Tuesday, May 30, 2006
Compassion and Wisdom....and birds.
Well...wow.
Menla Mountain Retreat...5 days of sitting meditation, contemplation, discussion, talks and more meditation on the subject of Fierce Compassion....with two gentle geniuses of the Western Buddhist tradition: Robert Thurman and Sharon Salzberg...by the time I got to this experience I had read Sharon's LOVINGKINDNESS...the basis of her work at the Insight Meditation Institute..and another of hers called FAITH, which transformed my way of thinking about that subject altogether...and I had read Bob's JEWEL TREE OF TIBET...while there I devoured his INNER REVOLUTION..he is one of those writers who make you want to read more and more...a superb teller of stories,with an encyclopedic knowledge of Asian history and religions...in other words: we were, for five days, in the presence of great minds and hearts.
It was a powerful time for me on many levels of awareness. And i am so grateful to have been part of those days at that place with those spirits. MENLA is a name for the Medicine Buddha (actually there are 8 of them , in Tibetan tradition) and so Menla Mountain Retreat is all about healing.
In short: 3 gorgeous vegetarian meals a day..wonderful food, superbly prepared...breakfast at 8:00 am...first sitting and session up at the Nalanda Conference Center (about a quarter of a mile up the mountain) at 9:30....lunch at 12 noon, again, beautifully prepped for us...yoga class at 2:00 at the lovely Yoga Building...then an afternoon sitting and session at 4:00...dinner at 6:00...evening session at 7:45...break for the day at 10:00....and sleep! I slept more peacefully and healthily than I have slept in months....that alone is medicine.
The entire place, designed and cared for by Thurman's glorious wife Nena, is deluxe, and the quality of the bed linens and bath linens is comforting, well crafted and lush, though simple and serviceable...the colors used are muted and natural...an entire design of comfort, welcoming and clean. The grounds, all contributed to the Tibet House by a "friend", are being reclaimed and re-landscaped, from its time as a camp for boys...a nature and survival camp...so, new structures have been designed and built to house guests and staff...new buildings have been built for conferences and meditations...the yoga studio...the sanctuary...the sweat lodge....all appearing as if part of the natural woods surrounding them...one rather happens upon them while walking...and inside, each structure is spacious and cool, even on hot days.
Which brings me to thing i wrote down one day in my journal:
"Develop a mind so filled with love it looks like space" - The Buddha
That is what being inside these buildings was like: being inside a heart filled with so much love it looked, and felt , like space.
It strikes me that the only way to adequately write about my experience at Menla is to copy parts of the journal I kept there...I filled an entire blank book in those five days, every page filled with things I heard, thought and experienced in other ways as well....I have never filled a journal volume so quickly.
So, in the immediate days ahead: EXCERPTS FROM THE MENLA JOURNAL!
Menla Mountain Retreat...5 days of sitting meditation, contemplation, discussion, talks and more meditation on the subject of Fierce Compassion....with two gentle geniuses of the Western Buddhist tradition: Robert Thurman and Sharon Salzberg...by the time I got to this experience I had read Sharon's LOVINGKINDNESS...the basis of her work at the Insight Meditation Institute..and another of hers called FAITH, which transformed my way of thinking about that subject altogether...and I had read Bob's JEWEL TREE OF TIBET...while there I devoured his INNER REVOLUTION..he is one of those writers who make you want to read more and more...a superb teller of stories,with an encyclopedic knowledge of Asian history and religions...in other words: we were, for five days, in the presence of great minds and hearts.
It was a powerful time for me on many levels of awareness. And i am so grateful to have been part of those days at that place with those spirits. MENLA is a name for the Medicine Buddha (actually there are 8 of them , in Tibetan tradition) and so Menla Mountain Retreat is all about healing.
In short: 3 gorgeous vegetarian meals a day..wonderful food, superbly prepared...breakfast at 8:00 am...first sitting and session up at the Nalanda Conference Center (about a quarter of a mile up the mountain) at 9:30....lunch at 12 noon, again, beautifully prepped for us...yoga class at 2:00 at the lovely Yoga Building...then an afternoon sitting and session at 4:00...dinner at 6:00...evening session at 7:45...break for the day at 10:00....and sleep! I slept more peacefully and healthily than I have slept in months....that alone is medicine.
The entire place, designed and cared for by Thurman's glorious wife Nena, is deluxe, and the quality of the bed linens and bath linens is comforting, well crafted and lush, though simple and serviceable...the colors used are muted and natural...an entire design of comfort, welcoming and clean. The grounds, all contributed to the Tibet House by a "friend", are being reclaimed and re-landscaped, from its time as a camp for boys...a nature and survival camp...so, new structures have been designed and built to house guests and staff...new buildings have been built for conferences and meditations...the yoga studio...the sanctuary...the sweat lodge....all appearing as if part of the natural woods surrounding them...one rather happens upon them while walking...and inside, each structure is spacious and cool, even on hot days.
Which brings me to thing i wrote down one day in my journal:
"Develop a mind so filled with love it looks like space" - The Buddha
That is what being inside these buildings was like: being inside a heart filled with so much love it looked, and felt , like space.
It strikes me that the only way to adequately write about my experience at Menla is to copy parts of the journal I kept there...I filled an entire blank book in those five days, every page filled with things I heard, thought and experienced in other ways as well....I have never filled a journal volume so quickly.
So, in the immediate days ahead: EXCERPTS FROM THE MENLA JOURNAL!
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