by WYC teacher and owner, Sally Barber
Intention, like a magnet, draws scattered or illusive parts together. If we feel
dissatisfaction with our lives, intention rejects elements that do not belong. Intention provides clarity during times of anxiety or uncertainty. When we feel a void in our lives, intention attracts the missing component to us.
It sounds like magical thinking. Wave the wand of intention, and "poof", all that is wrong is eliminated and all that is right materializes. Indeed, it is folly to expect nothing more than thoughts to change everything. What distinguishes intention from wishful thinking is that it moves beyond our ego-centric mode of functioning. Intention is distinguished from magical thinking in that, with intention, the fear and negativity that pervade our waking consciousness are released. Further, what distinguishes intention from simple thoughts and wishes is where they come from. Intentions are created and expressed from the special place where body, mind, heart, and spirit are united in harmony. Here, unconscious forces no longer rule with their varied, conflicting messages.
This harmonious state is deeply meditative. It was termed Yoga Nidra, or yogic sleep, by the ancient yogis who discovered its awesome ability to create, to actually bring into being, that which is desired. Modern scientists note this unified state as being when brain waves are in an alpha phase. Yoga Nidra is the marriage of science and spirit; it transcends the time-space continuum. Yogi Desai refers to it as being aligned with Cosmic Consciousness. If comprehending "aligned with Cosmic Consciousness" is challenging, an alternative consideration is being in touch with our deepest knowing, our intuition.
Our intuition can be trusted. It is aligned with self and Source and knows what is right in and for us. Having a powerful influence on our lives, intentions are fulfilled in apparently contradictory ways. We take deliberate actions and behave in ways that foster the fruition of our intentions. Yet, at the same time, intentions are fulfilled in ways that defy logic. One of my meditation teachers attempts to explain the inexplicable by saying, "The universe manipulates circumstances!" Carlos Castenada describes intent as "an immeasurable, indescribable force." Although intent or intention is unable to be explained, measured, or described, Castenada notes, "Absolutely everything that exists in the entire universe is attached to intention by a connecting link." Wayne Dyer, who wrote and entire book on The Power of Intention, speaks of intention linking the spiritual with the physical. "Intentions are the energy of your soul coming in contact with your physical reality."
Intentions are the intersection of the physical plane of reality with the realm of spirit. When intentions are presented during Yoga Nidra, their magnetism draws the un-manifest into being. Intentions can be in arenas that range from health, to relationships, to career. Whatever the specific intentions are, the right combination of personal behaviors and fortunate circumstances transpire to assure their fulfillment.
Just as a magnet necessarily attracts steel, intention draws to itself that which is supposed to be. An intention of personal peace cannot attract chaos and conflict. Rather, personal peace actually manifests. An absence or void will not persist when intention is applied. The heart's prayer is answered with intention. With intention, each one of us has the power to be a magnet for that which is desired in our lives.
