Welcome to this yoga nidra for the cautious.
My name is Lindsay.
Please take a moment to get comfortable.
Ideally lying down but seated is also fine.
If you're seated,
Spine long but not rigid,
Shoulders relaxed,
Perhaps sitting up on something to elevate your hips a little.
And once you're settled,
Begin to notice your natural breathing rhythm.
And we'll begin with a body scan to bring our attention to Annamaya Kosha,
Our outermost layer,
Our physical body.
To take a slow breath in through the nose,
Out the mouth let it go.
I invite you to do that two more times and on each sigh out allow your body to sink into the ground.
Just having a real sense of softening and letting go of any physical tension in your body.
We're going to start at the head.
Feel the weight of your head on the ground beneath you.
Soften any tension in the forehead and around the eyes.
Tongue resting gently on the roof of the mouth and lower jaw relaxed.
So no tension,
No clenching of the teeth.
Awareness of the breath at your nostrils.
Awareness of your whole face and your whole head.
Then bring your attention to the space between your ears and your shoulders.
Guide your attention along your right shoulder down the length of your arm.
Become aware of the space in your palm and the softness of your fingers.
Then move your attention back up to your left shoulder all the way along down the length of your left arm.
Noticing the space in your palm and the softness of your fingers.
Move your attention to your heart center.
Perhaps even noticing the beat of your inner drum.
Move down to the belly.
Rising on your in-breath.
Falling on your out-breath.
Breathing in rising up.
Breathing out falling down.
Bring your attention to your hips.
The buttocks resting gently against the ground.
And from your right hip can you follow or guide your attention down the length of your right leg.
Softening all the muscles in the right leg all the way down to the foot.
Perhaps noticing the space at the sole of the foot.
Awareness of all five toes.
Moving your attention to your left hip and guiding it all the way down the left leg.
Softening all the muscles.
No holding,
No gripping.
All the way to the foot.
Bringing your attention to the sole of the foot and all five toes.
Being aware of your whole body.
Your whole physical body resting.
Surrendering to the ground beneath you.
Moving into your second layer.
Pranamaya Kosha.
Your energy body.
Become aware of the rhythm of your breathing.
Let each breath get a little deeper.
Flooding the body with oxygen.
Allow yourself to relax into comfort.
Into the softness of your breath.
No force,
No effort required.
Noticing the breath traveling from your nostrils down into your lower lungs.
Being aware of the gentle expansion outwards of your ribcage and the drawing in on the out-breath.
The belly gently swirling on the in-breath.
Subsiding on the out-breath.
Just becoming familiar with how your body moves to accommodate your breath.
When thoughts arise let them float by like clouds passing by in the sky and keep coming back home deep into your soul with every single breath.
Stay aware of your breathing as we move into Pranamaya Kosha.
Our mind body.
I invite you to visualize a peaceful,
Still,
Quiet lake in your mind.
When thoughts arise observe them as ripples or waves on the lake's surface.
As you allow thoughts to pass slowly the lake returns to its calm still state.
Stay present as you continue to observe the stillness of the lake and the passing thoughts.
As you observe these ripples or waves practice detaching from them and recognize they are not your true self.
You are not your thoughts,
Your worries,
Your anxieties or your fears.
Allow them all to be released and come inside to your bright inner light within Vijnana Maya Kosha.
Your wisdom body.
Your intuitive layer.
It is here your inner light glows.
Always lit.
Always alive.
Always shining.
As you breathe in watch your light expand and pulse with your breath.
Feel the warmth,
The glow gently filling up your whole being.
Rest in its welcoming warmth.
Rest in your inner glow.
Just you.
Just this.
I invite you to guide your inner light,
This warm intuitive light full of wisdom into your innermost layer Ananda Maya Kosha.
Your bliss body.
I invite you here to repeat the mantra SO HUM.
SO means I am and HUM means that.
And that is the part of you that is comprised of the same essence that makes up everything in the universe.
Your unique individual expression of inherently pure,
Infinite,
Internal,
Ultimate reality.
Feel your connection to it all within your bliss body.
Perhaps so on the inhale.
And you might use this mantra to help calm the mind.
Focus your attention and promote a sense of peace and connection within.
Rest here for a moment repeating the mantra internally unless you wish to say it out loud.
And I'll guide you back when it's time to return.
Take one last round of SO HUM and then release it.
Let it go and allow your body to slip back into its own natural rhythm of breathing.
As you begin to bring your attention back into your surroundings.
Perhaps you're coming into a space that is silent.
And even silence can have a sound.
Perhaps you're aware of sounds near and far.
And return now to the sense of touch.
The sense of your body on the ground.
The ground supporting your body.
And gently rub your thumbs against the tips of your fingers really lightly.
And then reaching the arms alongside your ears and taking a big stretch.
Of course you're welcome to stay for longer if you have time.
And then if you're lying down,
Gathering your knees in towards your body.
And rolling to your side.
Taking a breath.
And then coming up to seated.
Once you're there resting your palms in your lap.
Right palm on top of left.
Thumbs touching.
Just take a moment to gently breathe into your whole body.
Into each layer.
Reminding ourselves when we support one layer,
We support the others.
The gentle breathing.
Soften any tension in the mind and the body.
Out the mouth.
Let it go.
Just bring your hands over your heart centre.
Thank you for joining me today.
I hope to see you again soon.
