What to Expect on a Course
All courses offered are conducted by assistant teachers of S. N. Goenka using audio and video tapes of Mr. Goenka’s instructions and discourses. All ten day courses begin the evening of the arrival day and end early morning of the departure day.
For information regarding course applications, please see the Apply For a Course page.
Introduction to the Technique and Code of Discipline
It is essential that you understand the serious nature of the ten-day course before applying. Therefore, as part of the application process, all course applicants must read the Introduction to the Technique and Code of Discipline.
These ten-day Vipassana meditation courses are very serious, a deep operation of the mind. They can be a rigorous undertaking, both physically and mentally. They are residential, in a rural setting, and presuppose a high level of responsibility and maturity from each student. It requires students to spend most of their time alone, without speaking to other students, inside their own mind, meditating for up to ten hours per day over a period of ten days. While the course includes lectures, instructional tapes, a few meetings with the teacher, and some limited time for questions, the bulk of the ten days is spent within the autonomous, private sphere of a person’s own mind. The meditation course requires a reasonable capacity to maintain focus, cooperate in a large-group setting, follow detailed instructions, keep to a delineated time schedule, maintain silence, not disturb other students, and to work with a teacher with honesty and full cooperation.
How Courses are Offered
Since 2024, Atlantic Canada Vipassana Meditation is offering residential 10-Day courses at Camp Kidston in middle Musquodoboit about 100 kilometres from Halifax.
Camp Kidston encompasses over 400 acres of pristine woods on the shores of Long Lake in the North-Eastern corner of the Halifax Regional Municipality (HRM). The camp where our courses are offered accommodates about 40 students and consists of a meditation hall with a dining room in the basement, a commercial kitchen, and rustic cabins for sleeping, and bathroom facilities.
The camp covers a large area, and students must be able to walk 5 – 10 minutes over uneven terrain, as they move from one part of the camp to another.
Courses are made possible by volunteers who serve on the courses, and by donations made by students who have participated in past courses. The teachers conducting the course, the course managers and all those who work in the kitchen are all volunteers.
Courses are run solely on a donation basis. Donations are accepted only from students who have completed at least one ten-day course with S.N. Goenka or one of his assisting teachers and have experienced for themselves the benefits of Vipassana. Thus, Vipassana is offered free from commercialism.
Students taking the course for the first time may give a donation at the end of the course. You may give a donation, small or large, according to your means and volition. You donate not with the idea of paying for what you have received, but to give someone else the same opportunity in the future. ACVM is financially autonomous, and these donations are our only source of funding; there is no wealthy foundation or individual sponsoring the courses. Returning students may give a donation at any time. Once you have completed one 10-day course in this tradition, you are welcome to apply for volunteer service at any center around the world.
Accommodations
Each cabin has one electrical outlet, but no insulation or climate control. In other words, there is no heating or air conditioning. It can get cold at night and hot during the day. The historical temperature range in this area of Nova Scotia for the first two weeks in September is 8 to 15 °C. Cabins have wooden beds and a mattress. Students must bring their own bedding: sheets, pillows, pillowcases, and warm blankets and/or a sleeping bag.
Cabins and buildings are not wheelchair accessible.
Men’s and women’s toilet and shower facilities are in a separate, heated building. Sinks and showers in this building have hot water.
Outside paths on the site are lit by small solar lights. There is little overhead lighting on the site. Students are required to find their way after dark with the use of flashlights. Footing on the site is uneven, with gravel pathways, and under rainy conditions wet grass and mud could make it slippery.
Ticks, mosquitoes and deer flies are a fact of life in rural Nova Scotia, although mosquitoes and flies tend to be fewer in September than during the rest of the summer. Students should be aware that one type of tick has the potential for carrying Lyme disease. It is recommended to take precautions if students step off the gravel pathways. These are: Wear long pants and long sleeves, wear enclosed shoes, wear a cap, avoid long grass and vegetation, consider applying insect repellant.
If you are worried that these accommodations may present difficulties, we encourage you to sign up for a course at one of the more established centres nearby, such as Dhamma Suttama (Quebec), Dhamma Dharā (Massachusetts), or Dhamma Torana (Ontario).
Arrival time
Please arrive between 2:00pm and 4:00pm on the day the course begins. This allows time for you to check in, get your accommodation and unpack. Late arrivals make it difficult for the volunteers to serve everyone efficiently and to start the course on time. If you have an emergency and are unable to arrive at the requested time, please notify us as soon as possible. A light meal will be served at 6:00 pm, followed by a pre-course orientation.
Departure time
Please make your return travel plans before arriving at the center, as you will not have access to your cellphone until after the course is completed.
You are expected to stay until the course is completed at approximately 7:00am on the last day of the course. Although the course ends at 7:00am, please allow enough time to clean your room before you leave. We rely on students to help us clean the facility they used for their course.
When making travel arrangements, please allow sufficient time for travel to and from the center. For example, if you are flying out of Halifax, return flights should be booked no earlier than 2:00pm. This will allow you enough time to clean your accommodation and arrive at the airport within a reasonable time.
After being accepted into a course, if your plans change in any way, please notify us immediately.
Health
A Vipassana meditation course is very demanding both physically and mentally. It is important that you are prepared for the rigorous nature of the course. After you have completed the application process if anything related to your physical or mental health changes, please contact the centre prior to the course.
For the health and safety of all the students, it is important that you are in good health when you arrive at the centre. Please do not come to the centre if you have any flu-like or cold symptoms prior to or on the course date. Also please do not come if you have had contact with someone with flu within 10 days of course start date. If you are sick, or should become ill close to the start of your course, we ask that you reschedule for a future date. Let us know as soon as possible so that we can give your spot to someone on the wait list. If you need to cancel due to illness, you will be given priority on the next course.
Due to the continued existence of infectious respiratory diseases in our communities, we ask that you do a Covid rapid test before arriving on site. We will request students to test again on Day 3 of the course.
We encourage students to wear a mask for the first 3 days of the course. Public health needs and directives regarding limiting transmission of infectious disease may change by the time of the course. Course policy will follow public health recommendations and directives, and students will be required to follow this policy or remove themselves from the course.
Any student who experiences symptoms of respiratory disease will be asked to take a Covid rapid test. If the result is positive, the student will be required to isolate and remove themselves from the course as soon as transportation can be arranged. If you need to cancel from the course because of illness, your next course application will be given priority.
If there is any significant change in your physical or mental health, or medications, please notify the course registrar. If you are presently taking medication, please remember to bring enough for the entire course.
Some applicants may have a special requirement due to a health issue, a physical limitation, pregnancy, or a dietary restriction. We are prepared to accept most people with special requests, but we need to know the extent of someone’s requirements before they arrive. Often someone may ask for a chair to meditate in. We are happy to provide seating to help you meditate comfortably.
Please note that our rented site is not wheelchair accessible.
What To Bring
Please BringRequired Items (not provided)
Seasonal and Suggested Items
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Please Do Not BringClothing
Other
NOTE: If you arrive with any of the above items you will be asked to leave them with the management until the end of the course. |
Food
A simple vegetarian menu, developed to satisfy the needs of most students, is offered at all courses. No outside food is allowed on the courses, and we are unable to accommodate special food requests. However, if you have food requirements because of a medically diagnosed condition, such as diabetes or pregnancy, please contact [email protected] to see if we can meet your needs. For your information, there will be a menu card indicating foods that contain soy, gluten, dairy, and nuts at the serving table each day.
Additional Questions
Please visit our Frequently Asked Questions page for additional information or email [email protected]