Welcome to this Yoga Nidra practice.
Make yourself comfortable and at ease as you lie down on your back.
Make sure you're comfortable and warm so you can deeply relax throughout this practice.
Yoga Nidra is also called yogic sleep because in this type of practice your mind will remain awake and aware while your body is resting and sleeping.
So do your best to follow my voice throughout this practice and if you fall asleep that's also fine.
So place one hand now on your belly and one hand on your chest and gently close the eyes.
Start to bring your awareness to the contact of your hands resting on your body.
As you breathe in and out through the nose noticing the little movements of your hands as you breathe in and out.
Also take the time to notice and sense how your body is receiving the touch and the contact of your hands.
And then we continue by pendulating your awareness to the belly and the chest.
Starting with the belly,
Breathing in,
Pushing the belly out,
Feeling your hand rising and slowly with the exhale the hand and the belly drawing back towards the spine.
And now awareness to the hand on your chest,
Breathe in,
Expanding the rib cage,
Chest and hand lifting up and exhale drawing back and down towards the spine.
And now belly,
Push it out and up,
Exhale,
Belly and hand drawing back in and down.
And now the chest,
Breathing in,
Expanding the chest,
Exhale releasing and drawing back in.
Continue alternating your awareness with each breath between the belly and the chest for a few rounds.
Slowing down your breathing a little bit more.
The next time you breathe into your chest then release your arms by your side.
And continue breathing normally in and out through the nose as we rotate awareness through the body.
Starting at the right thumb,
Second finger,
Third finger,
Fourth finger,
Fifth finger,
The right hand and the space between the fingers,
The right wrist,
Forearm,
Elbow,
Upper arm,
Shoulder,
Right side of the rib cage,
Right side of the waist,
Right hip,
Right thigh,
Knee,
Lower leg,
Ankle,
Top of the right foot and sole of the right foot.
And then right big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe,
The space between the toes,
The whole right foot,
The whole right leg,
The whole right side of the body.
And with the left thumb,
Second finger,
Third finger,
Fourth finger,
Fifth finger,
Left hand,
The space between the fingers,
Left wrist,
Forearm,
Elbow,
Upper arm,
Shoulder,
Left side of the rib cage,
Left side of the waist,
Left hip,
Thigh,
Knee,
Lower leg,
Ankle,
Top of the left foot and sole of the left foot,
The left big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe,
The space between the toes,
The whole left foot,
The whole left leg,
The whole left side of the body.
Bring your awareness now to the base of your spine,
Feeling the whole spine resting on the surface underneath you and the whole back,
From the sacrum through your shoulder blades.
And then the back of the neck,
Back of the head,
The ears,
The eyes,
The eyebrows,
Tip of the nose,
The lips,
The chin,
The whole face and the whole head,
The whole front of the body,
The whole back of the body,
The whole body resting in awareness.
And now bring your awareness to the front of the body.
So sensing your forehead,
Tip of the nose,
Chin,
The chest,
Front of the hips,
The whole front of the body down to the tip of the toes and notice any sensations of contact with the clothes or the blankets resting on the front of the body,
Noticing the weight,
The texture and the temperature at the front of the body.
And then expanding the awareness more at the front,
Noticing the space in front of you and what are the qualities of that space in front of you.
Maybe it's something similar to lightness and spaciousness,
But it can be really anything you sense and feel.
Keep expanding your awareness at the front of the body even beyond the room you're in.
And then release it and bring your awareness to the back of your body now,
Starting with the contact of the back of the head,
The shoulder blades,
The glutes,
Back of the legs and the heels with the surface underneath you.
Feeling the weight of your body resting on this surface and the pull of the force of gravity,
Pulling your body weight down towards the center of the earth.
And then notice the space behind you and underneath you and sense what are the qualities of this space.
Maybe it feels more grounded and solid and safe and protected.
And then notice now the space between the front and the back,
Which is your depth.
Any sensations and feelings inside your body,
In your muscles and organs,
The tissues,
Any vibrations or movement or temperature in this space in between the front and the back.
Now allow the front,
The back and the middle to merge into one another in unity,
All the three layers together,
Your awareness expanding in every direction.
Breathe into this space and now gently let it go and find your gentle return,
Anchoring your awareness back into your body,
Resting on your bed,
On the sofa or on the floor,
Hearing the sounds inside the room and outside the room,
Using those sounds as the bridges you cross to return back to your body,
Back to this moment,
Back into the room you're in.
As you start to bring some gentle movements into the body,
So you can rub the thumbs with your fingers very,
Very gently,
You can wiggle your toes,
Maybe swaying your head right and left.
Take all the time you need to fully awaken and wake up and return to the rest of your day.
