Welcome to your winter yoga nidra practice.
I'm Hilary Jackendoff,
And thank you for trusting me to guide you today.
Let's get cozy and get ready to hibernate for a little while.
Making sure you have all the props you need for your comfort,
And ensuring that you'll be warm enough for your practice.
And then taking some time to find your comfortable position.
If it feels right for your body,
Coming into shavasana,
Resting on your back,
With your feet about hip width apart,
Arms alongside your body,
With your palms facing up or in.
Or feel free to take any other position that supports you best today.
And once you've gotten comfortable and settled,
Really,
Really take the time to adjust and refine.
Noticing if it would feel better to have your hands resting on your body,
Checking in to make sure your head is centered,
And once everything feels just so,
Start to notice the quality of your energy in this moment.
Checking in and noticing if you feel ready to let go of the world for a little while.
If you feel ready to put down everything you're carrying in your body,
Mind and heart.
If you feel ready to drop into this space of stillness for this practice of deep rest.
Consciously preparing to connect to the energy of earth during the season of winter.
The energy of the soil during this time.
We may be overstimulated,
Always rushing and doing,
But the earth is resting.
Sensing the quiet and stillness of this season,
The darkness.
The sun barely shone today,
But its light was enough,
And its energy was received.
Traveling slowly through branches,
Through roots,
Spiraling down through the frozen earth.
Recognizing that when you're in a season of rest,
You can give yourself permission to be gentle with yourself.
Knowing that even when you don't have a lot to give,
It's always enough.
Connect to the feeling of slowness,
Of hibernation.
Sensing the energy of dreams,
Allowing yourself to become absorbed in this quality of being.
Giving yourself full permission to sink into the rhythms of winter.
Begin to cultivate a slow breath.
Breathing slowly and deeply.
As you inhale,
Feel your abdomen gradually expand,
Little by little,
Filling with breath.
And sense that breath rising up into your chest and upper chest.
Then inviting your exhalation to move in reverse,
Releasing first from the chest,
Then the abdomen.
See how slowly you can breathe,
Taking three more breaths just like this.
And now begin to arrive fully in your body.
With eyes closed,
How do you know that you have a body?
What do you feel in this moment?
What sensations are present?
Allowing your attention to move from sensation to sensation.
Noticing whatever sensation wants to be noticed.
Keep refining your awareness of sensation.
If nothing calls out to you in an obvious way,
Start to notice the more subtle sensations.
You might be able to feel the inner movement of energy in the form of pulsation or vibration.
And begin to feel your body releasing more of its weight onto the earth,
Letting any areas of tightness or tension be absorbed by the earth beneath you.
With every breath in,
Feel the earth cradling you,
Holding you,
As though to gently remind you that this is the season for deep rest.
Every breath out,
Your body releasing more of its weight,
Letting go even more,
Shifting attention to sounds.
With eyes closed,
What sounds are revealing the world to you?
What sounds are present in this moment?
As you welcome in all of the different sounds,
Feel as though you are at the very center of the soundscape.
Notice how the sounds are received by your body and your mind.
See if you can perceive the silence behind all of the sounds,
The infinite silence from which each sound arises and returns.
Feel into the vastness,
The stillness,
The silence.
And resting here in this space,
In this stillness,
In this silence,
Take a moment to consider what you're ready to let go of.
What you're ready to release into the darkness,
To be received and transformed by the earth.
There's no need to make this an exercise of the thinking mind.
Just notice whatever came up.
And now take a moment to consider what it is you're tending in this season of rest.
What you're ready to call forth from within.
What new life is ready to awaken in you.
Letting go of this,
And preparing to move the awareness through the body,
A journey of consciousness.
As each part of the body is named,
Feel into it,
And if possible,
Visualize a ray of moonlight gently shining on each part in turn.
Bringing attention to the right hand thumb,
And feeling the thumb.
Visualizing a ray of moonlight illuminating the thumb.
This ray of moonlight moves to the index finger,
Sensing and feeling the index finger.
To the middle finger,
Ring finger,
Little finger,
Palm of the hand,
Back of the hand,
Wrist,
Lower arm,
Elbow,
Upper arm,
Shoulder,
Right side of the chest,
Waist,
Hip,
Knee,
Thigh,
Shin,
Ankle,
Sole of the foot,
Top of the foot,
Right big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
And the fifth toe.
The whole right side of the body,
The whole right side of the body illuminated in moonlight.
Shifting attention to the left side,
The left hand thumb,
Index finger,
Middle finger,
Ring finger,
Little finger,
Palm of the hand,
Back of the hand,
Wrist,
Lower arm,
Elbow,
Elbow,
Upper arm,
Shoulder,
Armpit,
Left side of the chest,
Waist,
Hip,
Thigh,
Sole of the foot,
Top of the foot,
Left big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe.
The whole left side of the body,
Illuminated by the light of the moon.
Shifting attention to the back of the body,
And imagining the moonlight shining as though from below.
The awareness flowing into the heels,
Calf muscles,
Backs of the knees,
Calves,
Backs of the thighs,
Buttocks,
Lower back,
Middle of the back,
Upper back,
Back of the neck,
Back of the head,
Top of the head,
The forehead,
Right temple,
Left temple,
Right eyebrow,
Left eyebrow,
Right eye,
Left eye,
Right ear,
Left ear,
Right cheek,
Left cheek,
Bridge of the nose,
Tip of the nose,
Nostrils,
Upper lip,
Lower lip,
The line where the lips meet,
Right side of the jaw,
Left side of the jaw,
The chin,
Front of the neck,
The throat pit,
Right side of the chest,
Left side of the chest,
The heart center,
Upper abdomen,
Navel,
Lower abdomen,
Pelvis,
The right thigh,
Left thigh,
Right thigh,
Right knee,
Left knee,
Right shin,
Left shin,
Right ankle,
Left ankle,
Right ankle,
Top of the right foot,
Top of the left foot,
Awareness of the entire right side body,
The entire left side body,
The entire back body,
The entire front body,
The entire body bathed in moonlight,
The entire body resting deeply,
Within the stillness of the body,
Notice the movement of breath,
Sensing the interplay between the movement of breath within,
And the stillness of the body around the breath,
As the body breathes naturally,
Effortlessly,
Let a count follow the breath,
Counting the breath backwards from 18,
Breathing in 18,
Breathing out 18,
Breathing in 17,
Breathing out 17,
If the count is forgotten,
Just start again,
If it naturally falls away,
Allow yourself to rest in whatever it is,
Let go of the count,
Let go of the breath,
And begin to explore what it feels like to sink more deeply into stillness,
To guide awareness into the very depths of your own being,
Guiding awareness into your center,
Into your heart,
What wisdom is here for you,
What does it feel like to truly take rest within the sanctuary of your own being,
And what arises in this deep stillness,
In this silence,
Gently drift awareness to the space of the mind,
Taking note of this space,
Perceiving it,
Observing as a witness,
Whatever arises,
Continuing to gaze into this space,
Sensing its dimensions,
Noticing any colors,
Shapes,
Images,
Or memories,
And now begin to visualize or imagine images and experiences as they're named,
A single log burning on a fire,
A single log burning on a fire,
Pine cones scattered in the snow,
Perfectly still,
Silent night,
Pitch black sky,
A pitch black sky,
Snow blanketing the earth,
Gazing out at a frozen tundra,
Bare branches of an ancient tree,
The bare branches of an ancient tree,
Walking through deep snow,
Walking through deep snow,
Feeling the crunch of the snow,
Boots sinking down,
A single candle on a mantle,
A sacred,
Quiet place,
A sacred,
Quiet place,
A sacred,
Quiet place,
Snowflakes melting on your tongue,
Holding a mug of hot chocolate,
Smelling its sweetness,
The tinkling of sleigh bells in the distance,
Walking across a frozen pond,
Walking across a frozen pond,
Feeling the ice beneath your feet,
Smoke rising from a chimney,
A snow fairy with icicle wings,
Evergreen in the middle of a snowy forest,
A bear sleeping in its cave,
A sleigh being drawn through deep snow by an elk,
Icicles hanging from a slanted roof,
Reflecting sunlight,
The stillness and silence of a snowy morning,
Waking to see the world transformed,
The stillness and silence of a snowy morning,
Waking to see the world transformed,
Striking a match to light a candle,
Eyes of a white owl piercing the darkness,
A wizened old woman holding a torch,
The moon on a winter's night,
The moon on a winter's night,
The moon on a winter's night,
Letting go of these images,
And remembering what you may have connected to at the beginning of practice,
Recalling what you'd like to let go of,
What you'd like to release into the darkness,
And in its place,
Remember what you'd like to call forth from within,
Into the stillness,
Into the silence,
Hear yourself mentally speaking an intention for your new beginning with clarity and ease,
Letting go of this inner voice and opening awareness to external sounds,
Welcoming in the sounds of the evening,
What can you hear in this moment?
Reconnect to the sensations in your body,
Paying attention to them,
Focusing on the feelings,
Of being in your body,
Noticing the quality of your energy in this moment,
Noticing if your energy feels awakened and restored,
Or perhaps you feel a sense of calm,
Grounded ease,
Or perhaps you may feel that you still need more rest,
Or perhaps you're just noticing what is,
Welcoming whatever wisdom this moment contains,
And in your own time,
Begin to breathe more deeply,
Feeling oxygen traveling to every cell of your being,
Sensing each life-giving breath as a new beginning,
As you continue to deepen your breath,
Feel that your breath is the bridge between your internal world and the external world,
Noticing how you feel in this moment,
Now that the practice of yoga nidra is complete,
Taking your time in this in-between space,
Recognizing that you're in what the yogis call the madhya,
Perceiving this space between,
Taking as long as you like before introducing movement,
Embracing the slowness of winter,
Embracing your natural pace in this moment,
And when you are ready,
Begin to move your body gently and intuitively,
Sensing how your body wants to move and doing exactly that,
Moving in a way that feels deeply nourishing,
Moving in a way that feels good,
And in your own time,
Gradually make your way onto one side,
Curl up in a little ball,
And let yourself enjoy a few slow soothing breaths,
And when you're ready,
Make your way back up to seated,
To reconnect with the waiting world after your hibernation practice.
Thank you so much for practicing with me today,
And make sure to express some gratitude to yourself,
For taking the time to rest,
And for honoring your energy.
