The Life Transforming Power Of A Meditation Vacation
If you’ve ever gone on a vacation only to come back home feeling almost as tired and worn out as when you left, then you might be interested to find out why a meditation vacation could be right for you.
Typically, a vacation is meant to give you the opportunity to unwind from work and stress of everyday life. While this can and does happen for some, for others it really doesn’t help much at all. Especially if they arrive back home feeling just as worn out as when they left.
The first time I really noticed the difference between a regular holiday and a meditation vacation was when I decided to do a 7-day live-in meditation retreat. This was something completely foreign to me as the most I’d ever meditated at this stage was up to an hour a day, so I had not idea how I was going to handle 7-days in a row.
To say I was nervous was an understatement and a part of me was really judging my sanity as here I was traveling overseas to a beautiful location and instead of site-seeing, I was going to be looking at the back of my eyelids for a week.
My First Solo Meditation Retreat
My first day at the meditation center was the most challenging. It consisted of starting the day with meditation at 6am and continued on with a variety of meditative exercises, yoga, feedback sessions, and several small but healthy food breaks to keep our energy levels up.
I went to bed that night feeling quieter on the inside and more centered than I ever had before. What really amazed me was that I wasn’t tired in the least and my body felt great. But getting to the end of the day had not been so easy as my body wasn’t used to sitting still for such long periods.
By the end of the third day, everything felt so much easier. As I had no connection to the outside world due to mobile devices were only allowed to be used for emergencies, I found it easier to open up to deeper meditative states. It really made a difference not having any distractions to drain my energy levels.
I noticed as the days went by that not only did my mind become quieter and my body felt energized all the time, my interactions with other people also seemed to flow effortlessly and with more authenticity. It felt like that whatever walls I usually held in place to keep people at a distance had completely dissolved.
On the last day of the retreat, a few of us went into town to have a farewell lunch at a local health food cafe. It was then that I really noticed the massive shift in how I was showing up in the world. I felt incredibly light on the inside and had an overwhelming sense of compassion and joy that I wanted to share with everyone around me.
It was the most amazing sensation I had ever experienced. It was like I was getting to feel what it was like to be fully alive and in tune with both myself and the environment. Sure, it had taken some work to get to this space but now that I had tasted what it – I knew I wanted more.
The best part of all is that I returned home feeling 10 times better than before I had left. Not only that but as I integrated my experiences back into my daily life, so many things started to change for the better. That’s when I knew that meditation was far more than a way to simply reduce stress and anxiety.
Since then, I have continued to meditate on a daily basis and go to meditation retreats for a vacation whenever I get the chance. Even fitting 1-day of meditation into a holiday will be of benefit if that’s all the time you can afford. But if you do get the chance to try out a meditation retreat for a longer period, then I’m sure you’ll be glad you did.
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Michael Atma
Meditation Dojo Blog
Skype: michaelatma
Email: Michael@MichaelAtma.com
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