I just arrived in Brisbane, Australia. This is my first time in Australia, and boy is it nothing like the Asia I know; I feel as if I’m back in the United States, only things cost more than in New York. Otherwise, it feels familiar and easy. Less exciting as a result of this familiarity, though; I already miss Bangkok and Kuala Lumpur.
I’m here in Brisbane to participate in the inauguration of the new Vedanta center temple; there’s a weekend program, and the senior Australian monk from the Ramakrishna mission here is in town for the festivities.
Much of my overall travel is Vedanta-related, and all of my Australian visit. I’ll be here in Australia from March 27 until April 17, when I leave for the Vedanta center in Kuala Lumpur. My travels in Australia will include Sydney and Melbourne in addition to Brisbane.
You can see my complete travel schedule on my Location page, which always has my latest location information.
Before I left Bangkok recently, I had the opportunity to speak at the Ramakrishna Vedanta Association of Thailand about the relationship between Buddhist meditation and Vedanta meditation. While meditation is my weakest spiritual discipline, I shared my experiences at Buddhist monasteries in Thailand and Burma, relating it to my meditation training in Calcutta when I was initiated by the Mission.
My talk was posted on YouTube, so you can watch it here. It is about 25 minutes, and it includes some basic meditation instruction.
Peter is a relationship coach, writer/producer, and R&D monastic. He splits his time between San Francisco and Asia. Read more about Peter.