First, that wasnβt a retreat. It was a Buddhist monk boot camp! The word retreat signals comfort. This was anything but comfortable. It had all the classic attributes of a boot camp: hardship, excruciating self-inflicted pain, extreme restrictions, irrational submissions, perennial failures, imaginary successes, why-the-fuck-am-i-doing-this, I-am-quitting, I-suck, and ultimately self-fulfilling sense of reward. I figure…
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Stardusts, gong baths, and the madness of Vipassana (insight) Meditation (Part 2 of 3. Go to Part 1, Part 3) The purpose of this boot camp was meditation. The conditions and setup of the retreat were there to allow us to experience the madness of meditation fully. Vipassana meditation was all about building awareness of…
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Torture of pillows, insanity, greatest game on earth. (Part 3 of 3. Go to Part 1, Part 2) 6. Quitter, Wimp, Pain Around 20% of the male participants quitted. Most of them left on day 2, and some on day 6 and beyond. I wanted to quit every other day. I would come up with ridiculous…
Read moreAttunement: From ι to ι½ My own pep talk before a 10 day silent meditation retreat. I am anxious. I am worried if I would sleep well, if I would lose my muscle mass, if I would lose my shit, if I would quit early. I want to achieve too much: something closer to enlightenment,…
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