Equanimity (平常心) was introduced to the class today. With equanimity, there should be neither craving for pleasant things nor aversion for unpleasant things. Of course we could enjoy all the pleasure and luxuries in this world, just keep in mind that everything is impermanent, so when these pleasure things leave you one day, don’t crave for its return. It has never guaranteed to be there with you forever in the first place.
And Vipassana provides an opportunity for the meditator to experience anicca (無常, impermanent) and practice equanimity.
Today, another term was introduced to the class – Adhitthana, confirmed determination that wouldn’t be shaken under any circumstances. And the class was asked to practice Adhitthana during meditation. This meant no scratching faces or stretching legs. This was difficult, especially during the beginning of my practice. There were several times that my legs got so numb that I couldn’t even feel my legs anymore. I almost questioned if I had actually got into one of those very advanced stage of meditation, where the meditator experienced anatta (無我), and couldn’t feel her body, as if her body parts had disappeared. (I couldn’t feel my legs, so I just wondered…:P)
Lucky that I sat at the very back of the room, so I would just stretch my legs whenever I couldn’t bare it anymore (yes, must admit that I had no self-discipline, confirmed determination, whatsoever….). But after some practices, I found practicing Adhitthana was actually quite fun. Instead of reacting to my itch or pain right away, I was taught to just observe it, its impermanent nature. The itchy feeling might disappear or the pain might intensify. All I should do was objectively observing it, no thinking, no analyzing. Just be here and now.
I just simply enjoyed experiencing this basic law of nature.
>> last day – Day 4 (Finally, Vippassana!)
>> next day- Day 6 (Feel Like Quitting Again)
>> back to – My Experience with Vipassana Meditation
