Oct 10th - Morning
It’s close to 11am. Just finished sitting in our walk-in closet. I’ve turned it into my private meditation chamber. Mwaaa Haaa Haaaa. We arrived at the meditation center yesterday. It’s quite beautiful here…
Saw Khandro Rinpoche, a female tibetan teacher, last night as we watched a sub-titled japanese movie. When I say we I mean most everyone here at the center. Besides the people who are staying here on their own (like us) there are those that are attending a retreat Khandro is leading and others on a weekend Shambhala retreat.
One of the things I’m really struck by is how different this environment is compared to retreat centers I’ve spent time at (IMS & Southern Dharma for example). The most obvious being the quietude here. There is none! Almost everyone here is talking and socializing non-stop. Now they’re obviously doing a different kind of practice (Tibetan vs. Therevadin), but I just can’t imagine being able to understand the workings of my mind without having time to clearly watch it… The other difference is in the guru/student dynamic that is fairly obvious here. Some of the retreatants were running around like little kids trying to set-up Khandro’s chair and water. Some of their behavior struck me as kind of ridiculous and foolish, but damned if they weren’t as happy as can be… Ah well, I suppose Right Effort & Right Mindfulness can look different in various Contemplative paths. Me? I’m sticking to the Hinayana for now…
See Part 2!
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