Welcome.
This Yoga Nidra is a guided practice of conscious deep relaxation.
As you settle in,
Know that this guides the brain from its usual waking brainwave state of beta.
Into alpha and theta.
The slower brainwave states associated with deep relaxation,
Vivid imagery and creative insight.
And then into a delta brainwave.
Sleep state where healing can occur.
There is nothing to force here.
Simply following this practice will naturally guide you there.
So take a moment to adjust anything you need to get as comfortable as you can.
A blanket for warmth.
A cushion under your knees and perhaps your head.
Gently close your eyes.
And take a slow breath in through the nose.
And exhale out through the mouth,
Letting go.
And again inhaling.
Exhaling letting go a little more.
And one more inhale.
Exhale releasing fully.
Let your breath settle to a natural rhythm.
Now begin to curl the hands into fists,
Tensing up the hands.
Tensing up the arms by maybe shrugging the shoulders up.
Inhaling there.
And then on the exhale let go completely.
And now contracting the feet and the legs.
Squeezing the buttocks,
Inhaling,
Exhaling.
And exhale,
Let go completely.
And now the whole body including the face tightening.
Arms,
Chest,
Belly,
Buttocks,
Legs,
Face.
And then exhale,
Let go of everything completely.
Let your body become heavy.
There is nothing you need to do now.
Know where you need to be.
This is a time of complete rest.
I will guide you in this next phase into deeper levels of relaxation.
Using the bumblebee breath.
Begin by taking a deep breath in.
And then with closed lips hum the sound of the bumblebee.
Do that again,
Inhaling through the nose.
And as you hum it out perhaps changing the pitch to maximize the sensations felt in your skull,
Stimulating the brain centers.
Repeat that a few more times at your own pace.
And then letting that go.
Feeling the effects of this breath.
And now we will draw in an intention or sankalpa.
Something that you wish to cultivate in your life.
Phrasing it simply in a positive statement in the present tense.
If you don't have one you might use.
Creativity flows through me.
Or I trust my inner guidance.
Whichever one resonates for you.
Repeat it silently to yourself three times with feeling.
Plant in a seed.
Allowing it to do its work.
And now we'll move our awareness throughout the body.
Simply bring attention to each area as I name it.
Sole of the right foot.
Right big toe.
Second.
Third.
Forth.
5th toe.
Top of the foot.
Ankle.
Have.
Me.
Bye.
And sense the whole rightly.
So will the left foot.
Left big toe.
Second.
Third.
Forth.
5th toe.
Top of the foot.
Ankle.
Calf.
Me.
The whole left leg.
And sense both legs together.
And the pelvis.
Lower back.
Mid-back.
Upper back.
The whole spine.
The abdomen.
Of solar plexus.
Chest.
Heart center.
Right shoulder.
Upper arm.
Elbow.
Forearm.
Rest.
Right hand thumb.
Index finger.
Middle finger.
Ring finger.
Little finger.
Palm of the hand.
Back of the hand.
Rest.
Forearm.
Elbow.
Upper arm.
Shoulder.
Center of the chest.
Left shoulder.
Upper arm.
Elbow.
Forearm.
Rest.
Left hand thumb.
Index finger.
Middle finger.
Ring finger.
Little finger.
Palm of the hand.
Back of the hand.
Rest.
Forearms.
Elbow.
Upper arm.
Shoulders.
Throughout.
Jaw.
Tongue.
Inside the right cheek.
Inside of the left cheek.
Upper teeth and gums.
Lower teeth and gums.
Right ear.
Left ear.
Tip of the nose.
Whole right eye.
The whole left eye.
Space between the eyebrows.
The third eye.
Center of wisdom.
The crown of the head.
And now sense the whole right arm.
The whole right arm.
And the whole right leg.
The whole rightly.
And now sense the whole right side of the body.
The whole right side of the body.
And now sense the whole left arm.
The whole left arm.
You the whole left leg.
The whole left leg.
And sense the whole left side of the body.
The whole left side of the body.
And now the back of the body.
From the heels up to the back of the head.
Whole back body.
And now the whole front of the body.
From the toes up to the forehead.
The whole front of the body.
The whole body at once.
Resting completely.
And now bring your attention to your natural breath.
Just noticing.
The breath entering.
And leaving the body.
Noticing perhaps any pauses.
After the inhale or the exhale.
And now counting backwards from 10.
Inhale 10.
Exhale 10.
Continue counting backwards.
If you lose count,
Just start again.
And if you finish,
Start again.
And now let the counting go.
Let the body simply breathe itself.
And we'll move through opposite sensations.
Simply feel each one as vividly as you can.
Feel a sensation of heaviness.
Your whole body sinking down.
Uphold by gravity.
So happy.
Like a rock.
Dance.
And now feel a sensation of lightness.
As if your body were floating.
Like a cloud.
Weightless.
Spacious.
And now move between heaviness and lightness.
And let that go now and rest in stillness.
Imagine now a vast dark night sky full of stars.
You are lying beneath it on open ground.
And the sky stretches endlessly in every direction.
The quiet of the night is all around you.
The air is comfortably warm.
The ground beneath you,
Cradling you.
When you notice a single point of light.
Far in the distance.
Slowly growing brighter as it approaches.
As it comes closer and rests just above you.
Soft,
Warm glow.
Gently illuminating your face.
This light settles over you like a blanket.
And this warm light settles over your chest.
When this light begins to settle into your whole body.
Illuminating your whole body.
This warm,
Healing light.
This light now flows out of the body.
Back into the space around you.
This light dispels all darkness.
And bring your attention to the center between your eyebrows.
And drop into the deepest level of relaxation.
You have entered the domain of grace.
Let everything dissolve.
And rest in awareness itself.
And now it's time to draw in your intention you used at the beginning.
Creativity is flowing through me.
Or I trust my inner guidance.
Repeat silently three times.
Trusting that your higher self recognizes.
Honors and accepts your intentions.
Begin to become aware of the rising and falling of the breath.
Slowly feel yourself rising to the surface of awareness.
Sensing the outer edges of the body.
The touch of air on the skin.
You might take a deep breath.
And exhale out with a sigh.
And gradually begin to move as if you were waking from a restful sleep.
Perhaps stretching your arms overhead if that feels good.
When you're ready rolling onto one side.
And while you're here.
Receive this affirmation.
I open my heart completely.
And embrace what is present.
And whenever you're ready,
Take your time.
There's no rush to return.
Bring yourself up to a seated position.
Perhaps rubbing the palms together,
Getting some heat in the hands.
And then cupping the palms over the eyes.
Staring into that vast open space.
Let the hands wash down.
Namaste.
