Yoga Nidra: Autumn Leaves

This gentle Yoga Nidra practice will take you on a guided journey for around 30 minutes.
This can be practiced anytime of day.
The theme is autumn, honouring the leaves , the tress and the slow down, a time to press re-set. Guided by Nic, a yoga nidra teacher from the North East of England. Thanks for taking time to practice. Light and Love.

Transcript

Thank you for joining the practice of Yoga Nidra. I'm your guide Nick. And I'll be guiding you today. In an autumn session. With the change in colour of the leaves. This session will be four round. 30 to 40 minutes and there'll be short periods of silence for you to have your own experience. And just let go into the practice. Although the practice means yogic sleep. We don't always fall asleep. You might surf the interface between waking and sleeping. And if you do fall asleep. That's absolutely fine. I just invite you to. . . Have your own experiences for what you need right here, Right now. Soul finding. A comfortable position. Either lying down in your bed. Perhaps lying down on the floor. Or even seated. And just starting to feel the body supported by the surface underneath you. Closing down the eyes if that feels comfortable to do so. And welcoming the body. Exactly as you are. You might like to make a few long exhalations. Letting the breath release on that exhale letting go of anything that doesn't need to be here. In this space or in this time. Starting to bring your awareness to any sounds. Close by. Letting each sound appear. Without judgment. Each sound merging into your practice. Seeing if you can extend your awareness. To any sounds outside of the room or outside of the space that you're practicing in. And then As you start to connect with your intentions for the practice, I invite you to welcome a sankalpa. Sankalpa is a wish. For your highest good. As you plant your seed with your Suncalper. Repeating it three times to yourself in the present tense. And you don't have to have a sun calper. You can simply rest in the practice. Perhaps just by saying the words a few times to yourself. I am here. And now we come into a phase of rotating awareness around the body. And when I name the body part. Just holding some awareness there. You might like to imagine. Orange and red leaves falling onto each body part. Starting with the top of the head. The left ear. The right ear. Both ears together. The left eye. The right eye. Both eyes together. The throat. The lips. The nose. The forehead. The back of the head. Autumn leaves. On your left shoulder. Left elbow. The wrist. Palm of the hand. Back of the hand. Little finger. Fourth finger. Middle finger. Index finger. The thumb. The whole left hand. The whole left arm. Autumn leaves on your right shoulder. Right elbow. The wrist. Palm of the hand. Back of the hand. Little finger. Fourth finger. Middle finger. Index finger. The thumb. The whole right hand. The whole right arm. Your heart space. The upper belly. The lower belly. Autumn leaves on your left hip. Left knee left ankle. Sole of the foot. Top of the foot. The toes. The whole left foot. The whole left leg. Autumn leaves on your right hip. Right knee the ankle. Soul of the foot. Top of the foot. The toes. The whole right foot. The whole right leg. The base of the spine. Lower spine. Upper spine. Back of the neck. Back of the head. The top of the head. The whole head. The whole left arm. The whole right arm. The whole left leg. The whole right leg. Feeling the whole body. The whole body. Resting in autumn. Letting go of the awareness now of the body as we come into a phase of awareness of the breath. Watching the natural rhythm of the breath the way the body gently moves with each breath. You might like to invite in a breath in. And then seeing if you can just exhale for a little longer. Exploring that breath in. And then letting the exhale. Move for a little longer. There's no need to count the breaths. Simply breathing in. And breathing out for a little longer. Breathing in through the nose. Breathing out. Through the mouth. In breath. And out breath. Continuing for a few more rounds of breath in your own time. And then on your next exhalation letting go of the awareness of the breath and begin to explore. If any part of the body feels a little warmer than the rest. And if you don't notice any particular sensation of warmth. You might like to focus on the ha. And it's nurturing heartbeat. And now if there's any part of the body that feels cooler than the rest. And if you don't notice any sensations of coolness. Perhaps just focusing on the upper lip. And the nose. Perhaps the air is slightly cooler as you inhale. And then back to the areas of the body. That feel warm. And then the areas that feel cooler. And seeing if you can imagine. The womb. Reaching all of the body parts that feel cool. Merging the two together. Finding the perfect temperature and balance. These autumn months. And then gently letting go of any feelings of warm or cool allowing. Yourself to Feel nestled. In a log cabin. Surrounded by beautiful mountains. There's lots of trees and forest all around this cabin. It's your time to restore. And reflect. The sun gently setting. And the air beginning to cool down outside. But you're cozy and warm. Inside. Perhaps sitting on your favourite chair. With your favourite blanket. Notice what else you can see. In your log cabin. Are there any aromas around you? Any sounds that you can hear. Just time to rest. And reflect. On the season of autumn. And all that is still to come. In the weeks ahead. Perhaps looking out of the window. As the sun is gently setting the sky. Providing magical colours of red and orange. Nearby. Beautiful big eucalyptus tree. Full of wonder and wisdom. The leaves are changing colour. And gently beginning to fall off the branches. Noticing the detail. Of the tree trunk. The roots. All the way to the top of its branches. With its autumnal leaves. The leaves are. Swishing in the air. Representing freedom. And as you watch the sun. Gently disappear behind the mountains. The eucalyptus tree now a silhouette. As the night draws in. Perhaps asking yourself a question. What do you love about these darker nights in autumn? What do you Appreciate. About slowing down. And is there anything that you choose to let go of? The leaves that fall off the tree. Also symbolizing the things that you might let go of. Feeling so cozy inside your cabin. Deeply rested. A time to drift or snooze. And letting any of their images. Here. Drifting now in your own experiences. As my voice will go quiet now for a few moments. Enjoy the rest Letting the final images flow. And then one by one. Letting each image dissolve. As it's time to leave your cozy cabin. Holding gratitude for your experiences perhaps a time to slow down and rest. And then gently bringing your awareness now back to my voice. Back to the place where you practice your yoga nidra. Bringing your awareness to your sankalpa if you had one at the beginning of your practice. Repeating this intention three times again in the present tense. And if you weren't working with a sancalpare you might finish with the words. I am here. Three times. Starting to bring a little movement into the body now. If you were lying down you might like to choose a side to roll onto. Maybe stretching the fingertips, The toes. And really starting to connect again now with your breath. You might like to take a nice long yawn or a sigh. And as you're gently waking up the body. If you'd like to, You might like to let in a little bit of light by gently opening the eyes. Perhaps keeping your gaze down. As you're letting in a little bit of light. Hearing any sounds once again in your room or your space where you are the sounds close by and in the distance. And as you're bringing yourself back into. . . This space and this time. You might like to place one hand over the other on your heart space. And just honoring. The autumn season. The slow down that it allows you to bring into your life. And any feelings of gratitude for your practice today. Thank you for joining me. In the practice of Yoga Nidra. May you go well. Life. And love. And Aroha.