OH! Magazine - Australian Version January 2014 (Australian Version) | Page 7
o you can lift five times your body
weight at the gym, can complete a
marathon with the flu, and are able to
nail a term of bootcamp in the middle of
winter. But could you sit in the same spot
for up to 12 hours a day for 10 days
straight, while having no communication
with anyone (no eye contact or speaking,
and no smartphone or facebook) while
eating only vegetarian fare, including
nothing after 12pm? If you think so, then
you are born to participate in a Vipassana
mediation retreat.
Vipassana (which means ‘to see things
as they really are’) is an ancient
meditation technique first practiced by
Buddha over 2,500 years ago. It
has
been passed down through the years, but
has had a reassurgence after a Burmese
man named SN Goenka took it back to
India in the late 1960s.
From one venue in India it has grown
to hundreds around the globe, all thanks
to the donations of students (the course
is totally free to participate in, and you
donate what you can afford at the end).
I’m attending Dharmma Bhummi in the
Blue Mountains, Sydney. The grounds are
located in a natural bush setting with views
of the Megalong Valley. It has a very calming
ambience and there are numerous
individual and shared accommodation huts
scattered through the bush, and a large
dining room and huge meditation hall.
S
There are approximately 40 males and
40 females attending. We will
be
segregated for the duration of the
course, each gender using their own side
of the meditation hall and grounds.
After handing over our phones, keys
and wallets, we are given an orientation,
which provides us with the guidelines
and rules of the program. These include:
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no mobile phones whatsoever
no books, writing paper, journals or pens
no electronic devices
no eye contact or speaking to other
participants (you are allowed only to
speak to the teacher or manager)
no contact with the outside world
to abstain from killing any living
being (whoops, sorry to the mosquito
I squashed on the way in!)
to abstain from stealing
to abstain from all sexual activity
(even on your own)
to abstain from telling lies
to abstain from all intoxicants.
We are given our room numbers and told
to meet in the hall in 30 minutes. I am
lucky enough to have a single room. It’s a
small basic bungalow with shower and
toilet; very comfy. Once I’ve unloaded my
clothes, I head over for the first meditation.
Tuition is pre-recorded and delivered
over a PA, or on a huge screen by SN
Goenka. He recently passed away, but
[email protected]
JW
GALE
lived to 90 years. He’s a happy looking
Buddha-type man who loves to tell a tale.
There are two teachers in the front of
the hall, one male and one female. They
are on hand for any meditation issues, as
are two managers who are there to 6