Yoga Nidra For Cultivating An Attitude Of Gratitude

Hi friends, This guided meditation deeply relaxes and soothes the nervous system through the methods of body scan and creative visualization. This yoga nidra is focused on cultivating and establishing the habit of being grateful. With a little practice, an attitude of gratitude can become your default state of being, with gratitude springing up spontaneously every day enhancing your happiness, health, and well-being. Enjoy!

Transcript

Welcome and Namaste.

Thank you so much for joining me.

Today I'd like to guide you through a Yoga Nidra practice for cultivating an attitude of gratitude.

Yoga Nidra means yogic sleep in Sanskrit.

However,

Ideally we do not sleep.

We remain conscious,

Alert and relaxed.

No effort or concentration is needed and it's normal to drift in and out of consciousness.

Just trust that wherever the Yoga Nidra takes you is where your mind,

Body and spirit need to be.

Listen to my voice and hold a relaxed awareness on the instructions.

Settle your body in Shavasana.

Lying on the back,

Arms facing up,

Ready to receive.

Fingers gently curled and feet falling open to the sides.

Close your eyes.

Feel your eyeballs sinking back into their socket.

Feel the soft line of contact between the upper and lower eyelids.

Let the jaws be relaxed and the lips gently closed.

Feel the soft line of contact between the upper and lower lip.

Now the tongue to rest at the base of the mouth.

Feel grounded here,

Balanced and completely at ease.

Allow your body to surrender into the posture.

Feel the weight of your body upon the earth.

Feel the volume of your body and the space it occupies.

Notice the areas of contact between your body and the earth.

The back of your head,

Your shoulder blades,

The upper arms,

Backs of the hands,

The buttocks,

Eyes,

Calves and heels.

Feel the soft contact of your clothes upon your body.

Feel grateful for your body right here,

Right now and all that it does for you to allow you to experience this life so fully.

Feel grateful for each of the sense organs that allow you to savor all the beautiful sights,

Sounds and sensations.

Be grateful for the organs working together harmoniously,

Doing their best to enable you to live in comfort and peace.

Be grateful for your arms that can embrace your loved ones,

For your hands that can create and serve and support.

Be grateful for your legs and your feet that carry you through the world and acknowledging that even if there are some parts of the body that are not at this time performing optimally,

That the vast majority of the body is doing very well and know that with self-love,

Self-kindness and self-respect we can offer those parts of the body our extra tender loving care,

Knowing that we have the capacity to heal.

Rest your attention on your heart.

Feel unburdened,

Feel light and free.

Feel grateful.

Feel grateful for all the loving relationships in your life.

Feel grateful for the abundance of nature that produces food to nourish your body and beauty to nourish your soul.

Feel gratitude for the blessing of your life and your special gifts and capabilities.

With a little practice over the period of several weeks,

Gratitude can become a permanent effortless trait as opposed to a temporary deliberate state.

With just a little practice an attitude of gratitude will become your default state of being with thankfulness springing up spontaneously for both big and little things.

For example a good cup of coffee,

A delicious meal,

A joke shared with a friend,

A belly laugh or a beautiful flower.

On waking up in the morning and on lying down to sleep at night,

Bring to mind three things you are grateful for that happened during the last 24 hours.

Remember to always change it up a bit,

Not always stating the same things as the mind needs some novelty so as not to switch off.

Savor the feelings of gratitude for 20 seconds to let them really sink in and in doing so you generate all of those feel-good beneficial neurochemicals.

The attitude of gratitude can transform your health,

Your happiness,

Your life.

Moreover these changes in you will ripple out and touch those around you.

Try it now.

Bring to mind three things in the last 24 hours for which you are grateful.

Bringing your attention now to the breath.

Notice the cool sensation of air in the nostrils as you breathe in and the warm air in the nostrils as you breathe out.

Feeling grateful for the lungs that breathe life into you so skillfully and effortlessly.

Your whole body is breathing.

Every atom of every cell of every organ and tissue breathing in and breathing out.

You may like to breathe to the following rhythm in for the count of four,

For the count of eight and then pause enjoying that very peaceful still point when the lungs are empty.

This rhythm with the elongated outbreath tones our vagus nerve,

The main nerve of the parasympathetic nervous system allowing us to enter the state of being required for deep rest and healing.

I'll guide you through the first couple of rounds and then do a few on your own.

Breathing out to prepare.

Breathing in two three four.

Breathing out two three six seven eight.

Breathing in two three four.

Breathing out two three four five six seven eight.

Do the next couple of rounds on your own.

Now bring your life as it is today to mind.

Are there things you want to create,

To change,

To develop or to aspire to?

Translate this into an intention.

Your Sankalpa.

Express this in words,

In the present tense.

For example,

I eat in a healthy and environmentally ethical and kind way or I treat my body with respect and kindness,

Giving it rest or nourishment and enjoyable exercise or I forgive and release all grudges for the sake of my peace of mind or perhaps every day I advance towards the best version of myself.

Find words for your Sankalpa now.

The positive seed of the intention by repeating it three times with absolute faith that it will blossom into being.

Imprint your Sankalpa deep in your heart and mind.

Feel open to the unfolding of new and beautiful possibilities.

Bring your attention now to your body.

As each body part is named,

Rest your awareness there.

Visualize and relax it.

Right hand thumb,

Index finger,

Middle finger,

Ring finger,

Small finger,

Wrist,

Lower arm,

Elbow,

Upper arm,

Shoulder,

Armpit,

Right side of the waist,

Hip,

Top of the thigh,

Kneecap,

Shin,

Ankle,

Sole,

Top of the foot,

Right big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe and fifth toe.

Shift now to the left hand thumb,

Index finger,

Middle finger,

Ring finger,

Small finger,

Palm,

Back of the hand,

Wrist,

Lower arm,

Elbow,

Shoulder,

Armpit,

Left side of waist,

Hip,

Top of the thigh,

Kneecap,

Shin,

Sole,

Left big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe.

Take your awareness to the heels,

Both heels,

Half muscle,

Back of the thigh,

Buttocks,

Spinal column from bottom to top,

Lower back,

Middle back,

Upper back,

Back of the neck,

Back of the head,

Top of the head,

Right temple,

Left temple,

Forehead,

Right eyebrow,

Left eyebrow,

The space between the eyebrows,

Right eye,

Left eye,

Bridge of the nose,

Tip of the nose,

Right nostril,

Left nostril,

Right cheek,

Left cheek,

Upper lip,

Lower lip,

Teeth,

Jaw,

Chin,

Throat,

Right side of the chest,

Left side of the chest,

Centre of the chest,

Navel,

Upper abdomen,

Lower abdomen,

Pelvic,

Pelvic floor.

Take your attention to the whole right leg,

The whole left leg,

Both legs together,

The whole of the right arm,

The whole of the left arm,

Arms together,

Right side of the body,

Left side of the body,

Front of the body and back of the whole body,

Body together.

Falling in your creative powers and imagine you are sitting in the shade of a large eucalypt tree beside a creek on a magnificent summer's day.

Although the air is warm,

There is a gentle and cool breath caressing your skin.

Feel it,

The air is pure and fresh and you can sense the fragrance of eucalyptus expanding your nasal passages.

Smell it,

You admire the pristine water of the creek and enjoy the sparkling sunlight upon it.

See it,

You hear the glorious birdsong,

The warbling of the magpie,

The laughter of the kookaburra.

Hear it,

In the distance you can see a group of kangaroo resting in the shade,

Enjoying the peaceful glorious day just as you are,

Feeling grateful to be part of the beauty of nature here.

Experience it,

Bring to mind once again your intention,

Your sankalpa and repeat it inwardly three times.

Bring your awareness back to the body and breath.

Feel the breath moving into the nostrils and out again,

Cool on the way in and warm on the way out.

Observe the expansion and contraction of the abdomen and the chest.

Begin to feel the air upon the skin,

The temperature of the air on the skin,

Sense the contact of the clothes on the body,

Feel the contact between your body and the earth.

Remember where you are in the room,

The shape of the room and the colour of the walls.

Hear any sounds around you and allow them to awaken you gently.

Begin to slowly move your fingers and toes,

Extend the movement now to the arms and legs and stretch in any way that feels good.

Slowly make your way into a stable,

Relaxed,

Seated position.

Become aware of the subtle effects of this practice on your entire system.

Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu.

May all beings be happy and free and may our thoughts,

Words and actions contribute to this happiness and freedom for all.

Slowly open your eyes.

The practice of Yoga Nidra is over.

Thank you so much for joining me today.

Namaste and blessings.

Reviews

Lovely. I enjoyed imagining sitting under the eucalyptus tree; it made me feel like I was in Australia. Beautiful gratitude meditation. Thank you. 🙏 😌