Sankalpa Side Notes
Sankalpa: Sanskrit term for a heartfelt vow, intention, desire, or dedication.
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My sankalpa emerged quietly this week. There was no grand declaration, just a simple noticing, a subtle shift in my awareness.
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I am working with boundaries. Specifically, I’m learning to honor the “no” as it arises— on the mat, in my body, in real time.
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On the mat, that “no” emerges in the invitation to honor a pause rather than push through to the next asana, to take a different shape than what is offered, or to back out of a shape that no longer feels good in my body.
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And here’s what I’m learning: This aspect of my practice feels like building muscle memory, deep listening, and an invitation to re-pattern my tissue and nervous system responses to honor the “no” rather than slip into patterns of compromise, collapse, compliance, or avoidance. It feels low-stakes—just me and my mat.
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When I notice the “no”, I’m learning/remembering that I can make a different choice. I can rest. I can pause. I can tend to myself.
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The more I work with noticing the “no” on the mat, the more I am recognizing that same “no” off the mat—in conversations, in commitments, in places where I’ve historically said yes when my body was already whispering no. I’m tapping back into my work on the mat to make different choices off the mat, and it feels like another layer of liberation work.
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I am reclaiming a deeper sense of Agency in the world through this practice. Breath by breath. Boundary by boundary. Just like my Ancestors did through their practices, rituals, and ceremonies while navigating an empire attempting to strip them of their Agency and personhood at every turn.
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This practice isn’t loud. It’s steady. And I am so grateful.
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What’s your sankalpa this week? Drop it below or just sit with it. No pressure. Just noticing.
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I hope some form of embodied practice and connection with breath serves as your refuge practice too.
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