A Joyful Practice

Trust & EXCERPT: “What We Need to Live Well” (the “missing” Saturday post) January 17, 2026

Many blessings to everyone, and especially to anyone celebrating the Forefeast of the Theophany.

May all beings everywhere experience a trustful surrender. May all beings everywhere feel a sense of belonging!

This is the “missing” post for Saturday, January 17^th. The practice and the first post excerpted below include references to mental health issues and connected traumas. There are no graphic descriptions. You can request an audio recording of this practice or a previous practice via a comment below or (for a slightly faster reply) you can email myra      (at) ajoyfulpractice.com.

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“TRUST, noun

1. Confidence; a reliance or resting of the mind on the integrity, veracity, justice, friendship or other sound principle of another person.

He that putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe. Proverbs 29:25.

2. He or that which is the ground of confidence.

O Lord God, thou art my trust from my youth. Psalms 71:1.

3. Charge received in confidence.

Reward them well, if they observe their trust

4. That which is committed to one’s care. Never violate a sacred trust….”

— quoted from Webster’s Dictionary 1828: American Dictionary of the English Language

The root words of the Sanskrit word sankalpa are “truth” and “vow” and the word itself is often translated into English as “vow or highest vow”, “will”, or “determination”. In various religious and philosophical traditions, it has additional meanings, including (in the Yoga Philosophy) “intentional thought”. It can also be considered a “ritual intention” (in religious law). During the Saturday practices, I often explain it as “a positive, active statement, in the present tense, that comes from the heart.” It is a mantra or “tool”; although, not every mantra is a sankalpa.

While I usually just incorporate the group sankalpa into the last portion of the practice — as a form of japa-ajapa (“repeat and repeat” or “repeat and remember”) that integrates the idea into our being — this year is a little different. This year, I plan to use the (2026) Saturday practices to breakdown the group sankalpa, which begins with something you might find hard to do during these challenging times: “I trust….”

“TRUST, verb transitive To place confidence in; to rely on. We cannot trust those who have deceived us.

He that trusts every one without reserve, will at last be deceived.

1. To believe; to credit.”

— quoted from Webster’s Dictionary 1828: American Dictionary of the English Language

In the 1828 version of his American Dictionary of the English Language, Noah Webster included 12 definitions of the word “trust” as a noun and five (5) definitions for verb forms, plus examples of how the word can be used in a sentence (based on each definition). Some of these definitions relate to legal entities, which I’m not getting into just yet. Neither am I going to spend a lot of time on these 17 different definitions, since most are still understood and used by modern audiences. You may remember, however, that Noah Webster studied (and incorporated) a variety of languages, including Sanskrit and Indigenous / Native / First Nation languages in order to create a dictionary and spelling and grammar tools that were uniquely American — and it is interesting to note how some words in other languages are translated into English as things other than “trust”.

For instance, apenimowin+an (in Ojibwe) can also mean “confidence”, “esteem”, “hope”, “optimism”, and “reliance”. Similarly,  wac̣iƞye (in one of the Dakota Languages) can also be used to mean “depend on something” and “appreciate someone”. In Navajo (the language of Diné), one of the words used for “trust” can also be translated as “responsibility” or “duty”.

Whether you consciously realize it or not, these meanings underlie your ability to trust yourself and your skills — especially when you endeavor to do something “‘…of use to Mankind’”, as encouraged by Benjamin Franklin (born today in 1706, according to the Gregorian calendar).

While they may not have used these exact words, this multi-faceted understanding of “trust” is also integral to observations about community made by Mr. Franklin and by Sebastian Junger (born today in 1962).

Click on the excerpt title below for more about Benjamin Franklin and Sebastian Junger.

The post excerpted below references mental health issues and connected traumas. There are no graphic descriptions.

What We Need to Live Well (the Sunday post)

Yoga Sūtra 1.23: īśvarapraņidhānādvā

— “[A perfectly still, pristine state of mind] also comes from trustful surrender to Ishvara [the Divine],”

Yoga Sūtra 2.45: samādhisiddhirīśvarapraņidhānāt

— “From trustful surrender to Ishvara [the Divine], [a perfectly still, pristine state of mind] comes.”

Saturday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for “01172021 Franklin Junger”]

If you are thinking about suicide, worried about a friend or loved one, or would like emotional support, you can dial 988 (in the US) or call 1-800-273-TALK (8255) for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You can also call this TALK line if you are struggling with addiction or involved in an abusive relationship. The Lifeline network is free, confidential, and available to all 24/7. YOU CAN TALK ABOUT ANYTHING.

White Flag is an app, which I have not yet researched, but which may be helpful if you need peer-to-peer (non-professional) support.

If you are a young person in crisis, feeling suicidal, or in need of a safe and judgement-free place to talk, you can also click here to contact the TrevorLifeline (which is staffed 24/7 with trained counselors).

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