Sankalpa:
Way Of Autosuggestion |
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induce the yoga-nidra state, the person is to lie in savasana.
He closes his eyes, relaxes his body and mind. How dose this
help? The manas receive no visual stimuli. The external world
is mostly cut off. A tense body and active mental thoughts
keep the manas over-occupied. Relaxation of body and mind
helps relax the manas. By this, the Conscious is almost inactivated.
If the Conscious becomes active, the Subconscious becomes
passive, and vice versa.
The second technique may be given the name 'destabilizing
the Conscious through gliding and sliding'. The manas is allowed
to glide and slide with reference to space and time. This
movement is smooth, rapid in a sequential pattern. By this,
the manas shift locationally and temporally. This is what
we call 'shifting of consciousness.'
The next exercise in the process of the flow of consciousness
involves variation in visual images of objects like flowers,
trees or tree-leaves, animals and birds. The next one is the
shifting of conscious from scenario to scenario, pertaining
to Nature.
By the practice of these techniques, the conscious component
of the manas is brought to a state, which is half-awake and
half-sleepy. This is a state, which is intermediate between
the state of wakefulness and the dream state. This is what
we call the yoga-nidra state in which the Subconscious component
of the manas acquires enhanced receptivity to suggestion or
auto-suggestion. And the sankalpa in yoga-nidra is an autosuggestion.
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The
sankalpa should be a simple sentence, not too lengthy, with
straightforward meaning. It is a command and, hence, should
preferably be in imperative mood. Any language that appeals
the heart most should be used. The sentence may also be affirmative
or negative in some special cases.In the |
case of 'do', an affirmative resolve is used.In the case of
'don't', a negative resolve is used.
Taking the case into consideration and deeply thinking over
it, the sentence should be constructed judiciously. The sankalpa
is not normally changed during the course of the auto-therapy.
Occasionally, two or three sentences may be used for a single
sankalpa; but very often one sentence is preferred. More than
three sentences should not be used for a sankalpa.
A single therapy may be for three months, six months or one
year. Ordinarily, a period less than three months is not recommended.
The practice may be done once or twice a day. If once, the
time before going to sleep is ideal. After the termination
of one therapy, a second therapy may be taken up if a second
problem is faced. But, ordinarily, more than one problem should
not be tackled during a therapy period.
The idea of the sankalpa is recorded in the Subconscious.
It becomes a memory (smriti), but not the ordinary memory-store,
made available to the Conscious. This layer of the deep manas
makes the ahankara (ego) conscious of executing the auto-command.
The ahankara executes the command through the agency of the
Conscious and the physique - its genes, cells, tissues and
organs.
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If
yoga-nidra is used for the final goal of liberation and not
for any mundane purpose, the yoga is to be more comprehensive
and rigorous. For such a goal, Patanjali's prescription of
yama and niyama is to be strictly adhered to and his samyama
comprising dhyama, dharana and samadhi is to be rigorously
practiced. |
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