Saturday 26th January 2008

Day Ten

Meditation Goal: To feel the tiny sensations and vibrations all over the body simultaneously and fill them with love and compassion, and send those vibrations out into the room. (Metta method)

Today after the morning sessions we were allowed to speak again. I was actually quite nervous about it, because I had a suspicion that everyone would be saying “Oh wasn’t it wonderful! Don’t you feel amazing?” etc. I did not feel wonderful or amazing, and mostly hated the experience overall, but didn’t want to be the only one saying it. Continue reading →

Saturday 26th January 2008

Day Six

Meditation goal: To feel the subtle sensations throughout the body and maintain objectivity and perfect equanimity towards those sensations.

This morning I woke up feeling a bit better. My legs and back were much better, except for some pain in my left knee, and I decided to take a whole new approach.
The guru is always saying in between chanting, that we must recognise the reality of this moment, and experience the reality that is, not the reality as we would like it to be, and remain equanimous without reacting to things. Continue reading →

Saturday 26th January 2008

Day Two

Meditation goal: To observe respiration and try to feel the touch of breath in my nostrils.(Annapanna method)

My concentration was a little better today, still a pretty hardcore running commentary (can’t seem to switch that off), but was able to concentrate for slightly longer periods today without getting distracted.
My legs were really sore today, after the 11 hours of sitting on the floor yesterday! Oh well, more sitting to come!
During the 2-hour session from 9-11am we were allowed to sit in our room today. Continue reading →

Saturday 26th January 2008

Ok, obviously I have been almost completely silent for 11 days, so these emails will be very long and detailed. You have been warned, so no complaining! I intend to outline pretty much every day blow-by-blow, so feel free to take your time reading these – there will be many parts!

I registered at the centre in Kathmandu at 11am on Monday, 14th Jan, and after a 5 hour wait was on the bus to Dhammashringa, the meditation center in the hills north of Kathmandu, just below the Shivapuri national park and forest. During my wait I met a lovely Sri Lankan girl called D, so we had a great chat and it was nice to have a friend, even if I wasn’t allowed to communicate with her most of the time!
We arrived at the centre, and I was actually really excited about the course. I was a little surprised to see that most of the center was under construction, but figured I should wait and see how it goes.
Our introductory lecture was mostly about ensuring we are willing to follow all the rules carefully and strictly, and were willing to stay the full ten days no matter how hard we found it – I resolved to give it a fair trial and stay no matter what. Continue reading →

Continue reading →