I attended a 10-day Vipassana course (http://www.dhamma.org/). In my opinion, this is the easiest type of meditation to start with. There are sites for these 10-day course pretty much everywhere around the world. The course runs on a donation basis: you are fed and housed for free during the duration of the course and at the end you choose whether to donate or not.
I met a lot of very nice people in my course. Some were new (like myself) but some were experienced veterans (a couple of guys had been practicing for over 15 years) and everyone seemed so happy. The course is very difficult, both physically (you need to sit on the floor for at least 9 hours a day, and believe me you will only realize just how bad/painful this can be once you do it) and mentally (you are not allowed to talk at all during the duration of the course). But it was all more than worth it at the end.
During the actual course I became more at peace with myself and gained some important insights on my personality and some of the roots of my misery. There's a lot of philosophy behind the actual technique but the basic idea is that you are taught to be indifferent to sub-conscious sensations of 'good' and 'bad'. By no reacting to 'good' sensations, you limit your craving and hence your misery. Similarly, if you do not react to 'bad' sensations you can keep your cool, not get distracted and just be happier.
I am definitely very happy I was exposed to this technique at a young stage of my life. Even though I haven't been practicing since I took the course I am determined to make Vipassana a part of my every day life.
Ditto. I've actually done the 10-day course a couple of times (highly recommended btw). One thing that amazes me every time is how busy/noisy urban life seems afterwards. It generally takes me a couple of days to readjust.
Haha - oh absolutely! The first day I was out of the course I just could not stop smiling at people on the street. Have you been practicing regularly? Where did you do the course? I did mine in France - a little south of Paris, great center!
My girlfriend commented that everything I said or did seemed much more deliberate on the days just after I returned. Guess that fades as well ;)
Unfortunately I've been unable to keep up the practice for more than a couple of weeks after I get back from a course. I'm not even sure why ... I really enjoy it when I do meditate daily. Something to work on.
I really should do another course (http://www.rasmi.dhamma.org/) to see if I can get back into it. When I do go back I'll probably follow it up with a 10-day stint of kitchen duties as well; about time I gave back.
Comments
I attended a 10-day Vipassana course (http://www.dhamma.org/). In my opinion, this is the easiest type of meditation to start with. There are sites for these 10-day course pretty much everywhere around the world. The course runs on a donation basis: you are fed and housed for free during the duration of the course and at the end you choose whether to donate or not.
I met a lot of very nice people in my course. Some were new (like myself) but some were experienced veterans (a couple of guys had been practicing for over 15 years) and everyone seemed so happy. The course is very difficult, both physically (you need to sit on the floor for at least 9 hours a day, and believe me you will only realize just how bad/painful this can be once you do it) and mentally (you are not allowed to talk at all during the duration of the course). But it was all more than worth it at the end.
During the actual course I became more at peace with myself and gained some important insights on my personality and some of the roots of my misery. There's a lot of philosophy behind the actual technique but the basic idea is that you are taught to be indifferent to sub-conscious sensations of 'good' and 'bad'. By no reacting to 'good' sensations, you limit your craving and hence your misery. Similarly, if you do not react to 'bad' sensations you can keep your cool, not get distracted and just be happier.
I am definitely very happy I was exposed to this technique at a young stage of my life. Even though I haven't been practicing since I took the course I am determined to make Vipassana a part of my every day life.
Ditto. I've actually done the 10-day course a couple of times (highly recommended btw). One thing that amazes me every time is how busy/noisy urban life seems afterwards. It generally takes me a couple of days to readjust.
Haha - oh absolutely! The first day I was out of the course I just could not stop smiling at people on the street. Have you been practicing regularly? Where did you do the course? I did mine in France - a little south of Paris, great center!
My girlfriend commented that everything I said or did seemed much more deliberate on the days just after I returned. Guess that fades as well ;)
Unfortunately I've been unable to keep up the practice for more than a couple of weeks after I get back from a course. I'm not even sure why ... I really enjoy it when I do meditate daily. Something to work on.
I really should do another course (http://www.rasmi.dhamma.org/) to see if I can get back into it. When I do go back I'll probably follow it up with a 10-day stint of kitchen duties as well; about time I gave back.