A Guide To Staying At The Nonsan Main Center
What to expect when you visit the
Nonsan Main Meditation Center in South Korea
Most international flights come in at Incheon Airport. There you may be met by someone from Maum Meditation, or you will be instructed how to take the airport shuttle bus to Cheonan where you will be met by the Maum Meditation representatives. Depending on which mode of transport you will either be escorted from the airport or the bus terminal to the Nonsan Main Center.
Upon arriving at the main center you will be checked in at the office and taken to your room. Most people arrive here on Saturday which is the beginning of the meditation week, so you will be free to rest or explore the campus as you wish. But classes start promptly at 8:00pm so be sure you know where to go!
There are two main buildings on the campus. The older orange colored building stands on top of the hill and is where all level 1 to 4 students stay. The students in level 5 and up stay in the newer white building located at the bottom of the hill.
Both buildings have cafeterias, but depending on the volume of people at the center only one of them may be open. Be sure to check with your helper or interpretor which one is currently in use. Also, in both buildings there are laundry facilities, showers and bathrooms as well as rooms for sleeping.
We now have a breakfast bar available for foreigners. Breakfast in Asia is usually something left over from last night's meal, and it is very different from Western meals. The center provides the facilities, but the students must provide the food. There are Western style foods available, and we ask every one who participates to help out on the food costs, but this is strictly voluntary.
The classrooms are divided between the buildings with the first four levels located in the older building while levels 5 to 8 are in the white building. Around the new building there are also some shops, a coffee stand, convenience store, hair salon (unisex), and a small restaurant that serves popular local foods like gim-bap (a Korean version of a California roll), man-doo (steamed asian style dumplings), tong-gat-seu (a pork cutlet served with a tangy sauce that is reminiscent of A-1 steak sauce) and other delicacies. Everything here is priced very reasonable, but the cafeteria is included in your fees. There is also a Breakfast Bar available for foreigners only, should you choose to eat there. This is an additional service and there may be a small fee involved.
The cafeteria serves traditional rural country style Korean food consisting mostly of vegetables with some meats or fish available everyday. Some form of kimchee and rice are almost always available, unless we are having noodles. The diet is an extremely low fat and high fiber diet that is nutritious and always varied and delicious.
Classes begin at 8:00pm on Saturday night and then continue every day at 8:00am. Typically there is a lecture on Maum Meditation followed by a meditation session that will last between 1 ½ hours to 2 hours. There are breaks through out the day to stretch, get a snack or cup of coffee or tea and then back to meditating. Meal times are extra long to allow you to have a chance to exercise or rest, meet with friends or helpers or meditate some more.
In the spring and fall the days can be warm to hot with cool to chilly nights. Summer is always hot days that can be humid with nice comfortable nights. Summer is also the rainy season and so umbrellas are readily available at both buildings for your use. Even in the summer you might need a light jacket or sweater as some people tend to get cool just sitting during the meditation.
You will be provided with an interpretor who will help you and work with you to make sure you are comfortable. If you need anything or have any questions they will be glad to help you in any way possible. During classes you will be provided a headset and listening device that will allow you to sit anywhere you choose in the meditation room and still hear the interpretation comfortably. As you make friends with other students this will make it much easier to participate in the classes.
Don’t be surprised at how many people here can speak English. It is being taught in all schools and is the unofficial second language of Korea. Many young people can carry on a conversation and there are a lot of older Koreans (especially men) who worked with the American Armed Forces here and can speak quite well.
The friendships you make here will endure because everyone here is going through the same experiences. Everyone here is focused on becoming the Truth and returning to the origin. Together we all help each other and support each other.
Be sure to bring a camera as from time to time there are trips scheduled around the country side to allow people from other countries to see and learn more about Korea. Some of these include trips to local parks, national historical sites, temples and traditional Korean markets. Even a trip around the country side can be fascinating as this area is a rural farming area with large rice paddies, hot houses for various vegetables, cattle farms and small lakes all surrounded by beautiful mountains.
The tallest mountain in the area is Gyeryong-san (Gyeryong Mountain). This beautiful mountain dominates the scenery at the Main Center and is the backdrop for everything that goes on here. The sun rises over the crest and the valley below wakes up to greet it. The mountain has been known for centuries as a spiritual place and there are many temples and holy sites located in this area. You can look on this website for pictures of the campus and the areas around here.
So come on! Everyone is waiting for you. Everything has been prepared for you. Talk to the instructors at your local center to begin making plans today. Let’s all go to the Truth together!
Upon arriving at the main center you will be checked in at the office and taken to your room. Most people arrive here on Saturday which is the beginning of the meditation week, so you will be free to rest or explore the campus as you wish. But classes start promptly at 8:00pm so be sure you know where to go!
There are two main buildings on the campus. The older orange colored building stands on top of the hill and is where all level 1 to 4 students stay. The students in level 5 and up stay in the newer white building located at the bottom of the hill.
Both buildings have cafeterias, but depending on the volume of people at the center only one of them may be open. Be sure to check with your helper or interpretor which one is currently in use. Also, in both buildings there are laundry facilities, showers and bathrooms as well as rooms for sleeping.
We now have a breakfast bar available for foreigners. Breakfast in Asia is usually something left over from last night's meal, and it is very different from Western meals. The center provides the facilities, but the students must provide the food. There are Western style foods available, and we ask every one who participates to help out on the food costs, but this is strictly voluntary.
The classrooms are divided between the buildings with the first four levels located in the older building while levels 5 to 8 are in the white building. Around the new building there are also some shops, a coffee stand, convenience store, hair salon (unisex), and a small restaurant that serves popular local foods like gim-bap (a Korean version of a California roll), man-doo (steamed asian style dumplings), tong-gat-seu (a pork cutlet served with a tangy sauce that is reminiscent of A-1 steak sauce) and other delicacies. Everything here is priced very reasonable, but the cafeteria is included in your fees. There is also a Breakfast Bar available for foreigners only, should you choose to eat there. This is an additional service and there may be a small fee involved.
The cafeteria serves traditional rural country style Korean food consisting mostly of vegetables with some meats or fish available everyday. Some form of kimchee and rice are almost always available, unless we are having noodles. The diet is an extremely low fat and high fiber diet that is nutritious and always varied and delicious.
Classes begin at 8:00pm on Saturday night and then continue every day at 8:00am. Typically there is a lecture on Maum Meditation followed by a meditation session that will last between 1 ½ hours to 2 hours. There are breaks through out the day to stretch, get a snack or cup of coffee or tea and then back to meditating. Meal times are extra long to allow you to have a chance to exercise or rest, meet with friends or helpers or meditate some more.
In the spring and fall the days can be warm to hot with cool to chilly nights. Summer is always hot days that can be humid with nice comfortable nights. Summer is also the rainy season and so umbrellas are readily available at both buildings for your use. Even in the summer you might need a light jacket or sweater as some people tend to get cool just sitting during the meditation.
You will be provided with an interpretor who will help you and work with you to make sure you are comfortable. If you need anything or have any questions they will be glad to help you in any way possible. During classes you will be provided a headset and listening device that will allow you to sit anywhere you choose in the meditation room and still hear the interpretation comfortably. As you make friends with other students this will make it much easier to participate in the classes.
Don’t be surprised at how many people here can speak English. It is being taught in all schools and is the unofficial second language of Korea. Many young people can carry on a conversation and there are a lot of older Koreans (especially men) who worked with the American Armed Forces here and can speak quite well.
The friendships you make here will endure because everyone here is going through the same experiences. Everyone here is focused on becoming the Truth and returning to the origin. Together we all help each other and support each other.
Be sure to bring a camera as from time to time there are trips scheduled around the country side to allow people from other countries to see and learn more about Korea. Some of these include trips to local parks, national historical sites, temples and traditional Korean markets. Even a trip around the country side can be fascinating as this area is a rural farming area with large rice paddies, hot houses for various vegetables, cattle farms and small lakes all surrounded by beautiful mountains.
The tallest mountain in the area is Gyeryong-san (Gyeryong Mountain). This beautiful mountain dominates the scenery at the Main Center and is the backdrop for everything that goes on here. The sun rises over the crest and the valley below wakes up to greet it. The mountain has been known for centuries as a spiritual place and there are many temples and holy sites located in this area. You can look on this website for pictures of the campus and the areas around here.
So come on! Everyone is waiting for you. Everything has been prepared for you. Talk to the instructors at your local center to begin making plans today. Let’s all go to the Truth together!