The ancient Greek world was full of gods – gods who controlled the fate of mankind. In such an environment, it made sense for mortals to find out what the gods had in store. It was here that the practice of oracular consultation came into its own. An oracle was a gateway to knowing the will of the gods, a cosmic information super highway for understanding what lay ahead. The most famous oracle was the priestess of the temple of Apollo at the sanctuary of Delphi. So important was this sanctuary and its oracle that Delphi even became known as the omphalos – the belly button – of the ancient Greek world. Individuals, cities and kings would come from across the ancient world to put their questions about their future plans to the Delphic oracle and wait to receive a response about what the gods thought of them. Delphi became so busy that long queues would form on the certain days of the month on which the priestess could be consulted and, in later times, several oracular priestesses
A Noble Silence or an Emotional Roller Coaster? I am a talkative person and I was a little concerned about ten days of silence. But I had read in the code of discipline that the retreats are conducted in Noble Silence. Besides no talking that includes no communication through body language, no listening to music, and no reading or writing. One is not allowed to have physical contact with fellow meditators. There are, however, opportunities to discuss the practice with the teacher during individual interviews or during group discussions. A typical retreat day begins between 4 AM and usually ends around 9 PM with a rest period in the middle of the day after lunch. The whole day is spent practicing sitting (and walking) meditation, together with cultivating continuous attention to the changing nature of one’s moment-to-moment experience during daily activities. There are recorded video discourses in the evening to inspire and explain the practice. An intensive Vipassana meditat