Catch the dragon
notes from a 7 day silent Buddhist retreat about 90 minutes south of Minneapolis Catch the dragon The mind is a mirror. Defilements are the dust on the mirror. The glue that holds the defilements is the root trauma. This retreat focused on Vipassana meditation, which is a practice that involves seeing things as they are. It is one of several techniques in Buddhism, including Anapanasati (mindfulness of breath), Samatha (concentration/tranquility), and Metta (loving-kindness). There is also something called Jhana we didn't get into. Vipassana involves observing the body and mind moment by moment to experience the three truths of impermanent (anicca), unsatisfactory (dukkha), and selfless (anatta). The focus of this retreat was mainly on impermanence. When a sense (such as sight or smell) or thought is triggered in our consciousness, it leads to perception and a label or categorization of positive or negative. This can then lead to a sensation arising in the body based on how...