Yoga Nidra: Adaptable Wood Element

Rooted in growth, resilience, and emotional balance, the Wood element guides you like a tree reaching toward the light. This session explores the duality of emotions like anger and compassion, inviting balance to align with your purpose. Through imagery of strong yet flexible trees, connect with your own adaptability, finding clarity and softness where it’s needed most. Experience grounding energy as you cultivate inner strength and emotional flexibility.

Transcript

Welcome to your Yoga Nidra practice.

In this session,

We will explore the energy of the wood element.

Wood represents growth,

Resilience,

And flexibility,

Qualities that reflect the strength of trees and plants as they grow towards the light,

Bending but not breaking.

Wood element also symbolizes the duality of emotions like anger and compassion,

And the energy of planning,

Decision-making,

And creation.

When balanced,

These emotions and actions fuel the direction of your life's purpose.

Let this practice help you navigate the balance between these forces,

Perhaps bringing flexibility where there's rigidity,

Compassion where there's conflict,

And clarity where there's confusion.

We dedicate the fruits of this practice to the universe and all its beings and the collective wisdom.

May we rest in our inner knowing and feel peace within.

Begin by settling into a comfortable position,

Either lying on your back or any posture where you can completely relax.

Make any final adjustments to feel completely supported and at ease.

Allow your body to become still and close your eyes softly.

Notice the places where your body meets the surface beneath you and sense the stability and support that are always present,

Like the strong roots of a tree grounding you to the earth.

Invite your body to soften and release,

Like a tree letting go of its leaves in autumn.

As you settle in,

Turn your attention to your breath without changing anything.

On your next exhale,

Let go of any tension or holding.

Allow yourself to arrive fully in this space,

Giving yourself permission to simply be.

Feel your body softening with each progressive exhalation.

Now take a deep breath in through the nose,

Hold for a moment,

And let the tension build.

And then let go with a sigh.

Again,

Deep breath in through the nose,

Holding,

Building tension.

And then let go with a sound.

One more time,

A deep breath in,

Hold.

And then let go,

Returning to your normal breath flow.

Take a moment to welcome an intention,

A positive resolve for your practice.

Translated in present tense,

In affirmative words,

This is an agreement you make with the highest form of yourself.

It can be in your native language,

Or it may appear as a deep sense,

A feeling.

It may sound like,

I accept myself as I am,

Or I express myself confidently and consciously.

As it comes to you,

Repeat it silently three times.

Know that this intention is like a seed growing into a young sapling,

Embodying your deepest desire for growth and transformation.

And letting that go.

We will now explore the body by rotating awareness throughout it.

As I name a part of your body,

Allow your attention to follow,

Sending your attention to each body part,

Without thinking and doing,

Just bringing gentle attention.

Bring your undivided attention to your right foot.

Right foot.

Right leg.

Left leg.

Right hip.

Left hip.

Right lower back.

Left lower back.

Right middle back.

Left middle back.

Right shoulder blade.

Left shoulder blade.

Right arm.

Right arm.

Right palm of hand.

Left palm of hand.

Whole spine.

Your whole spine.

Back of the head.

Top of the head.

Right eyebrow.

Left eyebrow.

Middle of forehead,

Third eye center.

Right ear.

Left ear.

Right cheek.

Left cheek.

Right side of jaw.

Left side of jaw.

Right side of the throat.

Left side of the throat.

Right collarbone.

Left collarbone.

Right side of the ribcage.

Left side of the ribcage.

Now bring your attention to the middle of your chest.

Become aware of the heart center.

The direct experience of the heart center.

Feel it open.

Sense breath flowing in and out at your center,

At the heart space.

The cycles of breath flowing in and flowing out.

The in-breath sending air to the lungs,

The chest rises.

The out-breath releasing air from the lungs,

The chest falls.

Feel its natural flow,

Noticing how it moves in and out without effort.

A natural flow,

An earthly exchange wherein you provide for the trees and the trees provide for you.

Visualize the green ones,

The trees and plants inhabiting the earth,

Giving you oxygen and receiving your carbon dioxide in a balanced exchange.

With each inhale,

Feel yourself drawing in the vitality and life force of the trees,

Filling your lungs with fresh,

Vibrant energy.

With each exhale,

Imagine releasing any stagnant or blocked energy back to the trees where it can be transformed and renewed.

Inhale the strength and flexibility of the trees,

Filling yourself with stability and calm.

Exhale and feel yourself offering anything you no longer need.

Continue this exchange,

Breathing in harmony with the green ones around you.

Let yourself become a part of this sacred cycle,

Inhaling their gifts and offering yours in return.

In this deep sense of awareness,

Shift your gaze to your third eye center,

The space between your eyebrows.

Imagine yourself in a tranquil forest,

Surrounded by tall trees.

Each tree is unique,

Some are thick and strong with deep roots and wide canopies,

Others are slender and flexible,

Bending gracefully in the breeze.

Imagine yourself as a strong tree,

Deeply rooted in the earth.

Feel the sense of stability and resilience.

Your body is like the trunk of a great oak,

Solid,

Unwavering.

Sense the firmness in your body,

A feeling of inner strength that cannot be easily shaken.

Feel your roots extending deep into the earth,

Grounding and anchoring you.

Now imagine yourself as one of the young willow trees,

Bending effortlessly with the wind.

The branches move and sway,

Adapting to the changing currents without resistance.

Sense the suppleness in your own body,

Your limbs becoming light and pliant.

There's a feeling of openness and ease,

As if you can flow with whatever comes your way.

Becoming again the mighty oak tree,

Deeply rooted,

Stable,

Resilient,

Unshakable.

Sense anywhere in your body the firmness and stability of the oak,

Again embodying the movement,

The swaying of the willow,

Branches yielding to the shifting winds without resistance,

Without breaking.

Sense anywhere in your body the suppleness and lightness of the willow.

Feel the strength of the solid oak,

Firm and stable.

Then the fluidity of the willow,

Yielding and flexible.

Firm and stable.

Fluid and flexible.

Firm and stable.

Fluid and flexible.

Now experience holding both these sensations simultaneously.

Strength and flexibility,

Stability and flow.

Allow both seemingly opposite sensations to fully develop within your body.

Notice how both sensations coexist within you.

Feel yourself as a tree that is both strong and flexible,

Rooted and yet open to movement.

Embrace these qualities as parts of your own nature.

Bring your awareness to your third eye center and picture yourself walking through an old,

Lush woodland.

The trees around you are ancient,

Their trunks wide and gnarled with time.

Their leaves form a thick canopy overhead,

Filtering the sunlight into soft green hues.

The air is filled with the scent of earth and moss.

And you can hear the voices of the forest,

The sounds of birds singing,

Leaves rustling,

And a distant stream flowing.

Feel the wisdom of this forest,

How it has witnessed countless seasons,

Floods,

Fires,

All manner of transformation.

The trees here hold the history of the land,

The stories of generations past.

Each tree is like a living library,

Its rings recording the passage of time and the lessons learned.

As you walk,

You come upon a clearing in the forest where the sunlight streams through,

Bathing a great old tree in golden light.

This tree is magnificent,

Its branches heavy with fruits of every kind,

Offering nourishment to all the creatures that pass by.

Notice how the tree bears its fruit effortlessly,

Providing for others without depletion.

It embodies the perfect balance of giving and receiving.

Approach this tree and place your hands on its trunk.

Feel its vitality,

Its grounded strength,

Its ability to grow and adapt through the years.

As you touch the tree,

Imagine you are absorbing its wisdom balanced with a sense of natural order,

Its ability to grow towards the light while remaining rooted in the earth.

Let the tree share its lessons with you.

Ask the tree any question.

You sense that this tree is offering guidance on your own path.

It shows you that anger,

When acknowledged and channeled with awareness,

Can become a force of compassionate action,

Fueling your growth and transformation.

It whispers that control is not found in rigidity,

But in the ability to adapt and bend without breaking.

Stay here a while.

Receive the tree's wisdom.

When you feel ready,

Gently remove your hands from the tree's trunk.

In the safety of this wise tree,

Recall your seed of intention,

This way of being born of your heart.

Let it appear in whatever form it comes to you.

Allow your seed to plant itself within this forest,

Feeling in this moment your own inner knowing planted deep within you.

Giving thanks to the tree,

Begin to walk back to the edge of the forest,

Invigorated with a renewed sense of clarity and trust in your own path.

Feel the forest's energy infusing you with confidence,

A deeper understanding of your purpose,

And a feeling of balance between strength and flexibility.

Gradually bring your awareness back to your breath,

Noticing its gentle rhythm.

Feel your body resting on the earth,

The weight of your limbs,

The texture of the surface beneath you.

Take a few moments to perhaps sense any shifts that have occurred during this practice.

Feel the energy of the wood element supporting your growth and transformation.

Know that this energy is always available to you as part of your inner nature.

When you are ready,

Deepen your breath and bring small movements back into your body,

Gently wiggling your fingers and toes.

Stretch in any way that feels good to you.

When you are ready,

Conclude your practice with gratitude for yourself and for the natural world that supports and sustains all life.

Trust that the energy of the wood element will continue to guide you as you grow and transform in your own time.

In these moments,

You practice a radical form of self-care,

And in turn,

This allows for a deeper expression of care for others and for Mother Earth.

Your yoga nidra is now complete.

We come in peace.

We go in peace.

Om shanti shanti shanti.