Welcome back,
Everyone who's in the studio with me today for or from your walking meditation.
I hope you enjoyed that on this beautiful,
Beautiful spring day.
And now it's time for us to practice Yoga Nidra.
So make your way to your back on either a mat or a blanket or some other soft surface.
Find a comfortable position for your arms and for your legs.
Start to bring your focus to your breath.
And just notice the breath as it flows in and flows out.
Just very simple breath awareness.
You don't need to change anything about the breath.
Just follow it flowing in and flowing out.
Now make any final adjustments that you'd like to make to the position of your body on the mat,
With the intention of coming to a place where you feel content and peaceful laying on your back.
And now we begin the phase of the Yoga Nidra practice called Rotation of Consciousness.
Here I'll name parts of the body and invite your awareness to those parts.
Leave your awareness there until you're invited to move the awareness elsewhere.
Begin by focusing on the thumb on the right hand.
Bring all of your awareness,
All of your focus to the thumb on the right hand.
Try to let go of everything else,
All their thoughts,
Sensations,
Emotions.
Let them all fade into the background,
So that your awareness is focused on the thumb on the right hand exclusively.
Shift the focus now to the little finger on the right hand.
Focus just on the right little finger.
Now focus on the palm of the right hand.
Notice the broad expanse of the right palm.
And let your witnessing awareness rest on the right palm.
Now become aware of the whole right hand all at once.
Notice the whole right hand.
Become aware of your experience of the right hand.
Now shift the focus to the right wrist.
Notice the whole right wrist all the way around.
Now draw your focus up your right arm to the right elbow.
Let your awareness rest on the right elbow for a time.
Feel in to the right elbow.
Now draw the awareness up the right arm to the right shoulder.
Now let your focus rest on the right shoulder.
Now draw the focus down the right side of the body,
Past the ribs to the right hip.
Focus now on the outside of the right hip and let your awareness rest there for a moment.
Now bring the awareness down the right leg to the right knee.
Feel in to the right knee with all of your awareness.
Now draw the awareness down the right leg to the ankle.
Now focus 100% of your awareness on your right ankle.
Let everything else go.
Now become aware of the top of the right foot.
Now bring the awareness around to the bottom of the right foot.
Narrow your focus now to the big toe on the right foot.
Let your awareness rest just on the right big toe.
Concentrate.
Focus.
Awareness of the right big toe only.
Shift the awareness now to the thumb on the left hand.
If your awareness wanders off somewhere else,
Just gently bring it back to the left thumb.
Notice the experience of focusing on the left thumb.
Shift the awareness now to the little finger on the left hand.
Concentrate.
Concentrate on the left little finger.
Now become aware of the left palm.
Notice the broad expanse of the left palm.
Now shift the awareness to the back of the left hand.
Now focus on the left wrist.
Notice the whole left wrist all the way around.
Focus on the left wrist.
Now draw the awareness up the left arm to the left elbow and pause.
Witness the left elbow with all of your awareness.
Now become aware of the left shoulder.
Now draw the awareness down the left side past the ribs.
Come to the left hip.
Focus all of your awareness on the left hip.
Now come down the left leg to the left knee.
Rest your awareness on your left knee.
Come down the left leg to the left ankle.
Focus on the left ankle.
Now become aware of the top of the left foot.
Now bring the awareness around to the bottom of the left foot.
Focus there for a time.
Narrow the focus to the big toe on the left foot.
Concentrate on the left big toe.
Now shift your focus to the forehead.
Let all of your awareness rest on your forehead.
Feel just the surface of the forehead.
Narrow the focus now and become aware of the space between the eyebrows on the forehead.
Draw the awareness down the nose to the tip of the nose.
Focus on the tip of the nose.
Now bring awareness to the nostrils.
Let your awareness rest on both nostrils at the base of the nose.
With the awareness still on the nostrils,
Notice as you breathe in the coolness of the breath in the nostrils.
Feel the breath flowing into the body.
Feel the breath flowing to every part of the body.
As you breathe out,
Feel the breath flowing out through both nostrils.
Notice that the breath has warmed.
Follow six more cycles of breath,
Flowing through the nostrils in and out.
Notice everything you can about the breath flowing in through the nostrils,
Into the body,
And then out through both nostrils.
If you lose track of the cycle of breath that you're on,
Just begin again.
Let the breath be slow and gentle.
Let the breath be smooth and easy.
Continue breathing in and out through the nostrils,
With deep awareness of the process of breathing.
Now bring awareness to the whole body.
Notice your whole body.
Let go of the idea of parts of the body.
Focus on the whole body.
Now begin to notice that there is a self that is witnessing the body.
Feel the self separate from the body,
Yet also a part of the body.
Notice the consciousness aware of the body.
Focus the consciousness on the whole body all at once.
Now bring your awareness back to eyebrow center on the forehead between the eyebrows.
Let your awareness rest at eyebrow center.
Feel the awareness resting at eyebrow center,
Not moving.
Now draw the awareness up to the top of the head.
Feel the awareness resting at the very top of the head.
Now become aware again of the whole body.
Feel into the body with your awareness.
Bring awareness now to the heart space,
Right in the center of the chest.
Focus all of your awareness in the heart space.
Notice now as the body breathes in,
The heart space rises.
As the body breathes out,
The heart space falls.
Follow the rising and the falling of the heart with the breath.
Stay focused on the heart.
Now let all of that go.
Remember now where you are.
Remember the specific room that you are in.
Call to mind any details of the room that you can recall.
Now remember specifically where in the room you are laying.
Now visualize your body in a reclined position.
Start to feel into the hands and the feet.
Feel into the shoulders,
The knees.
Feel into the hips and the face.
Feel the breath flowing through the body in and out.
Invite gentle movement into the fingers and the toes.
You can begin to rotate the hands at the wrists and the feet at the ankles.
As we continue our process of reawakening from the practice of Yoga Nidra,
You can bend your elbows and then eventually bend the knees.
Roll to one side or the other and pause on your side with your knees bent.
If you like,
Cradle your head in your arm.
Now gently come to a seat.
Once you're seated,
Bring the palms to the knees.
Relax the shoulders and elbows.
Relax the wrists.
Soften the hands.
Take a deep breath in.
Sip in a little bit more breath.
Hold the breath gently for a moment.
And then exhale,
Let it go.
Do that one more time.
Inhale deeply.
A little bit more.
Hold the breath gently.
And release it,
Let it go.
When you're ready,
Let your eyes gently open.
And that concludes our practice of Yoga Nidra for today.
Thank you all so much for being here.
Everybody have a wonderful rest of the day and a great weekend ahead.
Take care.
