Hello,
I'm Amy Ruthy,
And this is a yoga nidra to help you practice being in stillness and silence.
Start by getting as comfortable as you can.
Make sure that your entire body is fully supported and can relax into the surface beneath you.
Softly close your eyes and breathe in and out through your nose.
And notice your belly rise as you inhale and fall as you exhale for a few rounds of breath.
Now we'll practice a few rounds of box breathing to allow you to settle into stillness even more.
In a moment,
You'll inhale through your nose for the count of four,
Pause for the count of four,
Exhale for the count of four,
Pause for the count of four.
So we'll start that together.
Inhale,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Pause,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Exhale,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Pause,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Inhale,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Pause,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Exhale,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Pause,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Three more rounds of breath on your own at your own pace.
Return to your natural rhythm of breath and come up with your sankalpa,
Your heart's intention,
For your practice today or for your life in general.
Flow your awareness to your heart and ask your heart what its intention is for your life right now.
Use that answer and come up with a positive statement in the present tense.
For example,
I am resting in stillness or my body is still and resting deeply.
Use one of the examples or your own sankalpa and silently repeat it three times with full awareness.
Now we'll flow to a rotation of consciousness throughout the body.
As I name different parts of the body,
Bring your full attention to that body part.
You don't have to move that body part,
Just bring your full attention to it.
Starting with your right hand,
Bring your full awareness to your right hand thumb,
Second finger,
Third finger,
Fourth finger,
Fifth finger,
Palm of the hand,
Back of the hand,
Wrist,
Forearm,
Elbow,
Upper arm,
Shoulder,
Right side of the chest,
Waist,
Heel,
Sole of the foot,
Top of the foot,
Right big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe,
All five toes,
The whole right leg,
The whole right side of the body,
The whole right side of the body.
Now over to the left hand,
Bring your full awareness to your left hand thumb,
Second finger,
Third finger,
Fourth finger,
Fifth finger,
Palm of the hand,
Back of the hand,
Wrist,
Forearm,
Elbow,
Upper arm,
Shoulder,
Underarm,
Left side of the chest,
Waist,
Sole of the foot,
Top of the foot,
Left big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe,
All five toes,
The whole left leg,
The whole left side of the body,
The whole left side of the body,
The whole left side of the body,
And the whole right side of the body,
Simultaneously.
Now sense the back of the body,
Back of the right heel,
Left heel,
Right calf,
Left calf,
Right hamstring,
Left hamstring,
Right glute,
Left glute,
Back of the pelvis,
Lower back,
Middle back,
Upper back,
The entire spine,
Right shoulder blade,
Left shoulder blade,
Back of the neck,
Back of the head,
Top of the head,
Forehead,
Right temple,
Left temple,
Right ear,
Left ear,
Right eyebrow,
Left eyebrow,
Center of the eyebrows,
Right eye,
Left eye,
Right nostril,
Left nostril,
Right cheek,
Left cheek,
Upper lip,
Lower lip,
Both lips together,
Chin,
Jaw,
Throat,
Right collarbone,
Left collarbone,
Right side of the chest,
Left side of the chest,
Upper abdomen,
Navel,
Lower abdomen,
The whole right leg,
The whole left leg,
The whole right arm,
The whole left arm,
The whole face,
The whole body,
Front and back,
Right and left,
The whole body.
Sense the whole body.
Now,
Flow your full awareness to your body breathing naturally.
Your entire body is still,
Except for the parts of your body that move gently with your breath.
Start to count your breath from down to one.
And if you finish early,
You can return to simply watching your natural breath.
Inhale and exhale for nine,
And work your way down to one.
Keep your body still,
And imagine the sensation of your body sinking into the surface.
Imagine the sensation of your body sinking into the surface beneath you,
Body sinking.
Now,
Body floating.
That it starts to float.
Back to sinking,
Body sinking,
And leaving an imprint in the surface beneath you.
Back to floating.
Floating as if your body is full of helium.
Now,
Sense both sinking and floating at the same time.
Now,
Flow to your inner refuge.
A place where you can fully surrender without any external distractions.
It can be a place that you're familiar with,
Or a place that you might envision.
Sense that place at your mind's eye.
With your eyes closed,
Notice what that place looks like all around you.
Really paint the picture.
Sense the surface beneath you in that place,
And where that surface is supporting your body.
Tune in to the sounds in that place.
What do you hear around you,
And notice any smells in that environment.
Really sense,
Feel,
And render into that place.
And continue to observe your body breathing naturally.
Stay in that place,
And absorb the peace and stillness as you watch your body.
Breathing completely naturally.
From this place of stillness and silence,
Circle back to your sankalpa,
And silently recite it again three times with full awareness.
It's time to come back to the present moment.
Start to deepen your breath.
Deeper inhale,
And count your breath from one up to five.
Inhale,
And exhale for one,
And work your way up to five.
Take your time.
As you lie here,
Notice how your body feels in this moment of stillness and silence.
And remind yourself that you can always return to this peaceful place through the practice of yoga nidra.
Start to introduce small movements in your body.
Move your fingers.
Perhaps move the muscles in your face.
Start to wake up the body.
If you'd like,
You can take a full body stretch.
Arms up over the crown of your head.
Feet stretching out from your torso.
And thank you for joining me for this yoga nidra practice for stillness and silence.
Namaste.
