Vipassana Is Absolutely Insane

My impressions: Vipassana is absolutely insane!

Pros: can sit on my ass perfectly still without whining Cons: my ass fell off Bonuses: immune to being late, can wait for a bus forever

Unrealistically boring. Even more boring than playing Factorio. The process was incredibly tough — went through the acceptance cycle several times, got furious, cursed (to myself), and fell into despair. Constant sleep deprivation, physical exhaustion, everything hurts while sitting, hungry every evening.

Unrealistically interesting and enlightening. At times I was literally glowing with happiness and gratitude. Worked through all my background anxieties, got tons of ideas. Your body adapts and by the end of the course there’s no discomfort left. And after finishing I walked around like a stoned alien. Very happy with the results.

Vipassana is radically different from basic techniques like observing your breath, body scanning, visualizations, or repeating words. Yeah, there are some similarities, but the depth of immersion is on another level. An enormous amount of emotional and physical sensations. I couldn’t imagine you could do this to your brain without substances.

Such a powerful digital detox is needed by everyone. The amount of sensory overload in the modern world exceeds the norm for a brain shaped by hunter-gatherers several times over.

I wish everyone could go through this experience. But it’s definitely not for everyone: there are contraindications. If you’re not mentally stable, you might lose your mind even more. About 2% of students drop out early.

Peace out! Gonna go meditate. And you should look for the nearest beginner’s course: https://www.dhamma.org/en-US/maps