River Of Rest - A Yoga Nidra For Deep Sleep

Welcome to this yoga nidra with the sound of the river and birds in the background.

This yoga nidra is designed to help you sleep,

To relax you and maybe soothe you into the night with the sounds of nature.

Take a moment now to settle,

Lying down in your comfortable position,

It might be on your back or it could be on your side if that feels ok for you.

Support your body with pillows and blankets so there is nothing to hold,

Nothing to fix and nowhere to go.

Let the sounds of nature be there in the background,

The river flowing,

The birdsong thrifting in and out and there is nothing you need to do with the sounds,

They are simply part of the night.

If you haven't already,

Allow your eyes to close,

Let the mouth soften,

Perhaps the tongue is resting gently at the roof of the mouth.

Take a slow easy breath in through the nose and a long unhurried breath out through the nose of the mouth,

Again breathing in and gently breathing out,

Perhaps doing this one more time,

Feeling,

Sensing,

Imagining the body being received by the earth beneath you.

The earth knows how to hold you,

You do not need to hold yourself right now.

Come and notice the natural rhythm of your breath,

No control,

No effort,

Just the quiet rise and fall.

With each exhale imagine the body settling a little more,

As though you are sinking into soft mass beside a riverbank,

Safe,

Held,

Undisturbed.

And if there are thoughts moving through the mind,

Allow them to pass like birds crossing the sky,

You do not need to follow them,

They know where they are going.

Perhaps now you might like to make an intention,

Inwardly,

Without effort,

You might plant a simple seed,

Tonight I rest deeply,

Tonight I sleep with ease,

No forcing,

Just a quiet whisper into the heart,

Repeating it mentally three times.

You perhaps have an intention already,

If so that's ok,

Or again you might like to use tonight I rest deeply,

Tonight I sleep with ease.

Now we begin to move our awareness through the body,

Simply noticing no movement is required.

Bring your attention to the right hand,

The right hand thumb,

Second finger,

Third finger,

Fourth finger,

Little finger,

Palm of the hand,

Back of the hand,

The right wrist,

Forearm,

Elbow,

Upper arm,

Shoulder,

Right side waist,

Right hip,

Thigh,

Knee,

Shin,

Calf,

Right ankle,

Heel,

Sole of the right foot,

Top of the foot,

The right big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe and the little toe.

Moving the awareness then over to the left hand,

The left thumb,

Second finger,

Third finger,

Fourth finger,

Little finger,

Palm of the hand,

Back of the hand,

Wrist,

Left forearm,

Elbow,

Upper arm,

Shoulder,

Left waist,

Left hip,

Thigh,

Knee,

Shin,

Calf,

Left ankle,

Heel,

Sole of the foot,

Top of the foot,

Left big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe and the little toe.

Now awareness to the back of the body,

The back of the head,

Right shoulder blade,

Left shoulder blade,

Mid back,

Lower back,

Right buttock,

Left buttock,

Back of the right leg,

Back of the left leg,

Front of the body,

Top of the head,

Forehead,

Right temple,

Left temple,

Right eyebrow,

Left eyebrow,

Space between the eyebrows,

The right eye,

Left eye,

Right ear,

Left ear,

Nose,

Cheeks,

Lips,

Chin,

Throat,

Right side of the chest,

Left side of the chest,

Centre of the chest,

Upper abdomen,

Navel,

Lower abdomen,

The whole pelvis,

The whole right leg,

The whole left leg,

Both legs together,

The whole right arm,

The whole left arm,

Both arms together,

Whole back body,

Whole front body,

The whole body,

The whole body resting,

The whole body resting.

Now gently bring the awareness to the movement of breath,

It may be in the belly or the chest or both,

As you breathe in,

Sense,

Feel or imagine the body softly rising,

As you breathe out,

The breath,

The body,

The chest or the belly falling,

Imagine the breath flowing like the river you hear,

Effortless,

Continuous,

Steady,

Breathing in,

Belly softly rises,

Breathing out,

Gently falling,

You are floating on this river of breath,

Supported,

Carried,

Begin to silently count the breath backwards from ten to one,

Inhale on ten,

Exhale on ten,

Inhale nine,

Exhale nine,

Continue at your own unhurried pace and if you lose count,

That's okay,

Simply return to ten,

There will be a pause as you count,

Now let go of the counting wherever you are,

Let the body breathe itself and imagine now that it is dusk,

You are lying beside a gentle river,

The sky is slowly darkening,

The last light of the day is soft and blue,

Birds are settling in the trees,

Their calls becoming fewer,

Softer,

As the river continues its quiet song,

A comfortable blanket of night begins to wrap around you,

The air is cool but you are warm and safe,

And with each out breath,

The body grows heavier,

As though sinking into the moss,

Into the earth,

As though becoming part of the landscape,

The muscles soften,

The bones feel heavy,

The skin cool and quiet,

Your mind now,

Like the sky,

Grows more spacious,

Thoughts begin to slow,

Widen and fade,

Above you,

Stars begin to appear one by one,

Spacious and still,

You do not need to watch them,

You can simply rest,

The river flows,

The night deepens,

Begin now to allow my voice to become more distant,

There is nothing more to do,

Nowhere to be,

The body knows now how to sleep,

The mind knows now how to soften,

If you find yourself still awake,

Simply rest,

If sleep comes,

Let it take you,

The sounds will continue,

The river will flow through the night,

The birds and the gentle currents holding you,

You are safe,

You are held,

You can let go into sleep,

Breathing in,

Breathing out,

Drifting,

Softening,

Resting,

And now I will leave you with the sounds of the night,

Sleep well dear one.