Negative intention is an unconscious no that opposes the conscious yes. It seeks separation and tries to distance us from our longing for happiness and fulfillment.
“Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will govern your life and you will call it destiny”
The word “intention” comes from the Latin intentio, intentionis and means “purpose, thought of carrying out a thing.” Taking as reference the teachings of John and Eva Pierrakos expressed in Corenergetics and the Pathwork, we can distinguish on a psychological level two types of intention one positive and one negative.
1. Positive intention
The positive intention is one that tends towards self-realization, towards love and compassion, towards a pleasant and constructive purpose. It is linked to what in psychotherapy we call the Higher Being, which could be understood as the inner Buddha, the innate wisdom beyond the ego, the connection with God or the universe, etc. It has an expansive nature and brings clarity and wisdom. It goes beyond individuality and therefore seeks a purpose beyond its own benefit. Examples of this intention would be acts of kindness that do not seek recognition, the beginning of a therapeutic or personal development process motivated by a will to evolve towards love and unity, work understood as an act of service or offering the best of oneself and in general any act that does not have the purpose of strengthening the ego.
Along with this positive intention that emanates from the wisest and purest part of ourselves, there is always a negative intention that seek one’s own benefit This intention comes from the ego and seeks to perpetuate a self-image. It is linked to contraction, to the perpetuation of the status quo, the purpose is to stay as one is and to do so it uses all types of resistance, manipulations and neurotic mechanisms. It is an unconscious no that opposes the conscious yes. It seeks separation and tries to distance us from our longing for happiness and fulfillment. It could be assimilated to the death instinct or Thanatos that Freud spoke of. An example of this negative intention would be the search for recognition, prestige or personal benefit from any act, the excuses we make to not leave our comfort zone, resistance to change and openness in a therapeutic process, etc. This negative intention, born from the ego, is not creative, nor can it lead us to a solution or real benefits and, although it may have “partial victories”, it limits our creativity, enjoyment, and self-realization. The negative intent manifests itself in the form of pride, desire to be different, stubbornness, false self-love, etc.
Why should we ‘cleanse’ negative intention?
It should be noted that these two intentions appear together, so it is very important maintain very fine attention to “cleanse” our actions of this negative intention. This “cleansing” process consists of maintaining self-observation as equanimous as possible, to recognize in ourselves this self-boycott, this no to life that is constituted by negative intention. To do this, it is essential to maintain internal openness and be willing to experience all feelings and not just those that we classify as positive. Anger, envy, hatred, negativity become harmful and destructive if we keep them hidden and refuse to recognize their existence within ourselves. Not wanting to see this type of emotion in ourselves, we deny a part of our being and expose ourselves to it appearing, undoubtedly in disguise, in the form of manipulation, cynicism or, more extreme, as sadism, cruelty or other destructive forms.
When we recognize and accept the negative intent, a different light appears, as if something came loose. A loving and patient look at oneself is essential, avoiding judgments and blame. The courage to look at the darkest part of oneself has the reward of inner peace even though the process can be painful. The loving and confrontational company of a therapist is highly recommended to help us look into our darkest areas and, when necessary, tell us how to discharge repressed emotions that usually take the form of anger and crying in a controlled and non-destructive manner. By shedding light on the entire range of feelings, both those that seem appropriate to us and those that do not, we make negative emotions become conscious, gaining the capacity for choice and freedom.
A good exercise would be to ask yourself, what is my negative intention at this moment? And simply recognize it and try to charge the positive intention that we are looking for. What does my negative intention seek, for example in the workplace? Maybe work as little as possible, take advantage of someone else’s effort, obtain recognition, boycott my enjoyment because I believe I don’t deserve it… After recognizing this negative attempt In ourselves we can try to carry the positive intent, giving space to the feeling of helping others, of giving the best of ourselves, of enjoying life, of being better people, of living more fully and contributing to others as well. they do it. This intention is always present and is born from a part of us that is beyond individuality. It is possible to ask this inner wisdom for help and connect with an internal force that will help us in our purpose. Each process of change, each evolutionary step is carried out when the ego commits to said change, letting itself be carried away by the Higher Being (inner wisdom, buddhahood, connection with the source, god…) in a humble and brave surrender. In this regard, it is good to know that this Higher Being does not take into account what you have but rather what you give and we connect more with his strength by being humble and committing to our own fulfillment and happiness.
