Thursday - Law of Intention and Desire

2/2/2017

“Inherent in every intention and desire is the mechanics for its fulfillment… intention and desire in the field of pure potentiality has infinite organizing power. And when we introduce an intention in the fertile ground of pure potentiality, we put this infinite organizing power to work for us.” Deepak Chopra

Thursday is the Law of Intention and Desire according to Deepak Chopra’s book The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success. I focus on my intentions and desires every day prior to meditation, but on Thursday, I spend more focused time on my intentions and desires and I write them down. It is important to set intentions so we know who, how and what to spend our time and energy on in life. When I don’t have clear intentions, I am like a hamster running on the treadmill of life and getting nowhere fast. When we bring our attention to our intentions and desires, the energy flows and we are more at peace and consciously making decisions on what to say yes and no to in life.

Attention brings us in to the present moment where we plant the seed for future transformation. Whatever you put your attention on will grow stronger in your life. Whatever you take your attention away from will wither, disintegrate and disappear. It is important to acknowledge what is no longer serving you and let that go and don't give it any more attention. On Thursday we write our intentions and desires down. We look at the big picture and list the things we want materially, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Make a list of your desires and review it regularly. Your list will change as you grow and evolve – that is why we do it every week.

There are things that you can do to strengthen your intention statements and make them more effective. Write them as if they have already happened and in a positive format, don’t use words like NO or NOT if you can avoid it. For some reason, the unconscious mind, which holds the mind-body connection and the power of manifestation doesn’t hear these negative words. Examples of positive statements would be “I am healthy.” “I am strong.” “I am kind and compassionate.” Some examples of intentions you might want to rephrase would be “I do not have allergies” – you could rephrase it to state, “I breathe clearly.” You could rephrase “I will be pain free” to “I am healthy.”

Intention is the real power behind desire. Intent alone is very powerful, because intent is desire without attachment to the outcome. Desire alone is week, because desire in most people is attention with attachment – you have a desire and you want to be in control of how it happens. One of the most powerful lessons that I have learned is to set my intentions, but detach from the outcome and how they come to fruition. Many times the Universe has a much better plan and the outcome far exceeds my expectation.

The mantra for the Law of Intention and Desire is “Om Ritam Namaha” which translates to “My intentions and desires are supported by cosmic intelligence.” The affirmations for success are:

I list my desires – write them down – reflect on them prior to meditation and sleep
I release my desires – let the Universe handle the details, look for signs, and be open
I practice present moment awareness - be conscious and aware in each moment

Do you set your intentions and desires?

Do you detach from how your intentions and desires are achieved?

3 Comments

Author

Peggy Steffens is an artist and Chopra Certified Meditation Instructor

My goal is to build a community with like-minded individuals who want to grow, share and learn from one another. Please post comments to enrich the experience for all.

Emily

2/9/2017 11:04:24 am

I truly believe that if you give attention to your defined intentions, your consciousness finds a way to that path. While laying down specific steps to achieve and attending to those is the most logical, I do find that even if I do not break down the approach into a checklist of steps, my mind, running the goal in the background, finds a path with its own steps, as long as I truly and concertedly keep that Intention as something I can articulate. Tolle says we should get out of our head and into our body. Stop analyzing.

The Law of Intention and Desire was initially one of the hardest for me to swallow. I think of the trendiness of books like The Secret that was summarized to me as: if you want it and concentrate on it. It will come to you. I saw people with dream boards of matched sofas and beautiful houses and could not help but think of people in third world countries who must certainly want houses with good roofs and running water, but it did not come to them. I was conflicted by my thoughts of the luxury of First World privilege and the reality of those born into situations where what we would consider fundamental human rights & necessities were beyond making a dream board and thinking about how much they wanted it. But, the more I got into a mindset of focusing on my desires, things truly did seem to happen and I rationalize that it is because my actions were aligned, whether consciously or otherwise, towards the attainment.

The Dalai Lama says our sincerity of motivation is our greatest protection. Our mission is to love goodness.

I really liked how, during your class on the Seven Laws, you had us break it down into categories of the material (I really want to get our landscaping done!, but was happy to realize that in my fortunate life, I really didn’t desire much else), emotional, spiritual, etc. You allowed us to articulate these wants and not feel selfish, instead to feel aware and focused.

The intention to which I am trying most attend to that of Integrity*, a quality of being complete and sound of moral principal, uprightness, wholeness and entirety. I wish to embrace my goal of Integrity with true desire free of attachment to outcome, but I have to say I am weak because I do desire the good feeling of a successful outcome. I will work towards the release of outcome and detachment. (*I am working through Baraz & Alexander’s book Awakening Joy and am very drawn to their chapter on Integrity and working towards blamelessness.)

While the concept of Integrity does touch on elements of the Law of Karma, I have been reflecting on it as an affective goal. Chopra says that you can feel the purity and goodness of deed as an instinct. A visceral physical reaction: tightness in the stomach or heart, the flutter of shivers in your chest and neck, &/or a darkness in thinking strikes at moments of selfishness or unkindness. Equally, a light feeling of warmth in a largeness of peaceful loving spirit envelopes us when you know you are doing the right thing and paying forward the circulation of good. Buddhism characterizes these actions and thoughts as “skillful” and “unskillful.”

What I am examining is the integrity of my thoughts and being mindful of where they take me, whether into a darkness of mind or a joyful state. In the Bible somewhere it says something like, “as it is in thought, so is it in deed.” It goes on there or in another part that the thinking about coveting someone else’s wife is as bad as actually doing it. While it is a life-long habit to reject the Puritanical doctrine that trains so many to feel guilty and almost as if we are always trying to fight our intrinsic badness, as I reflect, I am considering more and more the message behind “as in thought it is in deed.” What does letting the emotional swirl of thoughts cursing the behavior of someone else do to my heart, stomach, head? Where does envy take me? If I address those feelings and see them for what they are, can I use emotional and sympathetic integrity to shed them and turn them into compassion? Better yet, let them go and make a conscious decision to recognize in my heart it is not the right thing to do; to see the long-term big picture for longer-lasting happiness. That perhaps the thoughts are as the deeds because of the negative energy which it creates?

Do I feel ease or remorse with my actions and recalling past deeds or exchanges? How can I use reflections on those to form new habits and future actions? How am I limiting myself with words I use to define myself or my behavior? As you say, “Whatever you put your attention on will grow stronger in your life. Whatever you take your attention away from will wither, disintegrate and disappear.” Didn’t we call it “cessation” strategy with students?

Integrity comes into the decisions we make for our body as well. Is that the right thing for my body? Should I eat that or do that ph

Peggy

2/11/2017 08:17:18 am

Emily,
Thank you so much for taking the time to share your thoughts. You share so many quotes and books from others that we can all benefit from. You are very insightful as you look at yourself.

The one thing about listing intentions and desires that I have found is that mine have changed over the years I have been doing this. We are "human beings" on this earth and so we will have material needs and that is fine. And each of us is in different places in life and have different needs and desires. But, now I have more spiritual and ethereal needs. I really like your sharing about integrity and that is noble and what our world needs. You very elegantly shared your ideas and values and because you are open you are finding answers and concepts from others and internalizing it.

Keep up the great work and sharing with all of us, because we all learn from one another on this journey.

Peggy

Emily Mann

2/9/2017 05:35:14 pm

Sorry. This is a long reflection and probably one that needs much editing, but you made me think. Thank you for being an inspiration! You opened my floodgates.

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