30-Minute Yoga Nidra For Deep Relaxation

The antidote to modern life stress and burnout is deep relaxation without sensory distraction. Yoga Nidra is a rejuvenating practice that offers muscular relaxation, nervous system regulation, cellular healing, and creative insight.

Music Credit - "Be in Flow" by Unknown

Transcript

Namaste and welcome to this guided practice of Yoga Nidra.

My name is Shobhit Raj and I will be your guide on this journey of relaxation and calm.

Yoga Nidra is made up of two words,

Yoga and Nidra.

Nidra means union,

Which refers to living in harmony with our environment,

Body,

Mind and spirit.

And Nidra means sleep,

But the intention during the practice is not to fall asleep.

We are aiming at a state of relaxed awareness,

That means being relaxed,

Comfortable,

Yet aware of the instruction.

The aim is not trying to concentrate as such,

But rather being aware and a witness to the experience.

So let's get started.

Take a moment here to set up your space for the practice.

Assume the lights in the room,

Such that the room is neither too bright nor completely dark.

Ideally,

Switch off or minimize the speed of fan or the air conditioner,

Ensuring the room is well ventilated.

It is recommended to practice Yoga Nidra on a yoga mat or a woolen blanket.

Try practicing on the bed,

As the subconscious mind associates it with sleep.

The clothing should be loose and comfortable,

So remove anything that constricts the body,

Such as belt,

Watch,

Chains,

Hairpin.

You may place a thin,

Soft cushion under the head for comfort.

For any lower back conditions,

Please place a pillow under the knees or the back for support.

Now get ready for the practice of Yoga Nidra.

Please lie down on your back.

Let us start by tensing and releasing different parts of the body.

This helps in letting go of any muscular tension,

So that you could lie comfortably still for the practice.

Bring the awareness to the right foot.

Point the toes of the foot and tense the entire right leg,

The right leg only,

Tensing the toes,

Ankles,

Knee,

Thigh,

Tense,

Tense,

Tense,

And release,

Letting go completely.

Bring the awareness to the left foot now.

Point the toes and tense the entire left leg.

Tense the toes,

Ankle,

Knee,

Thigh,

Tense,

Tense,

Tense,

And release.

Now with the right hand,

Make a fist and tense the entire right arm,

The right arm only,

Tense the wrist,

Forearm,

Elbow,

Upper arm,

Tense,

Tense,

Tense,

And release,

Letting go completely.

Making a fist with the left hand,

Tense the entire left arm,

Tense the wrist,

Forearm,

Elbow,

Upper arm,

Tense,

Tense,

Tense,

And release.

Lift your hip off the mat and squeeze the buttocks,

Tensing the hip,

Tense,

Tense,

Tense,

And release,

Placing the hip back on the mat.

Draw the navel in and contract the chest,

Tensing the abdomen and chest,

Tense,

Tense,

Tense,

And release.

Now bring the shoulders up towards the ears,

Tensing the shoulders,

Upper back,

And the neck,

Tense,

Tense,

Tense,

And release.

Now the face,

Squeeze the eyes and mouth,

Tensing all the facial muscles,

Tense,

Tense,

Tense,

Open the mouth and exhale to release.

The whole body at once,

Take a long and deep breath in,

Hold the breath and tense the entire body,

Tense the feet,

Ankles,

Knees,

Thighs,

Hips,

Abdomen,

Chest,

Arms,

Shoulders,

Neck,

Face,

Tense the whole body,

Tense,

Tense,

Tense,

And open the mouth and exhale to release,

Letting go completely.

Notice how this feels in the body,

The experience of tensing,

Releasing,

And letting go.

Shavasana In Shavasana,

We want the body to be free and comfortable,

So place the legs apart,

With the feet wider than hip.

Toes falling on either side,

Allowing the legs to be relaxed.

Place the arms away from the body,

The armpits are free,

Palms facing up,

The fingers soft.

Bringing the shoulders away from the ears,

Tuck the chin slightly to lengthen the back of neck,

The head resting firm and comfortable,

Closing the eyes and mouth softly,

Keep a gentle smile on the face.

Now take a long and deep breath in,

And breathe out.

Your intention is to stay awake and remain still.

Everything else can take a back seat for the next few minutes.

The experience of yoga nitra begins with listening,

So become aware of the sounds outside the house.

Start by listening to the sound furthest away,

The most distant sound,

Acknowledge that sound and move to the next sound.

This way,

Keep moving the awareness from one sound to another.

Allow these external sounds to fade away in the background.

In the foreground,

You will be aware of my voice and the instruction.

At the end,

I will softly chant Aum to bring you out of practice.

Now bring the awareness to the body.

If you need to,

Take this moment to adjust the body so that you are comfortable and completely still for the remainder of the practice.

Feel the different contact points,

Feel the sense of touch at the heels,

Back of the legs,

Back of the arms,

Sense of touch at the upper back and the back of head.

Feel the whole body grounded against the mat.

Now let us set an intention or sankalpa for today's practice.

Mentally repeat three times,

I am calm and relaxed.

I am calm and relaxed.

Now bring the awareness to the body.

We will now rotate the awareness through the different body parts.

Let's start with the right side of the body.

Become aware of the right hand thumb.

Bring to the right index finger,

Middle finger,

Ring finger,

Little finger,

Right palm,

Back of the palm,

Wrist,

Forearm,

Right elbow,

Upper arm,

Shoulder,

Right side of the chest,

Right waist,

Right hip,

Right thigh,

Knee,

Shin,

Ankle,

Top of the right foot,

Left leg,

Sole of the foot,

Right big toe,

Second toe,

Third,

Fourth and the fifth toe.

Moving the awareness to the left side of body.

Become aware of the left hand thumb,

Left index finger,

Middle finger,

Ring finger,

Little finger,

Left palm,

Back of the palm,

Wrist,

Forearm,

Elbow,

Upper arm,

Shoulder,

Left side of the chest,

Left waist,

Hip,

Left thigh,

Knee,

Shin,

Ankle,

Top of the right foot,

Sole of the foot,

Big toe,

Second toe,

Third,

Fourth and the fifth toe.

Keep following my voice as you bring the awareness to the heels,

Calf muscles,

Back of the knees,

The back of thighs,

Buttocks,

Lower back,

Middle back,

Upper back,

Back of the arms,

Back of shoulders,

Back of the neck,

Back of head,

Top of head,

Forehead,

Eyebrows,

Space between eyebrows,

Eyelids,

Ears,

Cheeks,

Nose,

Tip of nose,

Nostrils,

Upper lip,

Upper jaw,

Tongue,

Tip of tongue,

Lower jaw,

Lower lip,

Chin,

Throat center,

Chest,

Upper abdomen and the lower abdomen.

Now,

Become aware of the natural and spontaneous breath,

Noticing which parts of the body move as you breathe.

Continue observing the breath and begin counting the breaths backwards from 27 to 1.

I'll guide you through the first three counts.

Breathing in and out,

27.

Breathing in and out,

26.

Breathing in and out,

25.

Continue this way until 1.

If you lose awareness of the count,

Start again from 27,

Maintaining complete awareness on the breath.

Now,

Let go of the counting of breath and mentally repeat the sankalpa again three times.

I am calm and relaxed.

Awareness back to the body again.

Observing the different contact points between the body and mat.

Feel the sense of touch and become aware of the different sounds.

Moving from one sound to another,

Reconnecting with the external world through sound awareness.

Now,

Taking three deep energizing breaths to wake up the body and the mind.

OM The practice of yoga nitra is now complete.

Taking your time to release shavasana with gentle movement.

Move the fingers,

Toes.

Move the head sideways,

Releasing neck.

Bring the feet together.

Interlock the fingers.

Take a deep breath in and stretch the arms overhead,

The toes pointed,

Lengthening the whole body.

And release.

Bend the knees.

If you need to,

You may release the spine by moving the knees to the right,

Left.

And with the knees bent,

Turn to the right.

Lying on the right side with the knees towards the chest,

For a brief moment.

With the eyes closed,

Using the support of the left hand,

Sit up in any comfortable posture.

The body still,

Spine upright.

Sitting in silence and stillness for a moment,

As you reflect on the experience of yoga nitra.

Join your hands in prayer.

Namaskar Mudra.

Now rub the palms together.

Cup your palms and place them over the eyes.

Enjoy this feeling of warmth.

Moving the palms along the face,

Neck.

Now place your palms in front of you.

With a gentle smile,

Blink open the eyes and look into your palms.

Welcome back.

A regular practice of yoga nitra is a great way to relax the body and calm the mind.

I would encourage you to maintain silence and continue this experience of inner stillness for the next few minutes.

You could meditate,

Journal or read your favorite book.

Enjoy a moment with yourself.

Take care and I will see you soon.

May we all be healthy and peaceful.

Hari Om Tat Sat.