Vipassana

I've now finished 10 days of silent meditation. I spent the past 10 days living in a Buddhist Temple near Chiang Mai. Wat Prathat Doi Suthep. A 500 year old forest Temple. Sitting on the top of a mountain, it's secluded from the city. The monks quarters, where I lived and practiced, was just down the hill a ways in the forest. It's the greenest place I've ever been. To stay and learn is by donation, you pay what you want. While living there, you take on precepts and rules. Such as: no killing, no drugs or alcohol, no romantic actions, no stealing, no lying, but also things like: no eating after 12:00pm, or no reading, no writing, no listing to music, no signing, no dancing, no sitting or sleeping in luxurious chairs or beds, no perfume or decorative items, and no speaking. Purely just being with yourself, with no distractions. It can be seriously difficult at times.  But if you can't stay with yourself, who's going to stay with you. I had a simple room to my self. With only a bed, chair, and floor cushion. And a view of the lights of Chiang Mai in the valley far away.  Our schedule every day was this:

5:00am Wake up
5:30am Dhamma Talk
7:00am Breakfast
11:00am Lunch
1:30pm Report with Teacher
6:00pm Evening Chanting

That leaves about 9 hours a day of meditation. I had never practiced meditation before. I had sat quietly by myself and maybe focused on breathing, but this was really my first time seriously practicing meditation. I learned 4 types of meditation. Sitting, Walking, Standing, and Sleeping. My teachers master had developed this specific technique on his own a long time ago. It's similar and gets to the same point as other Vipassana meditations, but are unique to this temple. The two I was to focus on was walking and sitting. You alternate. First walking meditation, very slowly and consciously walking, lifting . . . . moving . . . putting . . . lifting . . . moving . . . putting . . . for 9 or 10 steps, standing, turning around, and walking back 9 or 10 steps, standing, turning around, and so on. Then Sitting. Focusing on your stomach. Rising, and falling as you breath, and as you progress, focusing on 28 points on your body one by one. Rising, falling, sitting, point 1, rising, falling, sitting, point 2, rising, falling, sitting, ect. The first 3 days are the most difficult, and the time when a lot of people give up and leave. You're living with pain, hunger, boredom, and yourself. You can hardly quiet your mind and sit still for 5 minuets, or focus on your feet for 5 steps. But day by day you adjust. Walking and sitting and walking and sitting in silence becomes what you do. And you learn to love it. It no longer feels boring or strange to wake up at 5am and meditate for 9 hours a day, every day. Or to not eat after 12pm. Or not speaking. I moved from 5 minuets being painful and difficult, to 35 minuets. 35 minuets walking, 35 minuets sitting. Resting for a short while, and again, even when you can't feel your legs. All day. In the morning at 5:30am you listen to a Dhamma talk. An hour where the teacher will tell a story, or talk about buhddhist teaching. Then every day you report with your teacher at 1:30pm for 5 minuets. It's a short time for him to teach you the next step of further meditation, and if you have any questions. My monk teacher was the happiest man I've ever met. He reminded me of a turtle, a happy happy turtle. "Like-a-dis Rrrrising . . . falling . . . Ah! You see! Rising . . . Falling . . . Rising . . . Falling . . . Ah! Yes! Be careful your mind on this one!"
At 6:00pm everyday you chant for one hour, following the teacher. The words are difficult to pronounce, but you do it every day and it becomes really nice. One day, instead of chanting, on a Buddhist Holiday we went to the main pagoda of the main temple to join a ceremony. Thai Buddhist culture is really beautiful. With 3 incense, 2 candles, and a lotus flower in our palms, we walked around the pagoda 3 times. I was both surprised and proud that I knew the Bali words and could chant with the monks.

Tamahang sama sampudthang pakawantang sarang khato, imina sangkarena, tang pudtang apipuchuchayami

Later that night, I went back. I've seen few sights more mystical and special than Wat Prathat Doi Suthep at night time. Leave the monks quarters and head up to the temple when the sun has long set, and the pagoda lit up, everyone is gone. I can only describe it as golden bells in a dream. While staying in the temple, you can only wear all white clothes. The whole time I seriously felt like a Jedi Padawan training in meditation. Really awesome. Now I'm back in the loud, busy outside world. They have been some very difficult, and seriously rewarding 10 days. I didn't go to because my life's not good, or I'm stressed, or I want to be happy. I'm un-endingly happy with my life, and where I am. But I think meditation is good for everyone, and being with yourself is healthy. I'll to try to meditate every day now. Just as you find time to shower your body everyday because you know its dirty. You can find the time to shower your mind. This was the perfect way to end 7 months of traveling and adventure, with sitting and walking by myself. My trip is coming to an end soon. But there's still some time left. I'll write again.
Anija
Noah