The comprehensive meditation course was developed by Somdej Phra Yana Vachirodom (Luangphor Viriyang Sirintharo). Luangphor Viriyang was a Master Teacher of meditation with over 80 years of experience. This is a rare opportunity to study his teachings for personal development or to become certified by one of the most renowned Master Teachers of meditation. Luangphor's roots are based in Buddhism, however, meditation is not a religion. The course's focus is to teach meditation, not religion. People of all faiths are welcome. 

Luangphor Viriyang's purpose in creating this course was to help people understand their meditation experiences and build a strong foundation through theory and practice. Having a deeper understanding of the process of meditation will help students to avoid mistakes and ensure they progressively see improvements and benefits from their practice. Some concepts you will learn in this course are as follows:

• Mind power

• Meditation positions and postures

• The natural mind vs. the meditative mind

• The trance state

• The current of the mind

• Steps of meditation

• Misconceptions, phenomena, and obstacles

• Contemplation (Jhana)

• Wisdom and knowledge (Nana)

• The authoritative mind power

• Samatha

• Vipassana (Insight meditation)

The Master stressed on numerous occasions that the main goal of meditation is to accumulate mind power. If enough people develop a consistent meditation practice, world conflict will be reduced because the mind power meditators build in their meditation practices help them control their emotions, reduce stress, and increase harmony in relationships. 

The benefits of a consistent and proper meditation practice are numerous. Scientific research and individual personal experiences have been proving this for many years now. A short list of some of the benefits meditators can expect to experience are as follows:

• Increased mental clarity, energy, and overall happiness

• Greater awareness of our thoughts, feelings, sensations, and surroundings

• Improved physical, mental, and emotional well-being

• Better sleep

• Increased intelligence and wisdom

• Enhanced professional, academic performance, and decision making

• Decreased stress, anxiety, and illness

The meditation course focuses on Samatha meditation. Samatha is a Pali word that translates into English as "tranquility of the mind" or "mind-calmness". In terms of meditation technique, through focusing our attention by developing our concentration, mindfulness, and mental discipline, we learn to stay present "in the moment" without engaging in whatever distractions our environment or mind may create for us.

Over time, this practice creates calmness or tranquility in the mind. Samatha is the foundation of any good meditation practice, including Vipassana (insight meditation). We will discuss the theory and practice of Vipassana as well, but we do not conduct it in this course as it requires a lot of practice and a strong foundation of Samatha to genuinely practice Vipassana.

The course will run 5 days a week for 6 months (with breaks) for one and a half hours each day. The first 30 minutes will be spent on the theory of meditation. It will use the textbooks written by Luangphor as the focus of the class. We will then conduct a one-hour meditation that consists of 30 minutes of walking meditation and 30 minutes of sitting meditation. There are attendance requirements for those that intend to get certified.

The online course will be taught through Zoom.  

The course will consist of lectures on the principles of meditation, practical application of the theory, discussion, and review sessions. Students interested in taking the course to become certified are required to take an exam.

The Willpower Institute is a non-profit organization whose purpose is to promote world peace through meditation. As a result, there is no tuition fee. There is only a nominal textbook fee in order to cover printing costs. Students are not required to purchase the textbooks but it is recommended if you are planning to become certified.