Episode #202: The Breath of Awakening (Bonus Shorts)
“My first and only visit to Myanmar was in the context of doing a documentary about the Buddha's teaching,” Diego Prieto says. “It was natural to go to Myanmar, as that is a place where Buddhism is still very alive. In India, you have a lot of monuments, but it was very hard for us to find meditation teachers or places to meditate. And so Myanmar gives us a lot of possibilities, to learn different practices of Buddhist meditation and also to visit very sacred places that were very inspiring for us.”
Diego, originally from Chile, began practicing vipassana meditation in the tradition of S.N. Goenka. He embarked on a year-long journey in India, visiting the sacred sites linked to the Buddha's life. Arriving next in Yangon, he was struck by the serene atmosphere. "Silence enveloped everything," he reminisces on the contrast. “My first impression, I found it very quiet, and the people were so relaxed. In the street, you can talk to them, and you can sit on the corners and drink some tea. That's my first impression, but I'm not sure it is the impression that everybody will have!”
Diego was profoundly moved by the presence of Buddhist monks, as well. As a dedicated meditator in South America and India, he had grown accustomed to a more solitary path. However, immersing himself in a vibrant Buddhist society proved to be a deeply impactful experience. “I got to open my perspective of what Buddhism is,” he notes of his time in Myanmar. “I was close minded of what Buddhism is… but then I realized in Myanmar, that Buddhism changed with the time. It has been 2,500 years since the Buddha passed away, so of course, cultures change many things of a religion… And that was very satisfying for me, because I got to know the essence of Buddhism, more than just the rules and the books that are fixed, and the structure. In the end, once you read all the suttas and get to know more, Buddha said many times that Buddhism is flexible, and the idea of Buddhism, at least from what I get now, is to experience impermanence. So following rules and lines and letters and structure, is not maybe the best way to experience impermanence! Maybe you need to know somebody that finds his way to that experience, so he might help you to experience that.”
For Diego, simply being in the physical places where meditation has been occurring for decades, if not centuries, also left a deep imprint, making him feel supported. “The energy that you need to sit down and to commit to meditation, it was there, all around,” he remembers.
One visit that stands out in particular was his time at the International Meditation Center, the site where S.N. Goenka took his first course with Sayagyi U Ba Khin. Diego describes his own sitting here as being so intense that it nearly knocked him off his cushion! “And then I realized, ‘Well, this place is so strong that it made me see my darkness, very straightforward,’” he recalls thinking. “That was something that I couldn't predict. It was my first contact with meditation in Myanmar, something very, very strong!”
Diego also stayed in Ingyinbin, the home village of Webu Sayadaw, and it was equally inspiring. It also taught him a lesson in how one needs to be receptive to the environment. “You couldn't predict, it just happens! You are open to learn whatever you cross by, and suddenly you start to experience different things,” he says. “And in that particular place, I was feeling peaceful, and the place was so peaceful. But in the Goenka tradition, ānāpāna is not the final meditation, it is just a process to calm your mind. But it was very interesting with Webu Sayadaw that ānāpāna covered the whole spectrum of the practice of Buddhism to reach enlightenment!” For Diego, that insight became the seed which inspired him to make observation of breath his main practice going forth.
There were yet more surprises in store for him, particularly during his stay in Thabarwa Monastery, which emphasizes the practice of doing good deeds. “Most of my meditation was active compassion work, like cleaning old ladies, and taking for a walk people without legs, and giving some art classes to kids. I never thought that that will be a meditation practice!” he exclaims. “That also changed my view of what is Buddhism.”
Concerning the current problems that Myanmar is facing, Diego reflects on how Chile went through similar turmoil thirty years ago. While he’s heard stories from his parents about armed militias, people disappearing, kidnappings, and other traumatic events, he grew up in a fairly stable society. However, a recent economic crisis brought about social unrest, and Diego recalls being so shocked he couldn’t meditate for a week. “So with that experience, it's hard for me to imagine how it is to live in a place where your close family has been killed, or there are so many atrocities,” he says. “It’s hard to imagine how to act in a compassionate way in a situation like that [and to have] a calm and stable mind… I feel a lot of compassion with [Myanmar] and I feel a lot of sadness many days.”
Like so many yogis who have benefited from their time in Myanmar— or even their association with a meditation lineage that is from there— Diego recalls his gratitude while also feeling somewhat helpless. “Sometimes the easy way is to close your eyes and try to get as far away as you can from the problem, but in the long term that doesn't solve any problem,” he says. Instead, he advocates staying present and bearing witness. “Listening is not running. There is a way to stay there and share that feeling. Even if this is very sad, and it's very strong, you will definitely learn from that experience. Even if you have nothing to do, or you can’t solve the problem, or you can’t even help anybody… I still find it more useful to hear than to escape.”