The Gracious Flow of Dharma

Sri Sayanarayanji Goenka was born in Mandalay, Myanmar in 1924. Although he topped the list of all successful candidates in the whole of Myanmar in the tenth class he could not continue his studies further. At a very early age he set up many commercial and inductrial institution and earned fabulous wealth. He also established many social and cultural centres. because of tension he became a victim of migraine, which could not be cured by doctors of Myanmar and of other countries in the world. Then some one suggested him to take a course of Vipassana. Vipassana has done well not only to him but it has also been benefiting many others.

He learned Vipassana from Sayagyi U Ba Khin in 1955. Sitting at the feet of his teacher he practiced it for fourteen years He also studied the words of the Buddha during this period. He came to India in 1969 and conducted the first vipassana course in Mumbai. After that a series of courses were held. In 1976 the first residential course of vipassana was held in lgatpuri and the first centre of vipassana was established here. Up till now 165 centres have been established all over the world. New centres also are coming uup. At these centres 1200 trained teachers teach vipassana in 55 languages of the world. Not only ten- day courses are conducted at these centres but also at some centres 20-day, 30-day, 45-day and 60-day courses are conducted. All courses are free of charge. The expenses on food and accommodation etc are met by the self-willed Dana given by those who benefited from the course. Seeing its benevolent nature vipassana courses is held not only for the inmates of jails and school children in the world but also for police personnel’s, judges, government officers etc.

Vipassana Research Publications is pleased to offer this book of Mr. S. N. Goenka’s public talks.

Mr. Goenka left his homeland of Myanmar (Burma) in 1969, to come to India, the land of his ancestors, to teach Vipassana meditation. Vipassana originated in India but was lost to the country. Fortunately it was preserved in its pure form for over two millenia in the neighbouring country.

In the twenty-four years since he left Myanmar, Mr. Goenka has introduced Vipassana to tens of thousands of people worldwide. His primary focus has always been on the practical aspect of the technique. He has conducted nearly 400 ten-day Vipassana courses in India and a dozen other countries, and many thousands of people have learned Vipassana in courses conducted by his assistant teachers.

In addition to his teaching work, Mr. Goenka has presented Vipassana to the general public through hundreds of public discourses in different countries, and in different cities in India. Mr. Goenka has given the majority of these talks in Hindi; the remainder, as in the present volume, in English. Initially, these talks were given in one session. In recent years, however, Goenkaji has developed an additional format of speaking for a series of three or five consecutive evenings, in order to treat the subject in greater depth.

The three-day series of public talks contained in this book was given in Hyderabad, A.P., India from July 22 to 24, 1993. For publication purposes, it has been titled "The Gracious Flow of Dharma."

The Sanskrit word Dharma (which is spelled Dhamma in the Pali language) originally meant "the law of nature" or "the truth." In today’s India, unfortunately, the word has lost its original meaning, and is mistakenly used to refer to "sect" or "sectarianism." Using this theme as an introduction, Goenkaji explains that Vipassana meditation teaches how to live a life of pure Dharma—a life full of peace, harmony and goodwill for others. This subject is particularly relevant in India today—and indeed the whole world—where sectarianism and communalism have divided large sections of society and caused acute suffering. May these talks give inspiration to all to walk on the path of pure Dharma and gain the lasting benefit of real peace and happiness.

**Contents and Sample Pages**