Welcome to this Yoga Nidra practice in celebration of the Spring Equinox.
The Spring Equinox marks the moment in the year when day and night are of approximately equal length,
Signifying the official start of spring in the Northern Hemisphere.
It's a time of balance,
Renewal and growth,
Welcoming longer days and the blossoming of new life.
It's an opportunity for us to find our own inner spring and to nurture our own seeds of intention for this new season.
This ancient practice of Yoga Nidra will guide you through a journey of deep relaxation and inner awareness,
Helping you to rest,
Renew and connect with the light of your conscious awareness.
When you are resting in this state of Yoga Nidra,
You are resting in brainwaves of activity that replicate sleep even though you are awake and aware.
So occurring in that place somewhere between wakefulness and sleep.
All you need to do is simply listen to the sound of my voice and allow your body to rest here.
And if you do drift off to sleep at times,
Don't worry,
Trust that you are still receiving the benefits of this practice and allow my words to continue to wash over you,
Trusting that your body and your mind will take what it needs.
So finding a comfortable position,
Laying down if that's available for you and give yourself a moment to land here.
Take the time to ensure that you are comfortable gathering any pillows or blankets that you may need.
You may wish to even cover the eyes with an eye mask if you have one.
And as you settle here,
If you think you could be even 1% more comfortable,
Then make any adjustments that you wish to,
To allow your body to settle and sink deeply into intentional rest.
And if you feel ready now,
You can close down the eyes or perhaps cover them with your eye mask.
Begin to shift your attention from a state of doing to simply being.
Nothing for you to do now except rest and let your practice be the light.
Take a deep breath in,
Feeling the belly,
Ribs and chest expand and exhale slowly through the mouth.
Releasing any tension and anything you do not need to hold right now.
Allow yourself to be comfortable here,
Feeling the body softening,
Melting into the ground beneath you.
Allowing the ground to hold you here.
Releasing the full weight of the body with every exhale.
Your body rooting down into the earth.
You are fully supported here in this practice.
Allow the eyes to soften back into the eye sockets.
Relaxing and softening the skin around the eyes,
The forehead.
Relaxing the jaw,
The lips,
The tongue.
Feeling the whole body softening.
Become aware of your breath.
Feel the body resting here and your breath effortless,
Smooth and steady.
Each exhalation allowing you to become more and more surrendered in relaxation.
Sense the body breathing itself.
The natural flow of breath.
Feeling the sensation of your breath as it enters and leaves the body.
Here brushing through the nostrils,
The walls of the throat.
The gentle rise and fall of the chest and the belly.
Welcome the sensation of the body breathing itself.
And as you rest here in awareness.
I'll invite you to imagine a safe and nurturing space in your mind.
A place where you can feel peace and well-being.
Perhaps there are images of people you love in this space.
Or any other images that nourish you and create feelings of peacefulness and contentment.
And as you imagine this space,
Feeling this as a sense of well-being in the body now.
Noticing how this feels as a sensation in your body.
Knowing you can return to this space.
This inner resource.
Your safe haven.
At any time.
I'll now invite you to create your sankalpa for this practice.
Your intention.
Maybe it's an intention simply for this practice.
Or perhaps something for your life.
A heart's desire.
For what do you hold a deep longing?
Perhaps a quality you'd like to cultivate.
A desire for peace,
Health or happiness.
Healing.
Whatever it is,
Let it come into your awareness now.
And invite in this sankalpa by mentally repeating it three times.
As if it were already true in this moment.
Bringing awareness to your physical body now.
As we move through the different parts of the body.
Sending your conscious awareness to the parts of the body as they are mentioned.
Giving them permission to relax and soften.
Welcoming any sensations just as they are.
Moving awareness to your mouth.
The gums.
Floor of the mouth.
Roof of the mouth.
Inner walls of the cheeks.
Tongue.
Lower row of teeth.
Upper row of teeth.
Back of the throat.
The space between the lips.
Tip of the nose.
The whole nose.
Both cheeks.
Right ear.
Left ear.
Right ear.
Right eyelid.
Right eye.
Right eyebrow.
Space between the eyebrows.
Forehead.
Both temples.
Top of the head.
Right hand.
Right thumb.
Index finger.
Middle finger.
Ring finger.
Little finger.
Palm of the hand.
Back of the hand.
Right wrist.
Right forearm.
Right elbow.
Upper arm.
Right shoulder.
Armpit.
Right side of the ribs.
Waist.
Right hip.
Right thigh.
Knee.
Calf muscle.
Right ankle.
Heel.
Sole of the foot.
Top of the foot.
Right big toe.
Second toe.
Third toe.
Fourth toe.
Fifth toe.
Left hand.
Left thumb.
Index finger.
Middle finger.
Ring finger.
Little finger.
Palm of the hand.
Back of the hand.
Left wrist.
Left forearm.
Left elbow.
Upper arm.
Left shoulder.
Armpit.
Left side of the ribs.
Waist.
Left hip.
Left thigh.
Knee.
Calf muscle.
Left ankle.
Heel.
Sole of the foot.
Top of the foot.
Left big toe.
Second toe.
Third toe.
Fourth toe.
Fifth toe.
Back of the head.
Right shoulder blade.
Left shoulder blade.
Whole spine.
The glutes.
Back of the right leg.
Right heel.
Back of the left leg.
Left heel.
Forehead.
Both temples.
Right ear.
Left ear.
Roof of the mouth.
Throat.
Right collarbone.
Left collarbone.
The chest.
The belly.
The lower abdomen.
The pelvis.
Both hips.
Front of the right leg.
Front of the right foot.
Front of the left leg.
Front of the left foot.
Awareness of the whole body.
The whole front body.
The whole back body.
The head.
The whole body,
Including the head.
Awareness of sensation of the whole body.
The entire body glowing and radiating.
A constantly changing field of radiant sensation.
Welcome every experience now present in your physical body.
You are peaceful and at ease resting in this space.
And sense the body now breathing itself.
The natural flow of sensation as breath enters and leaves the body.
Through the nostrils.
The walls of the throat.
The gentle rise and fall of the chest and the abdomen.
Welcome the sensation of the body breathing itself.
Like waves of breath.
Like waves on an ocean.
Each inhale the breath rises.
Each exhale it falls.
Watching the natural wave of breath like gentle waves on the ocean.
Simply observing the flow and sensation of your natural breath.
Allow yourself to be breathed.
Nothing for you to do.
Your entire body a field of radiant sensation.
Welcoming every experience now present in your physical body.
Welcoming sensations just as they are.
And as you welcome this relaxation of your physical body.
Your body completely relaxed.
Your muscles are heavy.
Your body weighted down into the ground.
Like deep roots into the earth.
Your body is so relaxed you have almost no awareness of it.
And welcome the alertness of your mind.
Your mind is completely alert.
With a sense of lightness.
Your body heavy and relaxed.
Whilst your mind totally alert and aware.
Welcome these opposite experiences at the same time.
Relaxed and alert.
Heavy and light.
Your body heavy and relaxed.
Your mind light and alert.
And welcome every experience present in your whole body now.
Welcoming sensations just as they are.
And now I'll bring your awareness to the space directly in front of your forehead and between your eyes.
An empty blank space.
Continue to rest here and watch this space in your mind.
I invite you to visualise yourself standing in a beautiful garden.
It's the start of spring.
The season of hope and renewal.
The sun is shining down on you and the smell of freshly cut grass lingers in the air.
You stroll around this garden listening to the birdsong.
Admiring the signs of new life sprouting from the ground.
You notice the cycle of birth and rebirth with the thawing of ice.
And the budding of new flowers.
And as the days become longer and lighter,
Nature is waking up after a long deep breath.
Stretching up to greet this new season.
And perhaps we can also think of this season as our time of waking up.
After retreating inward through winter to rest and restore.
It's a perfect time for some internal spring cleaning.
Shedding what no longer serves us.
And as you walk around this garden you see flowers now blooming from the soil.
And perhaps some buds that have not yet opened.
Patiently waiting for your time to bloom and flourish.
What intentions have you planted that are waiting to bloom?
Can you nurture these seeds of intention you have planted?
What needs to be pruned in order to make space?
What fresh new ideas are waiting to be birthed?
Can you find a bench in the garden to sit for a while to reflect on this?
Admiring the vibrant new life around you.
Pondering the possibilities of what's to come in your life this season.
Breathe into your heart as you do this.
Breathing in expansively.
Breathing in possibility.
Possibility of new exciting beginnings of whichever form.
And allow the energy of these thoughts to fill every part of your being.
Allowing this energy to expand outwards.
From your heart to the very tips of your fingers.
To the soles of your feet.
And to the crown of your head.
And you feel your whole body alive and radiating with this vibrant renewed energy.
This vibrant renewed energy embracing you,
Filling every part of you.
Rest here for a while.
With this positive energy holding you.
And as you allow this image of this spring garden to dissolve in your mind.
Bring into mind now your sankalpa.
Your intention which you set at the very beginning of this practice.
And repeat in your mind three times the phrase or imagery you used exactly as you did in the beginning.
Affirming and experiencing this sankalpa as already true in this moment.
Beginning now to sense all that you are aware of.
Becoming aware of your whole self,
Your whole body.
What you are experiencing and noticing.
Welcoming any qualities,
Sensations in your body that are or have been present.
Perhaps it's feeling relaxed and peaceful.
Or maybe refreshed and energized.
Remind yourself now of your inner resource of well-being.
Your safe haven.
And experiencing that now,
That felt sensation in your body.
Again noticing how these positive images in your mind creates a feeling of contentment,
Relaxation in your body.
Become more aware of the room in which you are resting.
Noticing any scents in the air,
Anything you can smell.
Noticing any sounds within the room or further away.
Noticing the temperature of the air on your skin.
Bringing awareness to your physical body.
Feeling it supported on the surface it has been resting.
Noticing sensations of the points of contact of your body with this surface.
And become aware of your breath.
Perhaps breathing a little more fully and deeply now as you begin to transition back into your waking life.
Introducing gentle movement by wiggling your fingers and toes or making any small gentle movements or stretches that your body needs.
Waking it gently from stillness.
And when you feel ready to,
You can remove your eye mask or gently open the eyes.
Knowing that this place of peace and stillness is always available to return to.
It is always within you.
Thank you for practicing with me today and wishing you a peaceful spring season ahead.
I'll see you next time.
Namaste.
