Welcome to your guided yoga nidra meditation.
Find a comfortable reclining position on the floor,
Perhaps on your bed,
Somewhere you can rest fully.
You can support your head and knees with a pillow.
Make sure to find a place that you can remain comfortable.
You may want to cover yourself with a blanket to make sure that you are warm.
Allowing the eyes to close,
Take a moment to make any last minute adjustments to your body,
Allowing yourself to sink fully into comfort.
Closing the eyes,
Settling deeper into comfort,
Knowing that nothing else matters right now.
There is nowhere to go and nothing else to do.
Simply allowing yourself to be here and be now.
Nothing else to do other than to rest right now.
Resolve to remain alert and awake through your yoga nidra practice.
Allow my voice to anchor you to the present moment.
If the mind wanders,
As minds naturally do,
Allow my voice to draw you back to the practice,
Giving it your full attention,
Allowing yourself to sink deeper into this practice.
Notice what sounds you can hear.
Notice any ambient noises occurring around you,
Listening without trying to label the sounds.
Notice what sounds you can hear from the body.
Notice if you can hear the sound of your breath,
Perhaps even the beat of your heart.
Following the slow rhythm of your breath,
Feeling the belly rise on the inhales and fall on the exhales,
Allowing yourself to surrender fully to relaxation.
Each breath allows you to become more and more relaxed.
Moving inward now,
Allow your mind to travel to a safe place inside of you,
Bringing yourself to a place real or imagined,
A place where you feel safe,
Secure,
Loved,
And calm.
Perhaps there is a person there.
Allowing yourself to exist fully in this safe place,
Noticing the sounds,
Smells,
And sights of this place.
Noticing the feelings in your body in this place.
Existing fully in your safe place.
You can return to this place anytime during your practice.
Now is the time to choose your resolve for sankalpa.
This is a short,
Positive statement in the present tense.
An affirmation or an intention.
Language it to yourself in the present tense,
Such as,
I am peaceful.
I am whole.
Repeat your resolve to yourself three times.
Now,
Beginning to move through the body.
As you hear parts of the body mentioned,
Shift your awareness to that part of your body,
Keeping yourself alert,
Focused on the sensations sensations in that part of the body.
Beginning with the right hand,
Right thumb,
First finger,
Second finger,
Third finger,
Fourth finger,
Palm of the hand,
Back of the hand,
Forearm,
Forearm,
Inner elbow,
Outer elbow,
Upper arm,
Right shoulder,
Collarbone,
Center of the chest,
Abdomen,
Right hip,
Right glute,
Back of the thigh,
Back of the knee,
Back of the calf,
Heel,
Heel,
Sole of the foot,
Right big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe,
Top of the foot,
Foot,
Top of the calf,
Knee,
Front of the thigh,
Right hip,
Center of the pelvis,
Left hip,
Sacrum,
Left glute,
Back of the thigh,
Knee,
Back of the calf,
Heel,
Sole of the left foot,
Left big toe,
Sole of the foot,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe,
Top of the left foot,
Front of the calf,
Knee,
Front of the thigh,
Left hip,
Pelvis,
Abdomen,
Center of the chest,
Left collarbone,
Left shoulder,
Upper arm,
Inner elbow,
Outer elbow,
Forearm,
Wrist,
Back of the hand,
Palm of the hand,
Left thumb,
First finger,
Second finger,
Third finger,
Fourth finger,
Tracing your awareness back up the left arm,
Shoulder,
Across the collarbone,
Moving your awareness up through the neck,
Jaw,
Roof of the mouth,
Lips,
Left nostril,
Right nostril,
Left eye,
Right eye,
Left eyebrow,
Right eyebrow,
Between the eyebrows,
Left ear,
Right ear,
Left temple,
Right temple,
Forehead,
Top of the head,
Now feeling the whole body at once.
Shifting your awareness now to your breath,
Feel the sensation of the inhale on the nostrils,
Notice the belly rising and falling with each breath,
No need to change the breath or the rhythm,
Notice as the body breathes itself.
Begin counting your breaths backwards from 11 to 1.
11 belly rises,
11 belly falls,
10 belly rises,
10 belly falls,
9 belly rises,
9 belly falls.
Continue counting to yourself,
Remaining alert and awake,
Allowing the counting to fall away,
Staying present in the body,
Imagine the body becoming very heavy,
Feeling heaviness in all parts of your body,
Your head is heavy,
Your arms are heavy,
Your torso is heavy,
Legs are heavy,
Whole body heavy,
Feeling this heaviness,
Gravity pulling you to the floor.
Now imagine your whole body becoming light,
So light you could float away,
Floating from the floor towards the ceiling,
Your head is light,
Your limbs are light,
Your torso is light,
Whole body light and weightless.
Now imagine the body cold,
Experiencing cold,
Imagine the chill on the skin,
Feeling coldness in the whole body.
Now the body becomes warm,
Allowing the body to feel warm,
Allowing the body to feel the sensation of the sun on your skin,
Feeling the warmth spread through the body,
The whole body warm.
Now I invite you to visualize the following as I name them,
Jumping from image to image as you hear them,
Not dwelling on anything in particular,
Practice being aware and non-judgmental about what you notice.
Start by visualizing a burning candle,
Burning candle,
Now an endless desert,
Endless desert,
Snow-capped mountain,
Snow-capped mountain,
Snow-capped mountain,
A full moon,
A full moon,
A path through the woods,
A path through the woods,
The midday sun,
The midday sun,
Stars in the night sky,
Stars in the night sky,
A bird mid-flight,
A bird mid-flight,
Waves breaking on a beach,
Waves breaking on a beach,
A vibrant sunset,
A vibrant sunset,
The clear tone of a bell,
A bell,
The clear tone of a bell,
A foggy morning,
A foggy morning,
Returning to your resolve or sankalpa,
Repeating your positive affirmation again in the present,
Without changing it,
Repeat it to yourself three times,
Allow the words to land and resonate with you in this peaceful state,
Slowly bringing your awareness back to your breath,
Noticing the belly rise and fall with the inhales and the exhales,
Laying peacefully until you feel ready to move,
Moving slowly,
Beginning to move the fingers and toes,
Slowly beginning to reorient to your body,
To your space,
Taking your time,
Slowly returning to your alert and awake state,
Rotating the wrists and ankles,
No rush,
Maintaining your sense of peace and calm,
As you feel ready,
You can begin to open your eyes,
If you wish to end your practice seated,
You can roll over onto one side,
As you feel ready,
Pressing into one palm,
To lift yourself into a seated position.
Your practice of Yoga Nidra is now complete.
