Actually, the ten-day course is the minimum; it provides an essential introduction and foundation to the technique. To develop in the practice is a lifetime job. Experience over generations has shown that if Vipassana is taught in periods of less than ten days, the student does not get a sufficient experiential grasp of the technique. Traditionally, Vipassana was taught in retreats lasting seven weeks. With the dawning of the twentieth century, the teachers of this tradition began to experiment with shorter times to suit the quickening pace of life. They tried thirty days, two weeks, ten days, down to seven days, and they found that less than ten days is not enough time for the mind to settle down and work deeply with the mind-body phenomenon.

The course is entirely free. Any student that completes the course is given an opportunity to make a donation to help Yogilab to continue to run these courses and teach more students the life changing art of Vipassana meditation.

If you don't include any of the optional meditation or discourse segments of the course, then you will meditate for approximately 12.5 hours/day (to all you hardcore meditators, there's space to do more meditation outside of the schedule). If your application is approved you will receive a complete retreat schedule with all the details.

Currently the online retreats are taught in English. The YogiLab team is in the process of prepping courses in other languages. If you're interested in taking part in a course in another language please contact us let us know your preference.🚀

Nothing. Meditation Dave will be teaching this course purely for the love of teaching.

Certainly. Feel free to meditate on a chair, sofa, or with another support that works for you. Though we do recommend for students to sit without a back support, if possible, as it enhances the effectiveness of the technique.

The diet that we recommend [as detailed in the food document you will receive upon being accepted] is designed for its simplicity for the detoxification of your digestive system. If the diet that we recommend is unavailable or impossible for you, then we recommend you follow another vegan diet that's easy for you to manage across the full 10 days.

Pregnant women can sit this retreat. We ask pregnant women to ensure they are confident that their pregnancy is stable before applying. As with all medical conditions, we would advise seeking medical advice if you are unsure of the health and safety of this practice for you and your baby.

In the interest of all students being able to learn this technique as thoroughly as possible in the given time, we ask that you maintain complete silence as this helps to starve the mind of external stimulus, which can interfere with the process of internal exploration and meditation. Silence is not an essential part of this technique, but it does help to vastly accelerate the rate at which you will learn and experience the benefits of Vipassana.

For a person in reasonable physical and mental health who is genuinely interested and willing to make a sincere effort, meditation (including "noble silence") is not difficult. If you are able to follow the instructions patiently and diligently, you can be sure of tangible results. All that Vipassana really is, is training for how to use the mind correctly and effectively. We are all continuously using our minds all day. This technique simply gives you a structured framework for how to be more effective at optimizing the use of your mind. Everyone starts somewhere.

Obviously someone who is physically too weak to follow the schedule will not be able to benefit from this course. The same is true of someone suffering from psychiatric problems. Through a process of questions and answers, we will be able to help you decide clearly beforehand whether you are in a position to benefit fully from a course. In some cases applicants are asked to get approval from their doctor before they can be accepted.

Many diseases are caused by our inner agitation. If the agitation is removed, the disease may be alleviated or disappear. But learning Vipassana with the aim of curing a disease is a mistake that never works. People who try to do this waste their time because they are focusing on the wrong goal. They may even harm themselves. They will neither understand the meditation properly nor succeed in getting rid of the disease.

No. Vipassana teaches you to be aware and equanimous, that is, balanced, despite all the ups and downs of life. But if someone comes to a course concealing serious emotional problems, that person may be unable to understand the technique or to apply it properly to achieve the desired results.

People from many religions and no religion have found the meditation course helpful and beneficial. Vipassana is an art of living, a way of life. While it is the essence of what the Buddha taught, it is not a religion; rather, it is the cultivation of human potential leading to a life which is good for oneself and good for others.

Vipassana is taught step by step, with a new step added each day to the end of the course. If you stop early, you do not learn the full teaching and do not give the technique a chance to work for you. Also, by meditating intensively, a course participant initiates a process that reaches fulfilment with the completion of the course. Interrupting the process before completion is not advisable.

Stopping early is simply short changing yourself. You don't give yourself a chance to learn the full technique and you might not be able to apply it successfully in daily life. You also interrupt the process in the middle rather than letting it come to the proper conclusion. To stop a day or two early, you waste all the time you have invested.

We advise turning off the WiFi in all areas of your house except the area where you will be watching the discourses and meditations. Likewise, we advise putting away all electronic and mobile devices that may prove a distraction to you whilst meditating.

We will be starting the retreat at 2:00pm on September 11, Bali local time. The entirety of the course will be live streamed. If you are living in a different time zone then each day will be available for you to start and watch, starting at 8am in your region.

Yes, if your application is approved, then you will be sent all the supporting documents necessary for you to complete the course successfully.

Yes, once you are accepted onto a YogiLab online retreat you will be invited to join our Vipassana Meditation Community group on Facebook. This will allow you to connect with other meditators in your area and worldwide, as well as ask questions about the technique.

The potential benefits that can be received from mastering your mind are infinite and unimaginable. Using our Founder, and your meditation teacher, David Hans-Barker as an example, Vipassana meditation has helped him to alleviate chronic pain, overcome stress and anxiety, access deep states of bliss and meditation, and go from living in poverty to founding multiple businesses and achieving financial freedom. These are just a small sample of the benefits that can be achieved using this technique.

Yes, you can complete with a partner or a friend. However, physical contact, sexual activity or communication (verbal or nonverbal) is not permitted during the course.

As long as they or you do not make any attempts to communicate or instigate physical contact during the course, then this shouldn't be a problem. All you need is a space where you can practice for the entirety of the 10 day period.

We ask that all students refrain from listening to music or any other content not included in this course package for the entirety of the course. One of the main things that you will be trained to do using this technique is to reframe your relationship with sensory inputs. Therefore, no other materials are necessary for you to do this and can actually hinder your growth and training.

During the course of this retreat you will be training yourself to be aware of stimulus and not react to it. This training encompasses everything including mundane interferences, such as the doorbell or the phone.