Businessman’s
Morality |
Keep Walking,
Keep Walking |
Day Twenty-Four (May 3) (Lenox, Mass.) Businessman’s
Morality
This was the ninth
day of the course. Meditators were meditating seriously. John and Gail Beary
were assisting Goenkaji in running the course. Throughout the day the
meditators could meet the Bearys. At noon they could come and seek private
interviews with Goenkaji. Sometimes, a student facing difficulties was brought
to Goenkaji to seek his guidance. At 9pm again
Goenkaji gave an open question and answer session in the meditation hall. The
day before he had instructed in reply to a question that they should always try
to be with sensations even while performing activities of daily living. A
meditator asked whether they should try to be aware of sensations while working
in the outside world. Goenkaji said, “No. At this stage you meditate morning
and evening. You may also maintain awareness of sensations during leisure time
but while you are working or doing any activity that requires concentration of
mind, give full attention to the task at hand. Otherwise you will be distracted
from your work. During the day, when you realize that some defilement is
empowering you then for just a few seconds you observe sensations with open
eyes understanding that both the sensations and the defilement are impermanent.
Soon your mind will become calm and you can continue the task at hand.” A businessman said
that in business one has to speak half-truths and sometimes even a lie.
Goenkaji replied, “It is our greed that makes us believe that one cannot be
totally honest in business. If one practises Vipassana, one realizes within
that honesty is really the best policy. And as one becomes an honest
businessman, the word spreads around and one gets more business. It also helps
to improve the overall atmosphere in the business world. “Once a lawyer
joined a course under Sayagyi U Ba Khin. The lawyer liked Vipassana but thought
that he had to lie to defend his clients. Sayagyi told him not to lie and
instead to defend only such cases where he was convinced that the defendant was
innocent. (It is true that the decision of guilt is not made by lawyer but he
can certainly refuse to tell lies knowingly in the court just to defend his
client.) The lawyer accepted Sayagyi’s advice. Initially he had some
difficulties and his business suffered for a brief period. But he was a happier
person. Soon, however, the word spread about his honesty and he started getting
more cases than he could handle. He even earned the respect of the judges. Day Twenty-Five
(May 4) (Lenox, Mass.) Selfless Love
Goenkaji
taught metta meditation to the students on the course. The practice
of mett± meditation is the logical conclusion of Vipassana meditation. Metta is
selfless love or compassionate goodwill. It is the development of good-will
toward others. When the old habit of egoism is gone even to some extent good
will naturally flows from the depths of the mind. True love doesn’t expect
anything in return. “It is always one way traffic. You just give without
expecting anything in return”, Goenkaji says. This good will springing from a
pure mind creates a peaceful and harmonious atmosphere for the benefit of all. After the metta, Goenkaji returned to the meditation hall at noon to meet with meditators
alone and in groups. In the evening he met with individual meditators at his
residence. After the taped video discourse at night Goenkaji again found time
to give a brief talk to the participants of the course. He emphasized that
unless a real change starts coming in one’s life, Vipassana cannot be said to
have helped one. He also reminded the participants that because they occupy an
important position in society, they have a responsibility to be a positive
influence on society. Day Twenty-Six (May
5) (Lenox/VMC, Mass/Flanders, New Jersey) Pleasant
Surprise
Goenkaji left
Eastover Resort in the morning. Just before he left, he was able to meet with a
few students from the course. Students in the
course at Dhamma Dhar± were in for a pleasant surprise. Though originally
Goenkaji was scheduled to go directly to New York/New Jersey, he decided to go
to VMC where an English/Hindi ten-day course was in progress. It was the ninth
day of the course. Goenkaji answered questions from students for about an hour
in the Dhamma Hall. He then had lunch, followed by a meeting with two
meditators who wanted to know more about the significance of the Global Pagoda
project. Goenkaji mentioned that it is easy for people to come together for
sensual entertainment but difficult to come together for spirituality, for true
purification of mind. Even when they gather in the name of spirituality they
usually gather due to religious fervour and all religions are not included. The
Global Pagoda will offer an opportunity for people from different religious
backgrounds to come together and work towards peace and harmony. Goenkaji reached
Flanders Motor Home Park in New Jersey after 10 pm. Day Twenty-Seven
(May 6) (Flanders, NJ / Rutgers University, NJ) You are the
Future
Goenkaji travelled
an hour from the Motor Home Park to give a speech at the Livingston Student
Centre of Rutgers University. The audience included students and academics.
During the question and answer session, Goenkaji emphasized how important it is
for young people to embrace rational, logical, scientific spirituality that is
devoid of blind faith and fanaticism. He met some people
from the audience after his talk. He reached Flanders after 10 pm. Day Twenty-Eight
(May 7) (Flanders, NJ / Manhattan / Queens, NY) India and
China
India and China
are two great ancient countries where the Buddha’s benevolent teaching played a
major role in their glorious history. Goenkaji feels sorry that both lost the
essence of the teaching of the Buddha. It is his dream that the original
teaching of the Buddha spreads in both these countries as well as the United
States, the most powerful country today. The Indian and Chinese expatriate
population in the U.S. has an important role to play in the spread of Vipassana
in their countries of origin. Although the idea of meditation may be foreign to
the general population of the U.S., many will be attracted to the practical
teaching of the Buddha which is universal, non-sectarian, pragmatic and gives
results here-and-now. On May 7 Goenkaji
devoted his morning to Indian expatriates and most of his evening was spent
with the meditators of Chinese origin. Goenkaji was
invited to the ITV studio, a TV station dedicated to people of Indian origin in
Manhattan for an interview. Ashok Vyas was the host. Goenkaji explained
how this invaluable treasure of India was lost to the country and how it is now
spreading again around the world giving wonderful results. After the
interview Goenkaji travelled to Queens, NY near the New York Vihara where his
Motor Home was parked. In the evening
Goenkaji went to the Dhamma House in Queens where regular group sittings and
one-day courses are held. A number of Chinese Vipassana students live nearby.
Goenkaji arrived at the end of the group sitting and took questions from
meditators. One meditator wanted to know why there were restrictions on Reiki
practitioners taking more than one Vipassana course. Goenkaji explained, “Reiki
or similar healing practices do help people and I have nothing against them.
But when such practices are mixed with Vipassana there is danger of harming
oneself and harming others. All such practices attempt to alter reality by
means of calling on some external force or auto-suggestion (e.g., self
hypnosis, etc.). This prevents the practitioner from observing the truth as it
is. Therefore they are fundamentally at odds with the objective observation
of reality that is Vipassana. “The purpose of
Dhamma is to make one strong and independent. When one depends on an external
force, he/she gets weakened. It makes one addicted to a pleasant sensation of
which he has no awareness, much less equanimity. One makes subtle but strong saªkh±ras
(karma) of craving and of moha (ignorance). “Reiki
practitioners can take only one Vipassana course and then have to choose one
practice—either Vipassana or Reiki. This restriction is not based on
speculative reasoning alone but on actual experience. I had to take this strong
step reluctantly because of experience of many cases around the world where
mixing Reiki and Vipassana harmed Reiki practitioners to the extent that some
of them became mentally imbalanced. Many, many Reiki practitioners started
distorting the practice of Vipassana, harming their patients or students,
harming themselves and confusing the new students of Vipassana. “We have a
responsibility towards the well-being of Vipassana students who come to
courses. Even if only a few are in danger, we have to be careful. Anyway, they
have learned Vipassana and we have warned them. Now if they continue to
practice both, they are free to do so on their own. But we certainly don’t want
to encourage the risk.” Goenkaji usually
does not go to restaurants but when he is travelling sometimes circumstances
force him to do so. He took dinner in a nearby Chinese restaurant. Most of the
meditators accompanying him were of Chinese origin but Dhamma is truly
universal—there were many others who joyfully joined the small group comprising
every race and many nationalities. Day Twenty-Nine
(May 8) (Queens / Manhattan, NY / Flanders, NJ) Blind
Faith, Faith and Interfaith
Vipassana doesn’t
advocate blind faith but real faith that comes from one’s own experience of
truth within. This is a big strength on the path of Dhamma. True faith is
always accompanied by discretionary wisdom and keeps one in on the right path. Faith is often
also used as synonym for religion or philosophy. The Sangha of bhikkhus is seen
by some as a sectarian entity. A practitioner of Vipassana knows that he or she
has received this invaluable jewel because it was preserved by a chain of
bhikkhu-teachers through the millennia in its pristine purity without giving it
a sectarian color. We are so grateful to the Sangha. Such a Sangha inspires
confidence. In Buddha’s teaching saddh± means faith or
confidence—confidence that one develops in the teaching of the Buddha from
one’s own experiential wisdom. Goenkaji served
food to the Bhikkhu Sangha headed by Ven. Piyatissa in the New York Vihara in
Queens. So many meditators from diverse backgrounds joined the Sangha-dana.
People from India, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Cambodia, China, Taiwan, Hong Kong,
Bangladesh, Thailand, Israel, European countries and North America took the
opportunity to serve the bhikkhus. Later on the bhikkhus were given their
requisites in donation. At the end Goenkaji gave an inspiring address. He
recounted how the silent file of bhikkhus with their eyes downcast going out
for the alms in the morning in his motherland, Myanmar, always gives him so
much joy. Some private
meetings with assistant teachers on organizational matters followed. In the evening he
gave a talk at the Interfaith Centre in Manhattan. This Centre has worked for
many decades to bring together people of different faiths. It was hence very
appropriate that Goenkaji spoke there. Reverend Dean Morton introduced Goenkaji
and requested him to give a talk on Dharma and Business. Goenkaji explained how
success and failure, profit and loss are part of business and how they cause
misery if one hasn’t learned to maintain equanimity. He also explained how
Vipassana transcends sectarian barriers. After the talk
Goenkaji was interviewed by the press
and then returned to Flanders around 11 pm. Day Thirty (May 9) (Flanders,
NJ / Pennsylvania) Annenberg
Centre, Penn
Zellerbach Theatre
in the Annenberg Centre at University of Pennsylvania hosted Goenkaji’s talk on
the evening of May 9. Steve Gorn introduced Goenkaji. “Vipassana is a
simple, practical way to achieve real peace of mind and to lead a happy, useful
life. Vipassana enables us to experience peace and harmony: it purifies the
mind, freeing it from suffering and the deep-seated causes of suffering. The
practice leads step-by-step to the highest spiritual goal of full liberation
from all mental defilements. “Usually when one
is faced with difficult situations say for example when one is angry, most of
the time “But how to face
anger? It has no shape or form. A Vipassana meditator finds out that every
defilement that arises in the mind arises with sensations on the body. When
anger arises, there is so much burning inside. He learns to observe this
burning sensations or any other sensations that one feels at that time. He
doesn’t dwell on the cause of anger. He just accepts that there is anger and
understands with experiential wisdom that the sensation is impermanent and so
also the anger is impermanent. “Thus one has
learned to face the problem. And as we keep on observing sensations with an
equanimous mind, defilements start getting eradicated from the root.” Goenkaji travelled
an hour after the talk to reach the KOA campground at Coatsville, PA. There was
a soft drizzle when the motor homes arrived there. Some meditators from the
caravan took refuge in the wood cabins at the edge of the campsite. This was the first
day that all the support group of meditators had travelled together with their
motor homes and campers. Day Thirty-One (May
10) (Coatsville / Lincoln University / Unionville, PA) Maintain the
Purity of the Technique
There is a strong
team of meditators in this area, including a large expatriate Cambodian
community, which is engaged in Vipassana activities. There was a one-day course
at the Rivero Hall in Lincoln University. Goenkaji gave a
brief speech at the one-day course, “One of the most important reasons why
Vipassana was lost in the country of its origin was that people started adding
something to it. The Buddha’s teaching is paripuººa½—it is complete,
there is no need to add anything to it. It is parisuddha½—it is totally
pure, there is no need to remove anything from it. “At the Vipassana
centers, we must take care that we teach nothing but s²la (morality), sam±dhi
(concentration of mind) and paññ± (purification of mind). If we
start any other activity that looks quite harmless, soon that particular
activity will become very important and Vipassana will be relegated to a
secondary position. “Now that the
Buddha’s teaching is arising again, let us keep it in its pristine purity so
that it helps more and more people around the world for centuries to come.” In the evening
Goenkaji gave a talk at the Unionville High School Auditorium. asked Goenkaji
what his comments were on love at first sight. Goenkaji laughed and said, “Why
only at fist sight? There should be love at every sight. But it should be pure
love. Pure love is full of compassion. It is totally free of lust.” Day Thirty-Two (May
11) (Coatsville PA / Ashland, VA) The Dhamma
Caravan
Many meditators
had expressed the desire to join the group of vehicles travelling with Goenkaji
and Mataji. The tour organizers carefully selected a few based on their utility
on the tour. Some are official tour members and some are allowed to join as
additional independent vehicles to support the group. They are assigned various
duties such as kitchen, laundry, driving, vehicle maintenance, recording
Goenkaji’s public talks and talks to meditators, distributing literature,
logistics of various events, coordinating with local organizers etc. This group
of seven vehicles (some motor homes and others are truck campers) forms the
Dhamma Caravan that will take Goenkaji around North America to spread the
munificent message of Dhamma. All have
volunteered their time for weeks and some for the whole tour to look after Goenkaji
and to support his Dhamma Messenger activity in various capacities. Those who
must leave in the middle will be replaced by other Dhamma workers. Most of the
Caravan Dhamma Workers are assistant teachers or very senior meditators. The Caravan left Pennsylvania
around 10 am and reached its destination at 6 pm. Goenkaji agreed to
give a live telephone interview on a Houston radio talk show called “The Open
Forum” immediately after his arrival at the campsite. He gave the interview and
answered questions from the radio show audience from about 6.30 to 7 pm. Goenkaji has
missed many of his evening walks during the past month due to public talks and
other engagements. But it had not yet become dark and today he could walk at
his leisure. These walks are very important part of his daily routine and help
him to stay healthy and fit. Others in Dhamma
Caravan sat a group sitting together as there were not many pressing jobs for
them and they all could afford to take one hour off at the same time. Day Thirty-Three
(May 12) (Ashland, VA / Charlotte, NC) Keep Walking,
Keep Walking
The Dhamma Caravan
had to cover more than three hundred miles today to reach Charlotte. The
distance seemed more daunting as the motor homes cannot drive at same speed as
cars. As the vehicles
sped on the Interstate 85 South, Goenkaji found time read and write. Vast
expanse of green trees on either side of the road was interspersed with beds of
colourful flowers and at times lakes. Some of the
caravan members started getting a bit tired of the long journey. Goenkaji sat
absorbed in his work. Last week when he was returning from a public talk and he
was still on the road even after 11 pm, he could be heard chanting Chala sadhaka chalata
rahe, desh aur pardesh; Keep going, o meditator, keep going,
in the country and abroad By the evening the
caravan was at the Charlotte Hindu Centre. The meditators from the caravan and
local meditators meditated together from 9.30 to 10.30 pm after taking care of
all mundane activities such as parking, connecting vehicles to electrical and
water supplies etc. Day Thirty-Four (May 13) (Charlotte, NC) Inspiring the
Meditators
Goenkaji’s arrival
rejuvenates Vipassana activities in any area he visits. Wherever he goes the
meditators in that area come together. They get to know each other better and
they start meditating together. They become inspired to put in more effort on
the path of Dhamma. It gives them an opportunity to serve in different
capacities at the various organized events. As Emperor Ashoka wrote in one of
his edicts, “To do good is difficult. We have to do good in many different
ways.” Serving in various capacities complements our practice of meditation. And so it happened
in Charlotte. More and more meditators started to come forward. It was a joy
for all to realize that there were so many meditators in their area. One long
lost meditator was a physician who had taken a ten-day course in 1971. He had
called up the local contact and told him that he heard somewhere that Goenkaji
was coming to Charlotte. He was excited that Goenkaji was coming to his area.
He was able to meet with Goenkaji after the public talk in Charlotte and told
him that the Vipassana course he took so many years ago had had a
life-transforming effect on him. There was another woman who had taken a course
in 1973 who brought her fifteen year old son to listen to Goenakji’s discourse. The meditators in
Charlotte found it very encouraging that there were more meditators in the area
than they had previously known. They are now planning more non-centre courses
in their region. As there is no Vipassana center nearby they are thinking
seriously about establishing one in the area. One meditator
brought his son to Goenkaji’s talk. He had been trying to convince his son to
give Vipassana a try for a long time but had not succeeded as yet. After the
talk, for the first time his son said that he would take a Vipassana course. Day Thirty-Five (May 14) (Charlotte, NC / Atlanta, GA) Stone Mountain
Park, Atlanta
Goenkaji and
Mataji left the Charlotte Hindu center in the morning. The Caravan
reached Stone Mountain Park, Atlanta, in the evening. Since the Caravan
Volunteers are usually new to the area, local meditators meet them at the
highway exits or at a nearby rest area to take them to their stop for the day. Every time the
Caravan reaches its destination it takes some time to set up the vehicles and
to find out what facilities are available. Most of the large vehicles need to
have electrical, water and sewer connections. All vehicles need electrical
hookup to charge their mobile phones, two-way radios, and batteries for the
various cameras used to document the trip. Communication between vehicles is
achieved by the two-way radios or cell phone, though mobile phone service is
spotty in more remote parts of the country.
Email connection is usually available at the RV Park offices. At the Stone
Mountain Family Campground the atmosphere was quiet and peaceful. Goenkaji took
a long walk on the winding pathways of the campground. Mataji visited some of the Motor Homes in the Dhamma Caravan to see their facilities. Day Thirty-Six (May 15) (Atlanta, GA) Jesus: A Prince Among SaintsIn the morning
Goenkaji granted a telephone interview to James Shaheen of Tricycle magazine.
Goenkaji explained that the Buddha’s discovery that sensation is the key to
liberation from all misery has been forgotten and that there is a need to go
back to the actual words of the Buddha to clarify our practice. Later in the
morning many meditators came from Atlanta to see Goenkaji at the Stone Mountain
Park. They sat quietly outside the Motor Home. Goenkaji and Mataji came for a
short Metta session and a few words of encouragement to the assembled
meditators. Afterwards they were invited to lunch by the meditators in the
Caravan. There was an abundance of food prepared by the local meditators and
there was plenty of food for all. In the evening
Goenkaji gave a talk at the Glenn Memorial United Methodist Church at the Emory
University. “Jesus Christ is a prince among saints”, he said. Jesus had love
and compassion for the very people who tortured him to death. This indeed is a
sign of a true saint. Goenkaji said that Vipassana would help one to imbibe the
qualities of Christ in one’s life. Vipassana practice involves nothing but the
truth that one experiences from moment to moment. Quoting the Bible he said,
“You shall see the truth and truth will make you free.” Many questions
came from the audience about the theory and the practice of Vipassana. Answering a
question that why does one need Vipassana when one is already happy, Goenkaji
said, “Don’t you want to be be happier”? Then he went on to explain how one is
not aware of one’s misery. It is like a piece of charcoal that remains hot
though it appears cool because it is covered with ash; so also people fool
themselves and don’t recognize their impurities, dissatisfactions,
frustrations, anxieties, fears and attachments. How can one be happy when the
mind is continually defiled by impurities such as anger, hatred, jealousy,
fear, anxiety and greed? Vipassana doesn’t just make you aware of these
impurities but it starts eradicating them. The next stop on
the tour was Birmingham, Alabama. Since he was scheduled to visit Donaldson
Correctional Facility at Birmingham the next morning Goenkaji decided to make
the three hour journey in the night, after the public talk. The caravan left
Atlanta at 10 pm and reached Birmingham at 1 pm. Day Thirty-Seven (May 16) (Birmingham, AL) Prisoners All
Donaldson
Correctional Facility at Birmingham is a maximum security prison. It held its
first Vipassana course in January this year. Goenkaji visited the facility on
the last day of the second course there. He was welcomed at the gates by Dr.
Debra Marshall the prison psychologist who had taken a ten-day course earlier
at VMC, Mass. Double
Responsibility First Goenkaji
went to the prison gymnasium, which had been transformed into a temporary Meditation
Hall for both the courses. Students from both the first and second courses were
meditating there. Goenkaji expressed joy at being able to visit the meditators
in prison. He gave a short talk at the end of the group sitting. He said that
in addition to working for their own liberation if they practice regularly they
would fulfil two more responsibilities. First, they will be a good example for
fellow inmates so that they would also be inspired to give a trial to
Vipassana. Second, it will make the Vipassana program in Donaldson Facility a
success, which in turn will make the government take notice. This will give
inmates of other prisons of the USA a chance to learn Vipassana. A successful
Vipassana program in the prisons of USA will make it easier to implement it in
other countries as well. True CorrectionAfter the brief talk to
meditators Goenkaji met with prison officials including Director of Programs
(Dept. of Corrections) Dr Cavanaugh, prison warden Mr. Bullard, Deputy
Commissioner Mr Hardison and Dr Marshall. Ms Phillips of Lion Heart Foundation
also joined the meeting. Goenkaji expressed appreciation for the initiative
taken by these officers to organize Vipassana courses in the Donaldson
Facility. Criminals are sent to prison with the aim of correcting their
behavior but after spending time in the punitive and crime infested environment
of prison they often come out as hardened criminals. For a prison to become
truly a correctional facility the inmates should be given tools to reform
themselves in order to become honourable members of the society. Opening the Mind, Opening the HeartDr. Marshall
described the previous week as a ‘sensational’ week in the prison. She asked
three meditators to talk about their experiences in the Vipassana course. Leon Kennedy sat
his first course in January and served this one. He described his experience of
sitting the course as opening the mind and that of serving as opening the
heart. Eli Crawford said
that Vipassana meditation was very much needed in the prison and he was very
thankful for receiving this invaluable gift. Rick Smith said
that he had been incarcerated for 22 years. He had plenty of time to deal with
many issues and had forgiven all. But he said that he was never able to forgive
himself. He kept running away from himself all these years. Finally Vipassana
forced him to face his inner self; to look inward. It was the most difficult
task he had ever undertaken but in Vipassana also gave him unparalleled courage
and immense clarity to come to terms with the present reality. Prisoners Within and Without the Walls of PrisonGoenkaji then gave
a brief talk to meditators, prison staff and some selected inmates who had not
yet taken a Vipassana course. He said that people both within the walls of the
prison as well as outside the walls are prisoners of their unwholesome habit
patterns. All keep on reacting with negativities such as anger, fear, hatred,
jealousy, greed etc. Vipassana liberates one from the prison inside. After Goenkaji’s
inspiring address, inmate meditators asked him questions about their practice.
It was touching to see how the Dhamma had reached these people in the most
unlikely place and had comforted them. Day Thirty-Eight (May 17) (Birmingham, AL / Houston,
TX) Houston :
Airborne Again.
Goenkaji and
Mataji had travelled by road since their arrival in the USA. Air travel has
become increasingly difficult for them. However, they decided to brave it for
Houston, the fourth biggest city in the USA. He flew in from Birmingham on a
morning flight that landed late due to bad weather. He travelled an hour to get
to his residence in the city. Immediately on arrival he met with some local
expatriate Indians. Among the guests were Mrs Najma Heptullah, the deputy
chairperson of the upper house of the Parliament of India and the Consul of the
Indian Consulate in Houston. In the evening he
was interviewed for a radio show. Later he gave a talk at the Adam’s Mark
Hotel. The hall had 800 chairs. As more people than expected turned up to
listen to Goenkaji, the curtain wall at the back of the hall had to be removed
to increase the space and additional chairs were added. In his talk
Goenkaji explained how it was necessary to take a ten-day residential course to
learn the technique of Vipassana. In Vipassana continuity is the secret of
success. One starts with observation of breath, which is strongly related to
the mind and mental impurities. Once the mind is concentrated to some extent it
becomes sharp enough to feel sensations first under the nostrils above the
upper lip and later throughout the body. One soon realizes that one generates
craving and aversion in response to sensations. Unless one learns to remain
equanimous while being aware of sensations, one cannot uproot the impurities in
the mind. Just as a poisonous tree keeps sprouting again if its roots are not
cut, one cannot eradicate impurities unless one works at the level where they
arise and multiply. After the talk
Goenkaji travelled to the Southwest Vipassana Center, Dhamma Siri. He and
Mataji took dinner in the car on the way. They reached Dhamma Siri at 1 am. The caravan had
driven for about twelve hours from Alabama to reach Dhamma Siri so that
Goenkaji and Mataji could get back into their Motor Home to retire for the
night. Day Thirty-Nine (May 18) (Dhamma Siri, Kaufman, TX) Dhamma Siri
(Wealth of Dhamma)
There were heavy rains in both Houston and Kaufman the previous day but on May 18 the skies were clear and there was bright sunshine. Goenkaji used his
morning walk to look at the facilities of Dhamma Siri. There were many
more Dhamma workers at the center than during Goenkaji’s last visit. At 11 am he met
with two senior assistant teacher couples that continue to serve on many
courses in spite of their advanced age and attendant illnesses. He enquired
after their health. Then Thomas and Tina Crisman, teachers in-charge of Dhamma
Siri, introduced the new board of trustees to him. The trust is composed of
mainly young people. Thomas said, “Goenkaji, this is the future of Dhamma
Siri.” Goenkaji remarked, “Yes, it is good to see that young people have come
forward and are taking more and more responsibilities.” After the meeting with
the trust, he gave private interviews to many meditators who had come to the
center from near and far. He retired for lunch after 1 pm. In the evening he
came to the Dhamma Hall again for a question and answer session. Day Forty (May 18) (Dhamma Siri, Kaufman, TX / Dallas,
TX) Addiction
Goenkaji again met
with meditators individually and in groups at Dhamma Siri in the morning. In the evening he
gave a public talk at the beautiful Sara Ellen & Samuel Weisfeld Center in
Dallas. Goenkaji explained
how one keeps on reacting to the sensations without being aware of it. The Buddha defined
ignorance not as the lack of knowledge of scriptures or philosophical beliefs
but as the lack of awareness of what is happening inside; the lack of awareness
of the impermanent, unsatisfactory nature of everything in the field of mind
and matter—things over which one has no control. An alcoholic
thinks that he is addicted to alcohol but actually he is addicted to the
sensations that he feels when he takes alcohol. When one learns to be aware of
the sensations one can observe the sensations when craving arises without giving
into the impulse. Thus one starts coming out of addictions. Goenkaji added
that one is not only addicted to intoxicants, one is also addicted to various
defilements of the mind such as fear,depression,anger etc. Whenever these
defilements arise in the mind, a biochemical flow starts in the body and one
gets into a vicious cycle of reactions. Vipassana helps one come out this blind
reaction. However, one has to work seriously to learn the technique of
Vipassana. To a question
whether a teacher was necessary to learn Vipassana, Goenkaji replied that in
Vipassana there is no gurudom; one is cautioned not to be in the clutches of a
guru. But to learn the technique properly one is advised to learn from an
experienced teacher in a residential course. After that one is one’s own master
and continue to practice on one’s own. Day Forty-One (May 19) (Dhamma Siri, Kaufman, TX / Ole
Town Cotton Gin RV Park, TX) Farewell to
Dhamma Siri
The Caravan left
the center around 11 am. Meditators lined
up along the driveway to pay respect to Goenkaji and Mataji as the Dhamma
Caravan left the center. In the two days he was there, Goenkaji had met all
those who wanted to see him. Tears rolled down Mataji’s eyes as she bade
farewell to the meditators. This was Goenkaji
and Mataji’s first stay at a center in North America during the Meditation Now
tour, 2002. *** The long journey
to Boulder began. It would take the Caravan three days to reach Denver. In the evening the
Caravan stopped at the Ole Town Cotton Gin RV Park. One of the Dhamma Workers
in the Caravan bought a picture post-card to send to her grandson. It was a
picture of a father and a son driving a truck. The father was telling his son,
“Son, the sun has riz and the sun has set and it is still the Texas state!” And
so it was for the caravan. Texas is a large state and even after travelling for
such a long time, they were still in Texas. Day Forty-Two (May 20) (Texas / Capulin, NM) Just as in the
Sky Different Winds Blow
A strong wind was
blowing as the Caravan started its journey across the vast plains of the Texas
Panhandle and New Mexico. It stayed with the Caravan almost throughout the day.
Sometimes it was dusty, sometimes it was clear. Mostly it was fierce, though
sometimes it was gentle. Usually it blew from the side The meditators
were reminded of the Buddha’s words: yath±pi v±t± ±k±se, v±yanti vividh± puth³; puratthim± pacchim±
c±pi, uttar± atha dakkhiº±. Saraj± araj± capi,
s²t± uºh± ca ekad±; adhimatt± paritt± ca,
puth³ v±yanti m±lut±. Tathevimasmi½
k±yasmi½, samuppajjanti vedan±; sukhadukkhasamuppatti,
adukkhamasukh± ca y±. Yato ca bhikkhu ±t±p²,
sampajañña½ na riñcati ‚01. tato so vedan± sabb±,
parij±n±ti paº¹ito. So vedan± pariññ±ya,
diµµhe dhamme an±savo; k±yassa
bhed± dhammaµµho, saªkhya½ nopeti vedag³ Just as in the sky different
winds blow from east and west, from north and south, dust-laden and dustless,
cold or hot, fierce gales or gentle breezes—many winds blow. So also within the
body arise sensations, pleasant, unpleasant or neutral. When a meditator,
striving ardently, does not lose his constant thorough understanding of
impermanence even for a moment, such a wise person fully comprehends all
sensations. Having thus comprehended sensations, within this life he becomes
freed of all defilements. Such a person being established in Dhamma after death
attains the indescribable state beyond the conditioned world because he knows
sensations thoroughly (their arising and passing away and also the state beyond
the sensations.) The
Caravan finally reached the Capulin, NM RV Park by 7:30pm. The owners of the
park said that the strong wind was very unusual for this time of year. As the Caravan
settled in for the night and the meditators retired to their beds, the wind was
still shaking the motor homes.
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