Yoga Nidra: Inner Beauty

This is a full-length yoga nidra practice with all the stages included. It begins with deep relaxation and pratyahara (sense withdrawal) and moves through the five koshas, from the physical to the most subtle layers of being. The idea of inner beauty guided the entire process, and this session is designed to reconnect you with your own beauty and wholeness.

Transcript

Hello,

My name is Kristen and welcome to this Yoga Nidra practice.

Please lie down in the resting pose of Shavasana.

Your arms and legs are outstretched with your feet about hip distance apart and your arms at a 45 degree angle from your body.

The head,

Neck and spine are in alignment and your body weight is even from left to right.

Use blankets,

Pillows and any other support that ensures you will remain warm and comfortable for the duration of this practice.

Take your time to be completely and totally comfortable and as you settle in,

Allow your muscles and bones to relax into the support of the ground you are lying upon.

Ideally once the practice begins,

You would not move until the end if that is available for you.

If you do need to move,

Do so with intention.

Then settle back in.

Yoga Nidra is a practice of stillness and relaxation and we put our bodies to sleep so we can awaken to the beauty within.

We are choosing now to step away from outer responsibilities and our lists of things to do in order to learn about ourselves in new ways.

We begin by drawing our senses inward and grounding ourselves deep in the present moment.

The rest unfolds from there.

All you need to do from this point on is leave the body by itself and follow the sound of my voice.

The practice of Yoga Nidra begins now.

If you've already closed your eyes,

Open them again for a moment and passively take notice of the space that your body is resting in.

See the space as if you've never seen it before.

Notice light,

Shadow,

Color,

Shape,

And form without naming or identifying what you see.

As you do this,

Allow the muscles of your eyes to become softer.

Start to invite your vision to move inward until you feel as if you're seeing from inside of your eye sockets.

Now,

Slowly put your vision to rest by closing your eyes.

Send your awareness to your hearing,

Taking in the sounds of the space that you're in.

Allow the soundscape of your environment to take up all of your awareness.

Bring your awareness inside of your ears like you're hearing from inside of your ear canal.

Allow your sense of hearing to become softer and softer as it comes fully inward to rest.

Become aware of your sense of smell and take notice of any scents in the air.

Send your attention to the internal space of your nostrils and feel the flow of air in and out of this space.

Now soften back and allow your sense of smell to come fully inward and rest.

Move your attention to your mouth and take notice of any lingering tastes on your tongue and on the inside of your mouth.

Send your awareness into the internal space of your mouth and become aware of your sense of taste.

Now,

Allow your sense of taste to soften back and rest.

Move your awareness to the sensations of touch in your body.

You may feel pressure,

Heaviness,

Heat,

Coolness,

Or tingling.

Simply feel what the body is touching from moment to moment.

Now allow all of your senses,

Vision,

Hearing,

Smell,

Taste,

And touch to journey inward and rest.

It's time for your sankalpa or resolution.

A sankalpa is a short,

Clearly worded statement that begins with the words I am and finishes with your deepest inner desire.

Sankalpa is something you want to grow in,

Like unconditional love,

Inner peace,

Fullness,

Kindness,

Authenticity,

Equanimity,

Or anything else that will help you evolve on your path.

Repeating a sankalpa at the beginning and end of yoga nidra practice sets forth a strong intention around who you are becoming.

If no sankalpa is present today,

Simply bring to mind your purpose for practicing now and hold it steady.

With pure conviction and focused attention,

Violently repeat your sankalpa three times now.

Let go of your sankalpa and prepare to journey through the body as we begin the rotation of consciousness.

Rotation of consciousness deepens relaxation and helps to bring about full body awareness and a feeling of physical well-being.

Simply focus your attention on the part of the body I guide you to and remain alert.

Become aware of the right hand,

Right hand thumb,

Index finger,

Middle finger,

Ring finger,

Pinky finger,

Palm of the hand,

Backside of the hand,

Wrist,

Forearm,

Elbow,

Upper arm,

Right shoulder,

Right armpit,

Right side of the trunk,

Right side of the waist,

Right hip,

Right thigh,

Knee,

Lower part of the leg,

Ankle,

Heel,

Sole of the right foot,

Top of the right foot,

Big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe,

Fifth toe.

Become aware of the whole right side of the body,

The whole right side of the body.

Send your attention to the left hand,

Left hand thumb,

Index finger,

Middle finger,

Ring finger,

Pinky finger,

Palm of the hand,

Backside of the hand,

Right hand thumb,

Index finger,

Palm of the hand,

Wrist,

Forearm,

Elbow,

Upper arm,

Left shoulder,

Left armpit,

Left side of the trunk,

Left side of the waist,

Left hip,

Left thigh,

Knee,

Lower part of the leg,

Ankle,

Heel,

Sole of the left foot,

Top of the left foot,

Big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe,

Fifth toe.

Become aware of the whole left side of the body,

The whole left side of the body.

Now send your attention to your pelvis,

Right sit bone,

Left sit bone,

Right hip,

Left hip,

Right kidney region,

Left kidney region,

Right shoulder blade,

Left shoulder blade,

Back of the neck,

Backside of the head,

Crown of the head,

Forehead,

Right eyebrow,

Left eyebrow,

Eyebrow center,

Right eye,

Left eye,

Right temple,

Left temple,

Right ear,

Left ear,

Bridge of the nose,

Right nostril,

Left nostril,

Right cheek,

Left cheek,

Upper lip,

Lower lip,

Upper jaw,

Lower jaw,

Tongue,

Chin,

Throat,

Right collarbone,

Left collarbone,

Right side of the chest,

Left side of the chest,

Middle part of the chest,

Upper abdomen,

Middle abdomen,

Lower abdomen.

Come to experience the body as whole and complete.

Feel the whole right leg.

Feel the whole left leg,

Both legs together.

Feel the whole right arm,

Whole left arm,

Both arms together.

Feel the whole backside of the body,

The whole front side of the body.

Feel the neck and the head.

Feel the whole body together,

The whole body together,

The whole body together.

Now you are fully within the walls of your body and experiencing your own wholeness.

Feel and know this without condition.

Now gently guide your attention to your breath.

Notice its natural rhythm and flow.

Allow your breath to be exactly how it is.

Feel your body expand on the inhale and contract on the exhale.

Give your full attention to this process without changing anything.

Allow your attention to become more subtle and refined.

Now we will deepen our concentration and relaxation by counting down from 27 to 1.

27 as you breathe in,

27 as you breathe out,

27 as you breathe out.

26 as you breathe in,

26 as you breathe out.

Continue counting like this quietly to yourself until you reach 1.

If you make a mistake or lose your count,

Please start over again at 27.

27.

Feel as if you are sinking deeper into stillness and relaxation with every passing breath.

Do not sleep.

Remain alert with full awareness on the breath and counting.

Now wherever you are,

Let go of the counting.

Allow your breath and body to be as they are.

Your body is completely still,

Completely relaxed.

Only the breath continues to move.

Feel the subtle aliveness that exists in the body.

And in the simple act of breathing.

It's time to visit opposite sensations which teach equanimity and non-attachment.

When the mind is quiet and the body is relaxed,

We can observe the effects of strong experiences without grasping or trying to control them.

Simply notice what arises without concern.

Bring to mind the feeling of being cold.

And imagine you are lying on the snow in the middle of a winter snowstorm.

The cold is harsh and unyielding.

Feel the effects of this deep penetrating cold as fully as you are able and let it build in intensity.

The body is so cold that it starts to shiver.

Use the power of your mind to make the feeling of cold a reality.

Now let go of cold and bring to mind the feeling of warmth.

Imagine you are lying on a sandy beach in the middle of summer exposed to the midday sun.

The feeling of heat from the sun and the sand absorbs every inch of your body.

The body is so hot it is starting to sweat.

Simply create the feeling of heat in your body as fully as you are able.

Now return to the feeling of cold without hesitation or reservation.

Feel it as fully as you did before throughout your entire body.

And allow it to take over.

Bring to mind the feeling of cold.

Now release cold and invite back the feeling of warmth.

Feel warmth in every part of your body in its fullest capacity.

Now return to the feeling of cold without thinking about it.

Simply create the felt sensations of cold in your body.

Now invite the feeling of warmth into your body at the same time.

Merging warmth and coldness and allowing them to coexist simultaneously.

Feel both together the contraction of cold and the expansion of warmth.

And welcome each one as you immerse yourself in this experience.

Continue to breathe and keep your body relaxed.

No thinking,

Just feeling.

And allowing each moment to unfold.

Now release the opposite sensations of warmth and coldness completely.

And return to whole body awareness.

A quiet body and a quiet mind.

Now we will prepare for visualization.

Guide your attention to the space behind your forehead.

To the movie screen in your mind.

As I name objects,

Allow images to spontaneously appear in this space.

Simply notice what arises without thinking about it.

And trust what comes up.

Keep the inner gaze soft.

As you use the creative power of your mind.

To visualize the following images.

A red rose.

A snake slithering through the grass.

The reflective eyes of a cat at night.

Children playing in nature.

A full moon rising.

A full moon rising.

A full moon rising.

Orange and yellow campfire lighting up the night.

A fresh morning cup of coffee.

Dew drops on leaves in a garden.

A rainbow just after a storm.

A rainbow just after a storm.

A rainbow just after a storm.

Your favorite childhood toy.

A crystal clear waterfall.

A large and majestic tree standing tall in a forest.

Bring your tree more clearly into focus.

And hold it in the space behind your forehead.

Allow it to come into clear view.

Firmly rooted in the earth.

And extending up into a bright blue sky.

Your tree is grounded.

Rooted and steady.

It is,

By its nature,

Full and complete.

Now merge with your tree.

Allowing the image to drop down into your body.

Until the trunk is at the base of your feet.

Feel the roots grow down from your feet.

Grounding your energy into the rich soil of the earth below you.

Notice the nourishment you receive from your connection to the earth.

Now,

Feel the strength and support of the trunk.

Extend up through your entire body.

Steady,

Strong,

And resilient.

Your head,

Neck,

And arms become the branches that reach out from the space.

Imagine the top of the tree growing out around your shoulders.

Full of leaves and life-giving beauty.

Let this image of the tree become alive inside of you.

As you connect to the qualities of the tree as if they are your own.

Let them grow and expand.

Creating a new felt experience within your body.

You and the tree are one and the same.

Now allow all images to fade away and rest with a clear and open mind.

You are ready now to merge into an experience of oneness.

Where there is no need for thought because you feel everything you need to know.

Anchor your awareness in your body and release any tension on the surface of your skin.

Allow the aspects of your personality to wash from your face.

Feel directly for yourself what it is like to be free from your layers of armor and self-protection.

Here there is no need for defense.

You are what you are.

A soul living inside of a body that is its temporary home.

Feel centered and whole within yourself.

Steady,

Alert and connected to everything.

There is no more need for words in this space.

The mind is empty and clear and all that is left is pure,

Unbound,

Unrestricted awareness.

Come back to the sound of my voice and bring to mind your Sankalpa from the beginning of the practice.

Hold your Sankalpa steady and in strong focus.

Violently repeat it three times now.

Bring your attention back to your breath and notice the gentle movements of your body as you breathe in and out.

Take a moment to feel your own beauty and presence which is always here and can never be lost.

As you are ready,

You can begin your return to the waking world slowly and mindfully,

Keeping the effects of this practice for as long as you can.

Develop a sense of the room around you and begin to slowly move your fingers and toes.

From here,

Follow your innate wisdom to resume your journey back to movement.

The practice of Yoga Nidra is now complete.

Hari Om Tat Sat Hari Om Tat Sat Hari Om Tat Sat Hari Om Tat Sat

Reviews

Love her voice, and I fell asleep quite quickly loved what she had to say, about which I can’t remember because I fell asleep so deeply! Saved her and started following her!

Beautiful rejuvenating nidra practice. The perfect length too, thank you for sharing this 🤍