I just got back from a 10-day Vipassana meditation camp. This was my second retreat. My first retreat was in January 2010, and it was in many ways life changing, for it gave me the confidence to start Proteus, and change many other things in my life to lead a peaceful purposeful life. Last four years have been quite dramatic, with a near death experience in 2011, my mother's passing in 2012, and then the gradual disintegration of my marriage over the last two years. I have survived these storms bravely, I think. I credit my meditation practice, and the insight that I gain out of it, as a great asset in my life. My experience with Vipassana is, however, painted by my life experience. It worked for me and I unreservedly recommend it to everyone. Your experience will be different, painted by your life experience. To that effect I want to tell you a little story:
There were two young kids, they were very good friends, they were beggars. One of them was blind. Every morning they would go out and beg together and share their proceeds at the end of the day. One day the blind kid was sick and was not able to go out to beg. His friend went out alone and as they were friends, he promised to share his proceeds with the blind kid at the end of the day. The kid went from home to home and collected alms. At one home, the housewife was very generous and gave him some very tasty kheer (rice pudding with milk). The kid enjoyed the kheer and as he did not have anything to carry the kheer home, he could not bring any back for his blind friend. When he got home in the evening, he brought home the story of the kheer and described the kheer as sweet, very tasty, fragrant, and pure white. His blind friend asked - "What is White? I've never seen White? Can you please explain?" The other kid said - "Well, errrr, White is not black, not colored....". The blind kid asked, "What is black then? What is colored? As you know I cannot see. Can you give me an example of a white thing?" So the kid went out and brought back a beautiful white swan. He said, "White is like this swan." The blind kid ran his fingers over the white swan and touched the smooth body and feathers and said - "Aah! I understand now! White is soft and downy, like this swan." The other kid went - "No! You got it all wrong! White is not soft and downy! It's just white!" Disappointed, the blind kid tried to understand again. He ran his fingers from from the beak, over the head of the swan, down the long neck, over the body and to the tail. he concluded - "Aah! I understand now! White is crooked, just like this swan!"
So, my friends, no matter how well I try to describe my Vipassana experience, it will be like me trying to explain my White to you, and all you'll find it as is Crooked. So, I will not try to give you any more details of my experience. Instead of below are some answers to the common questions I encounter when talking about my meditation practice:
How can one stay silent for nine days! I can never do that!
Being silent for nine days is the easiest. Once you shut off the incessant chatter, you realize how useless most of that communication is. You also, often for the first time, listen to the tremendous amount of chatter within yourself. It's amazing, you do not miss talking to other people at all. You also realize how much we use our verbal faculties to add to the misery of our lives, by using it more than necessary, sometimes also speaking lies or half-truths, or adding extra colors to the white truth, or use it with malicious intent, sometimes even unintentionally. So, for the nine days you are actually grateful that you do not talk. On the 10th day, you love talking again, but you now do it very mindfully. You will have a great appreciation for this faculty you possess and most of you will not use it unwisely again.
(It's just that you don't communicate with fellow meditators and don't destroy either peoples' equanimity. You are free to talk to the management and to the assistant teachers regarding any issue you may have at the camp or about the technique.)
I heard they starve you there! The food is not good!
My aunt said this as soon as she heard that I'm going to the camp. Yes, there are no dinners, there is fruit for new students, and only tea for old students. But, when meditating for 12 hours a day and doing no major physical activity, you really do not need a lot of food. I never felt I needed a dinner at night, I did not miss it at all! Also, I found that you should leave 1/4th of your tummy empty at the other two meals, or else it adversely affects your ability to meditate effectively. We usually eat more than what our body needs. Food, like speech, is often used by us as something to lean on for our emotional issues.
The quality of food is fabulous! You all know what a discerning foodie I am, and I loved every morsel there. It was fresh, nutritious, and tasty. The variety was great, it's a buffet so you can eat what you want. And when secluded from the world, your senses are very sharp, you can taste the flavor and texture and savor every spoonful, feeling gracious to be served. It's a wonderful feeling!
Are they trying to convert me? Do they have yoga? Massages? Do you go there to relax?
No. There is no one trying to convert you to a religion. The course is designed to teach you a specific meditation technique that addresses the root cause of all issues in life. It's a boot camp for meditation and that's all you do. There is no sitting by the pool, sunbathing with green mask on your face, listening to new age music, with a massage therapist working on your tight muscles, while your eyes are cooling under cucumber slices. There is no imagineering your desires, or mindmapping your future. No yoga, no other exercises. I will not even say it's relaxing because you are working very hard for from 4am to 9pm every day, not physical labor, all mental. First, you learn to discipline yourself, then you learn how to appreciate your own mind and concentrate and then meditate. You learn a great deal about yourself, and about how the world works. You investigate the universal truth on yourself and understand it on a very deep level. You come out, realigned and rejuvenated with insight that helps you lead a peaceful life, armed with tools to work with the world. No hocus-pocus, mumbo-jumbo, feel-good mushy stuff, and certainly no religious dogma, or else I would not be recommending it, would I?
(Be rest assured, no one is trying to take away your religious beliefs either. You'll be just learning a meditation technique in its purest form.)
My creativity will get affected if I meditate and find peace. I don't think it will work for me.
This comes from my artist friends, particularly from a budding filmmaker friend in India, and from one very promising painter and artist here is San Diego. Artists feel that their creativity stems from their chaos within. This notion is further enhanced by the stories in the media about the rich and famous rock stars and movie personalities who live a very alcohol and drug infused chaotic life. Such a chaotic life also seems romantic. I believe otherwise. I think meditation gives you profound insight and clarity into the nature of life and that unleashes your creativity. Isn't that what artists do? Channel the truth in the world through their lenses? This meditation technique allows you to relax in your own skin and enable you to see perspectives from many different sides that makes your creation more unique and complete. When others look at your idea or work, each person gets to take their own supreme view and usually are amazed at how you could have thought it all so clearly and fit in all those perspectives in that tiny space so beautifully. Admirers of your work multiply very quickly. Trust me, artists, you have nothing to fear.
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Enough said. If you have more questions, please call/email/message me. I'll be happy to share my "white truth" with you. Please also check out the following:
What it is and What it is not
Questions and Answers
Where do I sign up? Courses are taught all over the world.
A TED Talk
Video Description
Between the poles of expression and suppression of your emotions (through action/inaction), there lies a middle path - observation. The Vipassana meditation technique teaches you how to do that and you learn to achieve equanimity. You learn, not by listening to talks, not by intellectual reasoning, but observing within the framework of your own body and mind, the universal concept of annicca (impermanence) and annata (egolessness).
No need to believe my soft or crooked truth, go find for yourself. The Truth is ....... White!
There were two young kids, they were very good friends, they were beggars. One of them was blind. Every morning they would go out and beg together and share their proceeds at the end of the day. One day the blind kid was sick and was not able to go out to beg. His friend went out alone and as they were friends, he promised to share his proceeds with the blind kid at the end of the day. The kid went from home to home and collected alms. At one home, the housewife was very generous and gave him some very tasty kheer (rice pudding with milk). The kid enjoyed the kheer and as he did not have anything to carry the kheer home, he could not bring any back for his blind friend. When he got home in the evening, he brought home the story of the kheer and described the kheer as sweet, very tasty, fragrant, and pure white. His blind friend asked - "What is White? I've never seen White? Can you please explain?" The other kid said - "Well, errrr, White is not black, not colored....". The blind kid asked, "What is black then? What is colored? As you know I cannot see. Can you give me an example of a white thing?" So the kid went out and brought back a beautiful white swan. He said, "White is like this swan." The blind kid ran his fingers over the white swan and touched the smooth body and feathers and said - "Aah! I understand now! White is soft and downy, like this swan." The other kid went - "No! You got it all wrong! White is not soft and downy! It's just white!" Disappointed, the blind kid tried to understand again. He ran his fingers from from the beak, over the head of the swan, down the long neck, over the body and to the tail. he concluded - "Aah! I understand now! White is crooked, just like this swan!"
So, my friends, no matter how well I try to describe my Vipassana experience, it will be like me trying to explain my White to you, and all you'll find it as is Crooked. So, I will not try to give you any more details of my experience. Instead of below are some answers to the common questions I encounter when talking about my meditation practice:
How can one stay silent for nine days! I can never do that!
Being silent for nine days is the easiest. Once you shut off the incessant chatter, you realize how useless most of that communication is. You also, often for the first time, listen to the tremendous amount of chatter within yourself. It's amazing, you do not miss talking to other people at all. You also realize how much we use our verbal faculties to add to the misery of our lives, by using it more than necessary, sometimes also speaking lies or half-truths, or adding extra colors to the white truth, or use it with malicious intent, sometimes even unintentionally. So, for the nine days you are actually grateful that you do not talk. On the 10th day, you love talking again, but you now do it very mindfully. You will have a great appreciation for this faculty you possess and most of you will not use it unwisely again.
(It's just that you don't communicate with fellow meditators and don't destroy either peoples' equanimity. You are free to talk to the management and to the assistant teachers regarding any issue you may have at the camp or about the technique.)
I heard they starve you there! The food is not good!
My aunt said this as soon as she heard that I'm going to the camp. Yes, there are no dinners, there is fruit for new students, and only tea for old students. But, when meditating for 12 hours a day and doing no major physical activity, you really do not need a lot of food. I never felt I needed a dinner at night, I did not miss it at all! Also, I found that you should leave 1/4th of your tummy empty at the other two meals, or else it adversely affects your ability to meditate effectively. We usually eat more than what our body needs. Food, like speech, is often used by us as something to lean on for our emotional issues.
The quality of food is fabulous! You all know what a discerning foodie I am, and I loved every morsel there. It was fresh, nutritious, and tasty. The variety was great, it's a buffet so you can eat what you want. And when secluded from the world, your senses are very sharp, you can taste the flavor and texture and savor every spoonful, feeling gracious to be served. It's a wonderful feeling!
Are they trying to convert me? Do they have yoga? Massages? Do you go there to relax?
No. There is no one trying to convert you to a religion. The course is designed to teach you a specific meditation technique that addresses the root cause of all issues in life. It's a boot camp for meditation and that's all you do. There is no sitting by the pool, sunbathing with green mask on your face, listening to new age music, with a massage therapist working on your tight muscles, while your eyes are cooling under cucumber slices. There is no imagineering your desires, or mindmapping your future. No yoga, no other exercises. I will not even say it's relaxing because you are working very hard for from 4am to 9pm every day, not physical labor, all mental. First, you learn to discipline yourself, then you learn how to appreciate your own mind and concentrate and then meditate. You learn a great deal about yourself, and about how the world works. You investigate the universal truth on yourself and understand it on a very deep level. You come out, realigned and rejuvenated with insight that helps you lead a peaceful life, armed with tools to work with the world. No hocus-pocus, mumbo-jumbo, feel-good mushy stuff, and certainly no religious dogma, or else I would not be recommending it, would I?
(Be rest assured, no one is trying to take away your religious beliefs either. You'll be just learning a meditation technique in its purest form.)
My creativity will get affected if I meditate and find peace. I don't think it will work for me.
This comes from my artist friends, particularly from a budding filmmaker friend in India, and from one very promising painter and artist here is San Diego. Artists feel that their creativity stems from their chaos within. This notion is further enhanced by the stories in the media about the rich and famous rock stars and movie personalities who live a very alcohol and drug infused chaotic life. Such a chaotic life also seems romantic. I believe otherwise. I think meditation gives you profound insight and clarity into the nature of life and that unleashes your creativity. Isn't that what artists do? Channel the truth in the world through their lenses? This meditation technique allows you to relax in your own skin and enable you to see perspectives from many different sides that makes your creation more unique and complete. When others look at your idea or work, each person gets to take their own supreme view and usually are amazed at how you could have thought it all so clearly and fit in all those perspectives in that tiny space so beautifully. Admirers of your work multiply very quickly. Trust me, artists, you have nothing to fear.
--------------------------------------------------
Enough said. If you have more questions, please call/email/message me. I'll be happy to share my "white truth" with you. Please also check out the following:
What it is and What it is not
Questions and Answers
Where do I sign up? Courses are taught all over the world.
A TED Talk
Video Description
Between the poles of expression and suppression of your emotions (through action/inaction), there lies a middle path - observation. The Vipassana meditation technique teaches you how to do that and you learn to achieve equanimity. You learn, not by listening to talks, not by intellectual reasoning, but observing within the framework of your own body and mind, the universal concept of annicca (impermanence) and annata (egolessness).
No need to believe my soft or crooked truth, go find for yourself. The Truth is ....... White!
