I mentioned it in yesterday’s Instagram Update post: Starting tomorrow, I’m going to be on a 10-day meditation retreat. Many of you know that I’ve been meditating for a few years now and that I have created a meditation timer for iOS (which I haven’t updated in a long time to be honest 🙈). I think about two years ago, I found out about these meditation retreats and I’ve listened to podcast talking about it having a profound effect on your life. I have since thought about attending one of these retreats. It didn’t work out while I was in Germany, but now that I’m back in Japan I decided to take the opportunity and do this. The type of meditation is called Vipassana Meditation and it goes back to what the Buddha taught 2500 years ago.

I try to not have many expectations, but I do expect it to be HARD. The day starts at 4:00 a.m. and ends at 9:00 p.m. Throughout the day, there will be many meditation sessions interspersed by breaks and meals, with a lecture concluding the day. In total, there will be about 10 hours of meditation per day. And that for 10 full days (the retreat starts on the night before and ends on the morning after). There will be no talking on the side of the attendants. If necessary, you can talk to the staff about issues you have or consult the teacher if you have questions about the practice. No access to electronic devices, not even books or pen and paper. Only me and my thoughts, with some input from the teacher. Compare that to the about 10 MINUTES of meditation per day I have been doing over the past few years. 😅

As I don’t yet know how I will feel after the retreat, I won’t make any promises about what comes after. But I do want to put together something that describes my experience, be it a video talking into the camera or a blog post. In any case, you’ll hear from me again in about two weeks. See you then!

(I haven’t found a picture of myself meditating, so enjoy this awesome view we had this summer on a mountain in Norway. 😁)