As we come to our mat can be a time of reflection; paging through the events that we experienced, both positive and negative. Much like an outline for a book, we bring these moments together and within them form where we might see ourselves in the next chapter of our lives. From our experiences we form our values, our priorities, our life's journey. The thesis statement or plot of the next chapter, in Yogic texts, would be our Sankalpa.
Indu Arora, Yoga & Ayurvedic teacher (whom I follow), shares:
"Sankalpa is a promise we make to ourselves every single day—to manifest our deepest resolve. It is a call to show up, focus, and act according to our physical, mental, emotional, and pranic capacity. Rise beyond procrastination, peel off layers of inertia, and show up for yourself. At times it is difficult to understand philosophical ideas until they become concrete, visible, graspable and a physical reminder. Sankalpa is a thread that leads us from this to that.
Discover your Sankalpa through your “field of awareness.” Field of awareness is how we look at something; be it an obstacle blocking our path, both physically or emotionally. Try this: place a pebble in the palm of your hand and bring it up… really close to your eyes and notice how large it appears. Now, slowly begin to move it away from you to truly see its size. Doesn’t look so big now…. Your view was determined by your own field of awareness. Imagine that this pebble holds an obstacle that is creating a roadblock between you and your path. As you bring it close that pebble/obstacle seems daunting; and yet as you move it away the obstacle takes on its true size; maybe not as big as you once thought. If we let these obstacles consume our field we may not realize how manageable they are.
Take a moment, sit quietly, eyes closed and clear your mind of thoughts that are distracting. As you sit, begin to visualize a pebble in the palm of your hand (maybe, even, find a pebble). I love to close my hand around it and feel the stone. Feels the texture of the stone, is it warm or cold? How does it feel? Open your eyes and see the pebble. Imagine an obstacle; a distraction that has been giving you concern. Place that obstacle in the pebble. Move it close to your eyes and that obstacle has grown; move it away and take another look at this issue, has it become more manageable? Have we placed too much power on distraction? Close your eyes again and begin to form your sankalpa, your promise to yourself to show up and be present. Don’t let your sankalpa become one that has goals and objectives; but one that has no set parameters, no specific outcomes (much like we tend to do for our New Year's Resolutions). Open yourself up to endless possibilities. Develop your sankalpa.
A sankalpa can take two forms. The first is what Miller (PhD, a clinical psychologist and teacher in the Advaita Vedanta and Kashmir nondual traditions), calls “the heartfelt desire,” a statement that reflects your true nature. 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.” According to Miller, it doesn’t come from the intellectual mind. “The resolve comes from deep within us, directly out of the mystery of who we ultimately are. It then informs our mind of a particular direction that we need to take, or are taking in our life.”
A sankalpa can also take a second form—that of a specific intention or goal. Setting specific intentions can help you align your moment-to-moment choices with your heartfelt desire. Ask yourself what specific things need to happen to move you forward on your path. Your specific sankalpa will describe what you need to do, and where you need to direct your energy, to make progress on your larger life goals.
Discovering your sankalpa is a process of listening. Your heartfelt desire is already present, waiting to be seen, heard, and felt. It’s not something you need to make up, and the mind doesn’t have to go wildly searching for it.
State the Sankalpa Stating your sankalpa in present tense acknowledges the tremendous will, energy, and truth that arrive with the discovery of your heartfelt desire. It also reminds you that whatever is required of you is already within you
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