A 7 days meditation retreat

How do I feel after 7 days of meditation retreat in the Chiang Mai famous temple : Wat Phra That Doi Suthep ?

I feel wonderfully well and lucky to had this chance to participate to a unique life experience.

It wasn’t easy every day. Sometimes I wanted to give up but I persevered. Somedays you succed to connect your body and you mind, somedays it’s almost impossible.

For sure it was a nice time spending with myself. As our teatcher was used to say : « if you can’t spend few days with yourself here, you could you spend the next 20, 30 or 50 years in the outside world ?"

Meditation benefits are know by many people around the world now. Learning in a meditation center that is as serious as the Wat Phra That Doi Suthep center is a priviledge.

What is a day in the meditation center ?

First, you will have to follow few rules : talking, reading, writing, listening music, smoking, drinking beer (or alccol) and eating after 12.01am are not allowed. You will wake up at 5am. From 5.30 to 6.30am your teatcher share with you budhism concepts. The breakfeast is from 7am to 8am, the lunch from 11am to 12am. From 6pm to 7pm you’ll sing prays in the main temple of the meditation center. All the rest of your day is dedicaded to individual meditation.

The place were we stayed was peaceful and confortable. Everything helps you to reach your day to day meditation.

So far this retreat is the most out of my confort zone experience since I started my travel. It seems easy to become addicted to this feeling. If you are asking yourself about a meditation retreat, just do it. This is an amaizing experience.

Our teatcher shared with us some buddhists values and symbolism every morning. The one who makes the most sense with me and the one I would like to share with you is :

Nobody is perfect. Don't look outside for love or happiness because you will find it inside yourself. Take care of yourself give forgiveness, love and compassion to yourself. Change anger in compassion, bad feelings and thoughts in kindness.

Your happiness depends how you recept the informations of life and how you answer to it.

A mediation retreat is more about cleaning yourself than any other thing. In a way it works for me. I feel realy relaxed and at the right place in the right time in my life.

There is nothing I desire for the future that’s makes me feel bad and there is nothing in my past that’s makes me worring about.

My only next step when I will be back in Chiang Mai is to find a nice place to eat. My stomac is almost dying after a week with tofu, rice and vegetables.