Loading…
Techniques
Teaching lineages, each with its own method, teachers and centres.
Donation-funded 10-day courses taught with S. N. Goenka's recorded instructions, in the line of Sayagyi U Ba Khin, at centres in Nepal and worldwide.
1969, first course in Bombay (Mumbai) · 278 centres listed
U Ba Khin's Vipassana as handed on by Mother Sayamagyi: 10-day courses with a live teacher, five days of Anapana and a suggested donation.
1952, IMC Rangoon (Yangon) · 6 centres listed
Mahasi Sayadaw's method of noting the rise and fall of the abdomen and whatever else arises, practised in silent retreats in Myanmar, Nepal and beyond.
1938 at Seikkhun; Yangon centre opened in 1949 · 9 centres listed
The Pa-Auk method from Myanmar trains deep concentration (jhāna) first, then detailed insight that follows the Visuddhimagga, in long stays at a monastery.
1980s, at Pa-Auk Forest Monastery, Myanmar · 2 centres listed
A Burmese method of strong, rapid breathing and a fixed posture, then close attention to bodily sensation, above all pain, without mental labels.
1920s, at Myingyan, Upper Myanmar · 1 centres listed
Mogok Sayadaw's Burmese method: learn dependent origination first, then watch feeling and mind arise and pass away in your own experience.
1945, in the town of Mogok, Burma
Sayadaw U Tejaniya's teaching in the Shwe Oo Min lineage near Yangon: relaxed, continuous awareness, with the attitude of the watching mind put first.
Shwe Oo Min centre near Yangon, 1998 · 1 centres listed
The forest lineage of Ajahn Mun and Ajahn Chah: breath meditation with Buddho, walking paths, and guest stays at monasteries in Thailand and the West.
Ajahn Mun (1870–1949); Wat Pah Pong, 1954 · 6 centres listed
Buddhadāsa Bhikkhu's mindfulness with breathing, taught on a silent 10-day retreat in English that starts on the 1st of every month at Suan Mokkh.
Suan Mokkh 1932; retreat hermitage 1986 · 2 centres listed
The Western insight meditation centres (IMS, Spirit Rock, Gaia House): lay teachers, roots in Mahasi, U Ba Khin and Thai Forest, and fees plus dāna.
1976, IMS in Barre, Massachusetts · 5 centres listed
Single exercises that several traditions share, each from the early discourses.
Mindfulness of breathing from the Ānāpānasati Sutta (MN 118): how each tradition uses the breath, simple beginner guidance and common difficulties.
The core practice of Vipassana as taught by U Ba Khin and S. N. Goenka: what it is, its aim, how it differs from MBSR's body scan, and where to learn it.
Mahasi Sayadaw's method of silently naming experience, from 'rising, falling' at the abdomen: its purpose, how it is taught, later forms and critics.
Mindful walking on a short path: the Buddha's five benefits (AN 5.29), Mahasi's step-by-step noting, forest-tradition walking paths and basic guidance.
Goodwill towards all beings, from the Karaṇīya Mettā Sutta: how Goenka courses, IMS and other traditions teach mettā, and how it relates to vipassanā.
A summary only: each tradition’s own page explains the method in its own terms.
| Tradition | Main object | Concentration first? | Typical retreat | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goenka (U Ba Khin) | Natural breath at the nostrils, then body sensations | Yes: about 3½ days of Anapana, not jhāna | 10-day course minimum (12 calendar days) | Free; donations accepted only from past students |
| IMC (U Ba Khin) | Breath at the base of the nose, then body and mind | Yes: about five days of Anapana | 10 days, Friday evening to Monday morning | Suggested donation (£300 at IMC UK, 2026) |
| Mahasi noting | Abdomen rising and falling, then whatever arises | No: momentary concentration while noting | Individual stays, from a week to several months | Varies; no set fees at Panditarama Lumbini |
| Pa-Auk | Jhāna, usually on the breath, then insight | Yes: jhāna, or access concentration | Long-term residence; approval needed first | Lodging and two meals free; donations voluntary |
| Sunlun | Touch of strong breath, then bodily sensation | Yes: strong breathing is meant to build it fast | Format varies; ask the monastery | Not published; ask the monastery |
| Mogok | Feeling and mind, framed by dependent origination | No; the breath only to calm a restless mind | Varies by centre; no English schedule found | Not published in English; ask the centre |
| U Tejaniya (Shwe Oo Min) | The observing mind and its attitude; any object | No; the stress is on continuity of awareness | Individual stays of up to 3 months (as last published) | Free; meals and other donations optional |
| Thai Forest | Breath (often with Buddho), walking, monastic life | Calm and insight developed together | Guest stays, e.g. 3 days to a month; no courses | Free; monasteries live on lay donations |
| Suan Mokkh | Ānāpānasati (mindfulness with breathing) | Yes, in the first days, then insight | 10 days, from the 1st to the 11th of every month | 2,000 baht, all-inclusive (as of 2026) |
| Insight Meditation (West) | Mindfulness of breath, body and mind, plus mettā | Generally no; varies by teacher | Weekend to 3 months (IMS); 1 day to 2 months (Spirit Rock) | Sliding-scale fees; teachers supported by dāna |