Hello and welcome to today's yoga knee drop practice.
Go ahead and set yourself up on your bed or on your yoga mat.
And to prepare,
Hug your knees into your chest and gently rock side to side,
Allowing your lower back to lengthen.
And then go ahead and extend your legs and set yourself up for surrender,
Supporting your knees with a bolster or a pillow,
And gently supporting the back of your head so it's slightly higher than your chest.
Fully cover yourself with a blanket as your body temperature will naturally drop during this practice.
Prepare with an eye pillow or something to cover the eyes,
Allowing you to fully melt into the space of surrender.
Today's yoga knee drop practice was created to support you in finding access to your creative center,
The Svadhisthana or the second chakra,
To gently uncover any stickiness or discomfort that might be holding you back from self-innovation,
To move through the flow of the womb space,
Tapping into your inner visionary.
So begin to settle in.
Soften the webbing between your toes.
Allow your feet to flop open like the pages of a book.
Feel your big thigh muscles drape off the bones as the back of your pelvis melts into your bed or your yoga mat beneath you.
Notice the softness across the front of your abdomen and chest.
Let the palms of your hands face up beside you,
And give yourself some space between your upper arms,
Your armpits,
And the sides of your body.
Make sure you're not touching anything or anyone else.
Find softness in all of the tiny muscles around your eyes,
The ones you use to emote or show emotion.
Allow your pillow to cradle your head in full surrender,
And commit yourself to stillness.
With your eyes closed,
Let the movement of your eyes slow beneath the eyelids,
And find neutrality in your eyebrows and the space between them.
Let the mask of your expression just slip off of your face.
Allow your bottom jaw to get heavy towards the ground.
Even your teeth slightly separate,
Your lips part,
And perhaps the roof of your mouth has a sensation of floating upwards,
The same way it does when you fall asleep at night.
Without having to change anything at all,
Notice the arrangement of your body in space.
Hear your heartbeat,
And notice its rhythm,
Its pattern that is only specific to you and your body.
Without having to change anything,
Notice the quality of your breath.
Let your breathing resume its natural ebb and flow.
Is your breath smooth and deep?
Is it soft and subtle?
No need to change anything about your breath.
Can you simply feel it as it is?
Feel the cool air on your upper lip as you inhale.
Feel the warm air on your upper lip as you exhale.
Feel yourself breathing.
Without any need to control or manipulate it,
Just let your breath exist as it is.
Begin to pay attention to the sounds you hear outside of the room you're in.
Without getting too attached to any particular sound,
Let your mind drift from one to the next,
Noticing,
Observing,
Without reaction or attachment.
Then allow your circle of awareness to grow even more refined and subtle to the sounds you hear inside of the room you're in.
And again,
Let your mind drift from sound to sound.
And still refine your attention even more to just the sound you hear inside of yourself.
Listen to the sound of your heartbeat.
Listen to the sound of your breath.
Hear the sound of your digestion and allow your attention to continue shifting inward,
Listening for the softest,
Most subtle of sounds.
Welcome the symphony of signals through the concert of your senses.
In a moment,
As we move through what's called a rotation of consciousness or a deep body scan,
You may feel varying sensations.
Try not to become too attached to anything in particular.
You might fall asleep,
And that's okay.
Don't worry,
You'll come back to us.
You don't have to make anything up.
Simply do your best to stay with the sound of my voice.
And even now,
Just for a moment,
Resolve to stay awake.
I am awake.
I am awake.
Now from the quietest depths of your consciousness,
Let your sankalpa emerge.
Sankalpa is a deeply rooted intention or vow It's a contract or oath you commit yourself to.
It's usually an I am sentence.
You might have something that comes up to you right away,
And stick with that.
Or you can use one of mine.
I am creative.
I am in flow.
Abundance comes to me.
I am discipline.
I am love.
Let your internal voice think on it,
And repeat it as a mantra.
Hear it in perpetuity in your head.
Feel it in the deepest fibers of your being.
And with each repetition,
Hear it grow stronger and more vibrant,
Resonating through each cell in your body.
Feel your entire body ringing.
Then distill your awareness into your right hand,
And notice what sensation you feel there.
You might feel heat or pulsation.
You might feel itching or tingling or numbness,
Magnetism or radiance.
Without moving or changing your right hand,
Without having to make something up that doesn't exist,
Just notice what you feel there.
Now more specifically,
Refine your awareness to your right thumb,
And notice sensation there.
Continue to move your awareness through your second finger,
Third finger,
Fourth finger,
And the pinky finger of your right hand.
Feel all five fingers of your right hand,
And feel sensation into all five fingertips.
And from your fingertips,
Pour your awareness in the palm of your right hand,
And feel the back of your hand.
Sense your wrist and your forearm,
Your elbow and your upper arm,
Your right shoulder and your armpit.
Observe the sensation you feel in the right side ribcage and down the right side waist.
Feel your right hip,
Thigh,
Knee,
Shin,
And ankle.
Move your awareness through the heel of your right foot,
The sole of your right foot,
And the top of your right foot.
Pour your awareness into your big right toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
And the pinky toe of your right foot.
Feel the tips of all five toes,
And from the tips of your toes,
Flood your attention up through your right leg,
Into your torso,
And back down your right arm,
Taking in the entire right side body.
Feel your entire right side.
Now slide your attention over to your left hand,
And notice what sensation you feel there.
More specifically,
Sense your left thumb,
Second finger,
Third finger,
Fourth finger,
And the pinky finger of your left hand.
Feel all five fingers of your left hand,
And pour your attention into the five fingertips.
And from your fingertips,
Your heightened awareness moves into the palm of your left hand and into the back of your left hand.
You sense your wrist and forearm,
Elbow,
Upper arm,
Left shoulder,
And armpit.
Observe the sensation you feel in your left side ribcage and left side waist.
Feel your left hip,
Thigh,
Knee,
Knee,
Shin,
And ankle.
Move your awareness through the heel of your left foot and the sole of your left foot and into the top of your left foot.
Then you watch as your awareness shifts into your big left toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
And the pinky toe of your left foot.
Feel the tips of all five toes,
And from the tips of your toes,
Flood your attention up through your left leg,
Into your torso,
And down your left arm,
Taking in the entire left side body.
Feel the entire left side.
Now let your awareness sink into the back body and feel the soles of both feet,
Both heels,
Back of your calves,
And the backs of both knees.
Feel the back of your thighs.
Notice the entire back of your pelvis.
Notice the sensation you feel in your tailbone and sacrum.
Feel the entire curvy length of your spine.
And from your spine,
Let your awareness radiate outwards to take in the entire back,
Sensing your lower back,
Middle back,
And upper back.
Feel both shoulder blades simultaneously.
Take in the back of your heart and move your awareness to the curve of your neck,
The back of your head,
Directly into your crown.
From the crown of your head,
You become aware of your entire scalp.
Feel the skin of your forehead,
Your right eyebrow,
Your left eyebrow,
The middle of the eyebrows,
Your right eyelid,
And your left eyelid,
Your right eyeball,
And your left eyeball,
Your right cheek,
And your left cheek,
Moving awareness into your right ear and left ear,
The right side of your nose and the left side of your nose.
You feel your upper lip,
Your lower lip,
Pouring your awareness into your chin,
Your jaw,
Your tongue,
And the roof of your mouth.
Swallow and feel the inside of your throat.
Feel the right side of your neck and the left side of your neck,
Your right collarbone,
Your left collarbone,
The right side of your chest,
The left side of your chest.
Notice your heart center,
And your awareness moves down the right side of your ribcage,
The left side of your ribcage,
Through your belly,
And just lands beneath the belly button.
And then you come back to your mind's eye,
And you concentrate your attention to the point directly between your ears,
Straight back from the eyebrow center.
Use this space as an energetic neutral as you transition into the mental and emotional body.
Come back to your sankalpa,
Your deeply rooted intention or vow,
Your contract,
An oath that you've made with yourself.
Repeat it as a mantra.
Hear it in perpetuity in your head,
And feel it in the deepest fibers of your being.
Now,
Without having to change anything,
Notice again the arrangement of your body in space.
Become deeply aware of your breath.
Bring attention to the expansion of your belly with each inhale,
And the surrender of your entire body with each exhale.
Begin to count your breaths backwards from the number 11.
One inhale and one exhale is one breath.
If you lose count,
Go back and start at 11.
If you finish before I do,
Start again from 11.
Now let that go,
And in a moment,
I will take you through what's called a pairing of opposites.
It's possible you will feel sensation.
A thought may pass you by.
A visual may touch the mind's eye.
No need to overthink these moments.
They are fleeting.
They are fine.
Try not to attach,
But instead simply acknowledge and stay with the sound of my voice.
Begin to feel the weight of your body getting very,
Very heavy.
Your arms are heavy.
Your legs get heavy.
Your heels and the back of your head with every breath out getting heavier and heavier until you feel so heavy,
It's as if you can sink into the earth beneath you like you'd sink into warm sand.
Call on a feeling of heaviness.
I am heavy.
Heavy.
Heavy.
Now let that go,
And imagine yourself getting lighter.
Your arms getting light.
Your legs getting light.
Your fingertips and toes and all the tiny muscles of your face getting lighter with every breath in.
You are getting lighter and lighter.
So light,
In fact,
You are like a feather blowing in the wind.
Call on a feeling of levity.
I am light.
Light.
Now let that go,
And see if you can easily travel between the two sensations.
Heavy.
Light.
Heavy.
Light.
Now let that go,
And find yourself grounded.
Not too heavy.
Not too light.
A space of equanimity,
A place of balance.
And from this space,
Allow yourself to come back to the third eye and settle into neutrality.
Hearing your sankalpa,
Repeating it as a mantra in perpetuity,
And feeling it in the deepest fibers of your being.
Now remember a time when you felt diluted.
Use the memory as a springboard to explore the physical manifestation of dilution.
Stay with the physical sensation,
And let the memory dissipate.
What does dilution feel like in your body?
How does it change your breath?
Observe yourself.
Watch.
And then let that go,
And call on a feeling of clarity.
What does clarity feel like in your body?
How does it influence your breath?
Welcome the presence of clarity into your body now,
And see where it settles.
Do you feel it in your head?
Is there a sense of freedom in your chest?
Explore yourself.
Become the observer.
Now let that go,
And come back to the mind's eye center again,
And reset yourself.
Let the pull of dilution and clarity melt away,
And find yourself neutral again,
Grounded,
A place of equanimity and a place of balance.
And from this space,
Allow yourself to come back to the mind's eye and your sankalpa.
Repeat it as a mantra.
Hear it in perpetuity in your head,
And feel it in the deepest fibers of your being.
Now call on the physical manifestation of attraction,
The feeling of desire or wanting.
How does that wash over your body,
And how does that shift your breath?
Do you feel it in your chest?
Do you feel it in your gut?
Does it come forth with temperature or pressure,
The feeling of attraction?
Now let that dissolve,
And call on a feeling of repulsion.
Notice the way in which your body recoils.
Watch yourself.
Do you feel it in your gut or sensation in your hands?
Does your jaw clench?
Observe your body's reaction to repulsion.
Now let that evaporate,
And pull your awareness up to the eyebrow center again.
Allow yourself to settle somewhere balanced in between the two,
Neither pulled or pushed in any particular direction.
Find yourself grounded in the place of equanimity,
In the place of balance.
And from this space,
Allow yourself to come back to the third eye,
And settle into neutrality.
Come back to your sankalpa.
Repeat it as a mantra.
Hear it in perpetuity in your head,
And feel it in the deepest fibers of your being.
In a moment,
I will take you through a series of rapid visualizations.
It's possible you will feel sensation.
A thought may pass you by.
A visual may touch the mind's eye.
No need to overthink these moments.
They are fleeting.
Try not to attach,
But instead to simply acknowledge,
And stay with the sound of my voice.
From this place,
Envision a snow globe.
The smell of chlorine.
A bowl of orange jello.
The feeling of chapped lips.
A silver crescent moon with the tips almost touching each other.
A cool mist touching your skin.
A blank canvas.
A dripping faucet.
A box of colored pencils.
A rain forest.
The feeling of water.
A warm,
Dark cave.
A notebook full of writing.
A waterbed.
A raft floating in the middle of the ocean.
The feeling of the tides pulling you back and forth.
Now see,
Emerging in your consciousness,
A blinding white light.
As your eyes begin to adjust to the light,
You find yourself in the middle of a desert.
You notice the quality of air touching your skin.
The feeling of the warm sun.
The dusty,
Cracked land beneath your feet.
And off in the distance,
You see a cluster of palm trees.
You begin to walk towards them.
And then you begin to run.
And as you run,
You feel yourself getting lighter and lighter.
Until you're moving so fast,
It's as if your feet don't even touch the ground.
And as you reach the cluster of trees,
You find yourself in an oasis.
Between the palms,
You locate clusters of grass and cactuses.
And desert plants and a deep spring of cold water.
You dive into the pool of water and allow yourself to float up to the surface.
Letting the water permeate your skin.
You look over to one of the palm trees,
And see peering at you from behind it,
Your mother.
With the softest,
Warmest expression on her face she has ever carried.
Slowly,
You wade over to the edge of the pool and crawl out.
And as you crawl out,
Your mother walks closer to you.
And sits at the edge of the pool by your side.
She looks into your eyes and says firmly to you,
You're Sankalpa.
She continues to repeat it to you,
Each time with more conviction than the last.
Until the resonance of her words wash over you and encapsulate your entire body.
Like an ocean wave clearing footprints and debris from the sand,
Your Sankalpa wipes clean the imprints of past programming in your mind.
With your new wave of insight,
You lay yourself down.
And as the oasis begins to dissolve from the screen of your mind,
You take in the darkness behind your eyelids,
And all of the slivers of light that attempt to get in.
Begin to welcome a more expansive breath back into your body.
Go ahead and wiggle your fingers and your toes.
And start to wake yourself up again.
Stretch your arms over your head.
Lengthen your legs forward.
Feel that full,
Tremendous reach top to bottom.
As gently and as delicately as you can,
Roll over onto one side,
Finding the fetal position.
Let your head stay heavy and your eyes closed.
Begin to ease yourself up to a comfortable seat.
Bring the palms of your hands to meet at the center of your chest,
And release your chin gently.
Thank you for sharing this practice today.
I invite you to journal and connect to anything that came up for you.
Stay connected to the quality of your breath and your internal awareness.
Namaste.
