‘Vipassana was his world’

Vipassana is not about sitting silently,it should bring about positive changes in your life.

N Venugopal Rao,a former journalist who is writing a book Monkeying Around in Buddhas Shadow,recalls the first time he met S N Goenka last December to show him the manuscript. When I had sent the book to the Dhamma website,forget about getting a reply,I wasnt sure whether I was sending it to the right address. But I got a message from his secretary M M Khandar in 15 days asking me to come to Mumbai to meet Guruji. It shows how organised they are and how they seek the opinion of everyone who has done the course, he said.

When I was introduced to Guruji,the first thing he asked me was if I meditate regularly. Yes sir, I replied,everyday in the morning. And then he told me,You should meditate in the evening too. Twice a day yields better results. To which I said,I will sir. Ever since,I have been meditating twice a day and have felt calmer and more balanced, said Rao.

He recalled how the wheelchair-bound Goenka looked old and frail but was still so concerned about Vipassana that he would go to any length to talk to his practitioners. Vipassana was his world and it finds reflection in the many centres he has set up all over the country and around the world offering Buddhas Dhamma or the right way of life in the form of a free 10-day course, said Rao.

Guruji told me why he was offering the course for free. He said Dhamma is invaluable and as soon as a fee is charged,it will become the Dhamma of the rich. Those who have money will try to gain peace by paying the highest price,he said. But they cannot gain peace because when Dhamma becomes a commercial commodity,it fails to bring peace. Guruji said no one should make the mistake,now or in the future,of turning a Vipassana centre into a commercial organisation, recalled Rao.

Vipassana is not about sitting silently, he reminded me once again before leaving,it should bring about positive changes in your life. Only then it is real.

Click here to join Express Pune WhatsApp channel and get a curated list of our stories