Chattha Sangayana CD - Vipassana Research Institute
Preface

Vipassana meditation is the quintessence of Buddha's teaching. It is a technique of self-observation, an objective observation of the mind-body phenomena with a view to achieving purification of mind which leads to total eradication of mental defilements and inculcates such wholesome qualities as loving-kindness, equanimity, sympathetic joy and compassion. The technique is simple, scientific, universal and available to all irrespective of caste, creed, nationality or beliefs.

For the practice of Vipassana meditation a quiet and congenial environment is an important requirement. When Sayagyi U Ba Khin, the most distinguished world teacher of Vipassana, established the first Vipassana meditation centre in Yangon (Rangoon) in Myanmar (Burma) he conceived a novel idea of building a hollow pagoda with cells inside for individual meditation.

India lost the technique about 500 years after Buddha's passing away, but fortunately it was preserved in its pristine purity by a chain of dedicated teachers in the neighbouring country of Myanmar. Sayagyi U Ba Khin received Vipassana in this lineage. He deeply felt that Myanmar owed a debt to India in receiving the precious gem of Vipassana Dhamma from India. India needed it, indeed, the whole world needed it!

S. N. Goenka, then a citizen of Myanmar, took his first Vipassana course from Sayagyi in 1955. Sayagyi trained him for several years and prepared him for his mission. Goenkaji came to India, the land of his forefathers, in 1969 and started teaching Vipassana meditation in makeshift campsites.  In 1976, the first Vipassana centre, the Vipassana International Academy, was established at Igatpuri in Maharashtra. Campsite courses (non-centre courses) continue to grow as do the established centres in India and abroad. People from all walks of life throng to these courses to receive the nectar of Dhamma. People from more than ninety different countries have participated in Vipassana courses. Goenkaji has set in motion the wheel of Dhamma, which once again has started rotating in the country of its origin.

Ten-day residential Vipassana courses are organised for new students. As a student becomes more established in the technique, more serious courses of Satipaµµh±na are offered, as well as long duration courses of 20, 30 and 45 days.  In addition, Anapana courses are held for children of eight to fifteen years of age.

Vipassana centres provide an institutional framework and environment for the practice and training of Vipassana meditation. Goenkaji has laid down guidelines for their maintenance and management. The guidelines are:

 The centre should confine itself to the practice and training of Vipassana only. No other activity, however wholesome, is permissible.

 The location and the layout of the centre should be conducive for serious meditation.

 The purity of a Dhamma environment should be maintained at all times.

 No fee should be charged for the course from the students including board and lodging.

 Donations should be accepted from grateful students only.

 No teacher imparting teaching in Vipassana should receive any remuneration. Selfless service, without expecting anything in return, is the basic principle.

 Members of trusts and managing committees should receive no remuneration.

With the above background, and the informative account that follows about the centres, we hope that readers will learn about the centres, the spread of Dhamma and the benefit the technique provides, here and now.

Vipassana Research Institute

Dhamma Giri, Igatpuri-422 403, India

INDEX

Europe

Dhamma Mah², France

Dhamma D²pa, UK

Dhamma Geha, Germany

Dhamma Sumeru, Switzerland

Dhamma Neru, Spain

Dhamma Aµala, Italy

Dhamma Mah²

France Vipassana Centre

Le Bois Plante, Louesme F-89350, Champignelles, FRANCE

Tel:[33] (0386) 457 514; Fax [33] (0386) 457 620

e-mail: info@mahi.dhamma.org

Dhamma Mah² (Ground of Dhamma) is 165 km south of Paris in beautiful rolling countryside consisting of mixed woods and meadows. It is two hours from the airports in Paris by car, and can also be reached by bus or rail from Paris in three hours. The site which was purchased in 1988 was previously a holiday camp for children.

The climate is moderate. The gleaming white, solid brick buildings and the spacious walking areas are well protected on two sides by woods, and an orchard of fruit trees has been planted to partly screen the front of the site. The total land is sixty acres including the approaching road frontage.

The main building covers 1,150 sq. metres and is in the shape of an "H" with the two symmetrical wings allowing good segregation of men and women. Each wing has several twin bedrooms and a partitioned dormitory. In the central part of the building, there are four dining rooms, a large kitchen and a meditation hall with space for eighty-five meditators. Another hall is available for concurrent courses in different languages. In addition, thirty meditation cells have been built on the site.

In winter, there is accommodation for 110 people, but toilet and bathing facilities on the site allow for courses of 140 students in summer. There are plans for 150 to 200 students in the future. The purchase of a neighbouring farm in 1993 increased the land size to forty hectares. At the farm is an administration office and eight comfortable quarters for long term students. Several meditators have settled in the charming and historic villages nearby.

Two courses are held each month, mainly in French and English, but some in French and Khmer. Other special courses include a 20-day course each year.

Dhamma D²pa

U.K. Vipassana Centre

Harewood End, Herefordshire, HR2 8JS, ENGLAND

Tel: [44] (01989) 730 234; Fax [44] (01989) 730 450

e-mail: info@dipa.dhamma.org

Dhamma D²pa (Island of Dhamma), the U.K. Vipassana Centre, was purchased in June 1991. It is set in the heart of the gently rolling hills of south Herefordshire, and has beautiful views across the Marches towards the Welsh mountains. Herefordshire is an area known for the deep red colour of its fertile soil, its apple orchards and homely villages, but above all for its air of peace.

Although rural and quiet, it is located in an accessible area close to the motorway and is 130 miles from London. The historic cities of Hereford and Gloucester are nearby. The original property consisted of an eighteenth century farmhouse, a separate cottage, two dormitory blocks, a kitchen/dining complex, a hall and extensive outbuildings. Some of these outbuildings have been converted to provide meditation cells, a second Dhamma Hall and accommodation. A new ablution block is currently being constructed.

The buildings are conveniently situated in the centre of the land owned by the Trust, much of which will revert to native woodland following an extensive tree-planting programme.

The centre can accommodate sixty-five students. As well as continuous ten-day courses, the course schedule has expanded to include Satipaµµh±na, ten-day special, 20-day, 30-day and children's courses. At peak periods, concurrent courses are held at rented sites to cater for increasing numbers of students.

A growing population of meditators living nearby has been a strong support to the centre. During 1997, the Trust embarked on a programme of new building which will eventually increase the capacity of the centre to 150.

Dhamma Geha

Vipassana Meditationshaus

Kirchenweg 2, 76332 Bad Herrenalb, GERMANY

Tel: [49] (07083) 51169, Ans: [49] (07083) 2094

Fax: [49] (07083) 51328. e-mail: dhammageha@aol.com

Dhamma Geha (House of Dhamma) is situated on a hillside in the Black Forest. It was previously a hotel called "Schöne Aussicht" or "Pretty View" and indeed, from its balcony, there is a view of beautiful forested mountains and the Bad Herrenalb swimming resort.

Access is easy, as trains arrive hourly from Karlsruhe station, and from there it is a seven minute walk to the Dhamma House. There is room for eighty students and a number of servers. The bedrooms have private bathrooms and accommodate from one to four people, so those with special needs can be catered for. One or two courses are conducted each month. The premises are being rented cheaply, but a search for a permanent centre is underway.

Dhamma Sumeru

Switzerland Vipassana Centre

LaSalome, CH-2325 Les Planchettes, SWITZERLAND.

Tel [41] (81) 032 913 6081; Fax [41] (81) 032 914 1135. E-mail: phifro@bluewin.ch

Dhamma Sumeru (Celestial Mountain of Dhamma) is the first Vipassana centre established in Switzerland, in 1999, the birth centenary year of Sayagyi U Ba Khin.

The centre is two hectares of land set in very picturesque Swiss countryside near the French and German border 60 km from Bern. It is located in a village called Mont-Soleil, meaning 'Mount of the sun'. The  centre has a three-storey building, with the office and dining room on the ground floor. Two-bed and four-bed rooms are on the fourth floor, with the cellars, kitchen, showers and heating system in the basement of the building. Work is underway to accommodate 55 students.

Half a mile from the centre is an important solar power station and some large air generators which attract many visitors.  The site for the centre has been chosen for its favourable climatic conditions.

Dhamma Aµala

Vipassana Meditation Centre

29025 Obolo di Gropparello (PC) ITALY. Tel/Fax: [39] 0523 857215

e-mail: manager@atala.dhamma.org; website: www.atala.dhamma.org

Dhamma Aµala (Steadfast in Dhamma) is located in the beautiful Appennini Hills, about two hours south of Milan, the major city of North Italy. The compound is surrounded by farmland and stands of deciduous trees. It can accommodate up to ninety students and consists of two modern buildings, one for females, and the other houses male accommodation plus the kitchen and dining halls. A large, separate wooden building will be built for the Dhamma hall by the spring of 1999. The site can be easily reached by train to the city of Piacenza, and then by bus to the nearest town of Gropparello.

Dhamma Neru

Barcelona Vipassana Centre, Spain

Centro de Vipassana, Cami de Can Ram,

Els Bruguers, Santa Maria de Palautordera, 08460 Barcelona, SPAIN

Tel / fax : 34 (93) 848 2695.  e-mail c/o : domelupe@arrakis.es

The Spanish Vipassana Association purchased a building near Palautordera, about 56 km from Barcelona, in June 1999 to serve as the first Vipassana centre in Spain. Goenkaji has named it 'Dhamma Neru' meaning 'Mount Divine'.

The quadrangular building of  Dhamma Neru sits in the middle of a flat 2-hectare site surrounded by a high hedge and varied fruit trees. The nearest village is Santa Maria de Palautordera (St.Mary of the river's palace). To the north is the 1700 metre high mountain range of Montseny (meaning 'wisdom mountain') 1,700 m tall. The site is 400 metres above sea level and only 30 minutes from the Mediterranean, and enjoys a mild, sometimes rainy climate. The centre will accommodate 56 students to begin with, although the Dhamma Hall can hold 100.