McLeod Ganj is one of those places that one doesn't get tried if visiting again and again. Perhaps the reason for this is the tranquility of positive spiritual vibes, primarily offering to the Dalai Lama's presence and the monastery there. And then you have so many yoga, alternative therapies and if course meditation course there. One of them is Vipassana meditation and that is where I was headed for this time. Taveling alone, I chose to stay the first couple of days in Dharamkot which is just about to km from McLeod, The place is a have for tourists esp those traveling on budget and then the Vipassana centre is located right before entering the village. Being the last week of November, the place was nearly deserted and yet it was very interesting to know that there were tourists who were still telling in the mountains and some even camping in Triund. When I went back this March, Triundg was all snowed in and impossible to camp. I opted to stay in the German bakery, for their famous Pizzas, which honestly, i found just about okay. However, the view from the room was beautiful and I was glad I chose this place and got a room at an unbelievably reasonable rate with an excellent view and decent food. These pics are from my hotel.
Went for a tell to Triund but because I started late. I wanted to make sure that I was well provisioned with necessary woolens for the 8 days of intense meditation, as it was really growing cold,v and shopping for them took most of my morning. By the time I was half way up, it started growing dark and I had to return. Unfortunately, my batteries died and I couldn't do any photography that day except from the first half of the day.
This was the day to go for the meditation. And they next eight days were spent in silence fighting the storms, the heat and cold and the turbulence of the mind and enjoying moments of absolute calm and peace within. I particularly like an example of how the mind is stronger than a wild elephant for when I learnt it practically trying to calm my mind and concentrate on my breathing and Vipassana and yet this mind we call our own, strangely enough despite our wish to keep it quiet would always wander, no matter what, I always found that somehow sooner or later it wanders and starts thinking of things that don't really matter at that moment. How helpless our will is to our habit patterns of the mind. That was crazy to say the least but then having dinner the course before, I knew there importance of maintaining equanimous attitude towards my own State of being - mental agitation or peace - both. It is good to see so many Indian youth talking to the practice for about 15 years ago when I did the course, the students composed of an overwhelming majority of foreign tourists. I personally would suggest that everyone should try Vipassana which is free of any dogma and is a practice that requires one to explore one's own truth without involving any religion, visualization it verbalization and perhaps that is why it is indeed over of the most difficult meditation courses to do... The Goenka tradition of Vipassana meditation center in Dharamkot.
Actually day 13 for the eight days in between were spent doing meditation. The eighth day is like a blessing for you speak again and exchange your experiences if you wish. The best part is everyone seems to be literally glowing and is so respectful of each other... The center:
Day 14: Time for dinner shipping and risking around the market and absorbing the Tibetan culture and food.
Two weeks in the growing cold of late November, it was time to move though the heart refused to budge. Made some friends from the meditation course. And but Farewell to my most loved hill station in the northern India. This was one of the last shot before going down to Dharamsala for the buses. Interestingly, music being my only love and dearest friend, I was listening to it after almost two weeks and my playlist was playing this song with this sight in front of me as captured in the pic.. The song was a classic Led Zeppelin "thank you/if the sun refused to shine". Of course I was back in Dharamkot in March but pics from that trip some other time.
