Classical Yoga Nidra

In Sanskrit, Nidra means sleep. However, yogic sleep is distinct from sleeping, dreaming, or even meditation. Yoga Nidra is a conscious state of deep relaxation and awareness. In this state, we are given access to restore our abilities to heal by reducing stress and bringing a newfound sense of clarity and calm. Practiced regularly, it is not only restorative but can be deeply transformative as well. This is a guided yoga nidra experience. I recommend doing the practice on a yoga mat with a rolled-up blanket or cushion under the knees and a pillow under your head. To do the practice, simply follow along with my voice in the recording.

Transcript

You are about to embark on a journey of progressive deep relaxation.

Yoga Nidra is best done during a time of day when you won't fall asleep easily.

I recommend doing the practice on a yoga mat with a rolled up blanket or cushion underneath the knees and a pillow under your head.

If you get cold easily,

Feel free to cover yourself with a blanket.

You are meant to be comfortable for the duration of the practice.

But if it is difficult for you to lie down flat,

You may want to try a seated position or to lay out on a reclining chair.

When on a yoga mat,

The best way to position yourself is with hands down by your side at a 45 degree angle with palms up.

Legs should be slightly apart in a relaxed position.

Before your practice,

Make sure you use the bathroom.

Take the time you need to make yourself comfortable before starting the practice and silence your phone and alarms so that you are not interrupted.

To do the practice,

Simply follow along with my voice in the recording,

Remaining awake and aware for the entire practice.

I hope that this practice brings you peace and calm,

As it has done for me.

The Practice of Yoga Nidra This audio was recorded with the permission of Dr.

Mark Halpern.

The script used in this recording is based on the recording Yoga Nidra and Self-Healing by Dr.

Mark Halpern,

Copyright 2011,

All rights reserved.

Now let's prepare by doing any final shifting and squirming that you need to do to be comfortable.

Remember,

You will not be moving for the next 45 minutes.

When you hear the three bells,

Then we will begin.

Go ahead and take a deep breath in and let it all out.

Go ahead and take another deep breath in.

This time,

As you let it out,

Go ahead and give a deep sigh and say,

Ah.

Now,

Let's begin by establishing an intention to remain awake and aware for the entire practice today.

Repeat to yourself,

I will remain awake and aware.

Awake and aware.

Now,

I would like you to completely relax.

There is nowhere you need to go and nothing that you need to do for a while.

Listen to my voice and allow my voice to guide your awareness.

If you hear any outside sounds,

Let them take you deeper within.

All the while,

Remember to stay 100% awake and 100% aware.

Awake and aware.

Go ahead and bring your awareness to your right hand.

Notice your hand.

Notice where it is and what it is touching.

Now,

Bring your awareness to your right thumb.

Notice if it is suspended in the air or if it is touching anything.

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension in your right thumb.

And let gravity take your thumb into whatever position that gravity wants it to be.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Letting go,

Letting go.

Now,

Bring your awareness to the other four fingers of your right hand.

Say hello to each finger and as you do,

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension in each of the four fingers.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

And now,

Bring your awareness to your right palm.

Notice the part of your palm that is closest to your little finger.

Notice the part that is closest to your thumb.

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension in your palm and go deeper within.

Deeper into relaxation.

Deeper into awareness.

Letting go.

And now,

Bring your awareness to your right wrist.

Notice the top of your wrist that is facing the ceiling.

Notice the bottom of your wrist that is touching the floor.

Notice anything that is touching your wrist.

Now,

Bring your awareness inside of your wrist and with your mind's eye,

Look around.

Notice if there are any areas of holding,

Control or tension and let it go.

Allow your wrist to completely relax and as you do,

Your palm and fingers become even more relaxed.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Deeper and deeper into relaxation.

Deeper and deeper into awareness.

And now,

Bring your awareness to your right elbow.

Notice the part that is facing the ceiling.

And notice the part that is touching the floor.

Explore your elbow with your inner eye.

Notice if there are any areas of holding,

Control or tension within the elbow or the muscles and tendons that surround it.

And let it go.

As you do,

The forearm relaxes,

The wrist surrenders more deeply.

The palm becomes softer and gravity takes your fingers to wherever gravity wants them to be.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Deeper and deeper into relaxation.

Deeper and deeper into surrender.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

And now,

Bring your attention to your left hand.

Notice your hand.

Notice where it is and what it is touching.

Now,

Bring your awareness to your left thumb.

Notice if it is suspended in the air or if it is touching anything.

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension in your left thumb.

And let gravity take your thumb into whatever position that gravity wants it to be in.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Now,

Bring your awareness to the other four fingers of your left hand.

Say hello to each finger and as you do,

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension in each of the four fingers.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Now,

Bring your awareness to your left palm.

Notice the part of your palm that is closest to your little finger.

And notice the part that is closest to your thumb.

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension in your palm and go deeper within.

Deeper into relaxation,

Deeper into surrender.

Letting go.

Now,

Bring your awareness to your left wrist.

Notice the top of your wrist that is facing the ceiling.

Notice the bottom of your wrist that is touching the floor.

Notice anything that is touching your wrist.

Then,

Bring your awareness inside of your wrist and with your mind's eye,

Look around.

Notice if there are any areas of holding,

Control or tension and let it go.

Allow your wrist to completely relax and as you do,

Your palm and wrist should be in a straight line.

And your palm and fingers become even more relaxed.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Deeper and deeper into relaxation,

Deeper and deeper into surrender.

All the while,

Remaining awake and aware,

Awake and aware.

Now,

Bring your awareness to your left elbow.

Notice the part that is facing the ceiling.

And notice the part that is touching the floor.

Explore your elbow with your inner eye.

Notice if there are any areas of holding,

Control or tension within the elbow or the muscles and tendons that surround it and let it go.

As you do,

The forearm relaxes,

The wrist surrenders more deeply.

The palm becomes softer and gravity takes your fingers to wherever gravity wants them to be.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Deeper and deeper into relaxation,

Deeper and deeper into surrender.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Now,

Bring your awareness to the backs of both of your shoulders,

Sliding your awareness over to the top and front.

Allow your shoulders to completely relax.

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension in any part of your shoulders.

As you do,

Your arms become even heavier and sink into the surface below.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Letting go,

Letting go.

Now,

Bring your awareness to your underarms.

Notice the four curves of your armpits.

Let go of any areas of holding,

Control or tension and go deeper within.

Deeper and deeper into relaxation,

Deeper and deeper into surrender.

Your arms are now like two branches of a tree that have fallen to the ground.

No longer attached,

They lay by your side,

Still and at peace.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Now,

Bring your awareness to the toes and both of your feet.

Feel the sensation of each of the ten toes and let go of any holding,

Control or tension.

Then,

Move your awareness to the soles of your feet.

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension in the soles of your feet.

Now,

Bring your awareness to the heels of your feet and your ankles.

Notice the position of your feet.

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension in your ankles and let gravity take your feet to wherever gravity wants them to be.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Deeper and deeper into relaxation,

Deeper and deeper into awareness.

All the while remaining awake and aware,

Awake and aware.

Bringing your awareness to your knees.

Notice the backs of your knees.

Explore the area with your inner eyes.

Notice if there are any areas of holding,

Control or tension in the backs of your knees and let it go.

As you do,

The calves and ankles relax more fully and the feet fall into whatever position is naturally right.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Moving your awareness to the kneecaps.

Notice the tops of the kneecaps that attach to your thighs.

Notice the bottoms that attach to your shins.

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension in your kneecaps.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Now bring your awareness to the tops of your thighs,

Between the knees to your pubic bone.

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension in your inner thighs.

And surrender your legs more fully.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Now bring your attention to the bottoms of your thighs.

Notice the sensation of your thighs against the surface below you.

Explore the bottoms of your thighs for any areas of holding,

Control or tension and let it go.

Allow your legs to become heavier and to sink into the surface below you.

Deeper and deeper into relaxation.

Deeper and deeper into awareness.

All the while remaining awake and aware,

Awake and aware.

And now bring your awareness to your hips and your bottom.

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension in your hips and bottom.

As you do,

Your thighs,

Knees,

Calves and feet surrender even more.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Your legs are now like two more branches of a tree.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Your legs are now like two more branches of a tree that have fallen to the ground.

No longer attached,

They lay by your side,

Still and at peace.

Letting go.

Now bring your awareness to your pelvis.

Notice the sensation of your clothes against your skin.

If you are covered by a blanket,

See if you can feel its warmth and weight.

Now notice the muscles below your skin and allow them to relax.

Go deeper still and using your inner eye,

Look inside your pelvis.

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension in the organs of your pelvis.

You don't have to know the anatomy.

Just look around and see if you can notice any areas of holding,

Control or tension and let it go.

Allow the life energy to flow freely through you without obstruction.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Deeper and deeper into relaxation.

Deeper and deeper into surrender.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Now bring your attention to your spine.

Move your awareness from the top of your spine near the neck down to the bottom of your tailbone.

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension along the column of your spine.

Allow the vertebrae to completely relax.

Allow the vertebrae to completely relax.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Deeper and deeper into relaxation.

Deeper into awareness.

Letting go.

And now bring your awareness to your lower back.

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension in the muscles of your lower back.

Then shift your awareness inside your lower back to the bones.

Allow them to completely relax.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Deeper into relaxation.

Deeper into surrender.

Letting go.

All the while remaining awake and aware.

Awake and aware.

And now bring your awareness to your abdomen.

Notice the sensation of your clothes against your skin.

Go deeper and notice the layer of muscles below the skin and allow the muscles to completely relax.

Go deeper still and look inside your abdomen.

Allow the organs to completely relax.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Deeper and deeper into relaxation.

Deeper and deeper into surrender.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Now bring your awareness to the areas between your shoulder blades.

Allow the muscles of your upper back to completely relax.

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension in the muscles of your upper back.

Letting go.

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension in the muscles of your upper back.

As you do,

Your entire body becomes heavier and sinks into the surface below you.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Letting go.

And now bring your awareness to your chest.

Notice the sensation of your clothing against your skin.

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension in your chest and let the life energy flow freely through you.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Now bring your awareness to the ribs and notice the small muscles between your ribs.

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension in the small muscles between your ribs.

And go deeper within.

Deeper into relaxation,

Deeper into surrender.

Letting go.

Now bring your awareness deeper still into your lungs.

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension in your lungs and allow that life energy to flow freely through your lungs.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Deeper and deeper into relaxation,

Deeper and deeper into surrender.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Now bring your awareness to the very center of your chest.

Become aware of your heart.

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension in your physical heart.

Let prana or life energy flow freely through your heart and all the vessels within and surrounding it.

Now bring your awareness to your emotional heart.

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension in your emotional heart and let prana flow freely through your emotional heart.

Let prana flow freely,

Bringing healing to your deepest emotions.

Now bring your awareness to your spiritual heart and feel your connection to the divine.

Allow the love of the divine to fill your heart.

Let it overflow and circulate throughout your entire body.

Visualize the love surrounding every cell.

Now visualize it entering every cell.

Let every cell of your body know that it is loved and it is love.

Letting go,

Letting go.

Deeper and deeper into relaxation.

Deeper and deeper into surrender.

Letting go.

Now bring your awareness to your lips.

Notice the top lip and notice the bottom lip.

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension in your lips and allow all expression to be removed from your face.

Your face is beautiful,

Soft and at peace.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Letting go.

Now bring your awareness to your jaw.

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension in your lower jaw.

Let gravity take your jaw wherever gravity wants it to be.

When your jaw is completely relaxed,

Gravity may slightly separate your lips.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

And now bringing your awareness to your eyes.

Allow your eyelids to become so heavy that you could not open them even if you tried.

Now bring your awareness deep inside of the sockets of your eyes.

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension in the small muscles deep inside.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Deeper and deeper into relaxation.

Deeper and deeper into relaxation.

Deeper and deeper into awareness.

Now bring your awareness to the back of your head and your neck.

Let go of any holding,

Control or tension in the back of your head and your neck.

As you do,

Let gravity take your head to wherever gravity wants it to be.

Letting go,

Letting go,

Letting go.

Deeper and deeper into relaxation.

Deeper and deeper into surrender.

All the while,

Allowing your awareness to be as light as possible.

Remaining awake and aware.

Awake and aware.

Now bring your awareness to the crown of your head.

Simply hold your awareness here and feel your connection to the greater whole.

Allow the divine light to enter and flow from above down toward your hands.

And your toes.

Visualize the light surrounding every cell of your body.

Now allow the light to enter into each cell.

Every cell of your body is now radiating with divine light.

Every cell is remembering its true nature as spirit.

You are remembering your true nature as spirit.

Perfect and peaceful.

Now expanding your awareness to include your entire body.

Your arms,

Your legs,

Your head and your torso.

Let go of any remaining holding,

Control or tension.

And double your level of relaxation.

Allowing your body to become twice as heavy.

To surrender twice as deeply.

Your body is like an onion.

Peel off another layer of holding,

Control and tension.

And go deeper within.

At the very center of your being is a body of light and energy.

Allow the energy to flow more freely.

All the while remaining 100% awake and 100% aware.

Awake and aware.

Letting go.

Letting go.

Letting go.

Letting go.

Deeper and deeper into relaxation.

Deeper and deeper into surrender.

And now take some time to explore your body on your own.

If there is an area of your body that is in need of healing.

This is a good time to give extra attention to that part.

And let go of any remaining holding,

Control or tension.

Let life energy flow freely into those tissues.

Letting go.

Letting go.

Letting go.

Deeper and deeper into relaxation.

Deeper and deeper into surrender.

Letting go.

And now in this deep state of relaxed awareness.

Create the ideal picture of yourself and your life.

See yourself completely healthy,

Completely whole emotionally and spiritually.

See yourself performing any activity that challenges you and inspires you.

See yourself living life without limitation.

Know that your body and mind are perfectly healthy.

Letting go.

Letting go.

Letting go.

Letting go.

Letting go.

Awake and aware.

Awake and aware.

And now let go of your visualization.

Know that it is being taken by the divine and being supported to manifest.

Take some time now to simply bask in the stillness of Yoga Nidra.

Enjoy the peace and unlimited potential that you are.

Know that the core of your being is perfect and that your body and mind are healing.

Not this body,

Not this mind.

The witness of your own experience.

And now as I count backwards from 10 down to 0,

You will slowly begin to return awareness to your physical body,

To present time and present space.

There is no need to hurry and the count will be very slow.

Even after the count is complete,

You'll have plenty of time to relax.

You'll have plenty of time to make the transition.

There is still nowhere you need to go and nothing you need to do for a while.

10.

Remembering your true nature as spirit.

9.

Knowing that every cell of your body is surrounded by love.

Every cell is love.

8.

Knowing the light of pure awareness radiates from every cell of your body.

7.

Knowing that life energy is flowing freely through your body and that healing is taking place right now.

6.

Knowing that the healing that is taking place right now will continue to occur even after this practice is complete.

5.

Knowing that you can return to the state of Yoga Nidra at any time.

4.

Taking with you into every day the relaxation and well-being that you are now experiencing.

3.

Not this body,

Not this mind.

The witness of your own experience.

2.

You are consciousness and joy incarnate,

Purely blissful.

1.

Now go ahead and gently open and close your fingers.

Gently warm your body and mind.

Gently wiggle your toes.

Now go ahead and gently shift your head from side to side.

At your own pace and when you feel ready,

Go ahead and slowly return to a sitting position.

There is still no hurry.

Take your time.

When you are sitting up,

If there is a glass of water nearby,

Go ahead and take several sips.

Sit quietly until you are ready to engage the world.

May the light of the divine healer illuminate your heart and your mind and may you always know that you are well.

Aum.

Shanti Shanti Shanti.

Namaste.

Reviews

Nice meditation. For me personally a little too much guidance in the first half.

Valerie thank you for connecting me with this practice