Mountain Yoga Nidra

A yoga Nidra that guides you through setting an intention, body scan, breathing, dualities, visualization, and a special mountain journey to enhance self-reliance, confidence, and groundedness.
- Recorded in class

Transcript

Come into a relaxing position,

Reclining on the floor or bed.

Place bolsters or pillows under your knees and a support under the head if needed.

Notice how your body feels draped along the ground and feel if there are any places that are tense or unwilling to relax.

If you find any,

Direct your breath into those areas so they soften and release.

Inhale into the tense areas and as you exhale,

Imagine them sinking into the support of the floor.

The practice of yoga nidra connects you to your deepest ability to rest and rejuvenate yourself.

You will be guided to the space that lies between being asleep and awake,

Where you can most easily connect to your witness consciousness.

The witness is that part of your awareness that observes what happens in the body,

In the mind,

And in the emotional state.

If you have pain in your body,

The witness observes how it affects the body without holding.

If you have mental stress,

The witness watches how it ties you up in mental knots and circular thoughts.

If you have intense emotions,

The witness watches them arise and fall without judgment or blame.

Think of accessing the witness as a way to release pain,

Untie the knots,

And stop the chattering of the mind,

Even if only temporarily.

Try to stay awake during the practice by listening to the instructions.

Follow them as well as you can,

And if you do drift off to sleep,

Do not worry.

Simply return to the instructions and stay relaxed.

Take a few more moments to deepen your level of relaxation.

Sink into the sensations of your body as you rest on the floor.

Feel the body being supported by the floor and notice where your body is touching the floor.

Then begin to feel your breath flow in and out of your nostrils.

Slowly breathe in and slowly breathe out.

Can you feel the flow of breath throughout your entire body?

Feel the subtle rise of the belly on the breath in and the subtle sinking towards the floor on the breath out.

Drop all of your awareness into these two sensations,

Rising on the inhale,

Sinking on the exhale,

Rising on the inhale,

Sinking on the exhale,

Focusing here for a few more moments.

Allow your intention or resolve to bubble up from your deepest wish for transformation and healing.

Be sure that the statement is positively stated and in the present tense and something that you will remember.

State it silently three times.

Also say to yourself,

I am practicing yoga nidra,

I am awake and relaxed.

You will now begin the rotation of consciousness.

Move your awareness throughout different parts of your body as soon as you hear the name.

The awareness will jump from place to place.

Say the name of the part to yourself after you hear it and at the same time become aware of only that part.

Stay alert without too much concentration.

The practice will begin with the feet.

Feel the soles of both feet.

Your heels.

Your arches.

And all 10 toes.

Move awareness up to your ankles.

Your calves.

Shins.

Front of your knee.

Back of your knee.

The sides of the knees.

Outside of the knees.

Fronts of your thighs.

Inner thighs.

Backs of the thighs.

Outer thighs.

Feel your hips.

Buttocks.

Groins.

Your pelvic floor.

Notice your lower belly.

Sacrum.

Middle back.

Sides of the waist.

And upper abdomen.

Feel your rib cage,

Noticing how much space it takes up in your torso.

Feel the right side of your rib cage.

And the left side.

Feel the sternum.

Your entire spine.

The sides of your chest.

Armpits.

Joints of your shoulders.

Upper arms.

The inside of the upper arms.

Inner elbows.

Inner forearms.

Insides of the wrists.

Palms of your hands.

Thumbs.

Index fingers.

Middle fingers.

Ring fingers.

And little fingers.

Feel the backs of your hands.

Backs of the wrists.

Outside of your forearms.

Points of the elbows.

Outside of your upper arms.

Tops of the shoulders.

Other bones.

Right side of the neck.

Left side of the neck.

Front of the neck.

Jaw.

Chin.

Lower lip.

Upper lip.

Space between the lips.

Lower teeth.

Tongue.

Upper teeth.

Right nostril.

Left nostril.

Entire nose.

Right cheek.

Left cheek.

Right ear.

Left ear.

Inner ears.

Ear lobes.

Right eye.

Left eye.

Right eyelid.

Left eyelid.

Right eyebrow.

Left eyebrow.

Space between the eyebrows.

Right temple.

Left temple.

Forehead.

Crown of the head.

Feel now the whole right side of your body.

The whole left side of your body.

The front of your body.

The back of your body.

Your whole body.

Feel your entire body all at once.

Feel your entire body.

Remember that you are practicing yoga nidra and draw your attention to the outgoing breath.

Draw your attention back to your natural,

Ingoing and outgoing breath.

Feel the breath going in and out of your lungs.

Do not try to change the rhythm.

The breathing is natural,

Automatic.

There is no effort.

Maintain awareness of your breath.

Complete awareness of breath.

Returning to the sensation of your body moving subtly as you breathe.

Feel the front of the body rising as you breathe in,

As if you were inflating a balloon inside of the body with each inhale.

Breathe in and feel lighter and more buoyant.

Notice as well the back of the body sinking into the floor as you exhale.

Feel the back of the body releasing downwards on each breath out.

Inhale and feel as if you were rising toward the ceiling and exhale.

Imagine your body sinking into the floor.

Focus on these two opposing sensations for a few more moments.

Feeling the movement of your breath.

Breathing in and breathing out.

Allow your breath to continue but do not concentrate on it.

Awaken the feeling of heaviness in the body,

The feeling of heaviness.

Become aware of heaviness in every single part of the body.

The arm's heavy.

The leg's heavy.

The head is heavy.

The whole body heavy.

You are feeling so heavy that you seem to sink into the floor like a dense heavy stone sitting on sand.

The body is heavy.

The whole body heavy as stone.

Then awaken the opposite sensation,

A feeling of lightness in the body.

Create the sensation of lightness and weightlessness in all parts of the body.

The body feels so light that you seem to be floating away from the floor like a cloud.

The body is light.

The whole body light as a cloud rising toward the ceiling.

Then return to the sensation of the body resting in peace and safety as you practice yoga nidra.

Next remember a time when you felt ungrounded,

Either physically or emotionally.

Perhaps you were in a hurry and were rushing around your house forgetting things,

Your thoughts scattered and spacey.

Or perhaps you were in a time of transition,

A move or a new job when things were not settled.

What does ungrounded feel like in your body and in your mind?

Does being ungrounded feel scary or exciting?

Then focus on the opposite sensation,

The feeling of groundedness,

The sensation of your body resting in stillness,

The mind focusing easily on a single task,

Knowing where everything is and knowing where you are going.

Remember the last time that you felt at home in your surroundings.

What does grounded feel like in your body and emotions?

Does grounded feel safe or stagnant?

Project your mind into the space in front of your closed eyes.

Even before you,

A transparent screen through which you can see infinite space,

A space that extends as far as the eyes can see,

As low or as high and as wide as you can see.

Watch the darkness very carefully,

Be totally aware but not involved.

Trust your mind in this warm and friendly darkness.

Become aware of any images that manifest within the dark space,

As if you were watching a movie.

If you see colors or patterns,

Simply notice these and continue with your awareness.

Whatever you see is the manifestation of your subconscious mind.

If thoughts occur,

Let them come and go but continue watching the dark space.

There is no effort,

Simply awareness,

Staying detached and relaxed.

Now begin to visualize the following on your mental screen.

Imagine a dark morning,

A vast mountain range,

Carrying a heavy burden,

An Egyptian pyramid,

A snow-capped peak,

Birds flying across a sunset,

A golden spider web,

A meandering river,

A green field of grass,

The full moon,

A purple lotus,

Feeling the ground beneath your feet,

A nourishing meal prepared with love,

A gleaming crystal,

A feeling of safety,

A family photograph,

The sunrise over the horizon,

A dog sleeping,

A yogi sitting in meditation,

Your body resting in yoga nidra.

Imagine that it is very early in the morning,

Still dark,

And you set out on your journey towards the top of the mountain.

You have prepared,

Planned,

And are packed and ready to go.

You have everything that you need to make it to the top.

You begin walking through the hills,

Climbing up towards the mountain.

If you look back,

You can see a crescent-shaped moon behind you in the lightning sky.

You journey over hills and into valleys far below you.

The lights of a town twinkle through an early morning mist.

The path you have already traversed twists back and forth on the side of a steep slope,

Winding between boulders and over bridges suspended across deep chasms.

You realize how far you have already come.

Take a moment to appreciate the struggles you have overcome to arrive at this point along your journey.

You realize that you have farther to go,

But feel grounded in your accomplishments.

You turn toward the path ahead,

And a gap between two hills gives a glimpse of the huge snow-covered mountain ahead.

The pale sky beyond it heralds the dawn.

You continue to climb upwards,

Moving past the scraggly trees made sparse by the elevation.

Snow is visible in the distance,

And you notice the cooler air as you ascend.

You move up past the tree line,

Over bare rocks,

Never losing sight of your goal,

The top of the mountain.

You are very close now,

And the higher you climb,

The harder the path.

You know that if you keep going,

Keep putting one foot in front of the other,

That you will make it.

You cannot quit now.

After a little while longer,

You finally round the last turn and see your goal.

The top of the mountain is within your sight.

As you approach,

You feel thankful that you have arrived.

You stand at the top of the mountain and look back once more along the path that brought you here.

You are amazed that you made it so far.

You feel strong,

Capable,

And confident.

At the top,

A magnificent scene reveals itself before your eyes.

To the east,

A vast range of snow-covered peaks and dark valleys.

To the west,

Hills leading to rolling plains and the sea.

Intensify your imagination and visualize the scene.

The sun has now fully risen,

Strikes the tops of the mountains,

And moves down their sides.

Deep valleys emerge as the shadows retreat.

You find a place to sit down,

Rest,

And contemplate this grand scene.

Allow your mind to flow freely with this visualization.

What has the journey taught you about yourself?

What realizations might you carry with you back down the mountain?

For now,

You decide to recline on the top of the mountain and feel the sunlight on your face.

Feel how the mountain itself creates support for your body.

You feel completely safe and at peace here.

Hold on to that feeling of accomplishment,

Courage,

And safety as you continue to rest.

Allow your intention to bubble up again from the depths of your mind and repeat it silently three times.

Bring your attention to the natural breath that flows in and out of your nostrils.

Develop awareness of your physical body.

Feel your body sinking down into the floor.

Ensure that you are practicing yoga nidra and begin to imagine the surrounding room.

Are there other people or objects present?

Notice any sounds that you might be able to hear,

Which will bring you more into the present moment.

Start moving your body very slowly.

Move your fingers and toes slowly.

Move your hands and feet slowly.

Turn your head slowly from side to side.

Take your time.

There is no hurry.

When you are sure that you are fully awake,

Open your eyes and allow the action of seeing to happen without focusing on anything.

Then rolling over to your side,

Staying on your side for a few moments.

Using your hands to press yourself up from the floor,

Allowing your head to come up last.

The practice of yoga nidra is now complete.

Reviews

Cheryl, I love the mountain visualizations. Fantastic meditation and all my thanks 🙏🏻.

Thank you very much. I found it profoundly relaxing

Enjoy the description of the journey on the mountaintop, thank you so much. Gail

Great nidra practice and one I will come back to sgain. Thanks. 🙏💤