Longest period of Meditation!

[CedarTree]

Many of us know about places of intensive meditation and practice.

On the Zen side places like Antai-ji in Japan & Gyobutsuji Zen Monastery in America come to mind.

For Theravada, Panditãrãma or Pa Auk Forest Monastery.

I am curious what are the longest stretches of intense meditation you have heard and also completed yourself!

It can be a folk story or true.

I am having a hard time finding the information now but one of the longest periods of meditation I have heard of is the 100 day Sesshin! I guess it all depends on the time-table of each day but if it is a standard Sesshin that would be beyond intense.

For myself I had a period a few years back while watching a property. I would do some simple chores and then walk over to a close park and sit. I probably was sitting around 7-10 hours a day and I think the period was about a month and a half or two.

I had a point were I had an incredible absorption/mystical experience. Almost like a powerful psychedelic experience although it was totally clear and there was no background feelings.

In it I experienced what felt like the massiveness of Samsara and were I was and had developed so far. Also seemed I had taken Bodhisattva vows in the past as I was experienced as a Bodhisattva. The interesting thing is at this time I was practicing very intensely on the Theravada perspective and so hadn't thought about Bodhisattvas in a long time to my knowledge lol

It was a very powerful experience.

[Losal Samten]

A fun story about Hsu Yun springs to mind.

Empty Cloud, pp.81-2

• Master Fu-cheng and others who stayed in nearby huts were surprised that I had not called on them for a long time and came to my hut to present their New Year greetings. Outside my hut, they saw tigers’ tracks everywhere with no traces of man. They entered my hut and seeing that I was in samadhi, they awoke me with a qing (a musical instrument made of stone, the sound of which is subtle but penetrating).
  
  When I returned to selfconsciousness, they asked me, ‘Have you taken your meal?’ I replied, ‘Not yet, the taro in the cauldron should be well cooked by now.’ When its cover was lifted, the cauldron was covered with an inch of mould. Fu-cheng was startled and said, ‘You must have been in samadhi for half a month.’ We then melted ice, cooked taro and ate our fill. They joked with me and left.

[Dan74]

That's cool, Cedar Tree, and we need encouragement and a sense of achievement to keep going sometimes. Super long retreat, a kesa, a title, an amazing experience.

I've done a retreat I had gone into with great expectations, only to sit for 5 days listening to the digestive noises of the person next to me and my vexations arise and falling endlessly. So much for dazzling nondual experiences, past life recall, and insights galore. There was a lot of meditation, maybe 9 hours a day, long periods. I still have vivid memories of the gurgling and the churning and a few occasional farts.

You know the Hsin Hsin Ming (Faith in Mind/Heart), right?

_/|\_

[CedarTree]

That's cool, Cedar Tree, and we need encouragement and a sense of achievement to keep going sometimes. Super long retreat, a kesa, a title, an amazing experience.

I've done a retreat I had gone into with great expectations, only to sit for 5 days listening to the digestive noises of the person next to me and my vexations arise and falling endlessly. So much for dazzling nondual experiences, past life recall, and insights galore. There was a lot of meditation, maybe 9 hours a day, long periods. I still have vivid memories of the gurgling and the churning and a few occasional farts.

You know the Hsin Hsin Ming (Faith in Mind/Heart), right?

_/|\_

Lol best reply I could have possibly seen!

And that is one of my reasons for sharing. I think it's fun talking about our meditation and experiences. Not in a deep way but as a light way of making it fun and keeping us on the path.

The whole spiritual friendship angle

[Wayfarer]

Yogis seem to get into a state of absorption, where all sense of time is lost along with all sense of physical sensation. I've never gotten remotely close to that state, except for very brief moments whilst sitting, where you suddenly become very quiet and still and notice a different kind of level of being. But I think as I say, that sages and yogis go into those states of dhyana which is trance, absorption or even rapture - there are legendary accounts of such states lasting for days, weeks or months. (Granted some such accounts are indeed 'legendary'.)

As for me, I tried the 10-day Goenka retreat about 10 years ago. Didn't do very well. I think my ability to stay still has improved a bit since then but I top out at 45 minutes.

[Old Stan]

Difficult for me to sit still for long time... Max for me is 30 minutes..But I am trying my best to concentrate.

[CedarTree]

Difficult for me to sit still for long time... Max for me is 30 minutes..But I am trying my best to concentrate.

Keep going Old Stan. Perseverance is the key to deeper states of meditation Have to just keep sitting and sitting and sitting lol

[joy&peace]

You might have preferred a peaceful soak in the tub

(to Dan)