Day 9: Saṅkhāras

Goenkaji explained that only when I reach the state of Bhanga gyaan, when I begin to experience my body as vibrations alone without a solid form, the past saṅkhāras are likely to surface. For now, he advised that I continue to observe and acknowledge sensations I experience, not only at the skin level but also if possible in the muscles, sinews, tissues and organs. It is even possible to observe sensations in my spinal chord, he said.

I have to continue to work diligently, ardently with nothing but equanimity for all sensations to reach that state

Sometimes Goenkaji’s singing is so slurred and unclear. Today he sounded sleepy during the morning chanting which really doesn’t help, given that all of us are on the edge and need just one push to go back to sleep. Sometimes I see the AT nodding off to sleep as she sits on the raised seat in the front of the class. I feel only compassion for her.

Goenkaji says today is the last day of ‘serious’ meditation and reminds us to work on as many past saṅkhāras as possible so that we carry back less load with us than what we brought with us. I expect all the sessions today to be intense.

I wasn’t ready to go to the pagoda today. I opted to stay in the Dhamma hall and meditate instead. Goenkaji shared some key tips for our Vipassana practice the whole day.

1. Scan our bodies in a free flow ‘sweep scan’ whenever we have subtle sensations
2. For areas with gross sensations, scan individual parts
3. For every two ‘sweep scans’ go back and scan individual body parts
4. Stay equanimous always to both good and bad sensations, if I did not want my saṅkhāras to multiply
5. Deep rooted saṅkhāras will surface and give me gross sensations to experience even after subtle sensations become a regular feature. It does not mean I have regressed
6. Practice ‘spot scans’, the size of a finger tip, for surprise checks at times to see if I can feel sensations.

I wondered if he was going to recommend a plan to follow once we were back to our daily grind

The discourse tonight seemed customised for me and my state of mind. The question, ‘how am I going to change the way I act with anger, react to disappointment or give in to temptation’ has been on my mind and Goenkaji had an answer to that. As long as I continue to observe my breath and the sensations in my body that these actions cause, I can learn to be equanimous to any sensation and not lose my temper, react to the disappointment or give in to the temptation.

Goenkaji also educated us on the Ten Paramis, the qualities of a Buddha. I especially liked it when he highlighted some of the practices we observed in the course that were helping us develop the paramis in our own lives.

1. By not asking us to pay for the food that was served during the course, we had no choice but to eat what was served. We had to ‘beg’ for our meals from the sevikas like monks and nuns were supposed to
2. We tolerated people who were in the course with us despite their idiosyncrasies
3. We observed the noble silence and that meant we hadn’t lied or spoken the untruth
4. We had renounced the comfort of our beds and homes for the ten days
5. We were taught the technique and the knowledge that surrounds it
6. We were asked to pay forward for what we had gained for free at the course by donating for another person to learn the secret of The Dhamma
7. We had the opportunity to practice strong determination during the adiththana sessions
8. We were learning to be equanimous to the sensations in our bodies