Sankalpa - Heartfelt Desire
Intentional living
I start my group coaching programme this January and throughout the course we will be using a Sankalpa and a Yoga Nidra.
As we travel through the four week course, participants will use their own sankalpa daily within a yoga nidra practice to bring focus, richness and deeper meaning to their goals and plans.
It also supports this time of year. Winter is not a time to be detoxing and pushing, it’s a time to create from within, to go deeper and focus on building for the long term and from a more heart based position.
So why and how does it work?
Sankalpa is a Sanskrit term in yogic philosophy that refers to a heartfelt desire, an intention, or a resolve to do something.
It comes from deep within and tends to be an affirmation. It’s created from a deeper sense of knowing within the body
This term comes from the Sanskrit roots and translates to denote an affirming resolve to do something or achieve something spiritual.
Rod Stryker, a World renowned meditation teacher and yoga educator explains that kalpa means vow, or “the rule to be followed above all other rules.” San, he says, refers to a connection with the highest truth.
Sankalpa, then, is a vow and commitment we make to support our highest truth. It should honour the deeper meaning of our lives. The sankalpa becomes a statement you can call upon to remember your true nature and guide you to the steps that are in alignment with your purpose.
While a typical New Year’s resolution is often abandoned within weeks, as enthusiasm and willpower run out, a sankalpa doesn’t require the ego-driven willpower we typically try to summon to make changes.
Richard Miller, PhD, a clinical psychologist and teacher in the Advaita Vedanta and Kashmir nondual traditions explains, a Sankalpa arrives with everything needed to fully realise it. This includes iccha (tremendous will and energy), kriya (action), and jnana (the wisdom of how to deliver that action).
He says, “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,” he continues “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.”
In order to create a Sankalpa, you must realise that it will change with time. You may follow one Sankalpa for a week, and another one for ten years, it all depends on how you choose to work with it and what arises for you.
Begin by dropping the following question into your heart. It may help to get out a journal to contemplate your answer.
What is my soul’s deepest desire at this moment?
You may hear a little mind chatter, but generally the first and most prominent words are THE Sankalpa. But just sit for a while and allow it to land. A Sankalpa should be in the present, stated as if the desire is a fact.
Examples of this are
Desire: manifest a heart-centred romantic relationship
Sankalpa: I feel deeply loved and fulfilled in my relationship with my partner.
Desire: transition to a more fulfilling career
Sankalpa: I wake up excited for work and I go to bed feeling fulfilled every day.
Desire: attain a higher level of inner peace
Sankalpa: I feel deeply peaceful every day.
Sankalpa is a much deeper, more conscious and Spiritual awareness of how to work with our desires, goals, dreams and manifestations.
Yoga Nidra has so many benefits and I use it a lot with my 1:1 work to support intentional rest and relaxation.
Existing research suggests that yoga nidra may help people fall asleep faster and experience higher quality sleep. The practice may also promote deep sleep and potentially improve sleep by reducing stress and pain.
Experts have suggested that yoga nidra may improve sleep by activating the parasympathetic nervous system and dampening the effects of the sympathetic nervous system. The sympathetic nervous system triggers a stress response, while the parasympathetic helps restore the body. By reducing sympathetic and increasing parasympathetic nervous system activity, yoga nidra may relax the body and increase time spent in deep sleep.
Other Benefits of Yoga Nidra
In addition to improving sleep, researchers have suggested yoga nidra may provide additional benefits.
Anxiety and Stress Reduction
Multiple studies have found that practicing yoga nidra can reduce anxiety and stress in adults in general. Yoga nidra likely improves stress and anxiety for the same reasons it improves sleep — by slowing the sympathetic nervous system and prompting the parasympathetic. Research measuring autonomic nervous system activity confirms that engaging in yoga nidra triggers a relaxation response through a shift from sympathetic to parasympathetic activity.
Improved Mood, Confidence, and Self-Esteem
One study found that regularly practicing yoga nidra improved mood, well-being, and self-confidence in adolescents. Another study found that practicing yoga nidra improved the self-esteem of college students.
Yoga nidra may improve a person’s confidence and self-esteem by reducing stress. Past studies have found that self-esteem and stress management are closely related. For example, people having trouble managing stress tend to have lower self-esteem.
Improved Menstrual Symptoms
Multiple studies suggest that yoga nidra could be a potentially effective treatment for unwanted symptoms related to menstruation. Those who practice yoga nidra may experience fewer cramps, less pain, fewer digestive symptoms, and less anxiety and depression associated with their period.
Other Benefits
Initial studies have found that yoga nidra may provide other benefits such as:
Increased alertness
Faster reaction times
Improved athletic performance
Lowered blood pressure
Slower heart rate
Lowered blood sugar levels
Reduced pain and inflammation
Please enjoy the YOGA NIDRA FOR TRUST
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