By Noe Robert, University Program participant from France; Hosted at Pune
During the 10 days of Vipassana, everything is set so that you are in the best conditions for meditation
Free of all your valuables, and without any object for entertainment, like phone, book or even a pen.
You need to respect the noble silence, which forbids any interaction with others by any mean, except for the people arranging the course and the teacher.
Then, particularly food and times for meals are given, for instance, the last meal is at 5 pm, always with Bhel, no dinner (except for people under medication). Also, you have to respect strict timetable from 4 am to 9 pm during these 10 days and be on time is compulsory!
Lastly, you must observe 5 precepts: not killing any being, not stealing, not having any unworthy activity, not lying, and not taking any intoxicant.
All these conditions can look scary and hard to respect for 10 days, and to be honest, it’s the case. But, it’s only concerning the beginning when we are the most susceptible to give up. Once we get the habit and set somehow a routine, it starts getting easier and easier to accept.
Over there, you are free of the stress. Free of the noises. The mood at these centers is best to get relaxed, and the assistants are the warmest people I have seen, they will do everything to make your experience easier but still serious.
Out of the meditation’s, you get benefits with the time, understanding your useless addiction to the phone (which comes quickly after, be careful) and feeling proud of it; obviously, you get relaxed, and you can think about how to bring this mood to your daily life after Vipassana.
And you get a passion for walking, every meditation center provides some park where moseying is the best activity between courses of meditation, and I have to say that I got good sensations just by walking over there.
Concerning the meditation’s benefits, it’s all depending on your work, motivation, and concentration, and again it’s in these centers that you get the best conditions for meditation; centuries of student’s feedbacks have finally blossomed… Rest is up to you!
And these benefits are many! You become less restless, wiser, and controlling your emotions is much easier. Training your mind to focus on one thing at a time is obviously beneficial and useful for everyone who wants to be more efficient in life. I would like to let you discover the technique by yourself, a mistake of understanding would be regrettable and quick to happen. Also, don’t make any expectations that would lead you to a disappointment and ruin your motivation.
For Noe, “this exchange surely helped me to have the motivation to discover it, I’m pretty sure that I wouldn’t have done it in France”.