Summer-Themed Yoga Nidra

Did you know practicing Yoga Nidra can also take us to a transformative state between walking and sleeping? This in-between state provides fertile ground to sow seeds of intention.

I've created a special Summer Solstice-themed Yoga Nidra to offer you moments of calm amidst the summer season's vibrancy and higher energy. This practice is perfect for drawing your focus inward and embracing deep rest and renewal

Transcript

Lie down and settle in where you won't be disturbed.

Ensure your set-up is as comfortable as possible,

So perhaps a cushion under the knees,

A folded blanket beneath the head,

Or a blanket on top for warmth.

Do whatever you need to do to feel supported.

And really prioritise your comfort.

So if there's something you can do to be even,

Like,

4% more comfortable,

Make sure to do that.

You can let the hands rest on the body,

Or you might like them by the sides,

With the backs of the hands resting on the bed or the floor,

Wherever you are.

Yoga Nidra,

Also known as deep yogic sleep,

Is designed to elicit your body's relaxation response.

It takes you to a state in between waking and sleeping,

Where you can lie back and slip into deep rest.

It works with liminal space,

Which is the transformative space in between changing states.

In this case,

Referring to a state in between waking and sleeping.

These liminal spaces,

Or in-between states,

Can provide us with fertile ground to sow seeds of intention.

We'll come back to that in a few moments.

Today's Yoga Nidra is themed on summer,

Inspired by the summer solstice,

The longest day of the year where the sun is at its highest peak in the sky.

Whilst the higher energy of the summer months start to build,

This Yoga Nidra practice gives you precious moments of space in between things.

Space where you can draw the focus inwards and gather yourself for the vibrancy of the summer months.

Summer is a very yang season.

It's fiery,

Warming,

Dynamic and active,

Like the sun.

Our Yoga Nidra today will balance that with a calm,

Quiet,

Introspective practice.

All you need to do is let the sound of my voice wash over you.

Begin by bringing awareness to the mouth.

So you might take a deliberate swallow or a yawn,

Or maybe let the teeth part a little bit and soften the lips.

Next,

Notice the space between the eyebrows.

So that part of the forehead where you might sometimes frown or furrow the brow.

You could even take a deliberate frown to feel that tension before relaxing across the whole brow and softening the forehead.

Guide your awareness to the back of the head and to the point of contact between the back of the head and its support.

Feel the head heavy,

Fully supported.

Guide your awareness to the back of the right shoulder.

Guide your awareness to the back of the right shoulder.

Perhaps a sense of heaviness in the right shoulder blade.

Soften and relax down the right arm.

Let the right hand be heavy.

Guide your awareness to the tip of the right thumb,

The tip of the right forefinger,

Tip of the right middle finger,

Tip of the right ring finger,

And tip of the right little finger.

Bring your awareness to the back of the left shoulder.

A sense of heaviness in the left shoulder blade as it rests on its support.

Soften and relax down the left arm.

Let the left hand be heavy.

Bring your awareness to the tip of the left thumb,

The tip of the left forefinger,

Tip of the left middle finger,

Tip of the left ring finger,

And tip of the left little finger.

Next,

Guide your awareness to the right glute,

Where it makes contact with your support,

The back of the right thigh,

Back of the right lower leg,

And the right heel.

Soften all the way down the right leg and let the right foot be heavy.

Guide your awareness to the left glute,

Where it's supported,

The back of the left thigh,

The back of the left lower leg,

And the left heel.

Soften all the way down the left leg and let the left foot be heavy.

The whole of your body is relaxed from the very top of your head all the way down to the tips of your toes.

Now is the time to create a sankalpa,

Which means an intention or inner resolve.

This intention is something we wish to invite into our life or a quality we want to cultivate and embody.

And we say the intention in the present tense.

So,

As an example,

If you're feeling especially tired,

You might say your sankalpa as,

My body is resting or I make time to rest.

Maybe if you're feeling uninspired and a bit stagnant and you want to invite something new in,

You might say your sankalpa as,

I am open to new experiences.

So I'm going to leave you a few moments to either choose one of the examples as your intention or to let something bubble up that's personal to you.

When you have your present tense sentence,

Say it three times internally.

Next,

Create a safe space in your mind,

So somewhere you feel at ease.

This could be an imaginary space,

A space from a memory,

Somewhere you feel really comfortable and safe,

Maybe connected to nature.

And at any point during the guided relaxation,

If a challenging sensation comes up or you get a bit lost,

You can always come back to this safe space in your mind's eye.

So as you rest here,

Begin to notice how you're breathing.

No need to change the breath in any way.

Notice the breath coming in,

Notice where it goes and notice it leave again on the exhale.

So you are observing the breath without control.

What do you feel?

Where does the breath go?

Keep feeling the breath come in and as you exhale towards the end of the exhale,

Can you feel the weightedness of your back body?

It's with the exhale that we can most feel that gentle pull of gravity and notice the stable surface beneath.

Let your bones rest without any effort.

With each exhale,

Ground your awareness to that contact between your back body and its support.

Begin to notice the pause after your exhale.

And notice that moment when you feel the need for the inhale to naturally start to come in.

Let the breath come and go,

Come and go.

Maybe noticing a little natural pause at the end of the exhale before the inhale draws in.

It's a quietness,

A still moment between the exhale and the inhale.

Let this breath be effortless,

Easeful,

Gentle.

If you can,

Draw the in-breath all the way down to expand the lower ribs and the belly so you feel a gentle ballooning out of the belly with the inhale.

And with the exhale,

Notice the belly gently falling.

You might even say to yourself in your mind,

Inhale,

Navel rises.

Exhale,

Navel falls.

Inhale,

Navel rises.

Exhale,

Navel falls.

Now,

You've felt the body.

You've felt the breath.

What can you sense underneath that?

Notice how it feels for energy or emotions or any kind of sensations to be shifting and moving beneath the surface.

What can you feel?

If you're not sure what you feel,

That's okay too.

That's still noticing something.

Next,

Begin to imagine a warm summer's day.

Imagine the heat and warmth of the sun on your skin.

Perhaps even the smell of your favourite flowers in full bloom or herbs.

Let a sense of peace and calm wash over you.

I'm going to list different images and you'll either repeat the words internally or imagine the words if you can see visual representations in your mind's eye.

Now,

The option is to get a feeling of what I'm describing via another sense like touch or smell.

So,

When you're ready,

Imagine a green leafy tree.

Imagine pink blossom.

A cloudless blue sky.

Sunshine sparkling on turquoise sea.

A bright yellow sunflower.

Butterflies flying in a sunny forest.

Bare feet on the warm ground.

Perhaps even a fond memory of your own from a summer's day.

A memory that makes you feel safe.

Imagine a cloudless blue sky.

Cloudless blue sky.

The warmth of the sun on your skin.

Bring your focus back to your sankalpa,

So the intention,

The present tense sentence,

And repeat it once more.

Then allow yourself simply to rest back here.

Soaking up a sense of relaxation.

Nowhere else to be in this moment,

Nothing else to do.

Resting right here and now.

Slowly become aware of the points of contact between your body and its support.

Inhale,

Take a deep breath in.

Maybe let a sigh out on the exhale,

A sigh out the mouth.

You might like to do that a couple more times.

An inhale through the nose and an audible sigh out the mouth.

Then,

When you're ready,

Bring a little bit of movement to the body very slowly.

Wiggle the fingers first,

Wiggle the toes.

Maybe let the head gently rock side to side,

Moving super slow.

You're welcome to stay resting here if you have the time,

If that's possible for you.

Or you might like to close the practice now by hugging the legs in towards the body,

Wrapping the arms around the shins or the backs of the thighs,

Or taking any little movement to wake yourself back up.

Maybe a stretch,

Arms overhead.

Eventually roll on over to one side.

And really take your time waking up and getting up from this before moving on to whatever you have next on today.

Thank you so much for joining me.

Hope you found a moment of peace with that yoga nidra.

Namaste.