Meditation Courses in a Buddhist Retreat in Sri Lanka

THE BUDDHIST MEDITATION CENTRE

The meditation centre is situated in a town called Gampaha. This is about 1.5 hours north of Colombo and 50 minutes from the main volunteer house in Ja-Ela. The centre is separated into different areas, with lots of small huts splayed out in extremely peaceful surroundings beneath a jungle canopy.

The centre is in a beautiful setting in a reasonably small area. It is very peaceful and relaxed, with sunny and shady areas to sit and relax in. Women and men are separated. This is a real Buddhist retreat and not a meditation school. Other people in the retreat will be largely locals from nearby towns who are studying Buddhism or simply feel the need for some faith and restoration.

Dropping into a Buddhist retreat for a few weeks is not uncommon in Sri Lanka as meditation is highly regarded as a way to heal and replenish the soul. There may be one or two other westerners or other Travellers volunteers there with you at the same time.

The centre is silent and no talking is permitted. The silence is something that takes some getting used to. However it also comes as a tremendous relief as there is no polite chitchat required! Should you need to ask a question or make contact with someone you may do so, respectfully.

A Buddhist Monk in deep red robes

YOUR PLACEMENT AND WHAT TO EXPECT:

Many of the other people in the retreat may be there for anything between 2 weeks and 6 months. Your stay of 1 or 2 weeks will be relatively very brief. However, as a westerner with little or no experience of meditation previously, this will probably be long enough.

During an initial exploration into meditation, a new sense of self-discipline must be acquired. To do nothing, all day long, is difficult. Should you want to stay longer than 2 weeks, of course you can (subject to availability), and this can be arranged through the Sri Lankan staff at the time.

The first 2-3 days of a meditation retreat are the hardest. This is how long it takes to unwind and slow down from a life of deadlines, responsibilities, distractions, aggressive advertising, conflicts, rushing, traffic, communication, relationships, to-do lists and so on. For a long time you have been on fast forward in your life and suddenly there is absolutely nothing to do. All you have to do now, is be.

You will probably go through a range of emotions and physical sensations in the first few days. These will include everything from relief and peace to frustration and boredom. What you will notice however is that everything you feel and experience will change. Each state will pass to be replaced with a new one. Boredom will give way to euphoria; anger will give way to acceptance, fear to comfort and so on. All you have to do is just breathe, note how you feel and experience the feeling without fighting it.

When the noise of the outside world is turned down and the distractions are taken away from us, our awareness comes back to us and a meditation retreat enables us to journey inside and find a sense of calm and balance.

After the first few days, the meditation gets easier. You acclimatised to the pace, the silence, the routine. You slow down to the rhythm around you. It is now that you start to hear the sounds of the jungle better, notice the wildlife in the trees above you, the way the insects move, the changing lights of the forest. You begin to appreciate everything in a deeper way; the hot afternoon lemon tea, the sun on your back, a smile. You are not in a rush and your thoughts have slowed down also, they are less ferocious and demanding and sometimes, briefly, there are no thoughts. This is the time when inspiration can come, creativity, insights and understanding are able to surface when your mind is peaceful and you are completely relaxed.

CAUTION! A meditation retreat can be a very intense experience. Anyone who has recently been through a traumatic experience may find the experience too much and it may not be helpful to you at this stage. We highly recommend that you consider this meditation retreat only if you feel that you are currently in sound and stable mind.

TRAVEL AND VISAS:
You have the option to arrange your own flights or we can assist you with your flight arrangements. If you would like us to do this for you, we will liaise with you regarding available flights and dates to suit you. All arrangements for your flight bookings/payments will be fulfilled by Murray Rogers Travel Ltd., ATOL No. 6856. (Read more about Murray Rogers Travel Ltd.) Where possible, we arrange for two or more people to travel on the same flight and we will let you have the names and telephone numbers of other volunteers on your flight, so that you can chat to each other or even meet up before leaving for your placement.
Where possible, all flights we arrange for you have changeable return tickets because many of our volunteers choose to extend their stay once they are in their destination country. Changeable return tickets enable you to do so, within the limits of your visa and the level of your air ticket, of course. If you choose to book your own flights, you should endeavour to get a changeable ticket. We meet you at the airport regardless of whether you make your own travel arrangements or not.
VISAS:. No visa is required for the first 30 days. For longer stays, we'll send you all the necessary forms and information and make the process very easy for you. You will fly into Sri Lanka and the airport is only about 20 minutes away from Ja-Ela. You will be met by our organiser and taken to your school and your Sri Lankan home.		We can also arrange your flight dates to give you additional time at the end of your project for travelling around and sightseeing - this is a fascinating and wondrous country! To read about the extensive Support & Backup we provide in our countries, please click here.