Most New Year's resolutions spring from the misguided desires of the ego, senses, and conditioning. They almost always fail because they start from the assumption that who you are is not good enough, and reinforce the mistaken belief that your happiness depends on acquiring what you want.
Sankalpa is from yogic philosophy - it refers to a heartfelt desire, a solemn vow, an intention, or a resolve to do something.
It is typically part of the practice of Yoga nidra. Sankalpa is a short phrase or sentence, clearly and concisely expressed, using the same wording each time, to bring about a positive change in one’s life. Your sankalpa remains private to you and is not something to be shared with others.
The main purpose of yoga nidra is to realize one’s sankalpa. Sankalpa has the potential to release tremendous power by clearly defining and focusing on a chosen goal. Its effect is to 'awaken the willpower within' by uniting the conscious awareness with the unconscious forces lying dormant.
4 stages of Sankalpa:
This is the perspective from the future. In hindsight, we always know what to do. And we can avoid second guessing ourselves when we ask what the future you will do today in the past to become who they are.
Any challenges we face today are the trials and tribulations who make us what we become tomorrow. And because of this, there's nothing to fear and no reason to get worked up!
Example: Right now, I'm experiencing tension because I need to learn a new software program. The future me will benefit from wisdom of the work I'm doing now (which lessens the sense of struggle I currently feel).
When see through the eyes of the future point of view, your work is necessary and essential. It's all going according to plan. Your self-doubt is unnecesary.
Q. Can you anticipate what others will want before they do?
To realize the deepest quality of sankalpa, you may have to go through stages or levels along the way, like stepping-stones across a river: each step allows you to reach the next (and the options may not even appear until you've stepped to the next). With each step you take, you'll be within reach of the next one.
Often, we may not know what we want, but the path to get there is unclear. This is why allowing your sankalpa to arise intuitively is key. While there can be tension between who we are and who we want to be, let your sankalpa be your anchor to the present.
Let’s say your initial intention is to give up sugar. When you begin to view life from the point of view of someone who doesn't eat sugar, you will not feel the same cravings as someone who does.
Notice that your sankalpa begins to align towards this new state of being.
Think of it as a transition from one stepping-stone to the next. Only then can you see the next level or higher resolve to further deepen your commitment to this new way of being (which is not actually new, but rather remembered from your future self). As you realize your true nature, you gain further clarity into the big picture and the oneness of it all.
Be patient as it will take time for your sankalpa to emerge, let it come intuitively to you, which will give it power and strength.
If you don’t have a sankalpa the beginning of a yoga class, the class itself is the the perfect time to reflect on what your sankalpa could be. I often share with my teachers what came to me during class, and suprisingly, it's often exactly what they had intended.
A sankalpa practice starts from the premise that you already are who you need to be to fulfill your life's dharma.
Focus your mind, connect to your most heartfelt desires, and channel the divine energy within.
We are the chief architect of our life.
To create the life we are meant to live, we must draw the mind again and again to our dharma, our deepest intentions, and the qualities of the Divine within.
A sankalpa is a statement that does this for us.
We make a vow - “the rule to be followed above all other rules.”
Sankalpa, then, is a vow and commitment we make to support our highest truth. “By definition, a sankalpa should honor the deeper meaning of our life.
A sankalpa speaks to the larger arc of our lives, our dharma—our overriding purpose for being here.”
The sankalpa becomes a statement you can call upon to remind you of your true nature and guide your choices.
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. This includes iccha (tremendous will and energy), kriya (action), and jnana (the wisdom of how to deliver that action). “These are all aspects of the Divine, and they live within us. When the true sankalpa comes in, we awaken these three qualities of the Divine,”
Miller says. “You don't have to ask where you'll find the will to do it. The energy and will is already there. The sankalpa informs us of the action we're willing to take into the world.”
This helps to reveal why some people are willing to do what others are not. They have something beyond a why that is driving them - they are fulfilling their path in the world. They are pursuing a calling greater than themselves.
To begin - we establish a statement that reveals our true nature.
It's a statement of our true nature, example:
"I am peace. I am patience. I am one with everything and everyone in the dream called reality."
This first statement is not logical because it doesn't come from logic, it comes from our heart.
“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.”
The second aspect involves identifying the steps in your journey.
“When you discover your purpose, not everything happens all at once. To live your soul's mission, you need to reach milestones.”
Setting specific intentions can help you align your moment-to-moment choices with your heartfelt desire.
From The Merlin Principle:
Stop and step into the future you. The you that has already happened but you have yet to experience.
Working backwards, like Merlin, identify the actions you took to get you there. Consider writing the reflections of the yet unseen. You are writing a narrative which begins as fiction but becomes non-fiction as your experiences align with your writing.
Your unique and specific sankalpa will describe what you need to do, and where you need to direct your energy, and orients you on the map towards your future self.
Discovering your sankalpa is a process of listening.
Consider this:
Your heartfelt desire already exists - you just need to tune into it.
It's not something you need to make up, and the mind doesn't have to go wildly searching for it. In fact, the harder you look, the more elusive it becomes. Looking outside yourself will not lead you to sankalpa.
The stages of listening according to the Vedanta tradition:
Be aware of the false sankalpas - they are the illusions - the endless desires of your ego, senses, and conditioned mind.
To discover what we really want requires an honest assessment of who we are with an acceptance of who we ulimately need to become.
“Even a desire that might be interpreted as simple or shallow can lead you to the heart's desire. It might arise out of conditioning, but if you trust the practice and keep following the heart's desire, it will take you to the essence of your being.”
To get to that deeper yearning, work with whatever goal arises, but also ask yourself what's underneath it. Find the true source of the goal and you unlock the motivation to achieve it.
If you want to become more fit (as many do), you already know what you need to achive it. So why don't we?
The results never come soon enough and the hard work we put in is unsustainable. To a large extent, we are impatience and attempt to make lifestyle changes that are unrealistic.
A healthy life often requires a fundamental shift in our identity.
Align your actions today with the future you that your already living into, by experiencing in advance the feelings you'll have. The good or bad feelings of tomorrow are rooted in who we are today.
Regret can be a valuable teacher, but regets of the past are not useful - only in that they can help redirect us towards wise actis today.
What if instead, you ask what future regret will this act create?
If Will Smith had paused before he reacted - if he would have considered the best response to the situation - he may or may not have acted as he did.
Can we learn from the failure of others or do we have to learn them ourselves?
Revisiting your sankalpa's true nature:
Seeing clearly - the true nature that already exists - when we accept ourselves - if we can see the distinction - when who we're being is not who we are... that is power.
Before we can be true to others, we must be true to ourselves. So what is our truth?
I let my future self identity take hold... that yearning for something sweet begins to sway. I recognize the subtle shift that begins to take place. Who I am being is who I become.
The deeper meaning behind the superficial goal of 'No more sugar' feeds a much deeper desire, ‘I care for myself. I love myself. I want the best for myself. I am love, and love is what I do.' Sugar is hate.
Show: Love
Hide: Hate
In the present tense!
Your future becomes your past by way of right now.
To state from a the future is not now - it's only delaying - a form of procrastition. How many times have you said 'starting tomorrow I will....' and then tomorrow comes, only to find yourself in the same place. And we try again, 'starting tomorrow I will...' and you berate yourself for failing yet again and again and again.
What have you go to lose except besides your past self?
First know that you are only flawed from the perspective of a flawed view. Any point of view is only a single point of view from a single point in time. The true view is timeless. It is infinite. It is impermenant - everchanging.
Instead of stating your intention from a point of view of desire (such as as “I want”, “I will” or “I won't.”), make a vow - one which is true in the present moment.”
You've fully accepted the truth. You deny the past turth and only allow the future truth to be true for you - right now, not at some point in the future.
This is deep soul work - this is a denial of what has kept you from fulfilling the amazing life you've been given - the amazing life you are already living... a life that you've dreamed of, yet just woke up to. The dream is reality. You're finally awake.
We can't experience what we don't believe. We can's see what is beyond belief.
Starting this moment - believe it and it becomes true.
I have compassion for those I love. I have patience for the infinite. Milestones are wins and each is a learning opportunity.
I don't fear conflict, nor do I seek it out. I accept with a smile everything and everyone who comes into my life.
I accept the challenges and difficulties ahead - they all play a key part of who I am.
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.
The core practice of sankalpa is remembering.
As such, I feel the brand of ourself - the logo we create. The messaging to deliver to ourselves and the world needs to reflect the future we know.
This is why a song - an anthem for who we are is so helpful. Songs are memorable. Music is the channel for memory - it's why we can recite the lyrics to a song we haven't heard in years. An enjoyable tune is one that sticks in our head ---- so why not create one that empowers you?
Everytime you recite your mantra - your anthem - your state of being in the present aligns to your future self.
But be forewarned: “As soon as you say you want something, a part of you recognizes that you don't have it, by repeating what you want, you reinforce the belief that you don't have it.”
When the unconscious mind operates from a place of lack or perceived inadequacy, the energy that supports your resolve is weakened.
Tripura Rahasya is a tantric text which teaches that the quality of the mind reciting the sankalpa determines its effect.
To fully realize your resolve, the mind must shift from dualistic thinking to nondual awareness. This is why meditation is the most fertile ground for sankalpa practice. It returns the mind to a state of present moment wholeness.
The dualistic nature of time (past, present, and future) becomes a hinderence. That anxiety you feel? It's likley the duality of time.
“The longer we are able to effortlessly rest in that place of oneness, the more rapidly we are able to fulfill our sankalpa. The mind becomes a more powerful agent to help us fulfill our intentions.”
The most supportive state of mind for remembering your sankalpa is the direct experience that you are already open, timeless, and perfect—what nondualism describes as the state of pure being.
“If that's not in place, ego gets involved,” Miller says. “You will come at the intention from a place of ‘there's something wrong with me that I need to fix.' You must connect to the quality of being that is already complete and whole.”
Infinte is not a metric of time, but time as we typically think of it is a man-made metric. As such, it's an illusion we've all agreed on. It allows society to function according to the rules that allow society to continue functioning as it must. Take time away, and the rules change.
The statement of 'Infinite patience brings immediate results' reminds me how much of the outcomes of life take time to unfold.
The false self is time-based, while our true self is timeless.
Shifting our focus away from ourself begins to break the limits that time imposes on us.
The timeless nature of infinite allows the work to be unfold organically - nuturally - as your true nature intended.
That said - I'm still a firm believer that deadlines drive action. What we measure improves. So metrics like time can be useful.
One of the most powerful practices for finding this state and planting the seed of sankalpa is yoga nidra.
While nidra means “sleep,” it is actually a process of awakening to your true nature.
Yoga nidra systematically relaxes the body and mind and guides you into deep awareness. You are aware and awake, but you experience a disidentification from the body and mind. In this way, the confusion between prakriti and purusha dissolves, and you come to rest in the peace, wisdom, and love of your true nature.
In yoga nidra, we discover a profound level of openness. Our self-imposed limitations dissolve, and we are pure being.
When you recall your sankalpa in the waking state, it might trigger doubts or the ego's striving. “When you recall your sankalpa in yoga nidra, the heartfelt desire arrives as a felt sense in the body-mind. It is absolutely alive and true in that moment.”
Once you have identified and planted the seed of your sankalpa, you can begin the process of strengthening sankalpa shakti, the energy to take the action required by your resolve.
Every choice you make either supports or undermines your resolve.
This is true even for the decisions that don't seem directly related to your specific intention. “Let's say you're aware that sugar disrupts your energy and sleep. But time and time again, you ‘forget' this awareness and eat sweets anyway. Each time you do this, you reinforce the part of you that says ‘screw it' to awareness and intention. You're giving power to the part of you that goes against your consciousness.”
On the other hand, every conscious choice you make is an opportunity to strengthen sankalpa shakti. This is the basis for a ParaYoga practice called “the departure point.”
The instructions are simple: pick something nonconstructive that you do on a regular basis and commit to not doing it for 40 days.
Biting your nails, drinking coffee, watching television—it doesn't matter what you choose, as long as it's habitual. It could be related to your sankalpa, but it doesn't have to be.
This might sound a lot like the typical New Year's resolution, but the departure point practice isn't ultimately about the habit you're trying to break.
When you come to that moment of impulse, instead of following your usual instinct, bring your sankalpa to mind. In this way, the habit becomes a reminder that points you back to your resolve.
In the space between the impulse to act and reciting your sankalpa, it's important to pause and invite the mind to settle into a state of oneness.
Enjoy a few mindful breaths, and find the pause between the breaths.
“Take a moment to remember your true self-nature. In that state—a place of wholeness and unity, not a place of confusion or lack or even hope—remember your sankalpa,”
This is the key to the departure point practice. “The sankalpa is not being reintroduced to a mind that thinks it doesn't have what you think you want to have. It empowers the sankalpa in a completely different way.”
Even instances when you forget your intention can be transformed into support for your sankalpa.
Anne Douglas uses the memory of these missed opportunities to prepare students for future choices.
“Go back in time to a point where you lost it. Go back to that sensory feeling of compulsion, reimagine it, and recreate the moment.”
Once you're fully in that feeling, imagine not giving in to the habit.
Pull up the power of your sankalpa, and let yourself feel the heartfelt desire in your whole body. “Then go back to remembering the feeling of compulsion. Surf back and forth, making the feeling of the heartfelt desire stronger each time.”
I recogonize the abudance of wealth in my life. When I act from a perspective of scarcity, I give up my power. When I allow the win or loss to define my identity, I fall out of alignment and get caught up in the game - I forget the point of the game is not to win or lose - but to rise above it. I look at the mind and see that much of it is running on autopilot - with much it rooted in false fears.
You can apply the same approach not just to the behavior you choose for the departure point practice but for all of your choices.
Miller advises a daily review of your actions from the perspective of your resolve. For example, let's say that your heartfelt desire is, “I am filled with divine compassion,” and your specific sankalpa is “In every encounter, I treat myself and others with kindness.”
Looking back over your day, ask yourself: How was I unkind, mean-spirited, or hard-hearted? Conduct this review not with harsh self-criticism but with a sincere interest in seeing how it happened. What was the situation? What were your thoughts? How did it feel? What did you say and do? How did that feel?
Miller doesn't refer to these missteps as failures, but simply “moving away from yourself.” The momentary lack of compassion isn't who you are. “The sankalpa really describes who we are and how we move in the world when we're in harmony with ourselves.”
Life just happens to be the process of learning how to align with that true nature, which means we occasionally lose our way.
The point of the game is to stay on the board.
Once you see how you moved away from yourself, imagine how you could have responded.
What might you have thought, said, and done that would be more consistent with your resolve? What would that have felt like? See yourself in action and feel it in your body. Envision this response until it feels as if you had actually done it.
This practice “helps dissolve the conditioning that keeps us from our dharma and from awakening to our true nature.”
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.
You set specific goals, and you commit to breaking habits. But at every opportunity to act in line with these goals, you must first acknowledge that you are already perfect and whole.
According to Rod Stryker, this apparent contradiction is the essence of both sankalpa practice and nondual teachings. “It all goes back to this idea that each of us is both being and becoming. There's the part of us, para atman, that is transcendent, inherently one, and doesn't need anything. We also have a jiva atman, that part of us that comes into life with a purpose and a destiny and is always becoming.”
Stryker explains that to fulfill your dharma, you must find a way to integrate these two seemingly opposite aspects of being. “It's vital for happiness that you walk both paths simultaneously. Direct your energy with intention, but be mindful that your nature is unchanged whether you achieve your goals or not.
To be enlightened is to live as contentedly as possible in between the goal and realizing the goal.