Israeli Backpacker Shares Ten-Day Silent Vipassana Journey in Thailand
Traveler Noga Ben Yehuda shares her transformative experience at a ten-day silent Vipassana meditation retreat in Thailand, detailing the rigorous daily schedule, strict rules, and her subsequent visit to a Buddhist monastery.
Noga Ben Yehuda, 26, is currently in the middle of her third major backpacking trip, this time with no return date. Growing up in the Jerusalem area, she traveled alone through Africa, spent another eight months in South America, and is now staying in the Far East. In between, she established a business called "Traveling from the Inside Out," where she primarily guides young women, such as recent IDF releases, who want to travel alone but feel apprehensive.
She joined a Vipassana meditation retreat in eastern Thailand alone, at a center called Dhamma Bhuvana. For ten full days, without speaking, making eye contact, writing, reading, or using a phone, she immersed herself in the practice. "It might sound strange, but one of the most basic rules of the course is that you are strictly forbidden to contact anyone, even the people you arrived with. Yet I came out of it with two friends who truly entered my heart - Solène, a French woman who sat next to me, and Anna, a 20-year-old German. The real connection with them only began after the silence was broken on the tenth day – and then it felt as if we had known each other for years," she shares.
What a Vipassana Day Looks Like
"The daily schedule there is rigorous and precise: we wake up at 04:00, meditate from 04:30 to 06:30, have breakfast at 06:30, and from there follow a continuous sequence of meditations, both in groups and alone, until 21:30 when the lights go out. In total, it is about ten hours of meditation a day. For the first three days, all you do is observe the breath, and from the fourth day, you begin scanning your entire body, part by part, without reacting to any sensation – neither pain nor pleasant feelings."
When asked what one does when bored, she explains that there is no time for boredom because thoughts constantly race about the teachings or life itself. The very goal of Vipassana is to teach practitioners to live in the "here and now." When boredom did occasionally strike, she found herself observing the landscape, walking, drawing a little in the sand, watching ants, or doing physical exercise during breaks.
During the stay, talking is strictly prohibited. "Simply put, no one speaks, so when there is total silence around you, there is no one to talk to. The only people you are allowed to speak with are the teachers. If a situation arose where a question was necessary regarding the material or what you were experiencing, she was the sole person I spoke with, and occasionally the administration if they wanted to arrange for me to hear the discourse in Hebrew, my native language. Even then, it was done in whispers and never in public spaces."
Disconnection and Simple Meals
When asked about checking her phone, she replies, "There is no such situation. I disconnect the phone entirely. I informed my family and everyone who needed to know that I was going off the grid for ten days. You simply do not touch the phone; it is locked in a locker." The visual documentation from the article was captured on the final day when phone use was permitted.
The diet during the retreat is strictly vegetarian, consisting of only two meals a day – breakfast and lunch – with evening tea instead of a full dinner. The Thai food was diverse and rich, featuring rice, noodles, vegetables, fruits, and desserts like mango sticky rice and coconut, while evenings always ended with bread, butter, or dulce de leche.
The center does not charge a fee; the entire course is based on free-will donations (Dana). All centers worldwide are run by volunteers, and graduates contribute whatever they choose.
Who Is It Suited For?
The spiritual process is not for everyone. "It is suitable for those willing to commit to ten full days seriously – it is not a vacation or holiday. It is for those ready to confront unresolved issues on their own, because they inevitably surface. It is important for me to state that this is not a substitute for professional psychological therapy for anyone suffering from severe mental distress, and there is an explicit warning about this. However, it is entirely non-religious and suits anyone regardless of background; it is a technique, not a ritual."
The day after completing the course, Noga visited a Buddhist monastery accompanied by two friends from the Vipassana retreat: Paopao, a 43-year-old Thai woman with a 15-year-old daughter who sat near her during the course, and Solène.
« I am satisfied with a single piece of chocolate, even when I know there is a whole package outside. »
Reflecting on a conversation with a monk at the monastery regarding how to appreciate the material world without becoming overly attached to it, she noted the profound insight left with her. The visit concluded with a brief meditation and shared meals, emphasizing the integration of spirituality into everyday life.
