My first mindfulness meditation retreat was a life-changing event for me. Some years ago, I was just started to learn about mindfulness meditation. I was visiting one monthly group practice, and I was reading books. At one moment, I learned that I could go and spend a whole five days meditating. The venue was in a nearby city, and I applied. I did not have any prior knowledge about how it will look like. Therefore I did not have any expectations.
Horgos resort
As I arrived in retreat, I saw that other participants are all from experienced to beginners but seem to have the same goal; to meditate and see what they will learn from this event. We were informed about the daily schedule and also that we need to keep quiet the whole five days. We had two vegetarian meals, early in the morning and around noon. This schedule is the way Buddhist monks eat. Also, no coffee. That was the only thing that sounded a bit disturbing for me.
So we started with early morning yoga, some meditation, breakfast, then more mediation, and some Dhamma talk (about basics of Buddhism). After lunch and a short break, we continue to meditate, and in the evening, we would able to have some brief explanations on various topics.
Food and daily schedule in retreat
I am not a vegetarian, but I really enjoyed the food. Well, it helped that the cook was a Hungarian lady, and I love that cuisine so much, even without meat.
One day we had an opportunity to speak to the monk who was guiding our meditations and get some practical advice on how to get more mindful and how to make most of every meditation session.
Day by day, they passed more and more quickly. In the end, I thought that it was finished almost before it begins.
My experience
This was an enlightening experience for me. I was introduced to Yoga (I have continued to practice yoga since), learn that I can enjoy food without meat (but I still enjoy a good steak) and that I can effortlessly keep silent for five days.
This experience was helpful for my subsequent visits to Suan Mokkh ten days silent meditation retreat.
Our temple in Cortanovci
After my first mindfulness meditation retreat, I got closer to this community and helped in a small way to establish our new temple in Cortanovci, in Serbia. So yes, there is a Buddhist Temple in Serbia. Also, there is an official Buddhist religious organization recognized by the government with a similar status as Orthodox, and the Catholic Church, Islam, and Judaism. This organization has significant support from other more developed ones like Oxford Buddha Vihara from the UK and also has Mianmarian monks in service.
When I look back today
Since then, I have moved to Thailand, and I had the opportunity to attend one great United nation Day of Vesak congress. I really enjoyed my days there and looking forward to going to a similar event again. But, about that experience, some other time.
If you want to know more
If you want to learn more about things I write about, check out my books. See also what the goal of this web site is. You can check out my other post about mindfulness, and share your thoughts and comments.
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