Welcome to the practice of Yoga Nidra.
This state of conscious deep rest has so many benefits to the biochemistry of your body.
Like the release of endorphins.
There have been studies that have shown that the amount of endorphins released in one Yoga Nidra practice are similar to a runner that has a runner's high.
This practice also has been shown to release oxytocin,
Melatonin,
GABA,
Human growth hormone,
And serotonin.
There are so many amazing things happening in the biochemistry of your body when you take this time for deep rest.
And there is no wrong way to practice.
The only thing you need to do is make yourself as comfortable as possible.
And follow along with my voice with as much attention as possible.
Yoga Nidra is an effortless practice.
A profound,
Effortless practice.
Don't worry if your mind wanders or if you doze off.
Just very gently bring your awareness back to the sound of my voice.
You are always welcome at any time to shift or change positions.
Returning to stillness as soon as possible.
So go ahead and take your time to get set up comfortably.
You might lie on your back with support under your knees.
You might even sit supported.
Finding the most comfortable position is what's important.
Take this time to make yourself maybe even 5% more comfortable.
Then after you've made those last few adjustments,
Come back to stillness.
Take a deep breath in through your nose.
Hold at the top and let go through the mouth.
Again inhale even deeper,
Filling up the lungs.
Hold.
And now exhale.
One more time.
Inhale.
Hold.
Exhale fully.
The whole body responding to your conscious stilling.
Feel the hinges of the jaw relaxing.
The globes of the eyes softening back into the head.
Feel presence soak into the forehead.
And a vertical and horizontal expansion here.
The forehead,
Temples,
All the tiny muscles around the eyes and in the cheeks.
Spreading.
Releasing.
Letting go.
The head heavy.
Held.
All the muscles and connective tissues in the jaw and neck softened.
Notice the connection of your whole body letting go.
Heavy with ease.
Melting.
Releasing down towards the earth.
Allow yourself to be completely as you are.
Safe.
Held.
And relaxed now.
The rising and falling of your rhythmic breath.
Effortless.
Always happening.
In Yoga Nidra we practice Samkalpa.
This is like an intention or deep desire for your life that unfolds over time.
You might already have a Samkalpa or you may create one now.
Or you could simply set an intention just for this practice.
It could be something like,
I am resting deeply now to restore my nervous system.
Whichever you choose,
Keep it short,
Simple and in the positive present tense.
So let's take a moment now to allow your intention to arise.
Now repeat it three times in your mind with feeling.
Next,
We will go through a rotation of consciousness.
Bringing your attention to the areas in your body I mentioned.
Simply by placing attention in each area,
We are energetically freeing any stagnation or blocks that may reside there.
You could think of it as an energetic tune up and balance for your whole body.
We'll begin with the palm of the right hand.
The top of the hand.
The thumb.
First finger.
Second.
Third.
And fourth.
Sensing the entire right hand and fingers as one.
The wrist.
Forearm.
Elbow.
Upper arm.
And the whole right arm.
The right side of the chest.
Right side of the rib cage.
The right hip.
Thigh.
Knee.
Calf and shin.
Ankle.
The sole of the right foot.
The top of the foot.
All five toes.
One.
Two.
Three.
Four.
Five.
Your whole right foot as one.
Your whole right leg as one.
Allow your attention to move to the left palm.
Feeling for sensation in the left palm.
The top of the hand.
The thumb.
First finger.
Second.
Third.
Four.
And the left hand and fingers as one.
The wrist.
Forearm.
Elbow.
Upper arm.
The entire left arm.
The left side of the chest.
Rib cage.
The right hip.
Thigh.
Knee.
Calf and shin.
Ankle.
Sole of the left foot.
The top of the foot.
And all five toes.
One.
Two.
Three.
Five.
Your whole left foot as one.
And the entire left leg as one.
Attention moving to the navel.
Solar plexus.
Heart center.
The hollow of the throat.
Chin.
To the inside of the mouth.
The inside of the mouth teeming with sensation.
And the lips.
Nose.
Eyes.
Eyebrows.
Temples.
Ears.
The whole scalp.
To the back side of the body.
Awareness of the entire back side of the body.
To the front side of the body.
Sensing the entire front side of your body.
And now the whole body as one unified field of energy.
Radiant.
Subtle energy.
And your entire body as one.
Now notice your breath again.
The rise and fall of your naturally occurring breath.
Observe your breath.
Filling and emptying.
Your divine life force energy.
The breath of life within you.
Flowing.
Soothing your nervous system with no effort.
Synergistic alchemy of your breathing body.
Now could you imagine pulling in your breath solely through the left nostril and exhaling through the right.
Physically inhale through the left.
Exhaling through the right.
Without effort.
Just inhaling through the left and exhaling through the right.
Slowly,
Mindfully,
Calmly breathing.
And now just going with this breath pattern until you hear my voice again.
Now letting go of the breathing pattern.
Focus your attention on your right palm.
Sensing the right palm.
Maybe it feels warm or filled with sensation.
Attention on the right palm.
Tingling with a subtle energy.
To the left palm now.
Warmth generated by all the cells.
Alive and receptive.
And the left palm tingling with energy.
Awareness drifting down the body now to the soul of the left foot.
And the soul of the left foot.
Warm.
Sensational.
Vibrant with swirling energy.
The soul of the left foot.
Now shifting your awareness over to the right soul of the foot.
Feeling into the soul of the right foot.
It's warm and filled with sensation.
Awareness of the soul of the right foot.
Now can you sense both the palm and both souls of the feet simultaneously.
Awareness of the palms of the hands and the souls of the feet at the same time.
Allow that awareness to fade now.
And follow along with my voice as I offer a sensory and visualization journey.
Allow whatever comes to mind to come without thinking.
A vast blue sky.
A vast night sky with stars.
A blooming tree with pink flowers.
A large boulder.
A yoga pose.
A lizard.
A bush with yellow flowers.
A sandy beach.
An owl.
The front paws of a cat.
An ocean.
Right piece of fruit.
The wagging tail of a dog.
A still pond.
A hike up a steep path.
Swinging on a swing.
A cool breeze atop a hill.
The sounds of crickets.
The smell of a rose.
The smile of a loved one.
A sunset.
A warm breeze.
Lying peacefully somewhere in nature.
Resting deeply in this place.
Floating.
Being.
Your entire essence radiant.
Shining.
Awareness of your true nature.
You ask here,
Abiding in this place,
Sensing the bliss of all that is.
Resting in your true nature.
Your intention or sankopa is here.
Feeling and aligning with your sankopa now.
You might feel it.
See it.
Or sense it.
Felt sense of your sankopa.
You might repeat it three more times here in this space of your bliss body.
At one with your heart's desire here.
Begin to welcome awareness of your breath now.
Sensing the breath coming in and out of the nostrils.
The feeling of your body softly expanding and contracting with your breath.
Imagine the edges of your body.
Where your body ends in the space around you begins.
Now feeling the back of your body and where it meets the surface beneath it.
And taking two sips of breath now through the nose like this.
Two more times with this breath.
And awakening your body and mind from the state of yoga nidra.
You might start making some slow,
Gentle movements with the head.
The hand,
Wrists and fingers.
The ankles,
Feet and toes.
Organically waking the body in your own time.
And in your own way.
Taking all the time you need to bring your awareness back to the sounds in your space.
Your place in your space.
Gently rousing yourself.
Thank you for practicing yoga nidra with me.
Namaste.
