Moving into the New Year can be a bit tricky sometimes, and I don’t know about you, but as much as I look forward to a fresh start and all the beautiful possibilities…I can be left feeling conflicted, confused, and overwhelmed. The feeling of anxiety coming in waves when I think about all of the things I want to do, and see, and learn and how can I fit them all in and afford it and stay on top of my practice and friends and family and spirituality…ok, you get the picture. Deep breath…and dial it back. This year I am doing things differently.
The first thing I am doing differently is that I am taking inspiration from the Sanskrit word “Sankalpa” which means an intention formed by the heart and mind…a solemn vow, determination, or will. The way this was explained to me is that it is a very important part of a series of meditations (typically 40 days in a row) to guide the person towards a word, or short concise statement, or picture of what they believe their life is meant to be like. Once you have the word or short statement, visualize it. See the font, is it capitalized, is it bold? This is now what you will embody for the time that you are meant to have it. Sometimes it can come to a person right away and at other times it may take many meditations to get to their Sankalpa. You may do this once per year, per season, or whenever there is a change in your life. The New Year happens to be a pretty perfect time for just such a practice. One important thing that I should note is that a Sankalpa will rarely come to the conscious mind so it is very important to take the time to get to your meditation area and get those alpha waves flowing! You already know that acupuncture takes you into that alpha state, right? I thought so.
In my practice this year my Sankalpa is in the process of coming forward and I am putting some final tweaks to it, but so far it is – fluid (as an adjective)…able to flow easily…smoothly elegant or graceful.
The next thing that I am doing differently this year is to focus on feelings rather than “shoulds”, “lists”, and “needs”. There is a time and a place for those, yes, but this year I am getting serious with how my life feels to me. I believe that for the most part, I am in touch with my body and mind but the missing piece is the heart. In Chinese Medicine, the Heart affects all other organ systems and emotions and contributes to how those emotions are felt and expressed. In the past I have tried journaling, counselling, and even herbs to be able to feel my feelings more. I am in a unique position where I am in tune with my body enough, and understand the theory of feelings and how they relate to different situations, relationships, events, and corresponding bodily functions or dysfunctions, but then oblivious to how and why I wasn’t feeling them.
In Chinese Medicine – more like, Chinese culture, there is a theory of yangsheng or the art of nourishing life. The goal is to live in such a way that there is harmony in all aspects of your life and one main course of action is to “take the middle road”. For example – never eating too much or too little, exercising a moderate amount, and also acting or reacting in a way that you are always emotionally “in balance”…like a smooth lake (which incidentally is the visual I keep getting for my Sankalpa). So there is a part of me that has already been practicing this for ages and I think I am getting quite good at which could explain, in part, why I have not been feeling things on any extreme level. The other reason could be that I am blocking myself from those feelings. And without this turning into a therapy session, I am aware that this requires my attention and I am excited to get peeling back those layers!
The feelings that I am focusing on this year are serenity, appreciation, love, patience, motivation, harmony, freedom, gratitude, inspiration, and peace.
An interesting thought on both of these focuses is that in order to be successful I will have to be disciplined in my thoughts, feelings, and actions. However, the word discipline conjures up images of military for me which is quite the opposite of what my intentions for this year are (fluid, graceful, ease…). In order to get to the level of development I am seeking, I will have to be diligent and forgiving with my practice until I am adept in the fluidity of life which is my intention.
Having (the start of) a Sankalpa and a short list of feelings to focus on, is helping me to visualize how my year will play out. I am open to new adventures, experiences, sensations, and whatever else may come my way. I will be meeting these with ease, grace, and kindness, and foregoing rigidness, constraint, and suppression. I am excited to be taking time each and every day to check in with my heart, mind, and body to not only have my most outstanding year yet but to continue to grow, and evolve as an enlightened citizen of the Universe.
To you, I wish nothing less than the very best of everything your heart desires, for all your days. Happy New Year!
