazing- as if the worries and past complexes do actually have a weight.
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We came out of the course and went back to the holy Buddhist town of Bodh Gaya early in the morning and it was a completely unreal experience. A mist was hovering above the town, everything seemed as if in a dream. We went to the main temple to watch Tibetan monks chant in a deep rumbling voice while up in the street was playing music like this...
... hundreds of people praying, swirling their prayer wheels, making prostrations, meditating underneath the Bodhi Tree where Buddha was said to have been enlightened.
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I guess our senses which were extremely heightened by the Vipassana, got an easy power-hit there at that magical, mystical evening, never to be forgotten. We spent a whole evening high on life and on energy, it was incredible. This spot seems to be indeed one of the most powerful on this planet.
And the whole town of Bodh Gaya will remain one of our favourites in India. The atmosphere was so peaceful and spiritual, majestic in its holiness, the pilgrims, the beggars, the flies, the mist, the chanting, the temples from all the Buddhist countries side by side- wow!
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Here's also a pic of the different styles of temples of each Buddhist country.
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The Thai temple was more of a palace. Yet the interior, so different from the other temples was very enchanting!
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All in all- a fantastic though difficult leg of the journey!
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Difficult! You can say that again... I just heard where I lived they were doing some lectures/practice on meditation, two 1-hour meetings, then one hour lunch break and back for another two 1-hour meetings. A synch compared to what you went through, but both times in the second hour my back would be complaining... from just sitting! And it's amazing the transitions from concentration to start with, to sleepiness, to boredom, to ill-will and not wanting to be there, wanting it to end as soon as possible as if it's some kind of punishment, and then if that stage was overcome, then a calmness would come, or my back would start hurting for no reason and then doubt would come about whether I was sitting right, posture etc..
ReplyDeleteSo, yeah, after that experience, I have even more respect for your GRUELLING schedule!
As for sensations being heightened, that can come from just 10-15 minutes meditation, so 10 days of sense-deprivation and not being allowed to communicate with others would certainly amplify that a hundredfold.
And very good point about the mind-entertainments... I think that's the essence. We're (well I am and most of us are) totally addicted to them.
Thanks again! I'll come back to this again no doubt. Blessings! & Best wishes.
LOL. Yes the enemies of meditation- boredom, agitation, doubt, sleepiness, we've all been there! :) Day 7 was the worst for us I think. For no reason so much agitation that several of us were pacing the grounds back and forth really huffed up like bulls inside a ring, ready for murder lol, and there wasn't any reason other than the Ego getting simultaneously fed up and underfed. But if you don't react to them and keep at it then they give up.
ReplyDeleteHappy meditations and blessings to you!