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Yoga Nidra is a powerful technique for securing your intention. Known as the deep sleep of the yogis, Yoga Nidra creates a state of deep, conscious relaxation. Yoga Nidra uses intention as a mental device to create an energetic alignment between what you think, say and actually do by tapping into the powerful capabilities of your subconscious. The result is integration in your personal and professional life.
Your brain waves actually move into the alpha state of 7 to 14 cycles per second, which is much lower than our waking state characterized by beta brain waves of 14 cycles per second. The yogic term for this state is Turiya. It is considered the fourth state of consciousness with Waking, Sleeping and Dreaming being the other three states. Of course we know these other three states quite well. We are awake. We sleep. We have dreams.
Turiya, the fourth state of consciousness, is different. Here you remain fully conscious while in a deeply meditative state. When you are in this alpha state you are open to suggestion as your conscious, logical mind looses the defensive barrier. When you are in this state of Yoga Nidra you can program your own subconscious mind.
What you program your mind with is your intention. How do you want to perceive your own life. Are you open to change? Do you want to see the positive in all situations? Can you allow health and harmony to enter your life and your physical body? All of these are possibilities with yoga nidra.
A critical element of change in life is the creation of energetic alignment between what you subconsciously and consciously think, say and do. This is more challenging that it may appear. A lack of alignment not only prevents many people from realizing their dreams; it can sabotage well intended efforts designed to help you change life-long habits.
Bill Eager teaches a two and four hour Yoga Nidra workshop where you learn a specific process to create an intention that will easily be accepted at all levels of your being. You will experience the powerful impact of Yoga Nidra.
Create Your Intention
An intention is not a goal, nor is it an outcome. It is bigger, and more profound. It is a direction, a roadmap, that points the way to significant and sustainable transformation. There are several ways to distinguish a goal from an intention. Goals are time oriented. They have an end-point. With goals, the present moment is an obstacle. When you are goal oriented you create attachment to a specific end result. This attachment creates a conflict between where you are today, at this moment, and where you imagine you will be when the goal is reached. Goals create expectations result. I use the word learn because this is a new way of doing things that takes practice. The best way to practice is to start with little projects. Projects where your mind and ego have already determined that they are not important. Go to the grocery store; mow the lawn; decide what to have for dinner. Even these simple tasks take on gravity and story telling under the right circumstances. like when you are running late.
I am not suggesting you become reckless. Simply, if you loosen up control about a simple process, you start to create a new process for living. Show your mind that it does not have to be involved in every aspect of decision making. That while you occasionally appreciate mental micromanagement; there are times where outcomes improve without buy in from your brain. Profound things start to happen when you eliminate a predetermined outcome. The first thing that happens is you open yourself to enjoy the process. It is like this. You want to paint your house. You have the paint, the ladders, the brushes and some good friends. If you use a time-bound outcome the house has to be painted perfectly in three days. The entire time you worry about how good a job your friends are doing, and whether it will be done in three days. Drop the outcome and allow yourself and your friends to get into the “zone” and enjoy the process. Then, quite magically, the outcome will exceed your expectations. Let success happen.
Do not attach yourself to any outcome. The other aspect of attachment is yourself. As hard as it is to eliminate predetermined outcomes; it may be harder to eliminate yourself from the outcome. The outcome, intended or not, is all about you. From the moment you wake up in the morning to the time you hit the pillow your actions revolve around you. Even when you are doing things for other people it is not uncommon to have your own personal reference point on how things are going.
The underlying issue is that not only do we judge outcomes, we judge ourselves. Financial success has become a significant measure of our success. The more money you have the more successful you are. Right? When you lose a job; can not pay bills; see your 401K drop by forty percent, it does not feel good. Part of that feeling is the fear about the money and the uncertain future that arises when your economic position changes. But there is another aspect to the feeling which relates to self esteem. Your financial wealth, and the security blanket you pretend it provides, has an impact on how you feel about yourself and your life. and stress. In your mind you image how things will be (different) when a goal is reached.
Intentions are timeless. With an intention what happens during the process is more important that what you get, or when you get it. With intention you move in a chosen direction but you are not attached to the outcome. You enjoy yourself on the journey. It is the process that creates transformation, not the end result. With a goal what you hope to achieve is the focus. With intention you are the focus. Your intention creates a shift in your thinking and your habits that change how you perceive the world. With a new lens, you change what happens. In other words, you must have in the beginning what you want in the end. If you want peace in the future you must start with peace now. Your intention is peace. You become peaceful now. You carry peace into your life. How can you possibly become something in the future that you are not right now? It is impossible in both theory and practice. If you push it out to the future when do you get there? Never. If you want peace you must be peaceful. If you want love - be loving. These are your intentions.
When you create a simple, clear intention, the time-oriented goals for transformation automatically become apparent. It will be a no-brainer (literally).
GOAL: uses future tense, requires external validation, selfish rather than expansive.
INTENTION: is oriented to the present tense, relies on wisdom and guidance from within, involves others in an act of co-creation.
How do you create a great intention? There is a simple, three-step process. This process is described in the book Thrive Inside available on this site, and experienced in Yoga Nidra workshops.
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