Cool & Calm Down: Sheetali Breathing To A Soothing Waterfall

Welcome to Spiritually Fit Yoga with Amelia Andaleon!  This is a podcast recording from 2021, requested by listeners to include here on Insight Timer. Now in 2025, the message is still appropriate, whether you want to cool down, whether you're having a hot flash, feeling heated from by an emotional reaction like anger, frustration, or irritability, or overheating from hot summer temps.  I will lead you through a breathing technique called Sheetali breath or cooling breath, followed by a guided meditation through a forest to a magnificent waterfall. Stay cool! Peace out.

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Transcript

Hello,

It's Monday,

July 12th.

This is Amelia Andaleon with Spiritually Fit Yoga and this episode today is all about cooling it down.

Right now it's summertime and in California,

Just yesterday,

Two days ago,

It was about 105 degrees where I was at.

So I was very present to how can I cool down the temperature?

And in my case,

I went out to the bay and I went stand up paddle boarding,

Actually sup yoga,

Which was awesome.

And what do you do when you can't simply leave,

Leave to a cooler area or turn on the air conditioning or change,

Change the environment or change the temperature.

So this meditation is for those situations,

Whether it's to cool down the experience of heat,

Like the literal experience of heat,

Or it could be cooling down a temper,

Like cooling down an experience of anger or heightened emotions.

So it would work for both,

For whether it's the emotional heat,

Physical heat,

That experience.

And I'll be guiding you through something called Shitali breathing,

Which is a cooling breath,

As well as a guided meditation to a soothing,

Cooling waterfall.

So enjoy this meditation.

And here in the Northern Hemisphere,

I'm very present that it's summer,

But you can use this meditation all year round,

Again,

Emotionally,

Spiritually,

Physically,

Whatever you feel like you need to cool down your temperature,

Cool down the temper,

And arrive to an equanimous mind,

That equanimity that allows you to,

To experience that inner calm,

Despite whatever's going around you,

Whatever's happening that's outside of your control.

Okay,

My friends,

I'm so happy that you're here.

And thank you so much for tuning in.

Thank you for your reviews.

Thank you for your ratings.

I always appreciate the feedback.

Reach out to me,

Leave me your comments,

Send me your DMs.

You can send me a DM,

A direct message to me.

The best place is probably on Instagram,

Find me on Instagram at spirituallyfityoga.

I check those direct messages probably the most often.

The other place is email.

I don't check it as much,

But it's amelia at spirituallyfityoga.

Com.

I appreciate you all being here.

Thank you.

Enjoy this meditation.

Peace out.

I want to thank my sponsor,

Ubindi.

Com,

U-B-I-N-D-I dot com.

Ubindi is the platform that I use for booking classes,

Booking courses,

And my listeners.

You can get 50% off an annual essentials plan by using the code AMELIA,

All in caps,

A-M-E-L-I-A.

Check it out at ubindi.

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And the other sponsor is me,

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Com.

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Reach out,

See if I'm a fit for you,

Spirituallyfityoga.

Com.

And thank you for listening to my podcast.

As always,

I appreciate you.

I appreciate you telling your friends about my podcast,

Spreading the Word.

And a review and a rating is always appreciated.

I love hearing feedback,

And I love you spreading the word.

That's the best thing that you can do for a podcaster.

Encourage them and encourage me to keep going,

Keep sharing and keep creating content for you.

Thanks all for being here.

Enjoy this episode.

Welcome,

Friends,

To this meditation to cool down.

So sometimes there are situations when it just feels so hot,

Whether it's a hot summer day,

Whether it's a hot flash,

Whether it's an experience of a fever or heat from a temper.

So this meditation and this breath work today will offer you an experience of cooling down,

Cooling down and nurturing your parasympathetic nervous system,

Your rest and digest system to quiet the mind.

And I'm going to invite you to this breath work.

First,

And then I'll move you into a guided meditation.

So before we start that,

Take the time to set up your environment and ask yourself what choices can you make and where you sit down or lay down and whether you are going to change some clothing or turn up the air conditioning or whatever you could use right now to cool down your temperature.

So take the time to set yourself up.

And whether you're taking a seat or laying down,

Settle yourself and observe five breaths,

Five opening breaths to get connected to the environment where you are.

To observe and notice the sensation of the breath as you inhale and exhale.

And to check in and maybe even asking yourself what is creating the heat?

Because right there by asking you this question and you asking yourself this question,

There could be an answer which can reduce the temperature,

The inner temperature.

Take two more breaths.

Taking the time to check in and just yourself in your environment as you need.

And let's start this cooling breath,

This Sheetali breath.

So let's take a big breath in and take a big sigh out.

And then gently stick out your tongue,

Not too far,

But just stick it out of the mouth and then roll the sides of your mouth.

The tongue up.

And you're going to inhale to the count of four through the rolled tongue.

That is going to create this cooling sensation.

And you'll exhale through the nostrils with your mouth closed to the count of six.

And I'll count with you.

So I'm going to invite you to do 10 breaths,

10 rounds of this Sheetali breathing.

And you can continue as many as you like,

20 rounds,

30,

40,

50 rounds,

Whatever allows you to cool down,

Cool down the mind,

Cool down the body.

But we'll start together.

So gently stick out the tongue,

Roll up the corners of the tongue.

And let the tongue be comfortable with the corners slightly rolled up.

And then you'll inhale to a count of four,

Three,

Two,

One.

And then close the mouth.

Exhale through the nostrils.

Six,

Five,

Four,

Three,

Two,

And one.

And then gently roll the tongue like you're sipping through a straw.

Inhale,

Four,

Three,

Two,

One.

And through the nostrils,

A count of six,

Exhale.

Gently roll the tongue,

Inhaling,

Feeling the cooling sensation to a count of four,

Like you're sipping through a straw.

And then when you exhale to a count of six,

Closing the mouth,

Breathing through the nostrils.

And continue like that seven more rounds,

Feeling the cooling sensation of the inhale,

Sipping through the tongue like a straw.

And with the exhale through the nostrils to a count of six.

Continue with the breath.

Feel the cooling sensation.

And then exhaling through the nostrils.

Through the nostrils to a count of six.

Continue five more times,

Cooling down the body,

Cooling down the mind.

Repeating this technique,

This cooling technique to cool the breath,

To cool the body,

And to cool the mind.

Again,

As you inhale,

Gently rolling the tongue,

Counting to four.

And then with the mouth closed,

Exhaling to a count of six.

I'll lead you through three more.

Through the tongue,

Roll tongue,

Inhale,

Four,

Three,

Two,

One.

Mouth closed,

Exhale,

Six,

Five,

Four,

Three,

Two,

Empty.

Two more,

Inhale like you're sipping through the tongue,

Cooling sensations.

Exhaling through the nostrils,

Six,

Five,

Four,

Three,

Two,

One.

And then last time,

Your pace,

Inhaling to a count of four.

Feel the cooling sensations through the tongue.

And then to a count of six,

Exhaling through the nostrils.

Mouth closed,

Emptying the breath.

And then take one big inhale,

Mouth open,

Sigh out,

Empty the breath.

And just notice how that feels.

And if you would like,

Continue with this Shitali breathing,

This cooling breath.

And check in,

Observe the body,

Observe the mind,

Observe the impact of this conscious,

Intentional breath.

And as I guide you through this meditation,

You may continue with the Shitali breathing,

The cooling breath,

Or you can come into a more natural breath.

A natural breath might be Ujjayi breath for you,

Inhaling and exhaling through the nostrils.

Or it might be gently inhaling through the nostrils and slowly exhaling through the mouth.

So be in the discovery right now.

What breath work resonates with you right now to invite a sense of calm that continues to invite a cooling sensation for the body and mind?

So you choose your breath work.

And we'll do one together.

Breathe in,

Sigh out.

One more time.

Breathe as you wish.

And keep your eyes open or your eyes closed as I guide you through a beautiful meditation,

Moving into a forest.

And as you walk through a trail,

Eventually to a cool waterfall.

So relax the body,

Relax the mind.

And with your mind's eye,

Set your attention on your third eye,

The space in between your eyebrows.

And through your third eye,

As you're looking from within the skull and looking out,

Visualize a forest and see a trailhead.

And there's a sign that says,

Cooling,

Soothing,

Waterfall.

And notice as you look up and you see these trees that are covered with moss.

The moss,

Which is almost looks like fur on the trunks of these trees.

And the trees,

They're tall and they provide this beautiful shade.

So stepping out of the sun,

Step out of the heat into this cool forest and walk gently on this trail.

And notice how as soon as you step into this forest,

The temperature immediately drops 10 degrees.

And there's a sensation of,

Ah,

This relief.

It's like,

Oh,

I can just feel the cool.

I can feel the air.

I can feel the fresh air because of all these trees that are cleansing the air,

The sky all around me.

And take this time to look around and notice what else do you see in this forest?

You might notice different shades of green.

You might notice ferns.

You might notice lacy ferns that are small and dainty.

And you might notice ferns that are large and broad,

Like the sword fern.

And notice as you observe and continue walking on this trail,

And there's one trail,

There's no way to get lost.

One trail to go to the soothing,

Cooling waterfalls.

Waterfalls.

So noticing,

Observing,

Maybe you see birds.

Maybe you see some berries.

You might see some blueberry bushes.

You might see some huckleberry bushes.

Just seeing what is native in this beautiful forest,

Which is cool.

It's filling up the lungs with fresh air,

Nurturing your body and your mind.

Shortly in front of you,

You're going to see this beautiful mossy meadow.

And there's an opening that looks like a circle.

And it's surrounded by the trees.

And it's just to the right of this trail.

So if you're wearing shoes,

Take off your shoes,

Allow yourself to be barefoot and walk onto this moss and feel the texture of this moss.

Feel the coolness of this moss.

Feel the slight roughness of the moss.

Look at it,

Feel it,

See the green.

And it might even be a little bit dewy or it might be a little dry.

Just notice what you feel as you walk on this moss that looks like this perfect circle.

This carpet prepared for you to lay down.

So take this time,

Lay yourself down on this moss.

And imagine that you are here in this moss wearing absolutely nothing or whatever is comfortable in your mind's eye.

So as you lay down,

Allowing your skin,

As much of your skin to feel the cool,

The texture,

The softness,

This moss cooling the body,

Cooling the skin.

Sink in,

Feel the coolness of the moss around you.

Feel the coolness of the air above you,

All around you,

To the sides of you.

Take a big breath in and a relieving sigh out.

And repeat to yourself,

I receive this cool.

My body is cool.

My mind is calm.

My body is cool.

My mind is calm.

I welcome the cooling sensations of this moss,

The cooling sensations of this forest.

Breathe in,

Sigh it out.

And receive this here for a few more minutes.

Notice,

Pay attention,

Observe the sensations and notice what you hear all around you.

Sipping the air through your tongue like a straw to a count of four and exhaling through the nostrils to a count of six.

Three more breaths,

Receive the cooling sensation.

Nurture the parasympathetic nervous system.

Imagining that you can feel the ambient cool temperature,

Dropping your internal temperature,

Calming the mind,

Slowing down the blood pressure,

Calming the nervous system.

Breathe in,

Sigh and empty the breath.

Slowly hug your knees into your chest and slowly curl over onto your side in a fetal position.

And rest here as you feel the moss now on the side of your body,

A different part of the body,

Feeling the coolness,

Feeling the texture,

Feeling the temperature.

And slowly press yourself up to a seat and all the way slowly up to stand.

And you choose,

Stay barefoot or put your socks on or put your moccasins on or your shoes,

Whatever is in your mind's eye and take yourself back on the trail.

And notice as you walk on the trail,

Now you can hear,

You can hear water,

You can hear a splash,

You can hear in the distance the sound of a waterfall.

And as you get closer,

You even notice how the temperature drops even more and you're starting to feel the mist.

Continue walking even a little bit more and now you see there's this beautiful,

Beautiful old wooden bridge that's sturdy,

That's been there beyond time.

And right as you stand in the middle of this bridge is this majestic waterfall,

This soothing,

Cooling waterfall that's here to offer you the cooling that you have been wanting for the body and the mind.

And as you allow yourself to stand here in the magnificence of this waterfall,

Let the mist wash over you,

Feeling the water splash around you,

Hearing the sounds,

Letting it enter into the ears like a percussion in the body,

Receiving,

Observing,

Feeling the cool,

Feeling the cool from outside of you,

Feeling the cooling sensations from within you.

Take this time to be here,

Observe,

Receive the soothing,

Receive the healing.

Let your breath be natural or continue with the Shitali cooling breath.

One more breath in.

Sigh and empty out the breath.

And now keep walking across this bridge and notice as you step off the bridge and down these steps and look down to the right and there's this beautiful pool,

This pool that is fed by this cool water from the soothing,

Cooling waterfall.

And this pool is calm,

It's clear,

It's waiting for you if you choose to step in to take a dip.

So take your shoes off,

Get barefoot,

Do whatever you need,

Allow yourself to be raw,

To be open,

To receive this cooling,

This cooling,

Healing water and dip a toe.

And notice how does that feel and then one foot and then two feet and then notice would you like to slowly walk into this pool or would you like to dive in and let this pool that is fed by these healing waters from this majestic,

Soothing,

Cooling waterfall,

Let this pool be here just for you.

Picture it as your imagination wishes that allows you to receive the cooling,

The cooling of a temperature,

The cooling of a temper,

Whatever it is that you need here in this moment.

Imagine it,

Receive it,

Allow it in.

Stay here for five more breaths,

Ten more breaths,

As long as you would like.

Enjoy,

Appreciate,

Savor.

This meditation is for you to cool whenever you need.

Stay here in this pool as long as you would like.

Maybe you'll walk back to the bridge and watch the waterfalls and take in the magnificence.

Maybe you'll walk all the way back towards that meadow of that carpet of moss.

My time as your guide in this meditation has ended.

May you enjoy the healing powers of the soothing,

Cooling waterfalls.

It's my honor and my pleasure to guide you in today's meditation.

Many blessings and peace out.

Reviews

OMG! I’m SO happy you brought this meditation back!!! This is my favorite one! Thank you so much! It helps me more than you know.