Writing her column in UAE’s top newspaper, The National, Amanda comments:
Suppose you had the opportunity to free yourself from all worldly responsibilities for ten days. You have a room in a quiet, secluded retreat, free from all disturbances. All your basic needs would be met at no cost to you. The only rules you’d need to follow are a vow of silence and spending the vast majority of your waking hours with your eyes closed. Would you accept?
Depending on your take on the world, it may sound like a blissful escape from the chaos of life or some kind of jail sentence! Neither could be further from the truth.
Meditation can be viewed in scientific terms for its effects on the mind and the body. During meditation, a marked increase in blood flow slows heart rate, blood pressure drops to within normal ranges and recent research indicates that meditation can boost the immune system and reduce free radicals, in effect, a slowing down of the ageing process.
And what of the mind? Less stress, better sleep, insight and self-awareness. Scientists tell us we use only a fraction of the capability of our minds – a mere 10%. The rest they say is hidden under the mysterious blanket of the subconscious.
But what is it in the simple teachings of the Dalai Lama that has captured the minds of celebrity devotees for whom the outer world is a playground?
I thought that the experience of 10 days of silent meditation might gift me a peek underneath the covers of consciousness. Yes reader, I accepted the challenge and headed to the inspired setting of the Himalayas.
I had dabbled in meditation solely at the end of my trendy yoga class so choosing a technique was based solely on practicalities. My retreat was called ‘Vipassana.’ It was free, non-religious, it sounded painless and it was said to be the technique used by Buddha to gain enlightenment. Enlightenment seemed too lofty a goal so I opted for “less mind, more soul”, a classic 21st century crisis.
A bumpy journey in a shabby rickshaw took me to a tiny hamlet at the foot the sacred river Ganges. Concrete beds, cold water and sparse food were all part of the experience designed to remove the shackles of the ego. Apparently, behind the sensations of cold, hunger and pain (you try sitting stock still for several hours) was the real experience of self.
My only comfort during the first few days of adjusting to such a harsh regime was the thought of athletes who report of being in “the zone,” mind over matter in extreme circumstances. Was it a case of different technique but same experience?
Several days passed; was I losing my mind or meeting it? My image of blissful navel gazing was never more than wishful thinking. The Vipassana technique is designed to guide you towards the observation of the ultimate reality – your reality.
On the fifth day of my exile I began to believe this might be true. This sleepless night, I felt as if my life was turned inside out. I re-lived my life from the point of view of others, directly experiencing the emotions they felt as a result of my actions. Painful as it was, after 24 hrs of no sleep, I had become the observer.
From that point onwards my time was peppered with moments unexplainable in scientific terms. How is it possible to feel the hard ground beneath yet with a certainty that “I” was entirely separate? Visions and dreams came that I would later discover had been written about since ancient times as signals that the psychic self has been awoken from slumber.
I had always thought about meditation as an escape, an indulgent way to withdraw from ‘real’ life. However, my experience was that mediation was a headlong, full-throttle journey towards reality, rather than away from it.
Much is claimed about the power of meditation to manifest great piles of money and endless pleasure – it being the subject of many a bestselling book. In my humble opinion, that is nonsense!
I do believe however that meditation allows us to feel more clearly what truly matters to us. In other words, not money or power but emotion, a richer inner experience rather than outer if you like. As for manifesting what we want in life, I had wished to become a mother and in the five years since that Himalayan retreat I have become a Mum of four!
