I'm Starting A Meditation Retreat!

[electroBeam]

Is there anyone here who lives in Australia? If so please private message me! I'm planning on making a fully fledged meditation retreat, one purely involving deep self inquiry, without all of the buddhist, hindu, christian, islamic, etc dogma. I'm planning on making it a week, but if you can't come for the whole time that's ok. 

Depending on how many people I'm able to bring, I will release the date that we plan on embarking on the retreat, it will be around december to january.

Again please PM me! I'm so excited for this hard core retreat, if you're interested reach out!

[Xpansion]

What do you mean by hard core?  Sounds interesting but that term scares me off.   

The buddhist retreats I have been on weren't dogmatic in any way.  It's actually a really good thing to have the guidance of very experienced teachers who have been practicing for a long time.  It is very important that the students feel supported and can speak with teachers if and when required  as well as have organised interviews to make sure they are on track and ok etc. For some people retreats can bring up a lot of really difficult stuff that may have been suppressed for a long time and if nobody is there to support them this could be a potential problem. More rarely some people with not much experience and mental issues can be susceptible to psychotic episodes which is why retreats make  you fill out all sorts of forms about experience and mental health etc. A friend of mine had to be dragged kicking and screaming to another room to calm down once on a vipassana retreat.

My first retreat I had some very bizarre freakish experiences which were nice but freakish nonetheless and it was really helpful to have the teachers to go and talk to.  

 

Edited October 20, 2016 by Xpansion

[Leo Gura]

@electroBeam Organizing a retreat takes a LOT of experience. Many things can go wrong. I wouldn't embark on that unless you've attended at least half a dozen retreats yourself and studied how they work.

For example, if someone trips and breaks his leg at your retreat, they could sue you for a million dollars if you don't take proper precautions. So be careful.

[electroBeam]

@Xpansion Hi Xpansion, true Buddhist retreats are good, but the ones I have been on include sessions where you need to learn about what the buddha did, and like the 5 principles of life, etc.

Really meditation can do that to people? Its just meditation? Its not dmt lol. Are you sure they were directly caused by meditation or was it the person's personality.

 

@Leo Gura Yeah that's true, I must not have been clear enough, this was an informal hangout where I was going to do meditation with like minded people, kind of like camping with each other.

[Xpansion]

1 hour ago, electroBeam said:

@Xpansion Hi Xpansion, true Buddhist retreats are good, but the ones I have been on include sessions where you need to learn about what the buddha did, and like the 5 principles of life, etc.

Really meditation can do that to people? Its just meditation? Its not dmt lol. Are you sure they were directly caused by meditation or was it the person's personality.

 

@Leo Gura Yeah that's true, I must not have been clear enough, this was an informal hangout where I was going to do meditation with like minded people, kind of like camping with each other.

Hi Electrobeam,   I think you must mean the 5 precepts not principles of life.  Abstaining from harming living beings, stealing, sexual misconduct, lying and intoxication.  These things are in place for an important reason.  Personally speaking I would not want to be on a retreat and have someone in the next room having sex, drinking or smoking or someone stealing things but other than that I think that cherry picking Buddhist practice is not very wise. It's like saying well I'll have the hamburger but can I have it without the bun please. It falls apart. 

These precepts are a means to an end, they are observed for a specific objective. 

On the personal level, the observance of precepts serves as the preliminary groundwork for the cultivation of higher virtues or mental development. Sila is the most important step on the spiritual path. Without morality, right concentration cannot be attained, and without right concentration, wisdom cannot be fully perfected. Thus, morality not only enhances people's ethical values and fulfills their noble status as human beings, but it is crucial to their efforts toward the highest  goal of Nibbana. 

On the social level, sila contributes to harmonious and peaceful coexistence among community members and consequently helps to promote social growth and development. In a society where morality prevails and members are conscious of their roles, there will be general security, mutual trust, and close cooperation, these in turn leading to greater progress and prosperity. Without morality there will be corruption and disturbance, and all members of society are adversely affected. Most of the problems that society experiences today are connected, directly or indirectly, with a lack of good morality. 

Questions of morality always concern the issues of right and wrong, good and evil. For a moral life to be meaningful these issues must not remain mere theoretical principles, but translated into practice. Good must be performed, evil must be given up. It is not enough to know what is good or evil, we also need to take proper action with respect to them. We need concrete guidelines to follow, and these are provided by the Buddhist moral precepts. Even the oft-quoted Buddhist ideals of abstention from evil, implementation of what is good, and perfect mental purification can be initially actualized through a consistent practice of moral precepts. The precepts help us to live those ideals; they teach us to do the right things and to avoid the wrong. 

Buddhist moral precepts provide a wholesome foundation for personal and social growth. They are practical principles for a good life and the cultivation of virtues. If we understand the objectives of sila and realize its benefits, we will see moral precepts as an integral part of life rather than as a burden that we are compelled to shoulder. Buddhist moral precepts are not commandments imposed by force; they are a course of training willingly undertaken in order to achieve a desired objective. We do not practice to please a supreme being, but for our own good and the good of society. As individuals, we need to train in morality to lead a good and noble life. On the social level, we need to help maintain peace and harmony in society and facilitate the progress of the common good. The practice of moral precepts is essential in this regard.

I hope this helps you to understand why the 5 precepts are taught and I wish you well on your endeavours to organise your retreat. 

 

Edited October 21, 2016 by Xpansion

[Ry4n]

Where in Australia will this be? Melbourne?

[electroBeam]

@Ry4n NSW sorry

[Xpansion]

Electro beam this video talks about what can happen with meditation on retreat etc which is why its important to have experienced people involved to advise and guide

Dangers of meditation Advice for beginners