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Excerpt from The Toltec Way
all material © 2005 Dr. Susan Gregg

Intent

ntent is the third of the Toltec Masteries. It corresponds to the stage of development in the Toltec tradition referred to as being a warrior. As a warrior you are practicing the skills of emotional neutrality and alertness so you can choose more clearly when and how to act. You are close to achieving personal freedom so your choices are based on your connection to your spiritual self rather than your filter system.

Our Intent directs our energy and dictates the form our creations will take. It is a very powerful force in our lives, yet we are often unaware of it. We have allowed the energy of Intent to become enslaved by our filter systems.

Intent works either consciously or unconsciously, but it is always operating in our lives. Once you learn how to consciously harness the power of intent, anything is possible. Intent works hand in hand with the other two Masteries. If you set your Intent to be aware of your filter system, you will stop focusing on the “out there.” If you aren’t actively conscious of your Intent, chances are your Intent is to defend your filter system and your limitations, so you will.

Our lives constantly reflect our Intent. If you look at the results you are getting in your life you can understand what your Intent has been. If you are unhappy, your Intent was to be unhappy. If you say your Intent is to quit smoking and you continue to smoke, then your Intent was to continue smoking. By using your ability to track yourself and see deeply within, you can understand your motives and use them to change your Intent.

Intent and the will complement one another. Think about a sailboat with the wind blowing strongly in its sails; the intent is the wind, and the will is the rudder guiding the boat. Your will directs the energy that propels you forward. Your Intent is part of the divine force that allows you to create your experiences in this life. Focusing your Intent with your will allows you to become a co-creator with God.

Intent is often hard to see directly but its reflection in our lives is always crystal clear. In order to thoroughly understand Intent, we will have to approach it from several different directions. Be gentle with yourself, embrace your outcomes, and Intent will become your greatest tool. Judge yourself and your process and you can be certain your Intent is to stay the same, not change. In the following chapters, I’ll explore how to discover your Intent and how your life will change when you surrender to it.