We are standing in an area that was constructed to host Students to learn, grow, and develop in their journey to Enlightenment.
You are able to live here for a minimum of three (3) days and a maximum of fifteen (15) days to learn alongside of the Ordained Practitioners.
All you would need to do, is check in at the registration area located in Building #1.
If it is slow season, you could probably check-in on the same day. If it is busy season, you might decide to talk with the Temple staff, a few days prior to coming to reside here, ensuring there is space available for you.
The Temple staff will help you understand the guidelines they request for visitors who are choosing to stay at the Temple.
When you learn at a Temple, they will teach you to train the mind towards the attainment of Enlightenment.
The Buddha was asked by a new Student, if they should go off in the forest to be secluded to train the mind. This new Student was very eager to experience what it was like, as senior Students did, to be secluded in the forest alone and train the mind.
Today, while people rarely go off into the forest to train the mind, as was very popular during the lifetime of The Buddha, people do go away to retreat centers like here at Wat Umong.
Many times, the retreat centers are designed to require extended periods of silence, perhaps, 10, 20, 30 days or longer. This is simulating what was taught during the lifetime of The Buddha, to enter into seclusion, to be able to train the mind.
However, The Buddha did not encourage new Students to go into seclusion but instead, to learn The Teachings among The Community of Practitioners prior to choosing to go out on their own, such as, in a silent retreat.
Putting the mind into a situation where it is being trained to “let go” of its many cravings/desires/attachments, is what will produce Enlightenment. But, an individual first needs to understand The Teachings of The Buddha, and implement the training, over a gradual and consistent period of time, to be able to ease the mind into being willing to “let go”. It is best to start this training, for many years, among a supportive Community of Practitioners with the guidance of a Teacher.
While many people might be excited at the opportunity to go off on their own into seclusion, The Buddha advised otherwise.
Once a Practitioner is in seclusion, if they are unfamiliar with The Teachings of The Buddha of how to train the mind, the time in seclusion can be too large of a challenge for the mind. The mind can almost implode on itself because it does not have the tools and abilities to fully benefit from the time alone and how to readily address the arising daily challenges.
They put prisoners in isolated confinement as a punishment, because it is oftentimes, very painful for the unEnlightened mind to be alone. Going off into a retreat environment, where all of the modern day conveniences do not exist and there is minimal to no interaction with other people, can be helpful for the mind. It can expose to the Practitioner, exactly what the mind is longing and yearning for, which was not observable in your normal daily life.
So, if there is a special drink, blanket, or pillow, for example, that the mind is attached to, this may not be observable in the normal course of life. Therefore, a retreat center such as this, can help expose the mind to the areas of one’s life that they are attached to, but did not easily see during the normal course of life. Then, a well trained Practitioner will be able to use that information to improve their life practice, outside of the retreat environment.
The real work that is conducted to progress towards Enlightenment, is not happening in a 10, 20, or 30 day retreat. The real work is done, day-by-day, during the normal course of one’s life. But, going into a retreat environment, can expose to the mind, what it still needs to work on to progress towards Enlightenment.
So, the retreat environment is exposing the mind to what it needs to understand, about the cravings/desires/attachments that still exist in the mind, and need to be eliminated. Then, the “real work” of training one’s mind is being employed outside of the retreat.
That new Student who talked with The Buddha about going out into the forest alone, in seclusion, to train their mind, was provided the following Teaching by The Buddha.
The Buddha shared, that they would be wise to stay among The Community to learn, grow, and develop prior to going out into the forest alone. The simile The Buddha provided to help illustrate this important Teaching is as follows:
The Buddha described a large, strong, bull elephant that came down into the fast and strong flowing river to take a bath and play in the water. The elephant had a great time splashing the water and cleansing the body. When the elephant was finished bathing and playing in the water, it came up the river bank, sure footedly, and returned to stable ground.
While this was occurring, there was a rabbit watching the big, strong, bull elephant bathe and play in the water, and come out sure footedly.
The rabbit thought, that looks great, I would like to do the same thing. I would also like to bathe and play in that water.
So the rabbit, unaware of the dangers and why the elephant was able to bathe and play in the strong flowing river, entered into the river and was swept away.
So too, that new Student observing many Senior Students of The Buddha going off into the forest for seclusion thought, he would also like to go into the forest, for seclusion, to train the mind. The Buddha encouraged him, to stay among The Community, as he was not yet a bull elephant.
A new Student has not yet trained their mind to be able to deal with the many challenges of seclusion, and to benefit from one’s time in seclusion to then address the training of the mind outside of the retreat environment.
So, The Buddha encouraged new Students to first learn among The Community, prior to entering into seclusion to train the mind.
A Student would be wise to learn and grow, understanding the tools and techniques of training the mind, prior to going off into a silent retreat. Otherwise, without the understanding and wisdom of The Teachings of The Buddha, a new Student would not have the ability to truly benefit from training the mind through an experience that is provided at a silent retreat and afterwards.
