Yoga Nidra Meditation With Garden Visualization

This is a relaxing, lying-down meditation that is calming for the nervous system. If you have half an hour to spare, it is a lovely way to relax and rejuvenate your mind and body. We create an intention, then do a body scan, then some visualizations and then a mini meditation.

Transcript

Hello,

And welcome to Yoga Nidra,

The art of conscious relaxation.

Find yourself a comfortable place to lie down,

Either on the floor,

On a yoga mat,

Perhaps on a bed.

You can do this practice sitting up too,

If that's more convenient for you.

Whatever it is,

Make sure you're comfortable and you're warm enough,

As the body temperature does sometimes drop during this practice.

If you're lying down,

Make sure your arms are away from the body,

Palms up,

If that's comfortable.

Again,

You could turn your palms down if it is not so comfortable,

Or if you're on a bed,

You can bring your hands onto your belly,

That can sometimes be very restful.

And once you are set up and comfortable,

Make any final adjustments you need to make so that you are comfortable.

And hopefully there's no bright lights in your eyes.

You might use a eye pillow on your eyes if you'd like.

Make sure your neck is straight,

Head is straight,

And close the eyes softly.

And begin by just feeling the floor underneath you,

Or the bed underneath you,

Or the chair that you're sitting on.

Become aware of that support.

Now become aware of the breath at the entrance of the nostrils.

Now I want you to gaze into the center of the eyebrows,

And as you gaze into the center of the eyebrows,

I want you to scan the phase of life you are living in.

When each and every one of us does this,

Each and every one of us will find an aspect of our lifestyle we can improve upon.

We can also find a project we might want to complete,

Or some aspect of our life we want to manifest.

When you find that intention for yourself today,

Don't stress about it,

See what just comes up naturally.

I want you to form a positive sentence,

A short positive sentence such as,

I am tolerant,

I am patient,

I am finishing XYZ project.

Whatever it is for you,

Formulate that short positive statement,

And when you have it,

Repeat it to yourself mentally three times.

Very good.

Now we're going to rotate the consciousness over the body.

Whichever part of the body my voice says,

I want you to mentally repeat it,

Mentally echo it.

Simultaneously,

Take your awareness to that part of the body.

Remember the body remains still,

Only the mind moves.

The body remains still,

Only the mind moves.

Bring all your awareness to the right side of the body,

To the right thumb,

Second finger on the right hand,

Third finger,

Fourth finger,

Fifth finger,

To the back of the right hand,

To the center of the right palm,

Right wrist,

Right forearm,

Right elbow,

Right upper arm,

Right shoulder,

Right armpit,

Right ribcage,

Right waist,

Right hip,

Right thigh,

Right knee,

Right shin,

Right ankle,

Top of the right foot,

Right big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe,

Fifth toe,

To the sole of the right foot,

Right heel,

Right Achilles,

Right calf,

Back of the right knee,

Back of the right thigh.

Shift all your awareness to the left side of the body,

To the left thumb,

Second finger on the left hand,

Third finger,

Fourth finger,

Fifth finger,

The back of the left hand,

The center of the left palm,

Left wrist,

Left forearm,

Left elbow,

Left upper arm,

Left shoulder,

Left armpit,

Left ribcage,

Left waist,

Left hip,

Left thigh,

Left knee,

Left shin,

Left ankle,

Top of the left foot,

Left big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe,

Fifth toe,

To the sole of the left foot,

Left heel,

Left Achilles,

Left calf,

Back of the left knee,

Back of the left thigh.

Bring all your awareness to the right buttock,

Left buttock,

Right shoulder blade,

Left shoulder blade,

To the entire spine,

To the entire spine,

Back of the neck,

Back of the head,

Top of the head,

To the forehead.

Bring all your awareness to the right eyebrow,

Left eyebrow,

Right eyelid,

Left eyelid,

Right eyeball,

Left eyeball,

Right outer ear,

Left outer ear,

Right inner ear,

Left inner ear,

Right cheekbone,

Left cheekbone,

Right nostril,

Left nostril,

The tip of the nose,

Top lip,

Bottom lip,

Top set of teeth,

Bottom set of teeth,

To the tongue,

To the throat,

To the chin,

Right collarbone,

Left collarbone,

Right chest,

Left chest,

The center of the chest,

Upper abdomen,

Lower abdomen,

To the navel center.

Bring your awareness to the entire right arm,

The entire right arm.

Shift your awareness to the entire left arm,

The entire left arm.

Become aware of both arms simultaneously,

Both arms simultaneously.

Bring your awareness to the entire right leg,

The entire right leg.

Shift your awareness to the entire left leg,

The entire left leg.

Become aware of both legs simultaneously,

Both legs simultaneously.

Become aware of the entire body,

The entire body,

The entire body.

And as the body moves into deeper and deeper relaxation,

We will now begin to relax the mind.

Become aware of the breath at the entrance of the nostrils.

Try not to control it,

Simply witness the breath moving in and out.

Now move your awareness to the breath at the belly.

Try not to control the movement of the belly,

Just witness it.

As you inhale and exhale,

The belly naturally makes a small movement up and down,

Just be a witness.

Now I want you to count the breath backwards at the belly mentally from 36 to 1.

If you lose count,

Start all over again at 36.

If you fall asleep and wake up,

Start all over again at 36.

If you reach 1 before I start speaking again,

Start again at 36.

And we'll count like this,

36 navel up,

36 navel down,

35 navel up,

35 navel down.

Continue at your own pace to 1.

Very good.

Remember now,

No sleeping,

No sleeping.

You're still awake,

Still aware of my voice.

I want you now to use the creativity of your mind to imagine your body is a hundred times heavier than it is.

Your body is so heavy,

You couldn't possibly lift it off the ground.

Use the creativity of your mind to feel heaviness in the body now.

Very good.

Now I want you to use the creativity of your mind to imagine your body is very light.

It is as light as a feather and it's floating up,

Up,

Up off the ground.

Use your imagination to feel lightness in the body now.

Very good.

Now I want you to use the creativity of your mind to imagine you are very cold.

Probably been outside when you didn't have enough on and you were cold or you've walked on a cold floor.

You know what ice feels like.

Use the creativity of your mind to feel that coldness of your mind to feel that coldness in your body now.

Very good.

Now I want you to use the creativity of your mind to imagine you are very warm.

You're very hot.

You know what it's like to feel hot,

To feel the heat,

To feel the heat from a fire or from the hot sun.

Use the creativity of your mind to feel that heat throughout your body now.

Very good.

Now I want you to remember a time when you were very happy.

It could be when you were a child.

Maybe it was when you were a teenager.

Maybe it was just a few weeks ago.

Remember who you were with,

If you were with some people.

Remember the laughter,

The joy,

What time of year.

Remember as much as you can.

And when you've got that memory,

I want you to feel that happiness,

Feel that joy in your body.

Feel happiness in the body now.

Very good.

Now keeping your focus at the Chittikash,

The mind space,

I want you to imagine you are outside walking through a beautiful garden.

It is early in the morning.

It is warm and you are completely alone.

There are no other people around.

There is only you to enjoy the beauty of nature.

Become aware of the earth beneath your bare feet.

It feels cool and very pleasant.

And now see all the plants and trees growing out of the earth as you walk by them.

Listen.

You hear a loud clap of thunder and you look up.

The sky has become very dark and now it is starting to rain.

You are standing on very green grass and you are watching the raindrops bounce off the blades of grass.

Smell the wet earth and witness the storm.

Do not be afraid of getting wet.

Just relax and allow yourself to become completely soaked.

It doesn't matter.

The rain is very,

Very pleasant.

Now the storm has finished.

The sun is beginning to shine through the clouds.

Feel the warmth of the sun on your skin.

You are no longer wet.

Your clothes are dry and you feel very warm inside.

Look up at the sun and feel its warmth and its energy penetrating your skin.

Now you are running in the garden.

You are very happy and cannot help but laugh with joy.

All around in the trees,

Brightly colored birds are singing.

Hear their song all around you.

A cool,

Gentle breeze is blowing through the trees.

Hear the wind rustling in the trees and feel it blowing against your face and all around you.

Breathe in this fresh,

Life-giving air.

Breathe in the fresh,

Life-giving and all around you.

Breathe in this fresh,

Life-giving air.

Breathe it in.

Now keeping your focus on the Chittikash,

The mind space,

I want you to imagine a sheet of music,

A carnation.

Imagine a glass of lemonade.

Imagine a watermelon.

Imagine a woodpecker.

Imagine a potato.

Imagine a can of beans.

Imagine a paperback book.

Imagine sliding doors.

Imagine a shirt.

Imagine a button.

Imagine a sewing machine.

Imagine a lily pad floating on a pond.

Imagine a waterfall.

Imagine a white elephant.

Imagine a bridge.

Imagine a crescent moon.

Imagine a lake.

Imagine the clouds in the sky.

Imagine the sun.

Imagine a window.

Imagine a lamp.

Imagine a table.

Imagine a mirror.

See yourself in the mirror.

See yourself in the mirror.

See yourself in the mirror.

Keeping your focus at the Chittikash,

I want you now to try to think about nothing.

If thoughts bubble up from the subconscious,

Simply witness them and let them go.

If no thoughts bubble up,

Just enjoy the peace and quiet of your mind,

Focusing right at the Chittikash,

The mind space,

Focusing there.

Now.

And as we come to the end of our Yoga Nidra session,

I want you to remember your intention,

Or as yogis call it,

The Sankalpa you created at the beginning of the practice,

That short positive phrase.

Remember that and repeat it to yourself again mentally three times.

And then let's slowly begin to bring the awareness back into the body.

You can begin by wiggling the fingers,

The toes,

Moving the wrists,

The ankles.

You'll be taking a deeper inhale and longer exhale.

Moving the wrists,

The ankles.

You'll be taking a deeper inhale and longer exhale.

Move the skin on the face and gently turn the head from side to side and back to center.

And if you have room above you,

Behind your head,

You could reach your arms up and give yourself a full body stretch.

Point the toes down and stretch one side,

Stretch the other side,

Stretch both sides.

Then bring your arms back down by your sides.

And if you are getting up from your lying down position,

You can bend your knees and bring the soles of the feet onto the bed or the yoga mat.

And then gently roll over to the side,

To your right side if you can,

Supporting your head.

And just stay there for a moment in the fetal position.

And if you're just sitting on the chair,

You can just remain on the chair.

And just take a moment to notice how the body has changed after the practice.

Perhaps the muscles are more relaxed.

Perhaps the breath is slower.

Perhaps the mind is a little quieter.

And then if you're getting up,

You can gently push yourself up into a seated position,

Maybe cross-legged.

And if you'd like,

You can draw your hands together at the heart center and bow your head in gratitude towards your heart.

Namaste.