Drift Into Tranquility & Deep Sleep (Yoga Nidra)

This Yoga Nidra guided meditation is a systematic offering into a deeper consciousness, intentionally spoken at a steady pace that can subconsciously improve focus and attention while bringing you into a place between awake and asleep. This powerful offering can restore your mind and body, leaving you in feeling blissed-out and relaxed. This offering is great as an alternative to an afternoon nap or at the end of a long day. It includes breath awareness, a body scan, and guided visualization.

Transcript

This yoga nidra meditation can be used at night,

Sending you off into a deep sleep.

Or midday as a restorative alternative to an afternoon nap,

Adding a sense of renewal and tranquility into your day.

Start by finding a comfortable,

Quiet space laying on your back.

You may want a small pillow under your head or supporting the back of your knees.

Make sure you'll be warm and comfortable enough to remain still throughout the entire practice.

Socks or a blanket might be useful as your body temperature may drop.

Throughout the practice of yoga nidra,

All you need to do is lay back and listen to the sound of my voice,

Following along as best you can.

When your mind starts to drift away,

Silently remind yourself,

I am practicing yoga nidra,

I am awake and relaxed,

And then bring that awareness back to the sound of my voice.

Once you're comfortable and still,

Start by taking a deep breath in.

As you exhale,

Feel your body dropping into the space beneath you,

Allowing the stress of your day to dissolve with each continuous breath out.

Every breath cycle leaves you feeling more grounded,

Calm,

And present.

Bring your awareness to your surroundings,

Any noises,

Distractions,

Or sensations that might enter your space.

Gently observe them,

And then release that observation,

Inviting your awareness back to your breath.

At any point when thoughts or distractions show up,

Don't worry,

Just simply let your breath guide your awareness right back to the sound of my voice.

Notice the heaviness in the back of the body,

And feel a sense of tranquility as the weight of your heels drop down further toward the earth.

Sense a deep feeling of relaxation in the back of your hips and shoulders as they sink heavier down,

And feel a weightedness in the back of your head as it descends further into the floor or pillow,

Fully allowing the safe,

Supported sensation of deep,

Deep relaxation to wash over the entire body.

Sense the tranquility and deep relaxation of the whole body laying in stillness with nothing else to do and nowhere else to be in this moment.

Silently say to yourself,

I am practicing Yoga Nidra,

I am awake and relaxed.

Notice the flowing movement of your natural breath throughout the body.

Nothing to change or fix,

Just be aware of the simplicity of your breath.

Each inhale invites a sense of awareness and curiosity,

While each exhale allows a deeper sensation of calm,

Grounding surrender to the moment.

No effort with the breath,

It's simple,

Automatic and light.

Maintain complete awareness of breath flowing throughout the entire body,

Inhaling curiosity and exhaling calm,

Grounded tranquility.

Now it's time to state your sankalpa or intention.

Your sankalpa should be a short positive statement in simple language and present tense,

As if it's already been obtained.

Something you want to feel,

Achieve or create,

Often starting with I am or I have.

Try to discover one naturally and authentically to you.

If nothing comes to you,

That's okay.

Try using one of these statements that resonates with you the most.

I am relaxed and ready for deep restorative sleep or I am ready to be in deep sleep.

I am relaxed and ready for deep restorative sleep or I trust the process and timing that the universe has for me.

Now state your sankalpa silently and clearly to yourself with awareness and emphasis three times.

Silently repeat to yourself,

I am practicing yoga nidra,

I am awake and relaxed.

Now we will take a journey of awareness through the different parts of the body.

You can repeat each body part silently or sense,

Feel and visualize the body part I mentioned as you follow along,

Remaining as still as possible.

Starting with the right hand,

Right hand thumb,

Index finger,

Middle finger,

Ring finger,

Little finger,

Palm of the right hand,

Back of the hand,

Right wrist,

Forearm,

Elbow,

Upper arm,

Shoulder,

Sensing,

Feeling,

Seeing,

Saying,

Entire right arm,

Entire right arm,

Entire right arm.

Moving over to the left hand,

Left thumb,

Index finger,

Middle finger,

Little finger,

Palm of the left hand,

Back of the hand,

Left wrist,

Forearm,

Elbow,

Upper arm,

Shoulder,

Sensing,

Feeling,

Seeing,

Saying,

Entire left arm,

Entire left arm,

Entire left arm.

Now moving down to the right foot,

Right big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe,

Little toe,

Sole of the right foot,

Heel of the right foot,

Top of the foot,

Right ankle,

Shin,

Calf,

Front of the knee,

Back of the knee,

Front of the thigh,

Back of the thigh,

Sides of the thigh,

Entire right leg,

Entire right leg,

Entire right leg,

Sensing,

Seeing,

Feeling,

Saying,

Entire right leg.

Moving over to the left foot,

Left big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe,

Little toe,

The whole left foot,

Heel,

Top of the foot,

Ankle,

Left shin,

Calf,

Front of the knee,

Back of the knee,

Back of the thigh,

Front of the thigh,

Sides of the thigh,

Entire left leg,

Entire left leg,

Entire left leg.

And now feeling simultaneously both arms and both legs,

Both arms and both legs,

Both arms and both legs.

Sense now your chest,

Collarbone,

Ribcage,

Abdomen,

Pelvis,

Sacrum,

Lower back,

Mid back,

Upper back,

Back of the shoulders,

Front of the shoulders,

Back of the neck,

Sides of the neck,

Back of the head,

Sides of the head,

Chin,

Jaw,

Lower lip,

Upper lip,

Floor of the mouth,

Top of the mouth,

Bottom of the tongue,

Top of the tongue,

Feeling throughout the entire interior of the mouth,

Left cheek,

Right cheek,

Left nostril,

Right nostril,

Left eye,

Right eye,

Left eyebrow,

Right eyebrow,

Left eyelid,

Right eyelid,

Left outer ear,

Left inner ear,

Right outer ear,

Right inner ear,

Forehead,

Top of the head,

Feel the weight of the entire head,

And now feel the whole body,

Whole body,

Whole body,

Relaxed and at ease.

Visualize the image in your mind of your whole body,

Still,

Relaxed and at ease.

Silently say to yourself,

I am practicing yoga nidra,

I am awake and relaxed.

And now notice a place in the body that feels warm.

Sense if you can a color that associates with the sensation of warmth in that space,

Any color that shows up to you.

Allow that sensation and color of heat to gently expand throughout the entire body,

The natural,

Simple feeling of a warm embrace gradually spreading throughout the entire body.

Now notice a place in the body that feels very light,

An area of the body that naturally feels light and soft.

Sense if you can any color that could be associated with the feeling of lightness in your body.

Allow that area and color of lightness to slowly expand throughout the whole body until it feels almost as if the body is gently rising up off the floor.

And now notice a part of the body that naturally feels dense or heavy.

Try associating a color with that sensation.

Now sense that feeling of denseness and heaviness and visualize the color in that space.

Imagine that feeling and color are slowly expanding throughout the entire body and grounding the body back down to the earth.

Feel now as if that color and sensation are allowing your body to sink down even deeper into the earth.

Now notice a place in the body that feels tense or tight.

Any part of the body that is still tense,

Allow for a moment the tension to be felt more deeply and intensely in that area of the body.

And now notice a part of the body that feels extremely comfortable,

Open and relaxed.

Associate a color with that deep feeling of relaxation and allow that feeling and color to spread fully throughout the entire body.

Let the color and sensation of tranquility fill your entire body,

Starting at your head,

Moving down through your shoulders,

Arms,

Hands,

Chest,

Belly,

Spine,

Hips,

Legs,

Feet and toes.

Your entire body is now becoming even more relaxed and comfortable.

Become completely aware of the flow of the breath,

Moving in and out of the body.

No need to force or change anything.

Just notice the movement of the breath in and out of the body.

Maintain complete awareness of the breath,

Total awareness of the breath.

Now bring awareness to your belly and sense the flow of the breath to your belly.

Feel the gentle rise and fall of your belly as the breath flows in and out.

As you inhale the belly rises,

As you exhale the belly falls,

Slowly,

Gently rising and falling.

Rising and falling,

Rising and falling.

Awareness of breath in the belly rising and falling.

Inhaling and exhaling,

Total awareness of breath in the belly.

Now bring that awareness to your chest.

Sense the flow of breath in your chest,

Feel the gentle rise of your chest as you inhale,

The fall of your chest as you exhale.

As you inhale,

Chest rises.

Exhale,

Chest falls.

Slowly,

Gently rising and falling,

Rising and falling.

Awareness of breath in the chest,

Your breath rising and falling in your chest.

Total awareness of breath in the chest,

Feeling the breath move the chest.

Silently say to yourself,

I am practicing yoga nidra,

I am awake and relaxed.

Notice your nose and nostrils.

Feel the breath flow in through the nostrils and out through the nostrils.

Sense and feel the breath in the nostrils.

Total awareness of the breath flowing in and out of the nostrils.

Now as you maintain awareness of the breath,

Also become aware of the flow of the breath on the inhale from the nostrils into the navel on the exhale from the navel to the nostrils.

Feel the breath as a flowing stream of energy moving from the nostrils to the navel.

On each inhale,

Imagine a downward flowing stream of energy and sensation,

And on each exhale,

Sense an upward flowing stream of energy and sensation.

Notice if a feeling is associated with these sensations.

Maybe a tingling,

Pulsing,

A slow movement or flowing air,

A feeling of rippling water,

A cooling sensation or warming sensation,

Lightness,

Heaviness or some other sensation.

If nothing comes up,

Just notice that.

Notice and welcome any sensations that you feel as you experience the play of breath and energy in the body during inhale and exhale.

Allow yourself to ride the wave of breath and energy as it flows freely through the body,

Inviting relaxation and ease.

Simply allow yourself to welcome all feelings and sensations of breath and energy throughout the entire body.

Next,

I will list a number of different objects and want you to feel,

Imagine and visualize them as best you can.

If nothing comes up for you,

Just silently repeat the name of the object and continue to follow along.

Jump from image to image as soon as you hear it.

A beautiful golden temple,

A cat stretching,

Children playing in the distance,

A kite flying in the wind,

A colorful garden path,

A doctor's office,

Snow-capped mountains,

A good night's rest,

Your reflection in a mirror,

A foggy morning,

Friends laughing over coffee,

The golden sun shining overhead,

A bouquet of wildflowers,

A tall oak tree,

A cool,

Clear body of water,

A quiet path in the woods,

A single red rose,

A vibrant sunset,

A burning candle,

Stars at night surrounding a full moon,

The sound of my voice,

You taking a deep breath,

Your body lying on the floor.

Silently say to yourself,

I am practicing yoga nidra,

I am awake and relaxed.

Now is the time to repeat the same sankalpa or intention you chose at the beginning of practice silently to yourself three times with the same awareness and emphasis as before.

For the next few moments,

Feel the bones and muscles in your body totally relaxed and at ease.

Continue to experience the safe,

Restorative feeling of stillness that you've created for yourself.

In this space,

We are giving the practice of yoga nidra some time to integrate.

Continue to silently commit to stillness in the body,

Calmness in the mind,

And awareness of breath.

Now become completely aware of your body and breath together.

Keep your eyes closed and allow your mind to become aware of your whole body,

Feeling calm,

Peaceful,

Relaxed,

And at ease.

If your intention for this practice was to drift into sleep,

Then feel free to continue laying down with your eyes closed in the tranquil space you've created as you drift off to sleep in your own time.

Otherwise,

When you're ready,

You could begin to move your body gently and easily,

Starting with fingers and toes,

And then stretch your body any way it wants to gently wake up and become more alert.

If you are waking up the body and mind,

When you're ready,

Slowly roll to one side.

From there,

Rise up and sit quietly for a few breaths as you accept,

Without judgment,

Anything you experienced during this practice.

Take as much time as you need.

Be gentle with what shows up in the coming minutes,

Dreams,

And days.

And revisit this practice any time you feel you could use a little extra tranquility or support for a deeper sleep.

Thank you.

Reviews

Pleasant voice. I fell asleep with I very much appreciate. I remember hearing some of the visualizations (not sure of correct word) but although I don't recall them now, I remember having a pleasant feeling as I was drifting off. Thank you Ali.

What a wonderful yoga nidra. Great track. Thank you!!

One of the most detailed&effective body scans, and the first to ever take me inside my mouth, which was an unexpected treat!

First time trying yoga nidra & when waking up for the morning feeling truly well rested. I loved using intention with this practice, nothing felt rushed it was serene gentle grounding & allowance of ease into body awareness. I will definitely be coming back to this. Thank you Ali! So happy to have found you on this app 💓 many blessings!

Love this. I practised this on a bus while on holiday. I felt re-energised afterwards. 😍

Just beautiful, loved the visualisations. I really turned in. Thank you

I thoroughly enjoy this practice. Thankyou so much and look forward to listening to more 🙏🦋🌻

Thank you much. I have done yoga nidra before but that was do much better than others
Bueatifull pace, tone and detail.
Namesta

Gently into sleep. Lovely, thank you

Ali has the most beautiful and soothing voice. This meditation helped put me into a restorative state and prepared me for a restful sleep. Thank you Ali!