Intention is constantly happening, but not always we are aware of it. Intention is not the goal we would like to achieve, intention comes from deep within, it talks about our feelings and our emotions; and not always we are very clear about what those feelings or emotions are. Intention gives you the opportunity to revise your heart, to look within and really take a look face to face to what you really are looking for. Intention does not have to be perfect, we just need to be aware that it is there and what is the sound of its voice. Life has a way of refining intention, of allowing us to witness ourselves and face our superficiality, those we don't really like seeing, or listening to. A sound intention helps you to listen to your hopes and fears regarding what we would like to achieve by placing that goal we are looking for. By listening to our hopes and fears, we are also becoming aware of those things in our life we would like to attract and those things in our life that we want far away from us, that we dislike, hide from or repress. Abundance of inner knowledge is found within those extremes and we just need to give ourselves the opportunity to listen to them.
Sometimes our intentions and therefore our goals can inform us of how much we actually reject ourselves as well and our own inner aggression that we are not always aware of. Media nowadays bombard us with the idea of better and faster, and the constant fixing of ourselves, the constant repulsion we have towards those things we dislike in us, in our life, in our surroundings.
To use intention as medicine for ourselves is the invitation to discern, to use curiosity to to go deeper within the heart and listen with sincerity. It is an invitation to the Gentle Path, the one that leads to acceptance and the awakening of the inner ear. The acceptance of the fear, the acceptance of the hope, the opportunity to root ourselves down into the here and now and not get lost in the future fantasy. But instead, allow life with its grace to surprise us, to awaken us. Not always those surprises are the most kind, they don't feel as nice, but they tend to happen when we are not being flexible enough in life, when something else needs the space to emerge. Sometimes in those situations the reality of our intentions come through. As painful as they can be.
Observing our intentions is a medicine for the heart. Some questions you can ask yourself are: Why do I want to do that or achieve that? For whom I would like to achieve that? If for myself, what do I think I will gain from it? What are the fears or hopes behind it? When looking at your fears or hopes, also try to pay attention to any inner criticisms that arise, or even any lacks that you believe you have… pay attention to the “not being good enough”. If you notice a clear negative conversation, stay with it. Ask yourself where this comes from? Place your attention on the heart. Allow the information to be felt. Write it down if that helps. Allow the intention to be refined, but don’t try to perfect it. Instead trust that it will unfold for you. Be curious, be brave.