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by Aditha Dissanayake

The well-cut lawns remind me of an overnight's growth of stubble on an unshaven cheek. Not a weed is in sight. Not a single branch strays from the trees. All the bushes are manicured. Even the rays of the sun and the force of the breeze seem to be modulated.

Everything is in order. Everything.

There are three buildings in the vicinity. The one on my left is marked Men. The one on my right - Women. In the middle is a large sun shaped hall with a breathtaking view.

The nearest town is twenty-minutes away. The whole atmosphere makes me feel as if I have stepped into a luxurious prison.

In a way I have, for I am at a meditation centre which aims to help the layman achieve high spiritual goals through discipline and obedience. A teacher at the centre explains how meditation could be used to enhance daily life.

"It is wrong to see meditation as something only restricted to brahmins and priests. Meditation can be used by anybody to purify the mind. Through meditation you can eradicate the three causes of all unhappiness; craving, aversion and ignorance".

The guide who shows me around says enroling here is worth the effort. He mentions the names of several business tycoons who had come to the centre and had been highly satisfied with what they learnt. "You are well-fed", he continues. "You are given green-gram or something like that, for breakfast. For tea you get a biscuit. And even dessert after lunch" "Dessert too?

Ice cream or watalappan? Do we have a choice?" " No. Those are made with eggs. Here everything is vegetarian. Dessert is Thalaguli". And dinner? No Dinner.

The centre is run entirely on the generous contributions of meditators and well-wishers. After following the course the participants can either walk off or make a contribution. The choice is theirs. "The approximate cost per meditator per day comes to around three-hundred rupees", says a spokesman at the office.

The courses are conducted either in Sinhala or English. All students are expected to observe the following precepts; abstention from killing, stealing, all sexual activities, telling lies, and taking intoxicants.

"Can we smoke in secret in the bathroom?" I ask the guide. He looks at me as if I had said something blasphemous. (I probably had). "No cigarettes, tobacco, hashish or marijuana are allowed. If a teacher catches you with any of them... " He draws a line across his throat to show the result.

Students are requested to bring their own bedsheets. Mattress and cushions are provided by the centre. Everybody is required to dress in white. To suit the serious nature of the work, backs, chests, legs etc. should be kept covered, even in hot weather. "Ladies must wear foundation garments, and transparent or revealing dresses are not allowed", say the instruction sheets.

"Everybody has to get-up at four in the morning when the bell rings, and meditate till 6.30", the guide tells me. "From 6.30 to 8 there is a breakfast break. Then meditation till 12. Two hours of rest. Meditation. Tea. Meditation..." "For how many days?" I interrupt him. "Ten" I know I heard him right, but I still can't believe this is possible.

Especially when he says no one can talk except with the teacher, that too at a given hour, from the beginning of the course to the end. In meditation jargon this is called Noble Silence and means the prohibition of physical gestures, written notes, sign language etc., a Teacher explains to me later.

Ten whole days of speechlessness. Unimaginable. All in all, what everything amounts to is endless hours of meditation, the observation of noble silence, simple vegetarian meals, skipping dinner, wearing white modest clothes, waking up at four in the morning etc. at the end of which, lo, you are supposed to have penetrated the deepest levels of your unconscious mind to eradicate its deep-lying complexes.

"The next session begins in three months", says the officer handing me an application form. Those who submit themselves to this kind of discipline and obedience could step back into the world with a peaceful mind and a philosophical outlook. He assures me. In short, their minds will be free from all cravings, aversions and ignorance.

And all this is free, or costs only Rs. 3,000.

But everything depends on the meditators paramitas (previously accumulated merits) says the Teacher," And five factors - Full hearted effort, faith, sincerity, health and wisdom". Anybody who has these requirements and ten days to spare can have "peace of mind for almost nothing".

(The place described was created out of the observations made of several real meditation centres).

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