You're here.
Welcome.
Thank you for choosing to take this time to nurture and nourish yourself.
My name is Yana Shala and I'm honored to guide you today.
This practice is designed using Yoga Nidra techniques,
Specifically modifying to help you drift off into the deepest,
Most restorative sleep.
Know that there is nothing you need to do,
Nowhere you need to go.
Nothing you need to figure out.
Simply follow the guidance of my voice.
And allow yourself to be carried.
Deeper and deeper.
Into a peaceful slumber.
Release any expectations you may have placed on yourself.
Allow yourself to be free from any pressure or any particular outcome.
Be open to this experience inducing deep sleep.
And simultaneously open to this experience cultivating a profound state of rest.
Knowing that either is exactly what your body needs.
This bedtime practice is meant to draw you into the deepest depths of unconscious slow-wave sleep.
So make the intention now to follow the guidance of my voice.
And take this time to let yourself relax completely.
You are here.
And that is enough.
Begin by setting up your environment for the optimal conditions of sleep.
Make sure that the temperature of the space you're in is comfortable.
Perhaps slightly cool as a gentle coolness in the air can help bring the body temperature down to induced sleep.
Ensure that you have enough blankets to keep warm as needed.
You might have your feet or hands exposed to the cool air to help the body release heat.
And then bring them back beneath the blankets when you're ready.
Get comfortable now.
In a dark and quiet space.
Maybe using an eye cover to block out any light.
And make any adjustments you need to your pillows or blankets.
You might try placing pillows beneath the knees for more support.
Or even bring your thighs into a slightly elevated position.
By placing extra pillows beneath your calves and knees.
Take your time to adjust pillows behind your head,
Noticing what is the most comfortable position for your body.
Take a moment to really check in.
With the arms,
The torso,
The pelvis,
The legs.
What do you need?
As you begin to settle into stillness,
Know that it's worth the extra effort to make any little micro adjustments so that you could get even 1% more comfortable.
And now.
Take a deep breath in through the nose.
And released through the mouth.
Letting your body start to become heavy.
Another deep breath in.
Releasing through an open mouth.
Thinking deeper and deeper.
Into the support of your bed.
And one more time,
A deep breath in.
And letting go completely.
Begin to soften through your jaw.
Your tongue.
Begin to soften through the forehead.
The eyebrows,
The temples.
Softening and sensing your cheekbones.
Your island.
Imagine your head becoming heavy.
And you might even imagine thoughts becoming heavy.
And sinking down towards the earth.
As thoughts arise,
They are becoming heavy and sinking down like water.
Following gravity down into the earth beneath you.
And as thoughts start to settle down into stillness.
Your attention opens more and more towards the experience of sound.
Welcoming sounds around you.
And allowing the sound of my voice.
To help you draw deeper and deeper into a state of relaxation.
A state of surrender to the intelligence of your body.
That already knows how to rest deeply.
Letting go of the notion that there's anything that you need to do.
All that there is to do is let go.
Letting go of the muscles and the physical body.
Notice the cool air on your face.
Feel your core remain cosy and warm beneath the blanket.
Begin to sense the flow of air within your nostrils.
And as you notice your breath.
And your body sinking down into your mattress.
Notice how comfortable.
How cozy.
How cocooned your body feels.
Allowing yourself to soften into that support and warmth.
If it feels supportive,
You might let your head roll gently off to one side.
Whichever side feels more natural.
Allowing the facial muscles to soften completely.
Notice the rhythm of breath within the nostrils.
Will begin to find a rhythm together to soothe the whole nervous system.
I invite you to begin inhaling for the count of two.
And exhaling for the count of two.
Inhale one.
Exhale once.
Inhale one.
Exhale one.
And now for three.
Inhale 1,
2,
3.
Exhale 1.
In hell one.
Exhale once.
Now exhale a little bit longer.
Inhale once.
Exhale once.
Adjusting this to your own count,
Whichever numbers feel easier.
Align with your breath,
Breathing in and out.
For a count of 2 or 3 or 4 and breathing out for a count of 3,
4,
5 or maybe 6.
Continuing to breathe this way,
Finding the extended longer exhale.
Inhale 1,
2,
3.
3,
Exhale 1,
2,
3,
4,
5.
Finding your own counting pattern.
And staying here with this gentle rhythm in your own mind.
Inhaling for 3 or 4.
Exhaling for 5 or 6.
Letting the breath continue in this rhythm.
And now,
Letting go of any control of your breath,
Allowing your breath to soften into its natural rhythm.
Bringing your attention to the center of your chest.
To your heart space.
Feel the gentle rhythm of your heartbeat.
Sense the breath moving in and out at the heart center.
This place of deep wisdom and inner knowing.
In this receptive state,
Your heart is open,
Ready to receive the seed of your intention.
In Yoga Nidra this intention is called Sankalpa.
A heartfelt resolve.
A sacred vow that you make to yourself.
Your sankalpa is like a seed that you plant in the fertile soil of the subconscious mind.
A seed that will be nourished by this practice.
And will naturally begin to blossom and manifest in your waking life.
If you have a sankalpa that you have been working with,
Welcome it now.
If you do not yet have an intention,
I invite you to welcome one into the space.
If anything comes to mind,
Allow it to be there.
Or you're welcome to use any of these phrases.
I am whole and complete.
Just as I am.
I trust in my body's innate wisdom to heal and restore balance in my body.
I surrender to the healing embrace of deep sleep.
If you found a phrase,
An intention that resonates.
I invite you to state your sankalpa in the present tense.
As if it is already true.
Because at the deepest level of your being it already is.
Eros and Kalpa rest in the heart like a seed planted.
Trusting that it will grow in its own time.
And now.
Moving into a gentle presence around the body.
With each exhale imagine each region of the body softening,
Releasing.
And beginning to dissolve in the space around it.
The mouth and jaw.
Begin by sensing the entire jaw.
Relaxing.
Relaxing and softening through the tongue.
Letting it lay relaxed in your mouth.
Feeling the teeth,
The gums,
The roof of your mouth.
Sensing the floor of your mouth beneath the tongue.
Simply noticing and sensing the inside of your right cheek.
The inside of your left cheek.
Moving with your awareness.
Through the entire tongue from the tips.
All the way down to the root of the tongue.
Journeying with your awareness from the back of the throat into the inner ear on the right moving from the right inner ear canal.
Put the fold of your right ear.
The earlobe.
And the entire outer ear.
Notice the right ear listening.
Welcoming sounds deep within the ear.
Coming back towards the tongue and the throat.
Journeying with your awareness gently through the inner ear canal towards the left ear.
And out towards the earlobe.
The folds of the left ear.
And the whole outside of the left ear.
Noticing the left ear listening.
Perceiving sound.
Sensing both ears together now,
Intimately connected.
Sensing the space between your ears.
Can you sense the space and the volume,
The distance between both ears?
Can you imagine this space as effortless?
Deeply resting.
Effortless and light space between the ears.
Letting attention come to the centre of the forehead.
And from the center of your forehead can you imagine a softness spreading in all directions towards the temples,
The hairline,
The skull.
Imagine a soft wave of sleepy awareness floating through the whole skull.
And hair.
Sensing the right eyebrow.
The temple.
Journeying with your awareness down to the right cheekbone.
The island.
The right eye itself,
Heavy and resting.
Softening into all the little muscles behind the right eye.
Journeying with your awareness to the left eyebrow.
Down towards the temple,
Left cheekbone.
And to the eyelids.
Left eye itself.
Heavy and resting.
Relaxing and softening into all the little muscles behind the left eye.
Sensing the bridge of the nose.
The tip of the nose.
Noticing the air flowing in through the nostrils.
A gentle and soft awareness of the flow of air.
You might imagine here that you could breathe in through the nostrils.
Into the centre of your forehead.
The mind's eye.
A gentle breath gradually stilling the thought waves of the mind.
Imagine relaxing the muscles of the mind.
Softening back into a sense of spacious awareness.
Mind becoming spacious.
The body becoming heavy.
And journeying down towards the centre of the throat.
Softening here next.
Softening your throat.
Journeying with your awareness.
Down towards your right collarbone.
Right side.
Of your shoulder.
Upper arm.
Elbow.
Forearm.
Continuing to journey with your awareness to your wrists.
The centre of the palm.
Back of the palm.
Base of the thumb.
The whole thumb.
Your index finger.
The tip of your index finger.
The whole finger.
The base of your middle finger.
The tip of your middle finger.
The whole finger.
The base of the ring finger.
Up to the tip of your finger.
The whole finger.
The base of the small finger.
The tip of your finger.
The whole finger.
Sensing all five fingertips.
And the fingernails.
The space between each of the fingers.
Journeying to the centre of the palm.
Up the forearm.
Elbow.
Upper arm.
The right shoulder.
Right side of the chest.
Into the heart center.
The left side of the chest.
Sensing your left collarbone.
Left shoulder.
Upper arm.
Aobar.
4R.
Journeying with your awareness and sensing your rest.
Centre of the palm of your left hand.
The back of the palm.
Base of the thumb.
The whole thumb.
Base of the second finger.
Into the tip of the finger.
The whole finger.
The third finger.
Beginning at the base.
Into the tip of your finger.
The whole finger.
And into the fourth ring finger,
Beginning at the base.
Into the tip of your finger.
The whole finger.
And journeying to the base of the small finger.
Into the tip of the finger.
The whole finger.
Sensing all fingertips on the left hand.
The fingernails.
Sensing the space between the fingers.
Bringing the attention back to the palm.
Wrists churning up to the forearms.
Alba?
Upper arm.
Shoulder.
Left side of the chest.
And into the heart centre.
Taking three breaths in a natural rhythm here at the heart centre.
Feeling into your belly.
Sensing the navel centre.
Down to the lower belly.
Over to the right hip.
The front of the thigh.
The back of the thigh.
They're glued.
Down the side to the knee.
The shin.
The car.
The front of the ankle,
The side,
The back.
Sensing the heel of the foot.
Sole of the foot.
Top of the foot.
Sensing the big toe.
Second toe.
Third toe.
Fourth toe.
Small toe.
Sensing all five toes.
Sensing the space between the tones.
Sensing the tips of the toes.
And the space around the toes.
Can you sense the space within the toes and around?
Can you allow these spaces to begin to merge,
Dissolve into one another?
Sensing the toes dissolving into the space around the toes.
Returning gently to the top of the foot.
Sensing the heel.
The ankle.
Turning up the lower leg towards the knee.
Sensing your thigh.
Your hips.
Your lower belly.
Take 3 breaths here at the low belly.
Feeling the gentle rise and fall.
Journeying with your awareness to the left hip.
The left glute.
The front of left thigh.
Back of left eye.
The knee.
The shin.
The car.
The ankle,
Front of the ankle,
Side of the ankle.
Back of the ankle.
Journeying to feel the heel of the foot.
Soul of the foot.
Top of their foot.
Sensing the big tarp.
Second toe.
Third toe.
The small toe.
The tips of the toes,
Toenails.
The space between the toes.
Sensing the tips of all toes and the space between the toes.
Sensing the space within and around the toes.
Dissolving into each other.
Journeying with your attention slowly back up to the top of the foot.
The sole of their foot.
Here.
Ankle.
Lower leg.
Into the lower belly.
To the navel center.
The diaphragm.
The heart centre.
Now sensing both of your feet together.
Both legs.
The whole trunk of the body.
The front.
And the back.
Sensing both arms and hands.
The whole head and neck.
The whole body now,
Deeply resting.
Trillions of cells.
Resting.
Feel the boundary of the physical body beginning to soften.
The edges becoming less defined.
The body dissolving into the space around it.
Bringing our awareness now to the space behind closed eyes.
The soft darkness or perhaps gentle hints of light that exist here in this inner world.
Allow yourself to settle into this inner space.
Quiet.
Still.
Completely safe.
And now.
I invite you to allow an image to gently arise of the most peaceful,
Restful place that you have ever known or imagined.
This might be somewhere from your memory.
A place that once filled you with deep calm.
Or it might emerge from imagination.
A sanctuary that your own inner wisdom creates for you now.
Maybe you find yourself resting beside a still mountain lake.
In the soft light just after the sun has set.
The water like glass.
Mirroring the gentle pinks and lavenders of the evening sky.
The air cool and clean.
Carrying hints of pine and damp earth.
Ancient mountains rise around you,
Timeless and steady,
Holding you in their quiet embrace.
Or perhaps you find yourself lying beneath an endless canopy of stars.
The dark sky stretching infinitely above.
A thousand points of light scattered across the heavens.
You feel the solid earth beneath your body.
Warm and supporting.
And the vast universe above.
Reminding you how expansive existence truly is.
Allow yourself to rest now in your sanctuary,
Whatever shape it has taken.
Feel how this place holds you,
The stillness,
The peace.
There is nothing to do here,
Nothing to work out or understand.
Only rest.
Only being.
Only now.
Feel yourself cradled here.
Between the solid earth and the open sky held by something greater than yourself.
You are safe here.
You are complete.
You are exactly where you belong.
And now.
Allowing even these images to gently fade.
Letting go of the sanctuary,
The forms,
The shapes.
Simply resting back into the vast spaciousness that is already here.
Imagine the edges of your body growing soft.
Becoming transparent.
Beginning to dissolve.
The boundary between inner and outer blurring,
Merging into one.
Allow yourself to be absorbed into an infinite ocean of stillness.
Boundless,
Timeless,
At peace.
You are not separate from this stillness.
You are this stillness.
Let your awareness expand.
As wide and open as the night sky itself.
Be willing to dissolve,
To release,
To simply rest.
There is nothing to grasp.
Nothing to solve.
Nothing to become.
Only this.
Only here.
Only now.
Resting as awareness itself.
Resting in what you have always been.
Letting your attention drift down to the heart space.
Landing here in the heart.
Allowing the gentle natural rhythm of breath.
As you sink into the earth.
And drift towards dreams.
Allowing your breath to flow.
Allowing your breath to carry you deeper and deeper.
Within.
Resting here,
Now.
With your awareness on the sensations of your breath.
As it carries you deeper.
And deeper.
Within.
You you
