Being With Our Hearts Yoga Nidra

This simple yoga nidra is perfect for beginners who are learning to gift themselves time to rest and be still. It includes the Bihar Body Scan. This track is designed to bring you close to your heart space. There is nothing you need to do except ensure that you are warm, cosy, and can be uninterrupted for this time. Thank you for being here. Enjoy.

Transcript

You This is a practice of being with your heart.

I'm your guide Michelle for this practice of deep rest.

The heart can be a place of confusion,

Silence,

Mystery and even something foreign.

Dedicate this time to reinstate,

Listen,

Comfort and become familiar.

Spend a couple of minutes now tending to the comfort of your body,

Perhaps lying on your back,

Arms by your side,

Palms open receiving,

Adding a pillow under your head,

A blanket over your body for softness,

Covering your eyes with a gentle eye pillow or fabric.

You may like a bolster under your knees.

Allow your body to slowly melt into the earth that is holding it.

Feel the earth rise to hold you.

You are held here.

You are loved here.

All of you is welcome here.

Notice your body breathing.

Inhale,

Belly rise.

Exhale,

Belly fall.

Inhale,

Belly rise.

Exhale,

Belly fall.

Notice your breath moving through your body.

Feel it moving down your spine.

Feel it move back up your chest,

Down to your lower belly,

Up to your throat,

Down to your upper legs,

Up to your lips,

Down to your lower legs,

Up to your eyes,

Down to your toes,

Up to the crown of your head.

Feel the breath move through your body in its own rhythm.

Allow it to breathe on its own.

Begin to feel the temperature of the air around you,

On your nose,

On your lips,

On your hands.

Notice the sound or vibrations your ears can hear or feel.

Sounds far away.

Is there the sound of wind,

Birds or something else of nature?

Is there traffic,

Is there a hum of an appliance?

Now notice the sounds very near to you,

Perhaps a fan whirling,

Someone breathing near you.

Notice the sound of my voice.

Allow this sound to be your tether.

Come back to my voice whenever you need and if you drift away that's okay too.

In the quietness of your room,

In the quietness of your body,

Listen for the beating of your heart.

Perhaps it is a soft thud,

Perhaps it is a fast pulse.

Visualise your heart beating.

Visualise your heart a colour,

A shape.

Thank your heart for being here with you,

For beating relentlessly each day,

Never complaining.

Allow this to be a time to share with your heart,

To rest with your heart,

To lay with your heart and to dream with your heart.

Ask your heart if it would like to be held or would it like to hold you,

Or lay beside you,

Or breathe with you.

Know that your heart can endure whichever you choose.

And now the practice of Yoga Nidra begins.

It is time now to set the Sankalpa for this practice.

As you are now listening to your heart,

You are able to set an intention for this time of rest.

This is something already within you that you are bringing to the surface.

The Sankalpa is a short positive statement that begins with I.

Is there something coming up for you from your heart?

Align your Sankalpa with a message from your heart.

For example,

I am loved,

Or I am peaceful,

Or I am whole.

Listen to what arises for you and allow it to be the heart of your practice.

Be playful with this,

There is no need to strain.

Repeat it to yourself silently or out loud three times with awareness.

Bring awareness to your whole body,

Vibrations,

Feelings,

Tensions,

Feelings.

Begin on the right side of your body.

Bring awareness to your right thumb,

Index finger,

Middle finger,

Ring finger,

Pinky finger,

Palm of your right hand,

Back of the hand,

Wrist,

Forearm,

Elbow,

Right upper arm,

Shoulder,

Underarm,

Right side of the ribcage and lung,

Waistline,

Thigh,

Knee,

Lower leg,

Ankle,

Top of the right foot,

Sole of the right foot,

Big toe,

All of your toes.

Hold the entire right side of your body in your awareness,

The whole right side.

Feel your right side with awareness now.

Move your awareness to your left hand,

Left thumb,

Index finger,

Middle finger,

Ring finger,

Pinky finger,

Palm of your hand,

Back of the hand,

Left wrist,

Forearm,

Elbow,

Upper arm,

Shoulder,

Underarm,

Left side of the ribcage and lung,

Waistline,

Thigh,

Kneecap,

Shin,

Ankle,

Top of the left foot,

Sole of the left foot,

Big toe,

All of your toes.

Wash the entire left side of your body with awareness,

Whole left side.

Feel the entire left side of your body now.

Now to explore the back of your body moving from right to left fairly quickly.

Feel the sole of your right foot,

The sole of your left foot,

The soles of both of your feet together,

The back of your right heel,

The back of your left heel,

Both heels together,

The right calf,

The left calf,

Both calves together,

Back of your right knee,

Back of the left knee,

The backs of both knees together,

Right hamstrings,

Left hamstrings,

Both sets of hamstrings together,

Right buttocks,

Left buttocks,

Both sides of your buttocks,

Back of your pelvis,

Lower back,

Middle back,

Upper back.

Feel your right shoulder blade,

Left shoulder blade,

Both shoulder blades together,

Right arm,

Left arm,

Both arms together,

Back of your neck,

Back of your head,

The crown of your head.

Feel your entire back body.

Now feel the crown of your head,

Your forehead,

Your right eyebrow,

Left eyebrow,

Both eyebrows together,

Brow centre,

Right eyelid,

Left eyelid,

Both eyelids together,

Right eyeball,

Left eyeball,

Both eyes together.

Feel your right nostril,

Left nostril,

Both nostrils together,

The bridge of your nose,

Tip of your nose,

Your whole entire nose.

Feel your upper lip,

Lower lip,

Both lips together.

Feel your chin,

Feel the right side of your jaw,

The left side of your jaw,

And feel both sides of your jaw together.

Then feel your whole face.

Feel the right side of your head,

The left side of your head.

Now feel both sides of your head together.

Feel the right side of your throat,

The left side of your throat,

And feel your whole neck and throat together.

Feel your right collarbone,

Your left collarbone,

And both collarbones together.

The right side of your chest,

The left side of your chest,

Both sides of your chest together,

Your whole chest together.

Feel the area of your abdomen,

From your ribs to your belly button,

Lower belly,

Pelvis,

Root of your pelvic floor,

Both thighs,

Both kneecaps,

Both shins,

Both ankles,

Tops of both of your feet.

Feel your right leg from your toes to your hip,

Feel your left leg from your toes to your hip.

Feel the entirety of both of your legs together.

Feel your right arm from your fingertips to your shoulder,

Your left arm from your fingertips to your shoulder.

Now feel both arms together.

Keep your arms and your legs in your awareness and add your entire torso and your head to the experience now.

Feel and sense your entire body,

Your whole body.

Feel your whole body together right now,

Whole body awareness.

Feel energy moving inside your whole body.

Watch your breath as you would watch the breath of a little baby or someone lying next to you.

Observe how it moves in your body.

Observe how it moves the chest or belly.

Now we will move into pairs of opposites.

Can you think of a time when you felt lost?

Perhaps you weren't sure which direction to take at a crossroad,

Blessed with too many options,

Looking or waiting for guidance.

Now let it go.

Breathe it out.

And then maybe this was followed by a time when you felt found,

An inner knowing you chose the right path,

Able to hear the tiny whispers.

You followed the breadcrumbs and the signs that led you.

Bring both your lost and found together in the same room.

Notice how you can go between them both as life takes its journey.

They are both needed.

Breathe it out.

Can you think of a time when you felt empty?

It had all poured out,

Stripped bare of all you know and all you feel,

Carrying nothing,

No thing,

Lightness.

Breathe it out.

Now a time when you felt full.

Notice the feeling in your body,

Full to the brim of everything,

Every feeling or all of one feeling vibrating through your body.

Breathe it out.

Seasons from one solstice to another,

Winter to summer.

Imagine winter and what that brings for you,

A smell or a sound,

The clothes,

The food,

The temperature of the air.

Breathe it out.

Now to summer and the memories that are stored for you.

The feeling of the heat on your skin,

Maybe a salty sea,

The clothes draping on your skin.

Let it go,

Breathe it out,

Noticing the wholeness of who you are,

The wholeness of your heart.

We come now to a visualisation.

A number of different things will be named.

Try to imagine them as we go along.

Bring awareness to your third eye or brow centre.

Manifest the image.

A pair of reading glasses,

A wicker chair,

An old wicker chair,

A wicker chair,

A nectarine,

A birthday card,

A fox in the snowy woods,

A pot of tea,

A pink flamingo,

The Taj Mahal,

An old paperback book,

A blue heart,

A red heart,

A golden heart.

Lay here with complete wholeness.

Your body is whole and your heart,

No matter how many pieces,

Is still whole.

Rest in this wholeness,

Holding your golden heart.

All of you is welcome here.

This is the time to repeat your sankalpa that you made at the start of this practice.

Repeat it three times with awareness and wholeness.

Carry this with you for the day,

In your pocket,

In your mind,

In your heart.

The practice of yoga nidra is now complete.

Slowly bring your awareness back to your breath.

Inhale,

Belly rise.

Exhale,

Belly fall.

Begin to feel your body,

The parts lying on the floor,

The parts touching other parts.

Become aware of the noises in the room.

Become aware of the feeling in your toes and fingertips.

When you feel ready,

Roll over to your right side,

Lying in the fetal position.

Rest here for a moment.

Recall the feeling of wholeness.

Recall that time with your heart and honour it,

A gift you gave yourself.

When you are ready,

Sit up and slowly open your eyes and let the world slowly drift back in.

Thank you for being here.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Reviews

Wonderfully calming, thank you! I loved the soothing voice, personally I would have needed a bit more time in between the different parts of the body to be able to acknowledge them 🙏☀️

Really enjoyed, very calm relaxing voice and really clear instruction !!
Thanks so much