Reading from Wednesday July 31, 2013 yoga class
At the end of every Wednesday class, I end with Yoga Nidra, which is near and dear to my heart. I wish I could fill the studio with people laying on their backs, covered up and tucked in, as I guide them through Yoga Nidra. Yoga Nidra is a deep relaxation journey where all you have to do is lay on your back and listen to the sound of my voice. With that said, it is a powerful practice. One of the steps of Yoga Nidra is creating a Sankalpa, which is an intention, a resolve, an affirmation. The following is bits and pieces from a Yoga International article. Just read with an open mind and heart.
"A sankalpa practice starts from the radical premise that you already are who you need to be to fulfill your life's purpose. All you need to do is focus your mind, connect to your most heartfelt desires, and connect with the energy within...the chief architect of life is the mind. To create the life we are meant to live, we must draw the mind again and again to our life's purpose. "Kalpa" means vow, or the rule to be followed above all other rules. "San" refers to a connection with the highest truth. So... Sankalpa, is a vow and a commitment we make to support our highest truth.
While the typical New Year's resolution is abandoned within weeks, if not days, as enthusiasm and willpower run out, a sankalpa requires none of the ego-driven willpower we typically summon to make changes. A sankalpa arrives with everything needed to fully realize it. You don't have to ask where you'll find the will to do it. The energy and will is already there.
A sankalpa can take two forms. The first is a heartfelt desire. This type of sankalpa is far more all-encompassing that a New Year's resolution, and requires no change or action. It is literally and simply a statement of who you are, such as "I am already whole, and already healed," or "I am peace itself." It doesn't come from the intellectual mind. The second is that of a specific intention or goal. When you discover your purpose, not everything happens at once...you need to reach milestones. Setting specific intentions can help you align your moment to moment choices with your heartfelt desire. What needs to happen to help you move forward on your path...what you need to do, where you need to direct your energy.
Discovering your sankalpa is a process of listening. There are three stages of listening:
1. willingness to hear the message of heartfelt desire
2. turning to and welcoming the messenger in
3. willingness to DO what the heartfelt desire requires of you
A sankalpa isn't a petition or a prayer, it is a statement of deeply held fact, and a vow that is true in the present moment. One of the most powerful practices for finding your sankalpa is yoga nidra. When you first begin to work with sankalpa, the practice can seem full of contradictions. You start by identifying what you want, but the only way to realize it is to acknowledge that you already are it, and already have it. This apparent contradiction is the essence of sankalpa practice. It all goes back to this idea that each of us is both BEING and BECOMING. We have a part of us that doesn't need anything and a part of us that comes into life with a purpose and is always becoming. Direct your energy with intention, but be mindful that your nature is unchanged whether you achieve your goals or not. Live as contentedly as possible in between the goal and realizing the goal."
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