Yoga Nidra Practice
In this guided Yoga Nidra practice you will have just over 35 minutes to cultivate a Sankalpa and to connect deeply inwards. In the state of Yoga Nidra, your Sankalpa is planted deeply and nurtured by practice. A Sankalpa is a heart-felt desire that you work with over some time and can be used in yoga asana, pranayama practices and meditation. The practice of Yoga Nidra is helpful in cultivating deep states of calm and relaxation that help to reset unhealthy sleep patterns and reduce stress. This is a practice that can be done at home any time you need a reset, it's particularly helpful after work or day duties and just before sleep to help with trouble falling asleep. This particular practice has a rotation through the body parts and also a breath awareness exercise. The first round of body awareness rotation is faster and slows down with each cycle. Please note this track will guide you out of the practice and also let you know when it ends by thanking you for joining the practice.
Transcript
Welcome to the practice of Yoga Nidra.
I invite you to take some time to set yourself up comfortably.
Keep in mind that the space you're practicing in,
You'll need to feel safe within that space,
That you can rest lying on the floor or in a supported lying posture,
And that you will not be interrupted for the duration of the practice.
Please make sure that any devices are either turned to mute or off,
And that anybody who is in the space,
Such as your home or staying with you,
Is aware that you'll be practicing and unreachable for this period of time.
Now take some time to set yourself up by letting your body be flat on the floor.
If you prefer some support,
You might take a thin cushion under the head or hips.
You may also use a blanket to cover you if you are cool,
Or if there is any change of temperature that you expect to happen during the practice.
Remembering that as the body rests,
Your internal temperature will cool down.
Take some time now to just shimmy the body,
Settling right into the floor,
Becoming comfortable in yourself.
We'll begin by creating a sankalpa,
Which is a resolve of the heart or a heart's desire.
This is a resolve that will be very simple.
We'll try to discover one naturally.
So allow your mind to drop into that center of your chest.
Notice the feeling of awareness when you drop into the central area of your chest.
With every inhale,
Allow the space to become big and spacious.
Every exhale lets any resistance or tension around that center heart space to loosen.
And with your awareness in this center of your chest,
You might pose the question to your body,
What quality or what benefit do I want to bring into my life or set out to achieve?
Just notice what comes up for you.
Whatever your heartfelt desire or intention is,
It is usually a goal that will take more than six months,
Maybe a year or two years or more.
This should not be a material goal.
We are looking for something that is enriching to the soul or the body or yourself to improve the quality of your life and achieve something that your heart truly desires.
Now with your heart resolve that you've discovered,
Create a short simple sentence to encapsulate this intention or heartfelt desire.
It should be a short positive statement in simple language.
The brain prefers positive language.
Try to come up with a positive statement rather than a negative.
The brain will instantly move to the image rather than the negative language.
So when you try to say I will quit smoking,
It will see cigarettes and that will become the primary focus rather than the quitting part.
So using affirmative language where possible to make changes to avoid any images coming up into your mind's eye that are not conducive to creating that goal coming into realization.
So with this short statement now repeat it three times with full awareness,
With full feeling and full emphasis.
Ensure that your body position and clothing are all comfortable.
During yoga nidra there will be no physical movement.
Close your eyes and keep them strictly closed until you are told to open them.
Take a deep breath and as you breathe out feel the cares and worries of the day flow out of you.
In the practice which follows you are going to develop the feeling of relaxation in the body.
It is not necessary to make movements or deliberately relax your muscles.
Simply develop the feeling of relaxation.
It is like the feeling you have just before you sleep.
When relaxation becomes deep sleep does come but you should try to keep yourself completely awake.
This is very important.
Make a resolution to yourself now that I will not sleep.
I will remain awake throughout the practice.
During the practice of nidra you are functioning on the levels of hearing and awareness and the only important thing is to follow the voice of the instructor.
Try not to intellectualize or analyze the instructions as this will disturb your mental relaxation.
Simply follow my voice with total attention.
And if thoughts come to disturb you from time to time do not worry just continue the practice.
Allow yourself to become calm and steady.
Invite a sense of inner relaxation in the whole body.
Concentrate on the body and become aware of the importance of complete stillness.
Develop your awareness of the body from the top of the head to the tips of the toes and mentally repeat the mantra Complete stillness and complete awareness of the whole body again.
Continue your awareness of the whole body the whole body the whole body Become aware of the fact that you are going to practice yoga nidra.
Say mentally to yourself I am aware I am going to practice yoga nidra.
Repeat this to yourself again.
The practice of yoga nidra begins now.
We will now begin to move our awareness by taking a trip through the different parts of the body.
As quickly as possible the awareness is to go from part to part.
Repeat the part in your mind and simultaneously become aware of that part of the body.
Keep yourself alert but do not concentrate too intensely.
Become aware of the right hand.
Right hand thumb,
Second finger,
Third finger,
Fourth finger,
Fifth finger,
Palm of the hand.
Become aware of your palm,
Back of the hand,
The wrist,
The lower arm,
The elbow,
The upper arm,
The shoulder,
The armpit,
The right waist,
The right hip,
The right thigh,
The kneecap,
The calf muscle,
The ankle,
The heel,
The sole of the right foot,
The top of the foot,
The big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe.
Become aware of the left hand thumb,
Second finger,
Third finger,
Fourth finger,
Fifth finger,
Palm of the hand,
Back of the hand,
The wrist,
The lower arm,
The elbow,
The upper arm,
The shoulder,
The armpit,
The left waist,
The left hip,
The left thigh,
The kneecap,
The calf muscle,
The ankle,
The heel,
The sole of the left foot,
The top of the foot,
The big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe.
Now to the back,
Become aware of the right shoulder blade,
The left shoulder blade,
The right buttock,
The left buttock,
The spine,
The whole back together.
Now go to the top of the head,
The top of the head,
The forehead,
Both sides of the head,
The right eyebrow,
The left eyebrow,
The space between the eyebrows,
The right eyelid,
The left eyelid,
The right eye,
The left eye,
The right ear,
The left ear,
The right cheek,
The left cheek,
The nose,
The tip of the nose,
The upper lip,
The lower lip,
The chin,
The throat,
The right chest,
The left chest,
The middle of the chest,
The navel,
The abdomen,
The whole of the right leg,
The whole of the left leg,
Both legs together,
The whole of the right arm,
The whole of the left arm,
Both arms together,
The whole of the back,
Buttocks,
Spine,
Shoulder blades,
The whole of the front abdomen,
Chest,
The whole of the back and front,
Together,
The whole of the head,
The whole body together,
The whole body together,
The whole body together.
Become aware of the right hand,
Right hand thumb,
Second finger,
Third finger,
Fourth finger,
Fifth finger,
Palm of the hand,
Become aware of your palm,
Back of the hand,
The wrist,
The lower arm,
The elbow,
The upper arm,
The shoulder,
The armpit,
The right waist,
The right hip,
The right thigh,
The kneecap,
The calf muscle,
The ankle,
The heel,
The sole of the right foot,
The top of the foot,
The big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe,
Become aware of the left hand,
Become aware of the left hand thumb,
Second finger,
Third finger,
Fourth finger,
Fifth finger,
Palm of the hand,
Back of the hand,
The wrist,
The lower arm,
The elbow,
The upper arm,
The shoulder,
The armpit,
The left waist,
The left hip,
The left thigh,
The kneecap,
The calf muscle,
The ankle,
The heel,
The sole of the left foot,
The top of the foot,
The big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe,
Now to the back,
Become aware of the right shoulder,
Become aware of the left shoulder,
The right buttock,
The left buttock,
The spine,
The whole back together,
Now go to the top of the head,
The top of the head,
The forehead,
Both sides of the head,
The right eyebrow,
The left eyebrow,
The space between the eyebrows,
The right eyelid,
The left eyelid,
The right eye,
The left eye,
The right ear,
The left ear,
The right cheek,
The left cheek,
The nose,
The tip of the nose,
The upper lip,
The lower lip,
The chin,
The throat,
The right chest,
The left chest,
The middle of the chest,
The navel,
The abdomen,
The whole of the right leg,
The whole of the left leg,
Both legs together,
The whole of the right arm,
The whole of the left arm,
Both arms together,
The whole of the back,
Buttocks,
Spine,
Shoulder blades,
The whole of the front abdomen,
Chest,
The whole of the front and back together,
The whole of the head together,
The whole body together,
The whole body together,
The whole body together.
Become aware of the right hand,
Right hand thumb,
Second finger,
Third finger,
Fourth finger,
Fifth finger,
Palm of the hand,
Become aware of your palm,
Back of the hand,
The wrist,
The lower arm,
The elbow,
The upper arm,
The shoulder,
The armpit,
The right waist,
The right hip,
The right thigh,
The kneecap,
The calf muscle,
The ankle,
The heel,
The sole of the right foot,
The top of the right foot,
The big toe,
The second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe,
Become aware of the left hand thumb,
Second finger,
Third finger,
Fourth finger,
Fifth finger,
Palm of the hand,
Back of the hand,
The wrist,
The lower arm,
The elbow,
The upper arm,
The shoulder,
The armpit,
The left waist,
The left hip,
The left thigh,
The kneecap,
The calf muscle,
The ankle,
The heel,
The sole of the left foot,
The top of the foot,
The big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe,
Now to the back,
Become aware of the right shoulder blade,
The left shoulder blade,
The right buttock,
The left buttock,
The spine,
The whole back together.
Now go to the top of the head,
The top of the head,
The forehead,
Both sides of the head,
The right eyebrow,
The left eyebrow,
The space between the eyebrows,
The right eyelid,
The left eyelid,
The right eye,
The left eye,
The right ear,
The left ear,
The right cheek,
The left cheek,
The nose,
The tip of the nose,
The upper lip,
The lower lip,
The chin,
The throat,
The right chest,
The left chest,
The middle of the chest,
The navel,
The abdomen,
The whole of the right leg,
The whole of the left leg,
Both legs together,
The whole of the right arm,
The whole of the left arm,
Both arms together,
The whole of the back,
Buttocks,
Spine,
Shoulder blades,
The whole of the front,
Abdomen,
Chest,
The whole of the back and front,
Together,
The whole of the head,
The whole body together,
The whole body together,
The whole body together.
Please do not sleep,
Total awareness,
No sleeping,
No movement,
The whole body on the floor,
Become aware of your body lying on the floor,
Your whole body is lying on the floor,
See your body lying perfectly still on the floor in this room,
Visualize this image in your mind,
Become aware of your breath,
Feel the flow of your breath in and out of your lungs,
Do not try to change the rhythm,
The breathing is natural,
Automatic,
You are not doing it,
There is no effort,
Maintain awareness of your breath,
Continue,
Complete awareness of breath,
Concentrate on your navel movements,
Your navel is rising and falling slightly with every breath,
With each and every breath it expands and contracts,
Concentrate on this movement in synchronization with your breath,
Go on practicing,
But be sure that you are aware,
Now start counting your breaths backwards from 11 to 1 like this,
11 navel rising,
11 navel falling,
10 navel rising,
10 navel falling,
9 navel rising,
9 navel falling and so on,
Say the words and numbers mentally to yourself as you count your breaths,
Be sure that you don't make a mistake,
If you do you must go back to 11 and start again with total awareness that you are counting,
Continue counting from 11 to 1,
Keep on with the practice,
No mistakes,
Now stop your counting of the navel breath and shift your attention to the chest,
Please shift to the chest,
Your chest is rising and falling slightly with each and every breath,
Become aware of this,
Continue concentrating on the moment of the chest and start counting backwards from 11 to 1 in the same way as before,
11 chest rising,
11 chest falling,
10 chest rising,
10 chest falling,
9 chest rising,
9 chest falling and so on,
Again repeat the words and numbers mentally to yourself as you count,
No mistakes,
If you make a mistake you must go back to the start again to 11,
Continue counting 11 to 1,
Keep on with the practice,
Counting and awareness,
Awareness and counting,
Cease your counting of the chest breaths and move your awareness to the throat,
Please move to the throat,
Become aware of your breath moving in and out of the throat,
Become aware of this,
Concentrate on the movement of the breath and start counting backwards from 11 to 1 in the same way as before,
Complete awareness of counting and the breath,
Keep on with the practice,
No stopping please,
Just total awareness that you are counting,
Continue counting your breaths in the throat,
Stop counting and go now to the nostrils,
Become aware of the breath moving in and out of the nostrils,
Concentrate on the movement of the breath in and out of the nostrils and start counting as before,
You know it very well by now,
11 breathing in,
11 breathing out,
Complete awareness,
Please continue counting,
No mistakes,
Keep on with the practice,
Continue,
Let go of the counting and now is the time to repeat your resolve,
Repeat the same resolve that you made at the beginning of the practice,
Do not change it,
Repeat the resolve three times with full awareness and feeling,
Relax all efforts,
Draw your mind outside and become aware of your breathing,
Become aware of the natural breath,
Awareness of the whole body and awareness of breathing,
Your body is lying totally relaxed on the floor,
You are breathing quietly and slowly,
Develop awareness of your body from the top of the head to the tips of the toes and say mentally in your mind,
Repeat,
Mentally to yourself twice more,
Become aware of the floor and the position of your body lying on the floor,
Visualize the room around you,
Become aware of your surroundings,
Lie quietly for some time and keep your eyes closed,
Start moving your body and stretching yourself,
Please take your time,
Do not hurry,
We have reached the end of our practice of yoga nidra,
Thank you so much for joining me,
Please take as much time as you need to come back more consciously into your body and the space that you're in and use as much support as needed to bring yourself back to seated and standing when you're ready in your own time.
4.7 (11)
Recent Reviews
Loz
May 19, 2024
So incredible. I can’t describe. You just have to experience this.