Reflection #5

Humans naturally ask questions. Since the beginning of humanity, we have asked numerous questions about ourselves. While we could answer some questions with science, there were still some questions that couldn't be answered at all. I believe that that is why humans believe in religion. To find answers to unanswered. People spend time on their religion to strengthen their faith. Some people worship their creators and  seek religious truth in order to answer the ultimate question: "where do we go when we die?" and "how were we created in the first place?". The Bongwonsa temple visit was a very special experience for me. As i was translating the Buddhist monk's  words, I learned a lot about the Buddhist believes. There were similar beliefs to that of Christianity, such as "if you do wrong, then you'll get punished.". However the stories and other beliefs were very unique and distinct from other religions. 

Reflection #4

Meditation is not a type of thing that I would do usually. I have never actually tried it seriously, and I’ve always thought of it as a useless practice. So I started my meditation with this negative mindset that this was just a waste of my precious time. Few minutes into the meditation, all I had in mind was thoughts of school and life. Even if I tried to empty my mind, these thoughts kept on coming back. Also, the noises from outside were a huge distraction. However, few more minutes into my meditation, I felt something very weird. I couldn’t feel any part of my body and I almost felt like I was sitting in the air. It was a very weird sensation. As I tried to explore this state more deeply, my phone alarm went on and signaled that 20 minutes has passed by. I’m not sure if I attained "right thoughts", "right mindfulness" and "right concentration", but I’m pretty sure there was something. This experience was more than just sitting on the floor for me. When I have time, I actually want to try this again for a longer period.