No Hope of Retirement

At a retreat at the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts, one of our teachers said, "I've never known anyone to fail at vipassana meditation, but I've also never known anyone who succeeded...So give up all hope of retirement."

Many aspirants on the path might imagine that if they practice long and hard enough, someday they will reach "the end" of the path. Then they can quit.  Then they will be done. This was the "retirement" that my teacher was referring to. 

I hope it's not discouraging news to learn that we never reach some magical end point in this practice where everything is done and we can stop. There are, of course, many insightful moments along the way, even experiences of enlightenment that come to us. However, there is no ultimate destination that we are aiming for.

So always remember: The journey is the destination.

Blessings,
Roger