Welcome to this Yoga Nidra practice to help you quiet your mind.
Yoga Nidra is a practice that brings your brain into a state of deep rest.
You will cultivate peace while remaining awake and alert as I guide you to shift your awareness to various areas of your body,
Your breath,
Sensations,
And images.
Try to stay awake by listening to my voice,
But know that if you do fall asleep,
Your body is giving you exactly what you need.
Find a comfortable,
Reclined position.
Arrange your body so you are as comfortable as possible by checking in with your hips,
Lower back,
Shoulders,
And neck.
You could use a folded blanket or pillow under your head or place a blanket over you.
Acknowledge to yourself that you are beginning the practice of Yoga Nidra.
You are beginning the practice of Yoga Nidra.
Become aware of any sounds you can hear.
Avoid resisting the sounds and instead see them as aids in supporting your present moment awareness,
Helping you to stay awake and alert.
Let yourself hear the sounds as they come and go.
Find the most distant sound you can hear and then gradually bring your attention to closer sounds,
The sounds outside your house,
The sounds inside your house,
The sounds inside your room.
In your mind,
Start to visualize yourself in the room where you are.
See the walls,
The ceiling,
The furniture,
The floor.
Feel yourself laying on the floor,
The parts of your legs that touch the floor,
The parts of your back,
The backs of your arms and head.
Feeling the clothes touching your skin,
Your hair,
Your face.
Feeling yourself laying here.
Begin to become aware of your inner body by feeling the flow of your breath.
Allow your breath to be long and slow.
Maybe even finding a slight pause at the top of the inhalation and bottom of the exhalation.
As we move into our deeply meditative practice,
Allow an intention to come into your mind.
Creating an intention is like planting a seed,
Identifying what you would like to cultivate.
And by doing so,
You are planting this idea into your mind,
Bringing about the transformation and healing you desire.
Your intention can be a short positive statement,
One that reflects how you would like this practice to support your life.
You might choose to begin your intention statement with I am.
For example,
I am peaceful.
I am at ease.
I am enough.
Allow your intention to come to you by tuning into your heart.
And once you've identified your intention,
Repeat it silently to yourself three times as a way to plant the seed of your desire into your mind.
We will begin a journey of moving your awareness to different areas of your body.
As I say the name of the body part,
Mentally feel that part and say the name to yourself without moving your body.
Become aware of your right hand.
Feel your right hand thumb,
Second finger,
Third finger,
Fourth finger,
Fifth finger,
The palm,
Back of your hand,
Wrist,
Forearm,
Elbow,
Upper arm,
Shoulder,
Your right side waist,
Hip,
Right thigh,
Right knee,
Calf,
Ankle,
Right foot,
Right big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe.
Now bring your awareness to your left hand.
Feel your left hand thumb,
Second finger,
Third finger,
Fourth finger,
Fifth finger,
Palm,
Back of the hand,
Wrist,
Forearm,
Elbow,
Upper arm,
Left shoulder,
Left side waist,
Left hip,
Thigh,
Knee,
Calf,
Ankle,
Heel,
Left foot,
Left big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe.
Now feeling your whole right leg and whole left leg.
Both legs together.
Whole right arm,
The whole left arm,
And both arms together.
The whole back of your body,
The whole front of your body.
Feeling your whole body all together.
Remaining awake and aware.
Feeling your whole body completely relaxed.
Now bring your awareness to the very tip of your nose.
See if you can feel the subtle sensations of breath there.
Maybe tuning in to the light movement or the change in temperature with the inhale and exhale.
Mentally trace your inhalation through your nose up to the space between your eyebrows.
Then trace the same line with your exhalation,
The space between your eyebrows,
Down through your nasal passage and out through your nose.
Inhaling to the center of your forehead between your eyebrows.
And exhaling from the space between your eyebrows down through your nostrils.
Continuing like this for a few rounds,
Allowing each breath to nourish this third eye space between your eyebrows.
This is the energy of your intuition and mental clarity.
Each breath brings nourishment to this space.
And each exhale helps you find a little bit more release there.
Taking one final breath like this.
And then as your next inhale comes,
Imagine your whole body becoming heavier.
Heavier and heavier as you sink down into the support of the floor so that the floor holds your body.
Your head is heavy,
Your limbs are heavy,
Your whole body is heavy.
Then imagine your whole body becoming light.
So light that it feels like you could float away from the floor.
Your head is weightless,
Your limbs are weightless,
Your whole body is weightless.
Next,
Imagine your whole body is becoming cold.
Feel the sensation of being cold in your body.
Maybe imagining winter,
Snow,
Or being outside without enough insulating clothing.
Feeling the feeling of being cold throughout your body.
And now feel your whole body becoming warm.
Experiencing a hot summer day in the sun.
The heat radiates through your body,
On your skin.
Feeling the warmth all around you.
Release the sensations of warmth.
And allow yourself to rest in the comfort you currently have.
Your mind rests in a state of open awareness.
Sensing the space within you and sensing the space around you.
Begin to bring to mind a forest.
This might be a familiar forest or one that you might dream about.
See the big tall trees.
See a path before you.
Maybe it's a sunny warm day.
Maybe it's cool or cloudy.
Creating this vision of a peaceful,
Calm forest in your mind.
And seeing yourself there.
Beginning to take a very slow,
Deliberative walk.
You have no particular destination and there's no rush or urgency.
You are simply here to connect with the essence of nature.
The healing powers of the natural world.
And experience the deep pulsation of life all around you.
You take a slow step forward along the path.
And each step brings you a little more freedom from any worries or stresses that you've been carrying with you.
Bringing you into the peace in the forest.
Immersing yourself in the abundance of nature.
Taking another step,
You feel a little more at ease.
As you take in the sounds,
The sights,
The smells all around you.
Each step creates a slight shift in your perspective with new sights to focus on.
As you follow this winding path.
The space in your mind is open.
As your awareness takes in all of the sights,
All of the sounds.
Hearing the birds sing.
Feeling the temperature of the air.
Allowing the soft ground covering of pine needles,
Leaves and moss under your feet to absorb any stresses that have been consuming your mind.
Continuing like this,
Becoming more and more relaxed with each step.
Noticing how the abundance of nature creates a sense of calm within you.
Creating space from your thoughts and opening your mind to the deep wisdom of the natural world.
Walking along this path in a state of complete joy.
Your body moves freely.
Your energy is pleasant and you feel happy and full of joy.
Every breath filling your entire being with radiant energy and deep bliss.
Bring your attention back to the rhythm of your breath.
Staying aware of your soft,
Easy breath and your state of relaxation.
Begin to visualize the space around you.
Seeing in your mind's eye the room where you are.
The floor,
The furniture,
The walls and ceiling.
Feel your whole body.
And when you're ready,
Begin to make some small movements in your fingers and toes.
Your wrists and ankles.
Gradually expanding your movements in any way your body is asking to move.
When the time is right,
You can slowly open your eyes.
Taking all the time you need to re-acclimate to your space and mindfully transition back into your day.
May the deep peace you've cultivated here support and sustain you.
Thank you for your presence and your practice.
