Visit to Kushinagar

Wednesday 25th January, 2012: 


After some free time at the hotel in Kushinagar I managed to walk around the Matha-Kuar Shrine (housing a 10th century bluestone Buddha statue from Gaya) and the Mahaparinirvan temple (where the Buddha passed into nirvana) - thinking I was almost ready to join him! – and then walked back to sleep for the rest of the afternoon. The temple, built in 1956, houses a great 1500-year-old statue of the Buddha resting in the lion’s pose.

Visit to Shravasti

Friday 27th January, 2012: 
After arriving at Gonda train station, it was another long 65 km bus trip to Shravasti. Here I saw:

* the Jetvana Vihara (where the Buddha gave most of his discourses and spent 24 rainy seasons in residence) within Jeta’s Grove

* Pakki Kuti (a stupa commemorating Angulimala)

* the Anand Bodhi tree (an offspring of the Bodhgaya one) and

* Sehat Mahet

Visit to Sarnath

Tuesday 24th January, 2012: 


From Varanasi it was a short bus ride of 13 kms to Sarnath (now considered an outer suburb) where the Buddha gave his first sermon (turned the wheel of Dhamma), and where the Sangha came into existence through the enlightenment of Kondanna. I enjoyed seeing:

* the deer park (with authentic 2,500 year old deer! just kidding)

* the Dhamekh Stupa (built between 4th to 2nd century BCE)

* the Sarnath Museum (photos not allowed inside) which included the Buddha statue removed from the nearby ruins)

* the Ashokan pillar (broken into four pieces, with the top carved lions missing) 

Visit to Varanasi

Tuesday 24th January, 2012: 


The train sped overnight to reach Varanasi, the oldest living city in the world, and one of the major pilgrimage sites for Hindus. 


A short distance from Sarnath we saw the Chaukhandi Stupa (1 km away) built in 1588, which apparently marks where the Buddha first encountered his five companions and convinced them that he had become fully enlightened, and where in 2012 we took a group photo of our tour).

Visit to Nalanda

Monday 23rd January, 2012: 


Another 1 1/2 hours or so on the bus took us to the remains of Nalanda University. It was founded in the 4th century C.E. and thrived until the 12th century when it was ransacked by the invading Turks, who killed hundreds of students and teachers, torched the huge library (over 9 million volumes) and destroyed most of the buildings. It rests in a wonderful 35-acre park, and includes Sariputta's Stupa which is now a World Heritage Site. Nalanda was one of the world’s first residential universities, and there is now a new one not far away. The Buddha visited the area several times, and here Sâriputta uttered his “lion’s roar” of faith in the Buddha. His stupa is shown below.

Visit to Venuvan

Monday 23rd January, 2012:

Also near Rajgir we walked through Venuvan (bamboo grove) where the first monastery was built, thus allowing the monks to settle in one place, and where the Buddha spent three rainy seasons delivering many important discourses. The original monastery is yet to be excavated due to a dispute, and only the pond remains of the earliest features.

Visit to Vulture's Peak

Rajgir is an amazing place. Rather than take the skyway, we took the many, many steps leading up to Vulture's Peak (Griddhkuta), which also includes some smaller caves and scenic views over the surrounding hills. The Peak was one place the Buddha meditated and delivered some of his famous sermons to thousands of listeners. 

Visit to Bodhgaya

Sunday 22nd January, 2012: 
We took a short trip to Bodhgaya.

By far the biggest highlight was the Mahâ Bodhi Temple (the place where Siddhartha reached enlightenment) which includes an Ashokan pillar, the Mucalinda Lake (recalling where it is said a giant cobra sheltered the Buddha from the first rains some six weeks after becoming enlightened), and the Bodhi tree or “ficus religiosa” (a descendent of the original brought back from Sri Lanka). The temple was built around the 4th century CE. It was very busy, with many monks chanting, hundreds of people showing devotion by circling the grounds three times clockwise, and lots of hawkers outside. For me, being able to sit under the Bodhi tree and meditate undisturbed for almost 30 minutes was truly superb - among the best moments of the entire journey, in fact. Of course, the Buddha, after achieving enlightenment, spent one week standing nearby simply gazing at the tree out of gratitude, so I couldn’t match that.

Practical Challenges in Meditation

Bear in mind that the process being undertaken is gradual, so concentration will improve with practice. That’s why it’s called bhâvanâ or cultivation, development. We don’t need to be perfect on the first day, and we will need patience and determination to sustain our efforts when our mind wanders. Simple acknowledgement and returning to a focus on the breath is all that is needed.

It’s not a question of rejecting or fighting against our “monkey mind”, or of blocking thoughts or trying to blank them out. Samatha meditation is more about accepting what is in our mind and gently determining to return to the object of meditation, rather than getting upset or frustrated.

The good news is that the moments of pure concentration and one-pointedness will become longer and more frequent with practice, and the distractions will become less prominent and less frequent.

Avoid attaching too much significance to the thoughts and images that arise, or trying to analyse and investigate them. Images of people, places and colours are not unusual, and can arise for many reasons. However, they have no intrinsic essence – being transient and uncontrollable – and may simply be our mind’s way of trying to find something more interesting for us to consider. Since our concentration cannot stay fully on two different objects, we need to return to the breath.

If particular urges arise, you can review the best time to practice. If these become disturbing, consider reading some Buddhist texts or some simple rituals, like short chants or pujas, before beginning the following sessions.

Tiredness can be an issue, so it is best not to meditate straight after a meal. It is also possible to practise with the eyelids slightly open if one is very tired. Having good ventilation, an upright posture and adequate sleep are better than forcing alertness artificially, such as with coffee.

Finally, it is important to remain determined to practise regularly and with dedication over an extended period. In this way we will develop the skills of concentration and awareness that we need to build our meditation practice further. While it is simple to find reasons to put off the next session, like longing for the perfect conditions to meditate, we need to develop the habit of daily meditation to make the work more fruitful.

Anapanasati 3

Mediation in chair

The samatha techniques provide us with training in concentration and single-pointedness, so they will also bring some tranquillity. While ultimately it leads beyond suffering and fear, in the short term it helps us face life’s immediate problems more gently.

All of these techniques are based in reality, rather than using visualisations, religious ideas or other special attributes. In this way we will learn to face reality without fear and use our experiences to open ourselves to insight.

Since meditation requires all of our attention and energy, it is not a time for deep thinking. We should recognise the importance of making our sittings successful, while leaving disccusions of issues and other thoughts to times outside of meditation. Please remember that these sessions are very important and our time on the cushion should be used efficiently. In this way, we will have more that is useful to offer society.