As the New Year 2019 approaches, a lot of us start making resolutions!
The most popular ones usually are lose weight, get a new job, quit unhealthy eating habits or working patterns. Unfortunately, by April or sooner, most of these resolutions are forgotten, since we realize it takes effort and motivation to keep them active in our lives.
So the question which we need to answer might be , how shall we be mindful of the changes which we want to visualize in our life.
As Annie Dillard says "How we spend our days is how we spend our lives".
So as this New Year rolls around, how about we set an Intention for the changes we want to make and keep?
In our Yoga classes, we set an Intention as we begin practice. Maybe, we want to work on tight hips, or we want to connect to space in our armored hearts.
But, as the practice unfolds, we breathe, move, hold postures, allow the flow of fresh Prana to stuck spots and tight hips.
The process always helps, we come out of our chaotic minds, we reach the shore of calm breaths and quiet body..its still a beautiful mystery to me , even after a decade of practice.
In similar fashion, let's look at the changes we want in this New Year.
Having an Intention creates a deeper connection to the whole experience.
Want to get started?
Visualize how you want to feel or how you want to be. Meditate or sit quietly to connect with your inner self. Once you realize your dream or desire, set an intention on how you want to feel, what you want to do, how you want to be etc. Create a visual (e.g., sign, list, image) to harness the power of attention (this keeps your dream and intention “visible”). Develop a plan of actions to fulfill your intention. Finally, act on your plan.
If you have already made resolutions, you may still realize the benefits of intention. Consider the ultimate feeling or being your resolution will achieve, for example, if your resolution is to lose weight, your intention could be to be healthy. If my underlying intention is to be happier, my resolution could be to spend more time with friends.
Do try this mindful practice , not just at the beginning of the New Year, but through the year, through the good days and the challenging days; we learn each day to live consciously with ourselves.
I would like to end this Blog post with a Metta prayer :
May all beings be peaceful,
May all beings be happy,
May all beings be safe,
May all beings awaken to the light of their true nature,
May all beings be free.
Namaste,
Asha