Hi WitF
I hear a lot of people use the term 'rewarding'. I have often wondered what that meant. Eating a bar of chocolate can be 'rewarding'! Having a new experience can be rewarding. I personally would take it to mean that I had something I could take away from the retreat, for my personal practice at home- some insight or some state of samadhi that I could work on further at home. What did you mean by 'rewarding'?
with metta
Matheesha
Poll The fruits of Retreat.
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Re: Poll The fruits of Retreat.
With Metta
Karuna
Mudita
& Upekkha
Karuna
Mudita
& Upekkha
Re: Poll The fruits of Retreat.
PeterB wrote:This follows a useful suggestion from Phil. Just to make it clear it refers to any organised Vipassana or Samatha retreat.
I dont want to get all anal, but I would just bump the above..." organised" whether solo or group implies "under a teachers direction..."
Re: Poll The fruits of Retreat.
Hi Matheesha,
kind regards
Ben
I think we can infer from WTF's post that by 'rewarding' she probably means 'positive' or 'productive'. At least, that's how I read it.rowyourboat wrote:Hi WitF
I hear a lot of people use the term 'rewarding'. I have often wondered what that meant. Eating a bar of chocolate can be 'rewarding'! Having a new experience can be rewarding. I personally would take it to mean that I had something I could take away from the retreat, for my personal practice at home- some insight or some state of samadhi that I could work on further at home. What did you mean by 'rewarding'?
with metta
Matheesha
kind regards
Ben
“No lists of things to be done. The day providential to itself. The hour. There is no later. This is later. All things of grace and beauty such that one holds them to one's heart have a common provenance in pain. Their birth in grief and ashes.”
- Cormac McCarthy, The Road
Learn this from the waters:
in mountain clefts and chasms,
loud gush the streamlets,
but great rivers flow silently.
- Sutta Nipata 3.725
Compassionate Hands Foundation (Buddhist aid in Myanmar) • Buddhist Global Relief • UNHCR
e: [email protected]..
- Cormac McCarthy, The Road
Learn this from the waters:
in mountain clefts and chasms,
loud gush the streamlets,
but great rivers flow silently.
- Sutta Nipata 3.725
Compassionate Hands Foundation (Buddhist aid in Myanmar) • Buddhist Global Relief • UNHCR
e: [email protected]..
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- Posts: 1952
- Joined: Sat Jan 03, 2009 5:29 pm
- Location: London, UK
Re: Poll The fruits of Retreat.
Thanks Ben,Ben wrote:Hi Matheesha,
I think we can infer from WTF's post that by 'rewarding' she probably means 'positive' or 'productive'. At least, that's how I read it.rowyourboat wrote:Hi WitF
I hear a lot of people use the term 'rewarding'. I have often wondered what that meant. Eating a bar of chocolate can be 'rewarding'! Having a new experience can be rewarding. I personally would take it to mean that I had something I could take away from the retreat, for my personal practice at home- some insight or some state of samadhi that I could work on further at home. What did you mean by 'rewarding'?
with metta
Matheesha
kind regards
Ben
Positive and productive are equally vague terms to me (perhaps a cultural gap in knoweldge showing here ), but can we say with some precision what it means?
with metta
Matheesha
With Metta
Karuna
Mudita
& Upekkha
Karuna
Mudita
& Upekkha
Re: Poll The fruits of Retreat.
Hi Matheesha
Well, I don't want to put words into WTF's mouth. So, as to the specifics of her experience, I will let her speak for herself.
kind regards
Ben
Well, I don't want to put words into WTF's mouth. So, as to the specifics of her experience, I will let her speak for herself.
kind regards
Ben
“No lists of things to be done. The day providential to itself. The hour. There is no later. This is later. All things of grace and beauty such that one holds them to one's heart have a common provenance in pain. Their birth in grief and ashes.”
- Cormac McCarthy, The Road
Learn this from the waters:
in mountain clefts and chasms,
loud gush the streamlets,
but great rivers flow silently.
- Sutta Nipata 3.725
Compassionate Hands Foundation (Buddhist aid in Myanmar) • Buddhist Global Relief • UNHCR
e: [email protected]..
- Cormac McCarthy, The Road
Learn this from the waters:
in mountain clefts and chasms,
loud gush the streamlets,
but great rivers flow silently.
- Sutta Nipata 3.725
Compassionate Hands Foundation (Buddhist aid in Myanmar) • Buddhist Global Relief • UNHCR
e: [email protected]..
- Wizard in the Forest
- Posts: 699
- Joined: Wed Nov 24, 2010 8:16 am
- Location: House in Forest of Illusions
Re: Poll The fruits of Retreat.
I came out of retreat with a more peaceful mind. It started off really difficult and then I was able to get a lot of work done. Finding out why I thought it was difficult was probably the most eyeopening experience. The more I could clear my head, the more insight would just come, and I found myself with less stress in general.
"One is not born a woman, but becomes one."- Simone de Beauvoir
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- Posts: 1952
- Joined: Sat Jan 03, 2009 5:29 pm
- Location: London, UK
Re: Poll The fruits of Retreat.
Sounds like you had a very useful experience - I think you developed some mindfulness and concentration and insight by the sound of it. I think in being able to define it, it becomes possible to work with it to develop it further, read about it etc. Otherwise it becomes 'something which happens when on retreat. Thanks for sharing it with us.Wizard in the Forest wrote:I came out of retreat with a more peaceful mind. It started off really difficult and then I was able to get a lot of work done. Finding out why I thought it was difficult was probably the most eyeopening experience. The more I could clear my head, the more insight would just come, and I found myself with less stress in general.
With metta
Matheesha
With Metta
Karuna
Mudita
& Upekkha
Karuna
Mudita
& Upekkha
- Spiny O'Norman
- Posts: 851
- Joined: Sat May 23, 2009 8:46 am
- Location: Suffolk, England
Re: Poll The fruits of Retreat.
Yes, I know what you mean. However I'm usually a solitary practitioner, and find it quite distracting trying to meditate with other people around.Goofaholix wrote:True, but the distractions experienced on retreat are much closer to the root cause of distraction, whereas the distractions of daily life tend to distract you from distraction itself.Spiny O'Norman wrote: I've found that there can be quite a lot of distractions on retreat - unless it's a solitary retreat.
Spiny
- Goofaholix
- Posts: 4018
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- Location: New Zealand
Re: Poll The fruits of Retreat.
Sounds like something worth investigating.Spiny O'Norman wrote:Yes, I know what you mean. However I'm usually a solitary practitioner, and find it quite distracting trying to meditate with other people around.
Pronouns (no self / not self)
“Peace is within oneself to be found in the same place as agitation and suffering. It is not found in a forest or on a hilltop, nor is it given by a teacher. Where you experience suffering, you can also find freedom from suffering. Trying to run away from suffering is actually to run toward it.”
― Ajahn Chah
“Peace is within oneself to be found in the same place as agitation and suffering. It is not found in a forest or on a hilltop, nor is it given by a teacher. Where you experience suffering, you can also find freedom from suffering. Trying to run away from suffering is actually to run toward it.”
― Ajahn Chah