Lesson Learnt #4: MIND OVER FOOD! (from two weeks of introspective experiences)


Lesson Learnt #4: MIND OVER FOOD!

I spent 3 nights at a Buddhist Meditation Centre in Burma recently. The daily schedule which started at 3.30am, had basically two meals a day-

Breakfast at 5.30am; Lunch at 10.30 am......no solid food after 12 noon and then a solitary glass of juice at 5pm!

Imagine that - the last meal of the day ended at 11.15am!!!!

So, I got there on a Friday evening and left on Monday morning. On Saturday, as I finished my lunch, hmm, I wondered, how the heck am i going to survive the day. But I actually did. There was very little physical activity and hence, the glass of juice at 5pm was adequate to keep me going that night. The day was spent on meditation. probably 5-6 hours. Have never done this much. And so I awoke at 3.30am on Sunday quite fine and went through the  morning as I had on Saturday.

But, Sunday was VERY different from Saturday. On Sunday, I started thinking about the week ahead and in fact started making plans for Monday. For large chunks of the the day, I forgot the essence of why I was at the centre - to be in the present. My mind ad quickly moved forward to a workshop I was facilitating the next day and other topics.

Around 6pm, the hunger pangs began. Managed to scrounge around for some biscuits and quickly demolished an entire packet!

Quite clearly, one can indeed control one's senses if we remain in the present....






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