Yoga Nidra Mind, Body & Soul Meditation
Connect with your body and mind as you are guided through a traditional Yoga Nidra practice. This practice is suitable for beginners or seasoned meditators. Benefits of Yoga Nidra include deep relaxation and rest as well as a deeper connection to self. Enjoy!
Transcript
Lie down on your back on the floor and come into Shavasana.
In this position have your body straight from head to toe,
Legs slightly apart and the arms a little bit away from your body.
Have your palms facing upwards towards the sky.
Adjust anything you need until you are completely comfortable.
Adjust anything you need until you are completely comfortable.
Your clothes,
Your body or your position.
During Yoga Nidra there should be no physical movement.
Close your eyes and keep them closed until the end of the practice.
Take in a deep breath and allow your breath to exhale slowly,
Releasing any stress or strain that has accumulated in your mind or body.
Allow it to begin to dissolve.
Days,
Weeks or lifetimes of tension and resistance.
Let this move further and further out of your energy field.
In the practice of Yoga Nidra you are going to develop the feeling of relaxation in the body.
It's not necessary to do anything or try at all.
Simply allow yourself to develop the feeling of being completely and utterly relaxed.
It is important to stay awake throughout the practice.
Mentally repeat to yourself,
I will remain awake through the practice.
I will remain awake through the practice.
During Yoga Nidra you are functioning on many levels.
The levels of hearing and awareness.
So all you need to do is follow my voice and the instructions.
There is really no need to try to intellectualize or analyze the instructions.
Just follow the voice and follow the instructions.
If thoughts come to disturb you from time to time,
No worries.
Just continue the practice.
Now begin to welcome complete relaxation and stillness of the whole body.
Be aware of your entire body from the top of your head to the tips of your toes.
Your whole body.
As you scan your awareness from your crown to your toes,
Mentally repeat to yourself the mantra,
OM.
Complete stillness and relaxation of the whole body.
Again,
OM.
Awareness of the whole body.
The whole body.
The whole body.
I am aware of the fact that you are going to practice Yoga Nidra.
Say mentally to yourself,
I am aware I am going to practice Yoga Nidra.
Now is the time to make your resolution or your Sankalpa.
Your Sankalpa needs to be short and in the positive language.
Mentally repeat your Sankalpa to yourself three times with awareness and feeling.
The Sankalpa that you make in Yoga Nidra is bound to come true in your life.
We now begin the rotation of consciousness through the various body parts.
As I call out the parts of the body,
Become aware of that part,
Feel that part of the body,
But don't move the part of the body that I name.
And if you are unable to feel a certain body part,
Don't get stuck there.
Simply continue to follow the instructions.
Keep yourself alert,
But don't concentrate too intensely.
Become aware of the right hand thumb.
The right hand thumb.
Index finger.
Middle finger.
Ring finger.
Pinky finger.
Palm of the hand.
Back of the hand.
Wrist.
Lower arm.
Elbow.
Upper arm.
Armpit.
Shoulder.
Right side of the ribcage.
Right side of the waist.
Hip.
Thigh.
Kneecap.
Shin.
Top of the ankle.
Top of the foot.
Right big toe.
Second toe.
Third toe.
Fourth toe.
And fifth toe.
Now become aware of the left hand thumb.
Left hand thumb.
Index finger.
Middle finger.
Ring finger.
Pinky finger.
Palm of the hand.
Back of the hand.
Wrist.
Lower arm.
Elbow.
Upper arm.
Armpit.
Shoulder.
Left side of the ribcage.
Left side of the waist.
Hip.
Thigh.
Kneecap.
Shin.
Top of the ankle.
Top of the foot.
Left big toe.
Second toe.
Third toe.
Fourth toe.
And fifth toe.
Now to the back of the body.
Soles of both feet.
Soles of the feet.
Heels.
Back of the ankles.
Calves.
Back of the knees.
Back of the thighs.
Right buttock.
Left buttock.
Low back.
Mid back.
Upper back.
Right shoulder blade.
Left shoulder blade.
Between the shoulder blades.
Back of the neck.
Back of the head.
Top of the head.
Forehead.
Right eyebrow.
Left eyebrow.
Between the eyebrows.
Right eyelid.
Left eyelid.
Right eye.
Left eye.
Right ear.
Left ear.
Right cheek.
Left cheek.
Nose.
Tip of the nose.
Upper lip.
Lower lip.
Teeth.
Back of the throat.
Chest.
Right side of the chest.
Left side of the chest.
Center of the chest.
Upper abdomen.
Navel.
Lower abdomen.
Pelvis.
Genitals.
Now for the major parts.
The whole of the right leg.
The whole of the left leg.
Both legs.
Both legs.
The whole of the right arm.
Whole of the left arm.
Both arms.
Both arms.
The whole of the back.
Shoulder blades.
Spine.
Buttocks.
The whole of the front.
Chest.
Abdomen.
The whole body together.
The whole body together.
The whole body as one homogeneous entity lying relaxed on the floor.
Become aware of your breath.
Feel the flow of breath in and out of your lungs.
Do not try to change the rhythm.
The breathing is natural.
Automatic.
You are not doing it.
There is no effort.
Maintain awareness of your breath.
Continue.
Complete awareness of your breath.
Now concentrate your awareness on the movement of your navel area.
Feel your belly rising and falling with each and every breath.
As you breathe in,
The belly expands like a balloon and as you breathe out,
It naturally and easily deflates.
Focus on this movement in synchronization with your breath.
Go on practicing,
But be sure that you are aware.
Now start to count your breaths.
Work backwards from 27 to 1.
As you inhale,
Mentally count 27 and as you exhale,
Mentally repeat 27.
Inhale 26 and exhale 26.
And so on and so forth,
Backwards towards 1.
If you get lost or make a mistake,
Simply come back to 27 and start again.
No problem.
Go on with the practice of counting your breaths from 27 backwards to 1.
Now,
Wherever you are in your process of counting,
Let it go and bring your awareness to the subtle breath moving in and out of the entrance to your nostrils.
Concentrate on the breath moving in and out of the nostrils and start counting as you did before.
Inhale 27.
Exhale 27.
Inhale 26.
Exhale 26.
And carry on with the practice with complete awareness of the counts and of your breath.
Wherever you are in the practice,
Stop your counting and release the focus on your breath at the nostrils.
Begin to awaken the feeling in your body of heaviness.
Cultivate and create the feeling of heaviness in your body.
Become aware of heaviness in every single part of the body so that you feel that you are becoming so heavy that your body is sinking deeply into the floor.
So relaxed and so heavy.
Awareness of the heaviness of the body.
Awareness of heaviness.
Now awaken the feeling of lightness.
Awaken the feeling of lightness.
A sensation of lightness and weightlessness in all parts of the body.
Your body is so light that it feels like it's floating away from the floor.
The body is so incredibly light that it's almost hovering above the floor.
Awareness of lightness.
Lightness of the body.
Now awaken the experience of cold.
Awaken the experience of bitter cold in the body.
Imagine that you're walking on a cold marble floor in the middle of rain on the floor in the middle of winter time.
You feel the cold beneath your feet.
Your hands are cold.
You feel chilled and cold all over.
You feel a breeze,
A draft of coldness down the back of your neck.
Awareness of coldness.
Awareness of feeling cold.
Awaken to the sensation of heat.
The experience of heat.
Feel the whole body becoming warm.
The whole body becoming hot.
Feeling hot all over.
Recollect the feeling of deep heat in summer when you're outside without any shade.
Heat all over the body.
Awareness of heat.
The awareness of heat.
Check that you are awake.
Make sure that you're not sleeping.
Say to yourself mentally,
I am awake.
I am awake.
We now come to visualization.
Concentrate on the space in front of your closed eyes.
This space is called Chidakash.
This is the area in which you experience your dreams at night and your imagination.
I will call out a number of images and to the best of your ability visualize,
Imagine,
Sense and feel the object that is named.
Red rose.
A red rose.
Red rose.
Torrential rain.
Torrential rain.
Torrential rain.
Snow-capped mountains.
Snow-capped mountains.
Snow-capped mountains.
Birds flying across a sunset.
Birds flying across a sunset.
Birds flying across a sunset.
Birds flying across a sunset.
Blue bicycle.
Blue bicycle.
Blue bicycle.
Blue bicycle.
Stars at night.
Stars at night.
Stars at night.
Children laughing in a playground.
Children laughing in a playground.
Children laughing in a playground.
A cat lying in the sun.
A cat lying in the sun.
A cat lying in the sun.
A cat lying in the sun.
Flickering candle flame.
Flickering candle flame.
Flickering candle flame.
Flickering candle flame.
Full moon in the night sky.
Full moon in the night sky.
Full moon in the night sky.
Full moon in the night sky.
Waves crashing against the shore.
Waves crashing against the shore.
Waves crashing against the shore.
Clouds drifting across a blue sky.
Clouds drifting across a blue sky.
Clouds drifting across a blue sky.
An eagle soaring overhead.
An eagle soaring overhead.
An eagle soaring overhead.
A temple at sunrise.
A temple at sunrise.
A temple at sunrise.
A temple at sunrise.
Endless desert.
Endless desert.
Endless desert.
An elderly couple in the park.
An elderly couple in the park.
An elderly couple in the park.
Buddha smiling.
Buddha smiling.
Buddha smiling.
Buddha smiling.
A white sand beach.
A white sand beach.
A white sand beach.
A white sand beach.
A white sand beach.
Butterfly landing on a flower.
Butterfly landing on a flower.
Butterfly landing on a flower.
Egyptian pyramid.
Egyptian pyramid.
Egyptian pyramid.
Egyptian pyramid.
The face of someone you love smiling at you.
The face of someone you love smiling at you.
The face of someone you love smiling at you.
Now visualize yourself standing on a perfect golden sand beach looking out towards the turquoise waters.
Feeling completely and utterly relaxed.
Feel the sun gently warming your back.
Feel the light breeze on your skin.
And hear the sounds of nature all around you.
The birds.
The water gently lapping up against the shore.
Begin to walk down this beach.
Feel the sand beneath your toes.
Completely relaxed in your mind and body.
Complete feeling of safety and peace as you wander along this white sand beach.
You notice that you're the only person here.
You have this entire landscape to yourself.
You feel incredibly free and easy.
You continue to walk down the beach further and further for miles and miles.
Soaking up the vibrant healing energy of this place.
It comes into your cells to rejuvenate and to regenerate.
To restore the balance of your body.
To bring you back into harmony with the nature all around you.
To remind you of the truth of who you are.
Of peace.
Beauty.
Love and joy.
As you wander further down the beach,
You come to the end of the beach.
And you see that there's an entrance to a cave.
You're curious and decide to go inside.
At first it's dark but ahead of you you see a light.
You move towards that light.
Inside this cave comes to an opening.
An incredible opening full of crystals.
Full of bright shiny luminescent crystals covering the walls.
Covering this entire cave that you're now in the middle of.
You take three deep breaths.
Feeling the potent energy within this cave.
It's almost like this cave was created specifically for you.
Specifically for this moment.
That anything that needs healing in your mind,
In your body,
In your heart,
Can be soothed being in this cave.
Surrounded by these healing crystals.
The energy that they provide.
You feel the magic of this cave and somehow there's a shift that changes within you.
You can feel the transformation occurring.
The healing occurring.
The love in your heart overflowing.
The clarity of mind and the peace in your body.
You give a moment of gratitude and a moment of thanks for being in this special place.
This beautiful creation.
You don't know how long you've been here.
It feels like minutes but could be hours so you decide to return back to the entrance.
The opening.
And as you come back onto the beach you realize it's been very late in the day and that the sun is beginning to set.
Casting beautiful colors of pink and purple and orange across the sky.
The most beautiful sky you've ever seen.
You decide to sit down in the sand and watch the sun slowly drop behind the horizon.
And as the sun descends and the golden light begins to fade you take a deep breath and know that you can always return to this place.
This place is within you.
Become aware of your breath.
Become aware of your breath.
Remember your sankalpa.
Your resolution.
And repeat your sankalpa to yourself mentally three times.
Repeat it with absolute faith,
Awareness,
And feeling.
The whole body.
The whole body.
The whole body.
Relax all efforts and become aware of the whole body.
Bring your attention to the natural breath.
The quiet breath.
Develop your awareness of the quiet breath.
Maintain your awareness of the breath and gradually begin to deepen it.
Gradually become aware of your physical existence.
Become aware of your body completely relaxed lying on the floor.
Stay connected to your state of relaxation and take a long slow deep breath in.
And let it out.
Develop awareness of your body deeply relaxed lying on the floor.
Keeping your eyes closed,
Visualize the room and your place in it.
Remember the walls.
Visualize the space.
The colors.
The windows.
As you gently start to externalize your awareness.
Begin to make small movements.
Whatever your body needs.
You may wiggle your fingers and toes or stretch your arms overhead.
Please take your time.
There's no rush.
When you feel ready,
Slowly roll to your right side and pause.
Gradually and gently come up to sitting.
The practice of yoga nidra is now complete.
Hari Om Tat Sat.
Hari Om Tat Sat.
