Winter Evening Yoga Nidra

This completely guided yoga nidra practice was recorded on the Winter Solstice of 2020, but is a wonderful invitation on any dark winter evening to slow down, rest, and reflect. Honoring the earth's cycles means honoring the pause. Get into a comfortable position to rest and enjoy a body rotation, breath awareness, and a journey through a winter forest.

Transcript

Getting settled for this practice.

Making any last minute adjustments you might need or want to make.

Making any last minute adjustments so you can be even 30% more comfortable.

Making sure ringers are off,

Doors are closed,

In a quiet place.

And just deciding.

Just deciding yes I'm here for this practice.

I'm here for this practice of Yoganidra.

Remembering there's no need to try or do or push.

You're just simply here.

Your consciousness may go in and out.

You might hear some things but not other things.

That's normal.

You're just taking this moment now to settle into a sense of stillness.

Of course that doesn't mean to disregard your intuition.

If your gut is telling you,

Oh it's got to move,

Got to move,

Kind of uncomfortable,

This is causing pain or whatever it may be.

Listen to your intuition.

It's telling you to move.

You just move and then you find that new position and settle into that stillness in that new position.

That's it.

Just settling into a chosen stillness.

Being curious to explore what it would be like to just not have a desire to move.

This chosen stillness because you don't have to do anything during this practice except to listen and you don't even have to really listen.

Just be here.

Settling into that stillness a little bit more by doing just a short breathing practice.

Just some intentional yogic breaths.

All that means is inhale into your abdomen and your chest and then exhale and let it all go.

It's just being intentional.

Taking some deep breaths if that works for you,

Breathing into your even your hips,

Your abdomen and your chest,

Breathing in and then exhale letting it all go.

You could let it go through your mouth,

Through your nose.

Continue on your own taking those deep intentional breaths.

Settling into the stillness even more with each intentional breath.

If taking these deep breaths feels like it's too much doing,

Just let it go.

Just let it go and just be with normal breaths.

What if it still feels okay just taking a couple more deep breaths.

Couple more deep breaths to really settle in to fully arrive.

Go through one more round.

Then letting that intentional breathing go and just going back to regular inhales and exhales.

Just going back to regular inhales and exhales and just observing this moment.

Did those intentional breaths create a little bit more of a sense of stillness?

Maybe they did,

Maybe they didn't,

Doesn't matter.

You're just observing.

Perhaps they created more of a sense of groundedness or calm or simply arriving here.

Just observe.

You're observing your body where it is.

Notice the position.

Your body is in the position of the legs,

The arms,

And the torso and head.

Simply observing the position of the body and observing the parts of the body that are connecting to whatever surface you're resting on tonight.

Observing those parts of the body that are connecting to a surface.

If you choose,

You can intentionally send a sense of comfort or softening into those parts of the body.

The body softens into the surface beneath.

Because remember this is a practice where you do not need to work at all.

So you don't even need to work to hold yourself up in this position.

If you check in,

Even though you're reclining or in a comfortable position,

Are you holding yourself up at all?

I typically find I am.

So just soften,

Releasing into the surface beneath.

That surface is rising up to meet you.

It's holding you up.

There's no need to hold yourself up.

Next,

You hear the sounds happening around you.

Hear the sounds happening around you,

Welcoming them in because you don't have to do anything about the sounds.

They can be there.

They can coexist with you.

Sounds will come and go.

There might be one sound that is the loudest or most prominent.

You can hear that sound.

Just allowing it to come in,

Observing it.

And then I wonder what would happen if you allowed hearing the sound to help you soften even deeper.

Just try it and see what happens.

And there might be a sound under that one that comes into your awareness.

And it can bring an invitation to soften even more as well.

And then maybe even a sound under that one.

Possibly.

Just listen.

This awareness then transitions to the breath,

The natural breath.

Simply observing the natural breath,

Natural inhales and exhales.

Knowing that the breath does not need to change at all.

Even the breath is resting.

But working exactly as it should.

Each breath is perfect.

Each breath is unique.

And to not do anything except observe the breath as it comes and as it goes.

And from this place in this moment,

Acknowledging the intention of this practice to rest.

To honor the blessings that come from the quiet pause.

All the blessings that come with this quiet pause of this long night.

To rest in order to receive that rejuvenation.

In order to start to move forward in the way we want to move forward.

Knowing that this intention of this rest and all the blessings that come along with it.

Know that it will just be happening naturally,

Effortlessly throughout this entire practice.

You don't even have to be consciously thinking it.

To have it happen.

It's already happening right now.

The intention of rest.

I wonder what would happen if you decided to relax and quiet into rest a little bit more right now.

Maybe that's a new idea,

A new concept.

Just try it and see what happens.

Resting a little bit deeper now.

Resting through the body.

Resting through the mind.

And in fact,

The next step of your practice of yoga nidra,

You'll bring your awareness around to different parts of the body.

All say a part of the body and you bring your awareness there.

There's really nothing you have to do.

You don't have to make your body feel any certain way.

Simply become aware of it,

Observe it.

You may however notice that as you become aware of it,

Your entire body,

Your entire being just goes deeper and deeper into this rest.

So you start out with the thumb of your right hand,

Your right hand thumb,

Just become aware of it.

It remains still.

But notice,

Do you visualize your right hand thumb?

Do you feel it?

You just know it's there.

There's no need to try or push.

Simply aware of the right hand thumb and then effortlessly bringing the same awareness into the right index finger,

The right middle finger,

Ring finger and little finger,

The palm of the right hand and back of the hand,

Right wrist,

Lower arm,

Elbow,

Upper arm,

Shoulder,

Arm,

Right chest,

Waist,

Hip,

Thigh,

Knee,

Shin,

Ankle,

Muscle,

Hip,

Hip,

Thigh,

Knee,

Crown.

Sole of the right foot and top of the foot.

Right big toe.

Second toe.

Third toe.

Fourth toe.

Little toe.

Aware now of the entire right side of the body.

Just the right side of the body.

The right side resting.

This awareness drifts into the left hand thumb.

Be aware of the left hand thumb.

And the left index finger.

Middle finger.

Ring finger.

Little finger.

The palm of the left hand.

And back of the hand.

Left wrist.

Lower arm.

Elbow.

Over arm.

Shoulder.

Under arm.

Left chest.

Waist.

Hip.

Thigh.

Knee.

Chin.

Right arm.

Ankle.

The sole of the left foot.

Top of the foot.

Left big toe.

Second toe.

Third toe.

Fourth toe.

Little toe.

The entire left side of the body.

Aware of the left side of the body.

Resting.

This awareness drifts into both heels.

The right heel and the left.

There's no need to try.

Completely effortless.

Awareness in both heels.

And calves.

Backs of the knees.

Backs of the thighs.

Glutes.

Low back.

Middle back.

Upper back.

Back of the neck.

Back of the head.

Top of the head.

Aware of the forehead.

And temples.

Eyebrows.

Eyelids.

Nose.

Cheeks.

Jaw.

Chin.

Lips.

Tip of the tongue.

Front of the neck.

Chest.

Upper abdomen.

Navel.

Lower abdomen.

Pelvis.

The entire right leg and foot.

Aware of the entire right leg and foot.

Aware of the entire left leg and foot.

Both legs and feet.

Aware of both legs and feet together.

Resting.

Aware of the entire right arm and hand.

Aware of the left arm and hand.

Both arms and hands together.

Resting deeply.

Aware of the torso.

The neck and head.

Aware of the torso,

Neck and head together.

Resting.

Aware of the entire body.

Aware of the entire body.

The entire body.

Resting deeply.

This awareness shifts to the breath.

Again,

Noticing the natural inhale and the natural exhale.

Be aware of the breath.

And as you observe the breath,

What you'll begin to observe is that there is a natural pause at the end of the exhale.

The breath goes out and there's a natural pause at the completion of the exhale.

Just that pause before the inhale comes again,

The cycle starts again.

So just allow yourself to really observe that pause at the completion of the exhale.

It's almost as if there's a permission to rest there in that pure moment of non-doing.

Not breathing in,

Not breathing out,

Simply pausing.

This pause at the completion of the exhale is honored until the natural inhale comes back again and the cycle starts all over again.

That pause may be short,

It may be long,

But there's no strain involved whatsoever.

It's effortless and easy.

Simply exploring,

Observing what it's like to simply rest in that pause at the completion of the exhale.

So just simply be in that pause at the end of the exhale.

You A pure moment of non-doing in that pause at the end of the exhale.

And then allowing that awareness of the breath to be released and to simply observe this moment,

Observing this moment exactly as it is.

Simply experiencing this deep rest.

To be curious to explore even more of a sensation of softening.

Observing this profound stillness within.

Even the sensation of this pause.

Wading out from this pause is a path,

A path from the beginning to the end.

Wading out from this pause is a path,

A path through the winter woods.

There is a path,

A path through the winter woods.

And when one walks on this path,

Everything that is needed is brought along.

The coziness of a warm coat,

A scarf,

A hat on the head,

Mittens and boots.

Everything that is needed as one walks on this winter path is there.

Completely warm and comfortable.

Walking through the winter woods.

There's a darkness as one walks through these woods.

But looking up through the branches,

There's a full moon.

Just enough of that bluish light to see the path.

And there's that quiet stillness in the air.

It can be felt.

That pause.

Yet as one walks through these woods,

There's the vibration of boots crunching on snow.

The breeze is blowing in the air.

The wind is blowing in the air.

As one walks through these woods,

There's the vibration of boots crunching on snow.

The vibration starting at the feet,

Moving up the legs with each step in the snow.

Again,

Taking in those trees,

Seeing those trees.

No leaves on the branches,

But not dead.

No,

Not dead.

Just resting.

Observe the trees that are just resting.

Knowing they're perfectly content,

Waiting for that cycle to begin again.

Content to be in this pause.

That silence that can almost be heard on this path.

Listen for it.

Soaking in that sound of silence.

And there's certainly a peace felt on this path.

A sense of peace,

A sense of peace,

A sense of peace.

Warmth,

Contentment to just be.

Taking that sudden curve on the path,

The sudden curve on the path is taken and around that curve is a bonfire.

An inviting bonfire meant just for you.

With an inviting place to sit.

Where one can simply sit and rest.

To just be and watch the dancing flames.

To smell the burning logs.

Feeling the warmth from the glow.

And there,

There she is,

There she is through the trees.

The winter woman.

She may be a crone or not.

But the woman of winter walking through the trees with her white antlered reindeer.

She walks closer with her white cloak with red and gold stitching.

Two long white braids.

A crown of green holly.

And her hand on her reindeer with white fur.

Towering antlers.

A wet nose.

This winter woman with her twinkling eyes.

Brings along with her a permission to rest deeply.

To revel in this pause.

She brings a kindness in the waiting.

And as she stands at the edges of the glow of the bonfire.

She may have a message to share.

Just listen.

And perhaps a gift given.

And with a twinkle in her eye and a smile on her face.

She nods.

Turns away.

Walking off further and further through the trees.

And the fire burns brightly.

And the fire is still in the air.

And the crackling in the silent still air.

And it's just so simple.

To take just a little lick of flame.

And that flame can be placed anywhere within the body at the navel.

At the heart.

In the throat.

In the head.

It's placed exactly where it's meant to live.

This flame of warmth.

How's within.

This flame of a felt sense of okayness.

Something that's more October feels like another coming out of a moment of phased curiousness at home within a body.

Time at the bonfire to dissolve away.

Shifting the awareness to a sense of gratitude,

A felt sense of gratitude.

Honoring the long night of rest within this gratitude.

Gratitude for the privilege to rest.

Gratitude for all the blessings that were received throughout this practice.

That there may be an awareness of,

There may be an awareness of those blessings and benefits or not,

No matter what,

They're still there.

And knowing now that it is time to start,

It's time to start bringing this practice to a close,

But that happens very slowly and gradually.

The first step is simply noticing the breath.

Notice your inhales and exhales.

And it may feel right to deepen the breath,

Lengthen the breath.

It may feel right to do that or not.

It's your choice.

But this awareness of breath starts to bring you closer to the surface.

Then there's an awareness of the sounds happening around you.

Be aware of the sounds happening around you,

Knowing that this practice is now coming to a close slowly and gradually.

Just hearing the sounds happening around you.

This time you might name the sounds perhaps.

Each sound bringing along with it a sense of awareness and just the right amount of energy necessary for this moment.

Hear the sounds happening around you.

And then you are aware of your body.

Be aware of your body where it is right here and right now.

Notice the position your body is in.

Notice the position your body is in,

The legs,

The arms,

The torso.

As you're aware of your body,

You're coming even closer to the surface now.

And then it may feel right to remain still.

It may feel right to start to move fingers and toes,

Maybe starting to move fingers and toes or to circle the wrists,

The ankles.

Again,

It might feel right to remain still,

But just making those little movements and maybe those movements start to get bigger.

Maybe stretching,

Stretching through the arms,

Stretching through the legs,

Which might bring along with it a yawn or a sigh.

Go ahead and do that as well.

This practice is coming even closer to the surface.

This practice is coming to a close.

This awareness of the body,

This awakening of the body may continue by reaching the arms across to squeeze the upper arms,

The forearms,

Or to reach down for your thighs if they can be reached,

Down the thighs perhaps,

Or touching the face,

Massaging the face.

Really grounding you to right here and right now and the fact that this practice is coming to a close.

And as you are ready,

Your eyes blink open,

Your eyes blink open coming all the way back.

Reviews

A beautiful, peaceful and calming nidra practice Andrea. Perfect for a dark winter night or anytime. And it put me into a very deep sleep. All my thanks.

Thank you for this deep, deep rest within🙏🏻🌟🙏🏻