Hi all. I posted here earlier when I first got to the dark knight, and then reached equanimity http://dharmaoverground.org/web/guest/discussion/-/message_boards/message/1660339

This community was very helpful then. (I've since lost the account details, so this is a new account (doh)).

Unfortunately, since then I fell back into re-observation and have spent a while stewing there. Recently I've gotten back into serious practice (1-2 hours per day), and have a nice handle on equanimity; today's meditation was remarkably broad and effortless, it seems like my main barrier is the watcher/watched duality. (I can give more details if anyone is interested).

My question is how I can optimize my practice to get stream entry as soon as possible? I do not want to fall back into re-observation.

Should I endeavor to go on retreat? I am in the UK, and the best options for retreat in the near future that I have found are at Gaia House http://www.gaiahouse.co.uk/page.php?id=101.

The soonest possibilities are 'A Taste of Now - Meditation and Ch'i Kung', and 'Equanimity - Finding Balance in a World of Change', both short retreats in September.

Would these seem like suitable retreats for someone seeking stream entry? Could you recommend any alternatives?

Is there perhaps some way I can organize a 'solo retreat'? I just want time and space to meditate all day every day for a week or so.

Or failing all that, can I get stream entry soon by practicing 2/3 hours a day? Is there anything else I can do or should know?

I'd be happy to supply more information if it would be helpful.

Thanks all.

Note this and the sensations involved too, not doing so may be part of what's holding you back.


Bring noting into your daily life from the moment you open your eyes in the morning. This is all about momentum and getting to 'escape velocity' so note accurately whenever the opportunity presents itself, this will also help by allowing you to examine sensations which may not occur during a sitting.


If you've got the time to do so, I highly recommend it. I only even did one solo retreat but it was incredibly useful.


Excellent. Equanimity is more about paying attention than noting ferociously, concentration is high at this point so use it and watch how each sensation, the pleasant, the unpleasant and the neutral ones, just appears, does it's thing and vanishes. You've already seen this in the A&P but it was really fast, this is much more fluid and natural, but in the laid back equanimity of this stage it's easy to wander off or put all your emphasis on one sensation, then catch yourself doing it only to find that you've lost your focus. This is about inclusiveness, see every sensation as being the same, and that includes that sense of there being a watcher to be doing the watching. Look at the sensations that make this up and how they arise and pass, just like everything else.....

Good luck, let us know how you get on.

You could always go to one of the Thai Forest Sangha monasteries. The ones in Hertfordshire and Northumberland do group retreats, while the ones in Devon, Warwick and Sussex allow you to stay as long as you do some work. For the rest of the time you could sequester yourself away to meditate. Most of them also have kutis for personal retreats, too, though I've never asked to use one.

To be quite honest their suggested donations (when they actually give a figure, it being entirely based on dana) are less than the price of of a Gaia House retreat per diem, too. You just need to observe the monastic rules - and I've only ever found they helped remove distractions.

Feel free to stay in contact, I'm in the South East.

channel this not wanting to fall back into re-observation into absolute willingness to practice with the sincerest effort.



been done many times before. me included. no retreat time ever.

Thanks all, lots of great advice!

Will post again if I have any more questions, and when I attain stream entry!

that's the spirit =). also, when in equanimity: just concentrate your ass off. observe as much as you possibly can. imagine you break some eggs open, separate the egg whites, add sugar, and start whipping. and you whip + whip + whip.. and it becomes creamy and delicious and tasty.. and the more you whip the smoother it gets... make your concentration as smooth as possible. caress the sense phenomena coming your way. yet don't bliss out or space out - kind of like if you would then start eating + thoroughly enjoying and savoring the whipped egg whites + sugar, you want to fully enjoy each moment of flavor. the more the mind is concentrated while being mindful the easier it will penetrate phenomena.

But, don't forget to note that "spirit" too.... oh wait... there's no spirit in that spirit. yikes! How about.... "those are the sensations!"