Welcome to your Yoga Nidra practice.
This is your time to pause.
To soften.
To simply be.
Find a comfortable position,
Allowing your body to feel fully supported.
Perhaps a pillow beneath your knees,
A blanket for warmth.
And something to support your head.
Allow your eyes to gently close if that feels comfortable.
Begin by noticing the natural rhythm of your breath.
No need to change anything.
Simply notice the gentle rise and fall of your body.
With each exhale,
Allow yourself to settle a little more deeply into the support beneath you.
Let the muscles soften.
Let the breath become easy.
Let the mind begin to quiet.
You have traveled through many seasons of life,
Seasons of growing,
Giving,
Loving,
Working,
And caring for others.
Seasons filled with responsibilities,
Accomplishments,
Challenges,
And change.
And perhaps now.
You find yourself entering a different season.
One that invites you to slow down.
To listen more closely.
To discover what brings meaning and joy to your days.
There may be questions about what comes next.
Who am I without the roles that once defined me?
Where will I find purpose?
What does this season of life have to offer?
For now,
Allow those questions to rest.
There's nothing you need to figure out in this moment.
Nothing you need to accomplish.
Simply give yourself permission to be here.
Resting.
Receiving.
Remembering that your worth has never depended on what you do.
As your body continues to settle.
Gently bring your awareness to your heart center.
In Yoga Nidra,
We call our heartfelt intention a sankalpa.
A simple statement of truth that reflects what we wish to nurture within ourselves.
For this practice,
I invite you to consider.
I honor the life I have lived.
I trust the life still unfolding.
Allow these words to settle within you.
Repeat them silently three times.
Not as something you need to achieve.
But as something you are learning to remember.
Now begin to move your awareness gently through your body.
There's nothing to move.
Nothing to change.
Simply bring your attention to each part as it is named.
Become aware of your right hand.
Right thumb,
Index finger,
Middle finger,
Ring finger.
Pinky finger.
Palm of the hand.
Back of the hand.
Rest.
Forearm elbow,
Upper arm.
Right shoulder.
Now your left hand.
Left thumb,
Index finger,
Middle finger,
Ring finger.
Pinky finger.
Palm of the hand.
Back of the hand.
Rest.
Forearm.
Elbow.
Upper arm.
Left shoulder.
Bring your awareness to your right hip,
Right thigh,
Knee,
Calf,
Ankle,
Heel,
Sole of the foot.
Top of the foot,
All five toes.
Now your left hip,
Left thigh,
Knee,
Calf,
Ankle.
Heal.
Sole of the foot,
Top of the foot.
All five toes.
Become aware of your pelvis,
Your lower back,
Middle back.
Upper back.
Your belly?
Your chest.
Your throat.
Your neck.
Your jaw.
Your lips,
Your cheeks,
Your eyes,
Your forehead,
The crown of your head.
Now feel your entire body resting.
Your whole body breathing.
Bring awareness to this body that has carried you through every season of your life.
A body that has moved,
Worked,
Loved,
Rested,
Healed,
And adapted.
Perhaps it feels different than it once did.
Perhaps it asks for a little more patience.
A little more kindness.
A little more listening.
See whether you can meet your body with appreciation.
Rather than expectation.
There is no need to compare it to the body you once had.
This is the body that carries you today.
Still worthy of care.
Still capable of experiencing pleasure.
Connection,
And joy.
Your body is not something to overcome.
It is a place to come home to.
Now gently guide your awareness to the very center of your chest.
Your heart center.
Become aware of your physical heart.
This beautiful heart that has carried you through every season of your life.
Let go of any holding,
Control,
Or tension in your physical heart.
Allow radiant energy to flow freely through your heart and all the vessels within and surrounding it.
Feel a gentle warmth spreading through your chest.
And appreciation for this heart.
That has been with you through it all.
Now bring your awareness to your emotional heart.
The place where love,
Joy.
Sorrow.
And memories are held.
Let go of any tension or heaviness within your emotional heart.
Allow healing energy to flow into the spaces that may still be tender.
Invite love and forgiveness,
Forgiveness for yourself and others.
Compassion for the person you have been.
Acceptance and love for the person you are becoming.
There is nothing you need to fix.
Nothing you need to carry forward that no longer serves you.
Allow your emotional heart to soften,
To open,
To receive.
Now bring your awareness to your spiritual heart.
The quiet,
Sacred place within you that connects to the divine heart.
Feel yourself surrounded by unconditional love.
Allow this love to gently enter your spiritual heart.
Flowing through every cell of your body.
A love that has always been present.
A love that does not diminish with age or change.
Rest in the awareness that beneath all the roles,
Experiences,
And seasons of your life,
Your true essence remains whole.
There is nothing to earn,
Nothing to prove,
Only love to receive.
Letting go.
Letting go.
Letting go.
Deeper and deeper into relaxation.
Deeper and deeper into surrender.
Letting go.
Imagine yourself.
Walking along a peaceful garden path on a beautiful autumn afternoon.
The sunlight is warm and golden.
The air feels soft against your skin.
Around you,
The trees are changing.
Leaves of amber,
Rust,
And gold gently move in the breeze.
Some are still holding on to their branches.
Others have begun their journey back to the Earth.
Notice how naturally the garden welcomes this change.
Nothing is rushing.
Nothing is resisting.
Each part of the garden belongs to the season.
As you continue along the path.
You notice a comfortable place to rest beneath a beautiful old tree.
Its trunk is strong.
Its branches stretch wide.
Its roots reach deep into the earth.
Imagine settling beneath this tree.
Feeling supported.
Feeling held.
Feeling connected to something steady and enduring.
Consider the life of this tree,
The storms it has weathered,
The seasons it has witnessed.
The years it has spent growing stronger,
Reaching deeper.
Becoming more fully itself.
Its beauty is not found only in its spring blossoms or summer leaves.
There is beauty in its strength.
Its character,
Its resilience,
Its ability to change.
And perhaps there is something familiar in this tree.
Like you,
It carries the wisdom of many seasons.
The experiences that have shaped you,
The challenges you have moved through.
The love you have given and received.
The lessons that could only come with time.
All of it belongs to you.
All of it has brought you here.
Perhaps retirement or the passing years have changed the rhythm of your days.
The familiar responsibilities may have softened.
The roles that once defined you.
May no longer feel quite the same.
And in the quiet that follows,
You may wonder what your purpose is now.
Allow yourself to consider another possibility.
What if purpose is not something you need to find?
What if it is something you can allow to unfold?
Perhaps your purpose now is less about doing and more about being.
Being present.
Being curious.
Being available to love.
Perhaps it lives in sharing your wisdom,
In offering your kindness,
In creating something beautiful,
In learning something new.
Or in Simply.
Enjoying the freedom to experience life at a different pace.
There is no single way to live a meaningful life.
And there is no age at which becoming comes to an end.
Now imagine a gentle breeze blowing through the branches above you.
A few golden leaves begin to fall.
Watch as they drift effortlessly toward the earth.
Nothing forced,
Nothing hurried,
Simply allowing.
Perhaps there are things you,
Too,
Are ready to release.
Old expectations.
The need to remain who you once were.
The belief that your value is measured by your productivity.
Or the pressure to have all the answers.
Imagine placing those expectations upon the falling leaves.
Allowing them to drift away.
Making space for something new.
Beyond the garden,
The world continues to move.
There may be uncertainty,
Conflict,
Changes that feel difficult to understand.
Things that weigh heavily upon your heart.
You can care deeply about the world without carrying all of its suffering.
You can remain informed and compassionate while also protecting your inner peace.
You do not have to solve everything to make a difference.
Sometimes peace begins with the smallest of choices.
A gentle word.
An open heart.
A moment of understanding.
A willingness to meet another person with kindness.
Peace does not require a perfect world.
It can begin right here.
Within you.
Now take one more moment beneath this beautiful autumn tree.
Feel the warmth of the sunlight,
The steadiness of the earth.
The quiet beauty of this season.
And perhaps allow yourself to recognize something.
You are not becoming less.
You are becoming more deeply yourself.
There is still beauty to discover.
Love to share.
Joy to experience,
And life waiting to unfold.
Allow the image of the garden to gently soften.
The golden leaves.
The warm sunlight.
The beautiful old tree.
Knowing that you can return to this peaceful place whenever you wish.
Bring your awareness once again to your heart center.
Notice how you feel.
Without judgment.
Without expectation.
Returning now to your heartfelt intention.
I honor the life I have lived.
I trust the life still unfolding.
Allow these words to settle deeply within you.
There is no deadline for discovering joy.
No age limit for finding meaning.
No need to know exactly what comes next.
Trust that you can meet this season with curiosity.
Compassion.
And an open heart.
Begin to notice the natural rhythm of your breath.
The gentle rise and fall of your chest.
Feel the support beneath your body,
The space around you.
Allow your awareness to slowly return.
Perhaps noticing your fingers,
Your toes.
The quiet sensations of being here.
There is no need to hurry.
Before you leave this practice,
Take a moment to appreciate yourself.
Not for what you have accomplished,
Not for the roles you have held,
But simply for who you are.
For the courage it has taken to live your life.
For the ways you have grown.
For the love you have shared.
For the wisdom that has quietly gathered within you.
You have lived through many seasons and each one has offered something.
This season is no different.
Perhaps its gifts are found in slowing down.
In choosing how you spend your time.
And listening more closely to what brings you joy.
In discovering that you no longer need to be everything to everyone.
You are allowed to rest.
You are allowed to change.
You are allowed to begin again.
And you are allowed to love the life.
You have right now.
Take one more gentle breath.
And as you exhale.
Allow these words to settle within you.
You are not becoming less.
You are coming more deeply yourself.
The beauty of autumn is not found in holding on to summer.
It is found in allowing each season to reveal its own beauty.
May you find peace in the things you cannot control.
Purpose in the moments that bring meaning to your days,
And joy in the simple gift of being alive.
Begin to invite a little more movement into the fingers and toes.
Perhaps a gentle stretch if that feels good.
And when you are ready,
Slowly open your eyes,
Returning to the world around you.
Grounded.
Renewed and gently reminded that there is still so much life within you.
Your autumn is not an ending.
It is another beautiful season of becoming.
May your spirit be strong.
May you be safe and protected.
May you be filled with deep healing.
And may you always be held by love.
Namaste.
