Welcome to your practice of Yoga Nidra.
Held in kindness.
This is a yoga nidra practice for depression.
A trauma-sensitive practice incorporating Metta.
Loving kindness throughout the layers of your being.
Begin by finding a position that offers your body as much support as possible.
You may lie on your back,
Rest on your side.
Recline.
Or remain seated.
Place a blanket beneath or over your body.
Use cushions beneath the knees.
Behind your back,
Or anywhere you feel support is needed.
Let comfort arrive.
And be practical rather than feeling it has to be perfect.
Know that you remain in choice throughout this time together.
You may move.
Adjust your position.
Open your eyes.
Or return your attention to the room at any time.
There is nowhere you need to go.
Nothing you need to accomplish.
And nothing you need to fix.
Begin by noticing the space you're in.
The space you are resting in.
From the colors of the walls.
Any furniture.
Windows.
If your eyes are closed,
Just recall.
And then become aware of the sounds that are far away.
Not worrying about.
What they actually are.
But just as a movement and awareness.
Notice sounds closer to you.
Maybe of the body.
The breath or digestion.
Notice the sound of my voice.
Become aware of the quiet space beneath the sounds that you have prepared for yourself.
Notice now where your body meets the surface beneath you.
Sense and feel the support beneath the back of your head.
Your shoulders.
You're back.
Your pelvis and your legs.
And your heels.
If you are seated,
Feel the chair supporting you.
And the ground beneath your feet.
Allow the surface beneath you to carry some of your weight.
Notice the contact points.
Where the surface meets your body.
You do not have to hold all of yourself up right now.
Depression may create heaviness.
Fatigue.
Restlessness,
Numbness.
Distance or a sense of disconnection.
You may feel many things.
Very little.
Or nothing at all.
Or nothing that you can name.
Whatever is present.
All is welcome here.
You do not have to become peaceful before you may rest.
And you do not have to feel hopeful before you may receive care.
For these next few moments,
Allow yourself to be the witness of this experience.
Yoga Nidra includes the practice of Sankalpa.
A brief intention,
Or perhaps a heartfelt remembrance.
Sankalpa is not a demand to improve yourself.
It is not a statement that you must force yourself to believe.
Senkalpa maybe held gently like a small seed.
Quietly.
Patiently.
Without asking it to bloom before its time.
You may allow your own words to arise.
Or perhaps one of these intentions speaks to you today.
I am worthy of care.
I meet this moment with kindness.
I belong within the circle of compassion.
Choose words that feel gentle and possible.
If no words feel accessible today,
You may simply receive the phrase,
May I be held in kindness.
Repeat your sankalpa silently three times.
Not forcing belief.
At searching for a particular feeling.
Simply allowing the words to rest somewhere within you.
Loving kindness for the physical body.
Your body has carried you through every day of your life.
The body that may feel tired,
Heavy.
Restless.
Tender or difficult to inhabit today.
And here you're not being asked to love every sensation.
For now.
Perhaps you can simply offer.
Your body.
Kind attention.
Begin at your right hand.
Awareness of the right thumb.
Second finger.
Third finger.
Fourth finger.
Little finger.
Palm of your hand.
Back of your hand.
Risps.
Forearm.
Elbow.
Upper arm.
Shoulder.
The whole right arm resting.
The whole right arm resting.
The whole right arm resting.
May this arm be held in kindness.
Move your awareness to the left hand.
Left hand thumb.
Second finger.
Third finger.
Fourth finger.
Little finger.
Palm.
Back of the hand.
Wrist.
Forearm.
Elbow.
Upper arm.
Shoulder.
The whole left arm resting.
The whole left arm resting.
The whole left arm resting.
May this arm be held in kindness.
Move your awareness to your right hip.
Right thigh.
Kneecap,
Back of your knee,
Shin.
Cap.
Ankle.
Heal.
Sole of your foot.
Top of your foot.
Right big toe.
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Little toe.
The whole right leg.
The whole right leg.
The whole right leg.
May this leg receive rest.
Awareness of your left leg.
Left hip.
Left thigh.
Kneecap.
Back of your knee.
Shin.
Half.
Ankle.
Heal.
Sole of your foot.
Top of your foot.
Left big toe second toe.
Third toe.
Fourth toe.
Little toe.
The whole left leg.
The whole left leg.
The whole left leg.
May this leg receive rest.
Bring your kind attention to the back of your body.
Back of the head.
Base of your skull.
Back of the neck.
Right shoulder blade.
Left shoulder blade.
And the space between the shoulder blades.
Length of the spine.
From the top of the head all the way down to the tailbone.
Upper back.
Middle back.
Lower back.
Back of the pelvis.
Right buttocks.
Left buttock.
Backs of both legs.
Both heels.
Feel the entire back body meeting support.
Perhaps you can allow the surface beneath you to hold what feels too heavy to carry alone.
May my body be supported.
Moving your kind awareness to the front of your body.
Crown of the head.
Forehead.
Right temple.
Left temple.
Right eyebrow.
Left eyebrow.
The space between the eyebrows.
Right eye,
Left eye.
Both eyes resting from the world of looking.
Right cheek,
Left cheek.
Nose,
Bridge of the nose.
Tip of the nose.
Both nostrils.
Upper lip.
Lower lip.
Jaw.
Allow the tongue to rest softly inside the mouth.
Awareness of your throat.
Right collarbone,
Left collarbone,
Center of the chest.
Right side of the chest.
Left side of the chest.
The whole chest.
Upper abdomen,
Navel,
Lower abdomen.
Feel the entire front body.
Feel the entire front body.
Feel the entire front body.
You may notice openness,
Guarding.
Pressure.
Emptiness.
Warm with their coolness.
Movement or stillness.
Or no sensation at all.
Feel the right side of the body.
From the head.
Through the arm to the tip of the toes.
And feel the left side of the body.
From the head.
Through the arm.
To the tip of your toes.
Feel the right and left sides together.
The front and back together.
The upper and lower body together.
Sense your whole physical body resting here.
Whole physical body.
Whole physical body.
This body does not need to earn kindness.
This body does not need to perform wellness.
May my body be safe.
May my body receive care.
May my body rest as deeply as it is able.
Loving kindness through breath and energy.
Bring your awareness.
To your breath.
There's no need to deepen or control your breathing here.
Depression may affect your breath.
It may feel shallow.
Held.
Tired.
Uneven.
Or difficult to notice.
Gently allow the breath to be exactly as it is.
Feel your inhalation arriving.
And feel or sense the exhalation leaving.
The breath continues.
Breath breathes you,
Quietly accompanying you.
Your body does not have to remember to breathe.
Notice the breath at your nostrils.
A subtle touch of air entering.
Subtle touch of air leaving.
Notice your breath moving through the throat.
Chest.
Ribs and perhaps to the belly.
No need to make the breath travel anywhere.
Simply sense what is already moving.
And if it feels accessible today.
Imagine that each inhalation carries a small measure of kindness toward you.
Maybe a small sense of light.
Not an overwhelming brightness.
Perhaps only the smallest warmth.
Breathe in,
Kindness arrives.
Breathe out.
The body softens only as much as it wishes.
Breathe in,
May I receive care.
Breathe out.
May I rest.
Breathe in,
May I receive care.
Breathe out.
May I rest.
If receiving kindness feels difficult.
Imagine that someone or something compassionate is holding it nearby.
Let kindness remain close.
Asking nothing from you.
It is present when you desire.
Once again,
Sense and feel the breath moving through your body.
Life energy is moving through your body.
It could feel strong.
Quiet or distant.
Flickering.
Are barely perceptible.
There is no amount of energy you are supposed to have.
May my breath move freely.
May my energy be met without judgment.
May life move through me in its own time.
Gently now.
Bring your awareness to the field of thoughts,
Feelings,
Memories,
And sensory experience.
Now your mind may be busy or foggy.
Thoughts could repeat themselves.
Feelings may be distant.
Overwhelming or difficult to name.
You are not required to stop thinking.
Simply notice that thoughts are occurring and our movements within awareness.
Imagine a wide open sky.
Thoughts.
Feelings or memories may appear as clouds within the sky.
A thought forms like a cloud.
Perhaps light and wispy.
Perhaps dark and heavy.
And they gradually move across the spacious sky.
Another cloud may appear.
Some pass quickly.
Others linger.
Some seem to gather around one another.
You do not need to push the clouds away.
There's no need to change their shape.
Speed,
Or the weather.
Simply be the witness.
The one who notices.
The spacious awareness in which each cloud is seen.
Perhaps a cloud appears carrying a thought that feels critical or discouraging.
Rather than arguing with this thought,
Notice its presence.
Notice that the thought is here.
And that awareness is wider than the thought.
This is a difficult thought.
May I meet this thought with kindness.
Perhaps an emotion is present.
Emptiness,
Anger,
Sadness.
Fear.
Loneliness,
Frustration.
Numbness.
You do not need to enter the story of these emotions.
Notice only the felt scents.
Where does it seem to live within the body?
Does it have a shape?
Weight,
Temperature.
Texture.
Is it moving?
And if approaching,
This feeling is too much.
This sensation.
Return to the support beneath you or to a sound in your room.
This choice remains with you.
May this feeling be allowed to exist.
May I not abandon myself within this moment.
May I meet myself with compassion.
Now become aware of heaviness.
Sense and feel the body pleasantly heavy.
Held by the ground.
You do not need to intensify emotional heaviness.
Feel only the physical experience of weight and support.
Feel the body pleasantly heavy.
Become aware of lightness.
Perhaps there's one small place that feels light.
Fingertips,
The breath at the nostrils.
There's no need for the whole body to feel light.
One small place that feels like home.
Heaviness and lightness.
Both may coexist together.
Within awareness.
They don't need to cancel each other out.
Now sense warmth,
Perhaps the warmth beneath a blanket.
The warmth of your hands.
Or an imagined warmth near the heart.
Sense coolness.
The air touching the face.
The coolness of the breath or a quiet,
Open space.
Warmth and coolness.
Awareness can make room for each experience.
Say to yourself,
May I be gentle with my mind.
May my feelings be met with compassion.
May I remember that no single feeling is the whole of me.
We'll now explore loving kindness through the wisdom and discernment body.
Here there is a quiet capacity to witness.
Discern.
And know beneath the movement of thought.
Softly return to the image of the open sky.
Clouds may still be present.
Yet the sky is not diminished by them.
The sky does not have to become perfectly clear.
Even when clouds gather,
Spaciousness remains.
Allow yourself to simply become available.
To whatever quiet knowing may be present.
Offer yourself this question.
What do I need most in this moment?
Perhaps your answer is rest.
Connection.
Nourishment.
Space.
Support.
A boundary.
Or perhaps no answer arrives and not knowing is also allowed.
Offer yourself this question.
What is one small act of kindness I can offer myself?
The answer may be very small.
Taking a sip of water.
Opening a curtain.
Stepping outside.
Allowing yourself to rest.
Speaking with someone who can support you.
Imagine offering loving kindness to the part of you that has continued through difficult days.
You do not need to call this strength.
You do not need to make suffering meaningful.
Simply acknowledge that some quiet part of you has brought you to this breath.
May I trust the wisdom that helps me take the next small step.
May I recognize support when it appears.
May I remember that asking for help is an act of care.
Now remember someone,
Something,
Or some place that has offered you kindness.
This may be a person.
An animal.
A teacher,
Spiritual presence.
A place in nature.
Or simply an imagined compassionate being.
Choose someone whose presence feels uncomplicated and safe.
Sense this kindness nearby.
You do not need to see a clear image.
They offer you these kind words.
May you be safe.
May you receive care.
May you experience moments of ease.
May you know that you are not alone.
May I be safe.
May I receive care.
May I experience moments of ease.
May I know that I am not alone.
Bring awareness now to the subtle layer.
Of wholeness.
Connection.
A place of joy.
Quiet being.
Witness yourself resting in gentle awareness.
Here you can receive the possibility of resting beneath effort for a few moments.
Notice that your body is known.
Breath is known.
Thoughts and feelings are known.
Needs and insights are known.
And awareness is present through each changing experience.
Rest in the awareness in which all of this is held.
Nothing to solve.
Nothing to push away.
Nothing to become.
Invite a spacious circle of compassion to surround you.
Within this circle.
There is room for sadness and hope.
Fatigue and possibility.
Numbness in connection.
For the parts of you that feel present.
And the parts that feel far away.
Nothing is excluded.
And allow your circle to widen.
Perhaps it includes others who are living with depression,
Loneliness,
Exhaustion.
Grieve.
You do not need to carry their suffering.
Simply recognize a shared humanity.
May we be safe.
May we receive compassionate care.
May we experience moments of ease.
May we remember that we belong.
Allow your circle to widen again.
Holding all beings who struggle.
May all beings be held in kindness.
May all beings receive the support they need.
May all beings know moments of peace.
You are invited to release the words and imagery and simply rest in awareness.
Begin to notice the natural movement of breath again.
Feel the body resting upon the surface beneath you.
Recall the room in which you are resting.
Before returning.
Call your son Kelpa.
I am worthy of care.
And meet this moment with kindness.
I belong within the circle of compassion.
Repeat your sankalpa silently three times.
Allow it to rest within you without requiring proof.
Or any immediate change.
Begin to deepen your awareness of your body.
Notice the points of contact beneath you.
Notice the temperature of the air.
Bringing your awareness to sounds within the room.
And beyond.
Invite small movements into your fingers and toes.
Taking any movements that feel good in this moment.
Stretching only if stretching feels welcome.
Offer yourself all the time you need.
You may decide to remain exactly where you are.
If you are lying down.
You may roll onto one side and rest there.
Yogi Nidra does not ask you to rise from this practice transformed.
You are not required to feel better than you did before.
Perhaps the practice has offered you only one breath of companionship,
One moment of rest.
Or one small gesture of kindness.
And that is enough.
Remember,
You are worthy of care.
Even when it feels like care is difficult to receive.
You belong within the circle of compassion.
Even when you feel disconnected from it.
You do not have to carry everything alone.
May you be safe.
May you receive care.
May you experience moments of ease.
May you be held in kindness.
Peace be with you.
