Addressing Trauma Through Yoga Practice
Hala Khouri has been a yoga teacher for over 25 years. She is a therapist and somatic ...
Your Sankalpa and the New Moon
Çağlar Oskay/Unsplash
Sankalpa are your heart’s truest intentions. In the shadowy hush of the new moon, sankalpa can be unearthed and discovered.
In the core of darkness of the new moon lies an emptiness, a stillness, a source ripe with unlimited potential. This phase of the moon supports the planting of sankalpa, the seeds that hold the truest source of your heart’s desires.
The Spiritual Power of the New Moon
As the moon cycle wanes, and the reflection of the sun lessens, the shadow side of the moon begins to expand and seems to push out the light of reflection. While many fear the shadow, it is in the darkness that roots find their bearing and seeds begin their orientation with both the light and dark.
Undistracted by the myriad reflections that normally spill into consciousness, the dark night of the new moon provides space to look within. As the external source of input wanes, the inner realm is more accessible.
Discovering Sankalpa With the New Moon
In yogic philosophy, sankalpa are known as your heart’s truest intentions that connect you to your meaning and purpose for being alive. They are a way of connecting to your deep truth and a path to fulfilling your destiny. In a world filled with goals, achievements, and resolutions, sankalpa are often overlooked and relegated to the shadows.
While shadows block the light, they also create space for silence. Deep within you lies your sankalpa, patiently waiting for your attention to turn inwards. In the shadowy hush of the new moon, your sankalpa can be unearthed and discovered.
Spend time in the darkness of the new moon, allowing the vastness of the night sky to embrace you. Consider what you truly want, beyond the ideas of what others want from you, or what you believe is expected of you. Discard what does not live in your own heart.
(You may find it helpful to write everything down, or you may allow your mind to sift through the truths and the illusions as they present themselves.)
Your truth may present itself as words, color, shape, or sound. Connect with the feeling in your body, knowing in your core that this is your truth, not as some future reality but as one that exists inside of you in this and all moments.
The seed of your sankalpa may feel tender at first, vulnerable to the harshness of bright light. Nurture your sankalpa as the moon begins to fill again. Feel the strength and fullness of your sankalpa growing with the light of the moon.
Sankalpa and Yoga Nidra
Sankalpa is often brought into the preparation stage of yoga nidra, along with pranayama (breath practice), yoga poses, and mantras. Bringing your sankalpa into awareness before your practice is like planting a seed in fertile soil. It will grow in your conscious and unconscious awareness even after your practice ends.
In her powerful book, Radiant Rest: Yoga Nidra for Deep Relaxation and Awakened Clarity, Tracee Stanley, a yoga nidra, self-inquiry, and meditation teacher, offers sankalpa for each of the practices she presents. For a practice titled “Into the Void,” she offers this sankalpa, which seems fitting for a new moon.
I am as vast as the dark night sky, both empty and full.
I surrender to grace. I am awake to the infinite space of the eternal;
My creativity, inspiration, and potential are boundless.
You might take this as inspiration as you form your own sankalpa. As with affirmations, sankalpa are only helpful if they are felt as true on the deepest level. You know your own truth—exploring and tending your sankalpa allows you to start living it.
Explore more on self-growth and affirmation: “How to write affirmations that work for you.”
About the Author
Kalia Kelmenson is the creator of The Salt in Us where she helps water-loving women harvest the wisdom of their grief and pain so they can find freedom and flow in their life. She explores science and spirit at the intersection of mind-body medicine.
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