A Beginner's Yoga Nidra

If you're new to meditation, Yoga Nidra is a great place to start as the meditation is a series of techniques that help both brain and body to find deepest relaxation. There is no need to worry if you are doing it correctly or not. You'll get exactly the practice you need today (even if you sleep through some of it!).

Transcript

Welcome to Yoga Nidra. For those who are new to the practice, I'll spend some time at the beginning to explain how it works and how to set yourself up for a great experience. If you're new to meditation or not sure you can sit still and do it, You're in the right place. I'll walk you through it step by step the entire time. We'll begin by getting you as settled as comfortably as possible. Yoga Nidra is traditionally done in the position of Savasana, Lying on your back. You might lie on the floor, On a bed, Or find a comfortable supportive surface. Allow your legs to naturally separate and the feet roll apart. Arms by your sides, The palms can face up, In towards your legs, Or even down. Or if none of these positions suit you, Choose one that does. You may want to cover yourself with a blanket or put on a warm sweater as the body's internal temperature tends to cool during this meditation. Many people like to put a bolster or a pillow behind the knees, Or even a soft rolled towel behind the neck to reduce discomfort. It might feel nice to put a cloth or even an eye pillow over your eyes to block out any ambient light. As you make yourself comfortable, Take a few moments to adjust and find your best position. If you feel even the slightest desire that you had an extra comfort, Or maybe you need to use the restroom, Or simply want to remove your hair tie, Pause the recording and take action now. It's absolutely worth it. Let's get started. Take a deep breath in and a long, Slow, Grounding exhale. The practice of Yoga Nidra begins now. Scan your body from head to toe. In one glance, Become completely aware of your body, Its size and shape, Its position and relaxation, The hills and the valleys, The peaks and the curves. Feel your physical body settle. Give yourself time here to become calm and steady. Pay attention to your natural breath. When you inhale, Bring in a sense of calm to your body, And as you exhale, Say to yourself mentally, Relax. Inhale, Bring in a sense of calm, And exhale, Repeat the word, Relax. Inhaling, Calm. Exhale, Relax. When you fall asleep, Your mind slowly releases each of your senses, And the last sense you've released before you fall asleep is your sense of hearing. In Yoga Nidra, We slowly turn our attention inward, Letting go of our senses, But retain the sense of sound so that your body can, For all intents and purposes, Fall asleep, While your mind remains calm, Focused, And awake. Bring your awareness to your sense of hearing. Become aware of all of the sounds that you can hear. Allow your hearing to operate like radar, Pausing on each sound for a moment before moving on to the next. There is no need to label or identify the sounds or their source, But rather notice them. Become aware of the most distant sounds that you can hear, Perhaps sounds outside the room, Gradually bringing your awareness to closer sounds. The sounds of this room. The sound of my voice. The sounds near your body in this room. Become aware of closer sounds. The sounds of your body. The sound of your natural breath. The rhythm of your beating heart. And as the breath continues to cycle, Release your awareness from the breath and prepare to plant your Sankalpa. A Sankalpa is a personal resolve and your deepest desire for growth. Take a moment now to reflect on your phase of life. You know exactly what you need and you desire to live your most optimized life. Allow that need to bubble up in your mind, And then form it into a present moment I am statement, Like a vow or an affirmation. If nothing arises, You could try something very simple like I am safe and at peace, Or I am vibrantly healthy. It might feel perfect for you to simply say to yourself, I am deeply relaxed. Choose a phrase that works for you right now and repeat it mentally three times in the exact same words. And now let that go. We'll now move to our rotation of consciousness. A sensory journey throughout the body. I'll name the different parts of your body in rapid succession. When you hear the word, You can repeat it in your mind and bring all of your attention to the sensations there. There's no need to move or to do anything at all, But simply become aware of all of the senses that already exist in your body, One part at a time. There's no need to worry if you lose track of my words along the way. You don't need to catch up through the body parts, But simply join back in whenever your awareness returns back to the sound of my voice. Start by bringing your attention to your right hand thumb and notice all of the sensations that are existing there right now. And just like you're guiding a flashlight, Shine your awareness next on the right index finger. Moving smoothly to the middle and then the ring finger, Pinky, Palm of the hand. Now the back of the hand, The center of the right wrist, Forearm, Elbow, Upper arm, Shoulder, Armpit, Rib cage, The right side of the waist, Hip, Buttocks, Thigh, Hamstring, Knee, Kneecap, Shin, Calf muscle, Ankle, Heel, The sole of the foot, The arch of the foot, The top of the foot, The right big toe, Second toe, Third toe, Fourth toe, Fifth toe. All five toes together. The whole right foot, The whole right leg, The whole right side of the body, Relaxed and heavy on the floor. Next shift your awareness to your left hand thumb, Left index, Middle, Ring finger, Pinky, Palm of the hand, Back of the hand, The center of the left wrist, Forearm, Elbow, Upper arm, Shoulder, Armpit, Rib cage, The left side waist, Hip, Buttocks, Thigh, Hamstring, Knee, Kneecap, Shin, Calf muscle, Ankle, Heel, The sole of the foot, The arch of the foot, The top of the foot, The left big toe, Second toe, Third toe, Fourth toe, Fifth toe. All five toes together. The whole left foot, The whole left leg, The whole left side of the body, Relaxed and heavy on the floor. Next shift your awareness to the soles of both feet, The right heel and the left heel, Both heels together. Back of the right knee, Back of the left knee, Back of the right hip, Back of the left hip, Tailbone, Sacrum, Lower spine, Middle spine, Upper spine, Neck, Right shoulder blade, Left shoulder blade, Back of the right arm, Back of the left arm, The back of the skull, The whole back side of the body, The back side of the body together, The back side of the body relaxing back into the surface on which you lie, Together, Relaxed and at ease. Next shift your awareness to the whole scalp, The crown of the head, Right temple, Left temple, The forehead, The space between the eyebrows, Right eyebrow, Left eyebrow, Right eyeball, Left eyeball, Right nostril, Left nostril, Right cheek, Left cheek, Right jaw, Left jaw, The tip of the chin, Right side of the neck, Left side of the neck, Right collarbone, Left collarbone, The pit of the throat, Right side chest, Left side chest, Sternum, Abdomen, Navel, Pubic bone, Right groin, Left groin, The tips of all ten toes. Become aware of the whole front side of the body, The front side of the body together, The whole back side of the body, The back side of the body together, The whole front side and the whole back side together, The whole body, The whole body, The whole body together, Relaxed, At ease and at rest. Bring your awareness now to the rhythm of your natural breath. There's no need to get involved or to change the breath. Simply notice. As you inhale, Feel the sensation of breath cool in the nostrils. As you exhale on the upper lip, It is warm. On the next inhale, Count to yourself the number 37. As you exhale, 37. Inhaling, 36. Exhale, 36. Continue counting down on each breath all the way down to zero. At any point, If you lose track of the counting or you reach zero, Simply start over once again from 37. Let go of the counting. It's okay if you didn't make it to zero. Next, We'll explore dualities. Become aware of a sensation of heaviness coming over your body. The whole body a feeling of heaviness, Heavy and heavier. Your arms are heavy. Your legs are heavy. Heavy, Heavy, Heavy like concrete. You could move them if you needed to, But you don't want to right now. So heavy. Now let that go and feel the body begin to get light. Light as a feather. Light as a breeze. The arms are light. The legs are light. The torso light. So light you begin to lift right off the surface on which you lie. Light. Now feel yourself getting heavy once again. And now light. Heavy. Light. Heavy. Light. And then simply let go. Bring your awareness to the space in front of your eyes, Just behind your eyebrows. In yoga nidra, We call this space chidakasha. I'm going to name several objects in rapid succession. When you hear the words, Visualize the object in your mind's eye as visually and as clearly as you possibly can. A purple violet. A single purple violet on a long green stem. A blade of grass. A single blade of grass. A vast field. A vast plowed field of wheat. A vast field of wheat ready for harvest. Seven geese flying. A sky full of fluffy clouds. A sky full of light and fluffy clouds. Sunset amidst the clouds. Golden clouds. Orange clouds. Pink clouds. The rising moon. Stars in the night sky. Thousands of stars. A sky filled with tiny points of light. A telescope. A bay window. A green apple. A soft blanket. A wooden fence blanketed with snow. A brown hat. A purple sham. A puddle left after a rainstorm. An open book. A dictionary. A freshly sharpened pencil. The first frost. Morning dew on green leaves. A blanket of brown leaves. A wet blanket of brown leaves. Brown leaves slowly composting back to dirt. Brown leaves. Now let's bring your awareness back to your chidakasha. Your internal gaze focusing on the warm and friendly darkness of your mind. You are in a deeply meditative state. There's nothing to do or not do but simply to observe the quiet peace of your mind. You may see colors or shapes in your chidakasha or nothing at all. Nevertheless you must continue to observe the calm and friendly quiet of your mind. A silent observer of the peace inside your mind. Do not sleep. Continue to observe the quiet peace of your mind. The friendly darkness. The warm and friendly darkness of your mind. From this peaceful place, Recall your sankalpa or resolve from the beginning of practice. Repeat it to yourself again mentally in the exact same words three times. Drop it into the quiet darkness of your unconscious mind with gratitude and let it go. The practice of yoga nidra is now complete. Slowly begin to deepen your breathing. Bring your awareness back to your body at rest. In one glance become completely aware of your body at rest. Fully open your eyes to the awareness of the whole body. The shape of the body. The position of the body. Externalize your mind. Become aware of the sounds of the body. Your heartbeat and breath. Expand your consciousness to the sounds of the room. Without opening your eyes visualize the four walls of the room. The position of your body in the room. Your body lying in deepest relaxation. Fully aware now. Calm and at peace. Slowly begin to introduce movement back into the body. Perhaps wiggling fingers or toes. It might feel good to gently rock your head from side to side. Take a deep inhale. And as you exhale draw the knees toward your chest and roll over to one side for a moment. Taking time here to flutter your eyes open. Fully aware and ready for the rest of the day.