Sankalpa and setting your intention for the new year

Intention Setting

Did you set any New Year’s resolutions, and are you following through? How many of us set them and then fail to follow-through?

Embracing Sankalpa Over Resolutions

I prefer the idea of setting an intention, or in yogic terms, sankalpa. There is a big difference between a mere intention and a sankalpa. Breaking down the word, “kalpa” means a rule or ritual. “San” means a connection with the highest truth. So, a sankalpa is a vow to do or achieve something that is in alignment with your highest good or purpose.

Another difference between an affirmation and a sankalpa is that an affirmation is generally stated in ordinary consciousness, whereas the seed of sankalpa is planted in a deeper layer of consciousness.

In the Four Desires, the process developed by my teacher, Yogarupa Rod Stryker, there is a very specific process to determining a sankalpa. While this is a worthy and transformative process, there is also a shorter way to get to a sankalpa that you can work with fairly quickly.

Practical Steps to Formulating Your Sankalpa

Ask yourself these questions:

What are three behaviors that no longer serve you? For example: worrying, taking care of others at the expense of yourself, or an addictive behavior such as playing video games or constantly checking your social media.

Choose one and ask yourself what does this behavior do for you? What do you get out of it? What is the underlying desire? For example, worrying can be a way of trying to stay safe. An addictive behavior can be a way to avoid intimacy.

Formulate a vikalpa, which is a statement of the underlying desire that separates you from your highest good. “Vi” means to separate, so a vikalpa is a rule or vow that separates us from the highest truth. The form is: “I want to (underlying desire)……so I….(behavior).” For example, I want to avoid the possibility of rejection if I get close to someone, so I turn to (addictive behavior) to keep me safe.” Or, “I want to be aware of every possible scenario that might happen to me, so I constantly worry about the future.”

Next step: What do you need to do to resolve this? The answer to this could be a short-term goal, such as connecting with a friend or loved one when you feel the urge to do “the thing,” whether it’s going onto Facebook or going for a beer, akin to calling your sponsor in 12-step programs. Or, it could be a more long-term goal, such as developing a regular meditation practice to help calm your worrying mind.

Finally, formulate a sankalpa, stated in present moment terms, as if it has already come to fruition. For example, “I easily reach out to my supportive community,” or “I have a regular meditation practice that supports me in staying calm.”

According to the ancient teachings, a perfect sankalpa will always manifest. What makes a sankalpa perfect? It is free from fear and doubt.

How do we get to the place of freedom from fear and doubt? We take it into meditation. I am recommending, specifically, that we take it into Yoga Nidra practice, which is also referred to as “enlightened sleep.” There is a place, a state, deep inside of us that is free from fear and doubt. This is the deepest, most subtle level of awareness. This is the state we can access in Yoga Nidra.

Integrating Sankalpa with Yoga Nidra

Once we have formulated our sankalpa, one way to work with it is to take it into a regular practice with Yoga Nidra.

My teacher, Rod Stryker, has a wonderful new app called Santuary that has several excellent meditations and Yoga Nidra practices, one in particular for sankalpa. There are also many Yoga Nidra practices available. In the near future, I will have a Yoga Nidra for sankalpa on my website.

Another way to supplement this practice is to choose a habit you wish to release. It could be eating sugar, checking your phone too often, checking Facebook instead of simply being present in the moment. Whatever it is, every time you have the urge to do “the thing,” pause, take a breath, say your sankalpa, and don’t do the thing! Remember: your sankalpa is in service of you being the person you are meant to become—the best version of yourself in the moment—so not doing “the thing” serves you.

There is much fear, turbulence and stress in our world right now. We need effective ways to shift our consciousness. I believe that as we each do our individual work, we serve the greater good and help with shifting global consciousness.

Wishing you love, light, and happiness in 2020.

With gratitude,

Linda

If you’re looking for more help and guidance this year, contact me to see how life coaching can support you.