Welcome to today's yoga nidra practice,
A guided method of deep and powerful rest.
Make your way into a comfortable laying down position.
It may look like a traditional shavasana,
Or you may take a different shape for your repose.
Please use props to generously support yourself and to create a sense of luxury in your practice.
Clean this moment as just for you.
Settle in by letting your shoulders be heavy toward the earth.
Your jaw is unclenched.
Muscles around your eyes soften.
Awareness settles on the here and now.
I invite you to make practice your own by setting an intention or a sankalpa.
Your sankalpa may be in the form of a positive self-affirmation,
A dedication of your practice,
Or a heartfelt wish you have for yourself.
If nothing naturally comes to mind,
I'll offer the intention of I am strong and capable.
Once you have your sankalpa in mind,
Silently repeat it to yourself three times.
Notice how it lands in your body and in your mind.
We'll now move into a body scan practice.
Let my voice guide you,
And as I name each part of the body,
Bring your full awareness there.
Remember that if your mind happens to wander,
Simply bring yourself back to the sound of my voice.
Start by bringing your full attention to your right hand thumb.
Awareness moves to your right index finger,
Right middle finger,
Ring finger,
Pinky finger,
Palm of your right hand,
Back of your right hand,
Right wrist,
Right forearm,
Right elbow,
Right upper arm,
Right shoulder,
Right armpit,
Right side waist,
Right hip,
Right side thigh,
Right knee,
Right lower leg,
Right ankle,
Sole of your right foot,
Top of your right foot,
Right big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe.
Awareness moves to your left hand thumb,
Left index finger,
Middle finger,
Ring finger,
Pinky finger,
Palm of your left hand,
Back of your left hand,
Left wrist,
Left forearm,
Left elbow,
Left upper arm,
Left shoulder,
Left armpit,
Left side waist,
Left hip,
Left thigh,
Left knee,
Left lower leg,
Left ankle,
Sole of the left foot,
Top of your left foot,
Left big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe.
Awareness moves upward to your throat,
To the back of your neck,
Around to your chin,
Awareness to your lower lip,
Upper lip,
Both lips at the same time,
Bottom row of teeth,
Top row of teeth,
Both rows of teeth together at the same time,
Tongue,
Roof of your mouth,
Your whole jaw,
Left cheekbone,
Right cheekbone,
Both cheeks at the same time,
Left nostril,
Right nostril,
Entire nose,
Left eye,
Right eye,
Both eyes at the same time,
Center of your forehead,
Your whole focus on your third eye point,
The space just above the center of your eyebrows.
Awareness to the whole right side of your body,
Your whole right side,
Your whole left side,
Awareness of your whole face and head,
Awareness of your full body,
Full body awareness,
Begin to shift awareness into your breath,
Feel its presence,
And as best you can,
Resist making any changes to the rhythm of your breath,
Simply notice it exactly how it is,
Know that the next breath will arrive in its own time,
Effortless awareness as your breath flows,
Feel your navel rise as you breathe in,
Feel your navel soften as you breathe out,
With each breath in,
An expansion,
With each breath out,
Let it come in equal measure,
Tension lingers here,
Your navel rising,
Your navel falling,
If you feel your attention wander away,
Gently guide it back to your breath,
Let the awareness of your breath come up to your chest,
Feel your breath moving there,
The gentle rise on your inhale,
The gentle fall on your exhale,
Feel the fullness of your breath in this moment,
Smooth,
Easy breaths,
Calm,
Peaceful breaths,
Shift your awareness to your connection points with the ground below you,
Whatever surface upon which you rest,
Feel your connection there,
Feel that sensation growing,
Your body meeting the surface below you as you root down,
Head heavy,
Shoulders heavy,
Hips heavy,
Heels heavy,
Let the heaviness release,
A tingle of space starts to come between you and the earth,
Almost like your connection points have lifted a millimeter off the ground,
As though you're blooming upward,
As you lift,
Your energy expands outward,
Past the edges of your body,
Unable to be contained,
Take a breath in,
Light,
Buoyant,
Expansive,
On your exhale,
Feel yourself ground down,
Your physical body melts toward the earth,
Heavy as though gravity were to be dialed up,
With each breath out,
Sink a little more,
As though you were becoming one with the ground below,
Returning to the defined edges of your physical form,
With your inhale,
Bring back that sense of lightness,
Like you're levitating,
Like a light breeze could lift you and carry with it your sense of ease,
Release fully,
Come back to equilibrium,
Equally heavy and light at the same time,
Fully returned to center,
Fully aware,
Using your imagination,
Picture yourself outside on a cool springtime evening,
You see the trees around you starting to bud,
And you notice flowers beginning to pop up from the dirt,
Birds chirp,
And in the distance you hear the sound of neighbors enjoying each other's company,
You take a deep breath,
And you smell the slight floral fragrance that alerts you to the new beginnings of the season,
As the sky transitions to sunset,
You take in the colors surrounding you,
The reds,
Pinks,
And oranges instill in you a beautiful sense of inspiration,
When they eventually give way to the indigo hues,
You find yourself pleasantly enveloped by darkness,
With nighttime arriving,
You look up and see the stars and planets emerge,
You realize it's the perfect clear cloudless night for stargazing,
Laying on the ground you feel yourself attached to the earth,
As you look up at the vast and dark curtain of the sky,
It's filled with the twinkling magic of countless stars,
As you gaze upward taking it all in,
The distinct boundary between you and the universe begins to fade away,
You feel large and small at the same time,
At once feeling whole with the universe,
And tiny in the best way possible,
Expansive and yet neatly contained,
A seed and at the same time fully blossomed,
You start to sense your body rising up to meet the stars,
Floating upward you are free from the earthly burden of gravity,
You are imbued with an unencumbered ability to explore,
All while maintaining your sense of connection and nourishment,
Free but connected to your place in the universe,
Flying weightlessly into the cosmos you look in wonder at the infinite sights and sensations all around you,
A pleasant silence,
The wisp of a cloud,
The colors of the northern lights dancing across your vision,
The beauty of the Milky Way,
The textures of the moon,
The vibrant red of Mars,
The brilliant rings of Jupiter,
The wish you made on a star as a child,
Your favorite constellation from a new view,
Yourself as a celestial being,
Taking it all in you deeply embody a sense of peace,
Calm,
Serenity,
Wholeness,
Connectedness,
Feeling your journey is complete you slowly drift back down to the earth,
This cosmic elevator bringing you to a soft gentle landing on terra firma,
Mother earth,
Right where you started,
Aware of your roots and back in a strong sense of place you take a glance back up at the stars,
With a new appreciation for the infinite vastness that you're a part of,
You're happy to be right where you are,
Planted,
Blooming,
Part of the endless swirl of cosmic light,
Recall your sankalpa,
Your intention that you set at the start of practice,
Bring it back to the front of your mind,
Feel it's still alive and dancing within you,
Again repeat your intention to yourself reclaiming it,
Once again become aware of your grounding points,
A place where your body connects to the surface below you,
Root yourself in a sense of place further by feeling the air on your skin,
The breath filling your lungs,
Notice the light just beyond your eyelids,
As you start to emerge from your journey into yoga nidra notice what arises for you in your heart or on your mind,
As best you can let that be without judgment or evaluation,
And take a few deeper breaths to reinvigorate your entire being,
Continue to wake back up slowly with some small movements through fingers or toes,
A gentle rock of your head from left to right or a full body stretch,
As you become ready without rush or hurry let the light back into your eyes,
I thank you so much for practicing with me today,
Be well.
