Hello and welcome to the practice of yoga nidra.
My name is Kumori and I'll be guiding you into a deep state of rest.
I love knowing that you've chosen yoga nidra as a way to support your sleep.
It's such an incredibly beneficial practice for sleep because it works on both the mind and the nervous system in ways that prepare the body for deep breaths.
Yoga nidra helps shift the nervous system out of stress mode and into the rest and digest state.
This is where true healing and restoration can happen.
Through this simple process of guided awareness,
The mind begins to release clutter and quiet down,
Making it easier to drift into sleep.
Sometimes our bodies hold tension we don't even realize that we're holding.
So in yoga nidra,
Through these techniques,
Our body and mind feel safe enough to fully let go.
And as we move through the practice,
Your brain naturally shifts into slower rhythms,
Similar to the states that you pass through when falling asleep.
Even if you don't fall asleep right away,
That's okay.
Yoga nidra itself is as restorative as several hours of sleep.
So there's nothing you need to do but listen,
Receive,
And allow yourself to be carried into relaxation.
First and foremost,
Take time now to create a very comfortable setup in your bed.
Ensure that you feel cozy and warm and completely supported.
You might snuggle a pillow underneath the knees to release any holding or tension in the lower back.
Notice how your shoulders and arms are feeling,
Your head and your neck.
Perhaps even tucking a little something underneath the neck and head to offer just a little more support.
You can always readjust and shift as your body alerts you.
There's no certain way that you need to be or do yoga nidra.
This is an effortless practice.
Allow my voice to take you into that deep,
Nourishing state of rest.
And now that you're all settled,
If you haven't already,
Either cover or close down your eyes and start to become aware of the different sounds in the space you're in.
You might even hear sounds beyond your space.
Just integrating with the world around you so there's no resistance.
And through your closed eyes,
Imagine the walls of the room you're in,
The ceiling,
The floor,
And you upon the bed,
Snuggled and settled.
Receptive and ready to this guidance that will take you into a beautiful night of rest.
Come to feel the body resting on the bed.
Notice the feeling between your heel and the mattress.
Notice the calves,
The backs of the knee and thigh.
Welcome the awareness of the weight and density of the lower half of your body.
And now can you let your attention rest at the hands and fingers.
Just aware of how the hands and the fingers are meeting the surface thereupon,
Whether it's the bed or your body.
And now sense the expanse of your upper back and the feeling of the weight of your head.
And now can you sense your whole body as one,
Feeling the whole body resting in this stillness you've already cultivated.
Feeling the stillness,
But also aware of the breath that flows effortlessly.
And now can you sense the physical sensation of your breath?
Just noticing how your body moves with each inhale and exhale.
And now might you tune in to how your breath creates an effortless rhythm.
How each inhale gives way to each exhale and each exhale back to an inhale.
And breathing in and breathe at your very own natural pace.
And now begin to cultivate a very slight pause at the top of the inhale and the bottom of the exhale.
It's not like you're holding your breath.
More like an ever so gentle and brief suspension.
Tuning into this liminal space where you're not inhaling or exhaling.
This space of utter stillness.
And now perhaps lengthening this pause for three counts.
Whole body moving into the parasympathetic state.
As we still the body and slow the breath.
Letting go of the focus on the breath.
And letting awareness expand to one of the entire body.
Again,
Noticing the stillness.
And affirming this intention to sleep and rest.
By repeating this sankalpa three times.
In the mind.
I welcome deep sleep and will awaken,
Refresh.
I welcome deep sleep and awaken,
Refresh.
I welcome deep sleep and awaken,
Refresh.
And so it is.
Now follow my voice as we move around the body through the rotation of consciousness.
Beginning by placing attention at the right hand thumb.
The first finger.
Second finger.
Third and pinky finger.
The palm.
The top of the hand.
A sense now of the whole right hand.
Wrist.
Forearm.
Elbow.
Upper arm.
Shoulder.
The whole right arm and hand.
Right collarbone.
The right side of the chest.
The right half of the abdomen and waist.
Hip.
Lower leg.
Ankle.
Top of the foot.
Big toe.
Second toe.
Third.
Fourth.
And fifth.
The sole of the right foot.
The whole of the right foot.
Leg.
Sensing now the entire right half of the body.
The right half of the body.
And now slowly guide awareness to rest at the left thumb.
The first finger.
Second finger.
Third.
Small finger.
The palm.
Top of the hand.
Wrist.
Forearm.
Elbow.
Upper arm.
Shoulder.
The whole left arm and hand.
Left collarbone.
The left half of the chest.
The left side of the abdomen and waist.
Hip.
Thigh.
Lower leg.
Ankle.
Top of foot.
Big toe.
Second toe.
Third.
Fourth.
Fifth.
The sole of the foot.
The whole of the left foot and leg.
And now sense the entire left side of the body.
Left side of the body.
Take attention now to the base of the neck.
To the heart center.
Solar plexus.
Navel.
Pubic bone.
Tailbone.
The whole spine all the way to the base of the skull.
The top of the head.
The right eye.
Left eye.
The tip of the nose.
The right ear.
Left ear.
Upper lip.
Lower lip.
The inside of the mouth.
The surface of the tongue.
And now an awareness of the whole head.
And the whole body.
Sensing and feeling the whole body.
The body a radiant vessel of shimmering energy.
The whole body.
Alive with subtle sensations.
Deeply relax.
Return to the feeling of the breath.
Might you sense the breath or imagine the breath at the belly.
Feel the belly rise and fall with each breath you take.
Begin to imagine you could breathe this breath all the way to the crown of the head.
And then exhale it down the whole body to the feet.
Inhale from the toes up the legs back to the ground.
Exhaling down the whole body again.
Continue breathing your breath.
Like imagining the whole body breathing.
Every cell filled with prana.
Washing up and down the body.
Welcoming any visuals or senses of the energy of the breath up and down the body.
Like a wave up and down.
And now upon the next exhale.
Allow the breath to return to its natural way.
Sensing opposite sides of the body.
Could you bring all of your attention back to the right side of the body?
The right side of the body.
Sense it as heavy and warm.
The right side of the body.
A little heavier.
As if filled with warm sand.
And now in the mind.
Guide all of that attention to the left side of the body.
The left side of the body.
Warm and heavy.
Sensing the left side as different than the right.
Warm sand filling the left side of the body.
Slowly take awareness back to the right side.
Sensing the heaviness and warm.
Returning this awareness back to the left half of the body.
Heavy and warm.
In the left half of the body.
And now spreading this heaviness and warmth equally between both sides of the body.
Whole body filled with heaviness.
Whole body as heavy.
And now imagine yourself arriving at a safe,
Sacred place in nature.
And before you,
There is a beautiful nest woven of soft grasses,
Petals,
And the nest seems to glow with a quiet invitation welcoming you home.
Step inside the nest.
Settling your body as if it were made perfectly for you.
Feel the soft support beneath you.
The gentle curve around you.
This is a sanctuary for your soul.
A place where you can simply be.
This nest carries the intelligence of the earth,
The sky,
The star,
The whole universe.
All woven together to hold you here.
You're in this nest.
Your whole being can regenerate.
Your whole body and mind healing.
Resting deeply in this sacred cocoon.
There's nothing to do.
You only receive.
And the nest nourishes you,
Filling you with light and strength and renewal.
Feel this space,
The inner sanctuary of your essence,
In the arms of the whole universe.
Safe and snuggle in this healing nest.
The radiance of all that you are.
Swirling,
Mingling with the cosmos.
Masking in your innate,
True radiance.
Shimmering.
Deeply resting with the lullaby
