Welcome to this yoga nidra practice.
Space to slow down.
And invite the body and mind into a state of deep rest.
You don't need to try to sleep or make anything happen.
Simply allow yourself to be here just as you are.
You can return to this practice regularly to support more restful sleep.
Or listen whenever you find yourself awake in the night and in need of rest.
For now,
Give yourself permission to let go of doing.
And simply begin to receive.
Begin by lying down on your back.
Make yourself comfortable.
Take whatever time you need to arrange your body.
So that you won't have to move again.
You might place a pillow beneath your head,
Perhaps something beneath your knees.
Grab a blanket for over the body to keep yourself warm.
Let your feet fall comfortably apart Let your arms rest alongside the body.
You can place your palms upward.
Or just any way that feels most natural and comfortable for you.
When you feel ready.
Allow your eyes to close.
There's nowhere you need to go.
Nothing you need to accomplish.
You don't have to solve anything and you don't have to figure anything out.
You also don't have to make yourself fall asleep.
In fact,
There's nothing you need to make happen.
You could just simply rest.
Here and now.
Feel the weight of your body against the surface beneath you.
Notice the places where you're being supported.
Back of your head.
Your shoulders.
Your back.
Your pelvis.
Your legs.
Your heels.
Let the surface beneath you hold your weight.
You do not need to hold yourself up.
Let your jaw soften.
Let your tongue rest easily against the roof of the mouth.
And let the muscles around your eyes soften and relax.
If you notice tension somewhere in the body,
You don't need to force it away.
Just notice it.
And let it be there.
Thoughts are already moving through your mind,
That's okay.
You don't need to stop thinking.
You don't need an empty mind.
For now,
Simply listen to my voice.
And whenever your attention wanders.
You can gently return to the sound of the voice.
Feel your whole body lying here.
The whole body.
Still.
Supported.
Breathing.
Allow yourself to settle.
Remembering there's nothing else you need to do right now.
In Yoga Nidra,
We begin with a simple resolve or a sankalpa.
Something that is simple,
Something that feels supportive rather than demanding.
For this practice.
We can choose to say to ourselves.
I allow myself to rest.
I allow myself to rest.
Repeat this silently to yourself three times.
Slowly.
And with attention.
I allow myself to rest.
Let those words go.
You don't have to think about them anymore.
Just let them rest quietly in the background.
We'll now begin the rotation of consciousness.
You don't need to move any part of your body.
Simply hear each part named.
Become aware of it.
There's nothing to visualize and nothing to figure out.
Just notice.
We begin with the right hand thumb.
Second finger.
Third finger.
Fourth finger.
Little finger.
Palm of the right hand.
Back of the hand.
Right wrist.
Forearm.
Elbow upper arm.
Shoulder.
The right armpit.
Right side of the chest.
Waste.
The right thigh.
The right knee.
The right calf.
The right ankle.
The right heel.
Sole of the right foot.
Top of the foot.
The right big toe.
Second toe.
Third toe Fourth toe and little toe.
The entire right side of the body.
Feel the whole right side.
Now awareness moves to the left side.
The left thumb.
Second finger.
Third finger.
Fourth finger.
And little finger.
Palm of the left hand.
Back of the hand.
Left wrist.
Forearm elbow.
Upper arm.
Shoulder.
The left armpit.
The left side of the chest.
The waist.
The left thigh.
The left knee.
The left calf.
Ankle.
Heal.
Sole of the left foot.
Top of the left foot.
Left big toe Second toe.
Third toe.
4th toe little toe.
The entire left side of the body.
Now becoming aware of the back of the body.
Back of the head.
Back of the neck.
The right shoulder blade.
The left shoulder blade.
The whole upper back.
Middle back.
Lower back.
Back of the pelvis.
Back of the right thigh.
Back of the left thigh.
Back of the right knee.
Back of the left knee.
Right calf,
Left calf.
Right heel.
Left heel.
The entire back of the body.
Feel the body being supported beneath you.
Now bring awareness to the front of the body.
Top of the head.
Forehead.
Right eyebrow.
Left eyebrow.
The space between the eyebrows.
The right eye.
Left eye.
Right ear.
Left ear.
Nose tip of the nose.
The right cheek.
The left cheek.
Upper lip.
Lower lip.
Wrote.
Right side of the chest.
Left side of the chest.
Center of the chest.
Upper abdomen,
NAVEL Lower abdomen.
Pelvis.
Right thigh.
Left thigh.
Right knee.
Left knee.
Right shin left shin.
Right foot.
Left foot.
All 10 toes.
The whole front of the body the whole back of the body.
The whole right side of the body.
The whole left side of the body.
The whole body.
The whole body.
The whole body.
Feel the entire body lying here.
No need to move.
No need to change anything.
Just awareness of the whole body.
Bring your attention now to the natural breath.
Don't change anything,
Just notice it.
Notice the abdomen.
As you breathe in,
The abdomen gently rises.
As you breathe out,
It gently falls.
Rising Falling.
Rising,
Falling.
Now begin to count the breaths backwards.
Starting with 27.
Inhaling 27 Exhaling 27.
Inhale,
26.
Exhale.
26.
Continue silently on your own.
If you lose count,
That's perfectly fine.
Simply return back to 27.
No matter where you are.
And the counting down.
Let the counting become quieter.
Let the breath begin to move more naturally on its own.
You can now let go of the counting.
There's nothing left to count.
Just let the body breathe itself.
You don't have to make the next breath happen.
The body already knows what to do.
Notice how little effort is required.
And just allow yourself to rest with the natural breath.
We'll now briefly notice.
Opposite sensations.
Just simply imagine or remember each sensation as I say it.
First,
Feel the body as heavy.
Heavy arms.
Heavy legs.
Everybody.
So the whole body is becoming heavier.
And heavier.
Now allow the body to feel light.
Light arms.
Light legs.
A light body.
Heavy.
Light.
Now notice warmth.
Comfortable warmth.
And now coolness.
A gentle sense of cool air.
Warmth.
Coolness.
Now let both sensations go.
Return to the ordinary sensations of the body.
Feel the body resting.
Feel the surface beneath you.
Nothing to hold on to.
Just rest.
Allow the mind to become quiet and receptive.
I will name a series of simple images.
You don't need to force yourself to see anything.
If an image appears,
Let it appear.
If it doesn't,
Simply hear the words and then let them pass.
A quiet room.
A window at night.
Darkness outside.
A single soft light in a quiet room.
A bed with clean sheets.
A quiet house.
An empty path.
A still lake.
The surface of the lake is calm.
The sky above is dark.
You can see the stars.
Nothing to do.
Nowhere to go.
No decisions to make.
No problems to solve.
Gently bring your awareness back.
The resolve.
We chose at the beginning of practice,
Our sankalpa.
I allow myself.
To rest.
I allow myself.
To rest.
I allow myself.
To rest.
Let those words disappear.
Nothing else is required.
You can remain here still.
Or you can gently begin to wake the body up.
If you remain,
Remind yourself you are resting.
And if you will,
Become awake.
You bring the awareness back into the body.
If you've become sleepy,
You can simply let yourself sleep.
You don't need to finish the practice.
You don't need to listen to every word.
The voice can simply become part of the background.
And if you are away.
You don't have to decide what's next.
You can bring awareness back into the body.
Allowing.
The rest continue.
Noticing the hands at rest.
The feet at rest.
The arms and legs at rest.
Perhaps taking slightly deeper breaths.
And sighing it out.
And if you want to remain lying down,
Remain lying down.
You can finish here.
If the plan is to get up,
There's no reason to rush.
Before you move,
Feel the whole body one more time.
Supported.
Resting Breathing.
Remember,
You don't have to force sleep.
You don't have to chase sleep.
For now,
You can simply rest.
And embrace the sensation of rest.
Letting go of what's next.
Letting go of doing.
Allowing yourself.
To just.
