Advice on a Vipassana Retreat in Southeast Asia/India?

[jonpgorman]

Hello all,

I am interested in signing up for a 10-day Vipassana retreat some time in March-April. I am currently living in Thailand, but am willing to travel to India or another nearby country. I've been looking up retreat centers through dhamma.org, but there are so many! Any advice on choosing one? Is there much variety between those? Or is there another organization besides dhamma.org that you recommend?

I have a decent amount of meditation experience, but have not completed a 10-day retreat.

Thanks for your input!

Jon

[siddharthgode]

well if u want to do a retreat through dhamma.org then i prefer u to choose igatpuri. its the main center.
igatpuri is 1 n half hour from mumbai. so u wont have to travel much to reach there.
but u will have to register 2 months ahead if u want a slot there , so hurry 

[Vivek]

As far as 10-day retreats of GVF are concerned, they are pretty much standardized across almost all the centres. The only centre I have gone to, is the one in Chengannur, Kerala. Pretty decent place, and very helpful teachers. My experience there so far has been good. The ambience is also nice. You may want to check it out. I also hear good reviews about almost all centres across south India. Not so much sure of what's up north though.

[chintan]

I went to Dharamshala (Dhammashikhara) center and it is an excellent center - its next to Mcleodganj the place where Dalai Lama stays most of the time and is nestled in lower Himalayas.

Will not advice it if you are short on time though as it is a good 12-14 hours by road from Delhi - there is a good bus services but point to point it would take you 13 days.

Have heard good things about Igatpuri.

With Metta

[Crystal Palace]

jonpgorman,

If you intend to do the 10 day retreat in March, I would highly recommend the New Delhi Vipassana Center, Dhamma Sota. March is when Spring kicks in Northern India and the weather is a perfect mix of cool breeze and warm sunshine. I have done a course there in March and it was a wonderful experience.

If you're thinking April then I would advice some place cooler because Delhi starts getting hot at that time.

Centres such as Igatpuri and Dharamsala are also very popular among Westerners.

Warmly,
Crystal Palace