Vipassana has slowly, steadily grown on me

By Ila Vedi

It has been 15 years since the first time I stepped into Vipassana, a world I can scarcely fathom living without now.

In a world dictated by instant gratification, searching for a way of life that delves into its deeper meaning. The first step is to accept the pleasure, and also its pain. Vipassana alone is not a panacea, and even after 15 years, it remains ever challenging yet a compelling journey to pursue.

That itself is its beauty that someone who knows what to expect yet is still profoundly impacted. Sitting for hours on end for 10 days might look an inactive exercise to an outsider, but it enables us to be free from distractions and focus on subtleties of life which we tend to overlook otherwise. It is a practice and a technique that enables emotion to triumph over rational thinking in our daily lives and helps reduce our daily stresses and anxiety, and heightens our mental clarity.

The Indian subcontinent Vipassana group is slowly finding its feet and a following that is growing as it has been conducting a 10-Day course every year for the last few years. We were fifty of us this year as part of the larger group comprising close to a hundred seekers of mental peace and purification of the mind that tends to get filled with much deeper sankharas of past as well as present. We had all helped each other as we sat and meditated together and were a happy group by the eleventh day when we could talk and brave the world outside. All the volunteers at Blackheath Vipassana meditation centre had given us a quiet time and peace along with yummy food served, Indian and Australian, with a lot of love. Ten days which were long and hard for us meditators though made easy by their caring attitude, staying away and quietly serving us in the beautiful surrounds.

What has been noticeable is the uptake of Vipassana’s philosophy by Australia’s Indian community. Whereas 15 years ago I was firmly in the minority, more Indians of all ages now are actively investing their time in Vipassana. Their paths have only just begun, yet their journey will inevitably be filled with a wealth that cannot be found in the riches of the world we otherwise occupy. I look forward to sharing these experiences with them and all of you for years to come.

The Vipassana Meditation Centre at Blackheath conducts two 10-day courses per month free of charge, and is accessible to one and all. Visithttp://www.dhamma.org for further details.

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