Hello and welcome to this guided meditation for setting New Year intentions.
This topic comes up every year at this time and so I thought I'd offer a deeper look into what it might be like to set intentions rather than resolutions.
Before we get started just take a moment to come to a comfortable seated position with your back straight and your shoulders relaxed.
Let your hands rest wherever they are comfortable and then close your eyes as you turn your attention towards the rhythm of your breath.
Allow the breath to anchor you into this present moment softening both mind and body as you open yourself up to receiving the gifts of each breath.
Now tune into the ground beneath you imagining there are invisible roots taking up nourishment from the earth traveling all the way up to the heart space and then shift your focus to imagine a golden light above you penetrating your crown and bringing nourishing enlivening cosmic energy down into the heart space.
Take a moment to witness these two energies both upward moving and downward moving culminating in the beauty and peace of your heart.
Soften the belly the chest and the shoulders as you become more settled in this present moment.
Each January the idea of setting New Year's resolutions returns to consciousness and while there is nothing wrong with setting a resolution if this feels natural to us most of the time we fall short of our goals within days weeks or months sometimes within hours.
Resolutions are more steadfast decisions to do or not to do something and on the other hand intentions might be seen as more compassionate more subtle expressions of our hopes and deepest yearnings.
Intentions tend to be qualitative whereas resolutions are often quantitative.
Intentions offer us the chance to express either inwardly or outwardly what we hope to embody going forward and since they are typically less measurable than resolutions we might allow ourselves to move into and out of them as life permits.
In just a moment we will enter silent space to set our intentions for the New Year.
You may have your own intentions in mind or you may be open to receiving guidance on how to move forward in this coming year.
If the latter is true for you you might consider setting an intention such as I intend to express myself this year with compassion and courage or I intend to follow my heart trusting that I will be taken care of every step of the way or perhaps I intend to open myself more fully to love this year to both inner and outer sources of compassion kindness and forgiveness.
Now set your thoughts about intention setting aside for just a moment and draw your attention to the heart.
As the breath flows into and out of your body allow it to gently open the heart space on each inhalation and to soften its walls on each exhalation.
Opening on each inhalation and softening on each exhalation.
Now I invite you to bring your hands to your heart either in prayer position or resting one on top of the other and take a moment to tune into your heart's deepest intent.
Consider what virtues it yearns to express more fully as you begin to formulate one or a few intentions you'd like to bring into this new year.
Spend the next few moments in silence now silently wording or visualizing your intentions knowing that these qualities these virtues these yearnings are already within you.
They rest patiently to be brought to the light of awareness.
Take one final moment to wrap up your thoughts here and when you are ready gently release your hands back down to your lap or your thighs returning your attention to the breath.
As you move into this new year know that sometimes your intentions will be clearly embodied in your thoughts words and actions and at other times they will likely feel just beyond reach.
But no matter what the journey ahead of you brings ensure that you are blessing yourself with a gift of self-love and compassion as you are continually growing evolving and emerging alongside your highest intent.
Take a moment now to thank yourself for this beautiful practice as you ring in this new calendar year and when you are ready gently open your eyes to the space around you.
Thank you so much for listening and I wish you a beautiful day and year ahead.
