Training the Mind To learn Vipassana, there are three steps to the training. First, students practice abstaining from actions which cause harm. Following these precepts allows the mind to calm down sufficiently to proceed further. This practice helps to develop control over the unruly mind. This step occupies the last six and a half days of the course.
Complete silence is observed for the first nine days.
On the tenth day, students resume speaking, making the transition back to a more extroverted way of life. The course finishes on the morning of the eleventh day. Although Vipassana has been preserved in the Buddhist tradition, it contains nothing of a sectarian nature, and can be accepted and applied by people of any background. Courses are open to anyone sincerely wishing to learn the technique, irrespective of race, caste, faith or nationality. Hindus, Jains, Muslims, Sikhs, Buddhists, Christians, Jews as well as members of other religions have all successfully practiced Vipassana.