Namaste,
My name is Elka and I will be your guide throughout this meditation for sleep.
Get as comfortable as you can,
Settling in to any position that you can deeply rest and soften.
Become as still as you can,
But do not retain or hold the breath.
Allow the breath to flow naturally,
Perhaps even softening the breath by deepening your inhale ever so slightly and releasing the exhalation with a gentle sigh.
Do this a few more times.
Now let this all go.
Allowing breath to return back to its natural pace.
If you would like to call an intention into this practice,
I'll give you some time to state it now,
Or perhaps rest back with the sweetness of no intention,
Letting everything go.
You've only got a little time.
Welcome,
Rest inside your legs as though your legs are being filled with deep,
Heavy sleep.
Feel your legs getting heavy.
Feel both arms deepening into sleep,
Both arms heavy from shoulders to fingertips.
Feel your arms heavy,
Sinking deep.
Now feel your head,
And feel your whole head melting into the pillow.
Whole head heavy,
Melting into your pillow.
Now feel your whole body heavy,
Resting like a fallen tree in the forest,
Returning nourishment back into the earth floor.
Feel your whole body resting,
Your whole body supported.
Feel your whole body spreading nourishment into dark soil and deep roots.
Bring your awareness back to your breath.
Begin to equalize your breath,
Breathing in for a count of four,
Breathing out for a count of four,
Equalizing the breath,
Breathing with a gentle kindness and awareness of your breath.
Equalizing the breath,
Breathing in for a count of four,
Breathing out for a count of four.
Feel yourself beginning to equalize,
Balancing the breath.
And could you add more space for the breath inside your belly,
Softening the muscles of the belly making more space for breath,
Noticing the breath,
The space inside the belly,
Balancing the breath.
Feel yourself beginning to equalize.
Could you now move your mind's awareness to the base of your spine?
Feel your awareness move to the base of your spine and then slowly move your mind's awareness up the spine,
Feeling your low back,
Feeling your mid back,
Feeling your upper back and shoulders,
Noticing and feeling,
Sensing the back of the neck,
The back of the head,
And all the way up to the crown of the head,
Noticing all the sensations at the crown of your head.
And now move the awareness into the forehead,
The center of the forehead,
The right eye,
Right eyebrow,
Temple,
Over to the left eye,
Left eye,
Eyebrow,
Temple,
Both eyes together,
Feel both eyes together.
Now notice the breath at the tip of your nose,
Feel the air inside your nose,
Feel the air inside your throat,
And sense over to the right ear,
Feeling all the sensations inside the right ear,
Feeling ear lobe,
The curvature of the ear,
Your jaw,
Cheek,
And now feel over to the left ear,
Inside the left ear,
Outside the left ear,
The softness of your ear lobe,
Feeling down inside the jaw and left cheek.
Now notice the sensations of your upper lip,
Your lower lip,
And both lips together,
Feel your chin,
Your throat,
Down inside your right collarbone,
Your left collarbone,
And back into the base of the throat,
Feel over to your right shoulder,
Inside the right shoulder joint,
And down inside the right arm,
Upper arm,
Elbow,
Lower arm,
Palm of the hand,
Right hand thumb,
Index finger,
Middle finger,
Ring finger,
Little finger,
And all five fingers simultaneously.
Now travel up inside the left shoulder,
Inside the left shoulder joint,
Down inside the left arm,
Elbow,
Lower arm,
Palm of the hand,
Left hand thumb,
Index finger,
Middle finger,
Ring finger,
Little finger,
Now feel all five fingers at once,
All the sensation of your fingers simultaneously.
Now feel the center of your chest,
Feel yourself breathing,
Notice the sensations in the right side of your chest,
Feel the sensations inside the left side of your chest,
And back into the center of your chest,
Noticing yourself breathing,
The space in the center of the chest,
And travel down into the space in the belly,
Feeling deep inside the belly,
Feel the sensations inside your right hip,
And down the leg inside the thigh,
Knee,
Ankle,
Heel,
Sole of the right foot,
Top of the right foot,
Big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe,
Feel all five toes at once,
Noticing the sensations in all five toes at once.
And move back with your awareness inside the belly,
Feeling deep inside the belly,
And down inside your left hip,
Thigh,
Knee,
Ankle,
Heel,
Sole of the left foot,
Top of the left foot,
Big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Little toe,
And feel all five toes at once,
Feeling all five toes as one sensation.
And feel both feet together,
Both legs together,
Both arms together,
And feel the whole body as one sensation,
Feeling the whole body,
Full body sensations.
Begin to welcome your breath to move in and up from the soles of your feet to the crown of your head,
Breathing in and out through the entire body from feet to crown,
And breathing back down from crown out through the soles of your feet.
Continue breathing in this way,
Breathing in and out from the soles of the feet,
Traveling through the whole body all the way up to the crown of the head,
And breathing back down,
Releasing breath all the way through the whole body out through the soles of your feet.
Feel your body breathing,
Breath flowing in from the soles of your feet all the way up through legs,
Waist,
Chest,
Head,
And breath flowing back down through head,
Shoulders,
Arms,
Chest,
Legs,
Feet,
Experiencing your whole body breathing.
And now could you feel only the right side of your body breathing in through the sole of your right foot,
Through right leg,
Hip,
Waist,
Chest,
Right arm,
And the right side of the head,
And breathing back down,
Right side of the head,
Shoulder,
Arm,
Chest,
Waist,
Hip,
Leg,
Sole of the right foot,
And continue breathing in and out of this right side of your body,
Breath flowing in and out of this right side of your body,
Breathing in and up,
Breathing out and down,
Breath flowing naturally in and out through this right side.
And now could you experience the left side of your body breathing,
Breath flowing in through the sole of your left foot,
Up through your leg,
Hip,
Waist,
Chest,
Arm,
And head,
And breath flowing back down left side from head,
Shoulder,
Arm,
Chest,
Waist,
Hip,
Leg,
Sole of the left foot,
Experience the left side of your body breathing,
Breathing in and out,
And breath flowing back down and out.
Could you welcome this breath to move in and out from the left foot all the way up to the right side of your brain,
And back down from the right side of the brain through the sole of your left foot?
And now take some time and move over to the right foot,
Breathing up from the sole of the right foot into the left side of the brain,
And breathing back down from left side of the brain down through the right side of the body and out through the sole of the right foot.
Notice your whole body breathing now.
Letting the breath flow back through the whole body,
In and out,
Through both sides.
Notice your whole body breathing.
And begin to imagine now that you're walking through a forest.
Feel the presence of the trees around you,
The sky.
Listening to the sounds,
The peaceful sounds of the forest.
Notice the forest floor beneath you,
Taking in the colors,
The textures.
Draw in the aroma of the forest.
Feel the warmth and glow of the sun as it peaks through the canopy above you.
Feel yourself free and safe to explore in this forest.
Notice what you see here.
Notice if there's any wildlife around you.
Many people feel the presence of the forest,
Welcoming in this peaceful presence of the forest.
And now see how the forest begins to open to a clearing,
A meadow,
And begin to gently walk into this open space.
Taking in all the new colors,
Textures,
Aromas.
Feeling open,
Spacious,
And expansive in this place.
And you begin to notice that the air is cooling off,
Feeling the gentle coolness on your skin.
And notice that the sun is setting off in the distance.
Taking in the colors and the layers of sky and clouds above you.
Watching the clouds flow by as the sun begins to dip below the horizon.
Feeling as day turns into night.
Notice yourself peaceful like the night sky above you.
Feel the presence of the full moon.
Feeling in the darkness and the expansive sky.
Watching soft clouds gently flowing by,
Highlighted by the moon.
Feel the dark call of night.
Take in the moonlight and the fullness of the moon.
Notice how the moon lights up this meadow with its perfect brilliance.
And you begin to notice that this moonlight lights up a path for you to travel home.
Noticing yourself being lifted by a cloud.
Feeling yourself so light,
Floating home on a gentle cloud.
Feel yourself safe,
Peaceful,
Light as a feather,
Floating home on a gentle cloud.
Gently floating off to sleep.
Feel yourself called home by the moon,
Your whole body resting on a pillowy,
Soft cloud,
Gently guiding you home.
Feel yourself so light,
Floating home on a gentle cloud.
Gently floating off to sleep.
