Meditation of the Mind

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Since I was in India I decided I should experience some of the countries spiritual side. A friend introduced me to Vipassana meditation and after that I kept encountering more and more people who had tried the 10 day course.

After traveling a bit aimlessly for a while I was really looking forward to a structured environment. And structured it was with gongs going off at 4am to wake you up and bells ringing 10 minutes before each meditation session to make sure you arrived on time, were sitting in the lotus position with a serene face waiting for the teachers to sit and start meditating. Taking a vow of silence and meditating 12 hours a day is certainly a challenge, but by far the bigger challenge is making your mind still. For the first three days we were only to observe our breath, in and out, in and out. Out through one nostril, in through another in my case, something I never noticed before. Breathing bridges the gap between the subconscious and conscious mind, as we can both control our breathing and it goes on without our attention as well. It is amazing how quickly one's mind can wander to all sorts of things or fall asleep in the 5 seconds in between an exhale and your next inhale. If I could have somehow recorded my thought process during these 10 days it would be a delightful commentary into just the kind of person I am. Somehow, peanut butter was on the forefront of my mind

On the 4th day we began to learn the actual Vipassana technique. I'm no expert and find it hard to explain, but basically you are supposed to observe the sensations in your body in an ordered pattern. The idea is to teach you to observe these sensations, pain and pleasure, without reacting to them. The theory behind Vipassana is that the sensations you feel are linked to habit patterns and by learning to just observe them and not react to them you can break habits of anger or craving or fear. Trying to focus only on your cowlick while sitting completely still for an hour causing excruciating pain in your knees is not an easy task. In fact, sitting still for an hour three times a day is not an easy thing. At the beginning I wiggled and fidgeted and changed positions every five minutes, but by the end of day 8 I was able to sit completely still with only minor toe wiggles. That is an accomplishment in itself, in my opinion, because I had to will my way through those hours, but they gradually seemed shorter and shorter. I even learned to concentrate on the sensations in my body for 30 minutes without my mind wandering. I had trouble with just observing and not reacting, however. Eventually you begin to feel a flow of energy throughout your body and it is an amazing warm uplifting feeling. Well I craved it with a vengeance after my first accidental encounter with this experience, and of course predictably I couldn't get it back for the rest of the course.

Alas, I am not a person with a balanced mind. But if nothing else 10 days of introspection so clearly illustrated to me some of my bad habits that limit me currently, and it gave me a feeling of darkness being lifted off my head. I still have all my demons to defeat, but Vipassana showed me a way to do it, if I can learn to practice in everyday life. It was an amazing experience and probably the hardest of my life. It is so easy to want to give up when you realize just how easily distracted and jumbled your mind is. But I'm proud that I stuck it out, if nothing else.

On the 10th day you can break your vow of silence and I excitedly made friends with the other meditators. I headed off with Natasha and Christina to Mumbai at the close of the course with the intention to find the quickest route to Kerala. Monetary and scheduling restraints nixed that plan, so after 2 days in Mumbai, finding it hard to adjust to the big city noise, Natasha and I headed for Pune. Another meditating friend Shilpa welcomed us into her home for a relaxing few days of good food and camraderie. The three of us headed up to Nasik for a quick overnight trip and tour of the local winery and Buddhist caves. Unfoutunately our girls weekend was brought to a close with the news that the Germany Bakery in Pune, where we had spent a few days lazing away, had been blown up.

From this sad news I headed south and 48 hours later I was in Varkala, a beautiful Keralan beach. And I ran into Johann from Puri here, where he introduced me to a homestay where I have been lazing my days away since. Kerala is great! Lots of fresh sea food and houses painted florescent colors. I could stay here forever, but it is a little too hot for me. So tomorrow I am off to experience the backwaters and venture towards the Western Ghats for a bit of relief from the heat.

I hope everyone is enjoying their week!

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