Please come to lie down in Shavasana,
The resting pose.
Have the spine in one straight line,
Including the head.
Arms are slightly away from the body,
The palms facing up.
Allow the feet to naturally roll out to the sides,
The face,
Jaw,
And abdomen all relaxed.
Have the eyes and mouth gently closed,
And feel for an even weight across both sides of the body.
Take this time now to make any necessary adjustments so that the body can be comfortable and settled.
If there is an adjustment you can make that would allow the body to be even five percent more comfortable.
Please make that adjustment now.
And allow a heaviness to move through the body.
Allow a heaviness to move through the body,
Feeling the body becoming heavier and heavier,
Feeling heaviness throughout the whole body.
And now allow a lightness to move through the body.
Allow a lightness to move through the body,
Feeling the body becoming lighter and lighter,
Feeling lightness throughout the whole body.
And allow the body to return to its natural weight.
I'll now invite you to formulate an intention or resolve for the practice.
In yoga,
This is called a sankalpa.
This is in the form of a precise,
Positive,
Clear phrase of something you wish to have,
Change,
Or achieve in your life.
Please formulate this phrase now and repeat it to yourself so that it can be recalled at the end of the practice.
And now move your awareness to the sounds outside of the room.
Push your awareness further and further outside of the room to find and notice sounds,
Loud sounds,
Soft sounds,
Close sounds,
And sounds in the distance.
Keep moving your awareness from sound to sound,
Always listening for a new one.
We're not analyzing sounds,
We're just hearing them.
Keep moving your awareness from sound to sound.
And now move your awareness to the sounds just outside of the room.
Find and notice all the sounds just outside of the room.
And now move your awareness to the sounds within the room.
Find and notice all the subtle sounds within the room,
Including the sounds of the body.
And now letting go of the sound awareness,
Letting it go.
And move your awareness to the body,
Whole body,
Lying across your space.
I will now ask you to rotate your awareness around parts of the body.
As I name a part,
Try to picture it in the mind,
And then listen for the next that is named.
And keep following my voice with full awareness,
Beginning with all 10 toes.
The heels,
Soles of the feet,
Calf muscles,
Backs of knees,
Backs of thighs,
The buttocks,
Middle of the back,
Upper back,
Both hands,
Wrists,
Lower arms,
Elbows,
Upper arms,
Wrists,
Armpits,
Shoulders,
Back of the neck,
Back of the head,
Crown of the head,
Forehead,
Temples,
Ears,
Eyebrows,
The eyebrow center,
Both eyes,
Cheekbones,
The nose,
Lips,
Jaw,
Chest,
Upper abdomen,
Lower abdomen,
Pelvis,
Fronts of thighs,
Kneecaps,
Shins,
Ankles,
Tops of feet,
All 10 toes.
Feel into the whole right side of the body,
Whole right side of the body.
Feel into the whole left side of the body,
Whole left side of the body.
Now all at once,
Feel into the whole body,
Whole body,
Whole body.
Bring your awareness to the natural flow of breath as it moves in and out from the nostrils.
Become fully aware of the breath as you breathe in,
And fully aware as you breathe out.
As you next breathe in,
Feel as though the whole body is expanding out with the in-breath.
And as you breathe out,
Feel the whole body deeply relax.
As you breathe in,
Feel every single cell of the body expand and energize.
And as you breathe out,
Feel every single cell deeply relax.
Keep on practicing.
Make sure you're aware of what you're doing,
Breathing in and expanding the body,
Breathing out and relaxing the body.
And now letting this go,
Letting go of the body expanding and relaxing.
Let the body return to its natural size and shape,
And let the breath return to its natural spontaneous rhythm in the nostrils.
I will now name some feelings and sensations.
These are all things you have felt before.
They can be felt and then let go.
When you hear each one,
Try to feel it throughout the whole body,
Beginning with the feeling of cold,
Feeling cold throughout the whole body,
Cold.
And now bring about the feeling of warmth,
Feeling warmth throughout the whole body,
Warmth.
And now the feeling of agitation,
Feeling agitation throughout the whole body,
Agitation.
And now bring about the feeling of calm,
Feeling calm throughout the whole body,
Calm.
And now the feeling of hunger,
Feeling hunger throughout the whole body,
Hunger.
And now the feeling of satisfaction,
Feeling satisfaction throughout the whole body,
Satisfaction.
And now the feeling of fear,
Feeling fear throughout the whole body,
Fear.
And now bring about the feeling of security,
Feeling security throughout the whole body,
Security.
And now the feeling of bitterness,
Feeling bitterness throughout the whole body,
Bitterness.
And now the feeling of sweetness,
Feeling sweetness throughout the whole body,
Sweetness.
And now the feeling of scarcity,
Feeling scarcity throughout the whole body,
Scarcity.
And now the feeling of abundance,
Feeling abundance throughout the whole body,
Abundance.
And now the feeling of anger,
Feeling anger throughout the whole body,
Anger.
And now bring about the feeling of peace,
Feeling peace throughout the whole body,
Pervasive peace.
I will now name some symbols.
When I name each one,
Try to picture it in the mind.
It doesn't matter whether you can or can't.
Simply feel as though it is there.
Visualize a sacred altar,
A sacred altar,
A sacred altar.
Incense burning,
Incense burning,
Incense burning.
A steady candle flame,
A steady candle flame,
A steady candle flame.
A small bell,
A small bell,
A small bell.
A clock on a wall,
A clock on a wall,
Clock on a wall.
A dining table,
A dining table,
A dining table.
People talking in a kitchen,
People talking in a kitchen,
People talking in a kitchen.
A glass of water,
A glass of water,
A glass of water.
A vase of fresh flowers,
A vase of fresh flowers,
Vase of fresh flowers.
Seeds on the ground,
Seeds on the ground,
Seeds on the ground.
Birds in a birdbath,
Birds in a birdbath,
Birds in a birdbath.
A moonlit garden,
A moonlit garden,
A moonlit garden.
The endless night sky,
The endless night sky,
The endless night sky.
And now,
Picture yourself standing at the edge of a perfectly still silvery lake.
The full moon is rising over distant hills,
And you pause for a moment to take in your surroundings.
The lake is surrounded by a green grassy field,
And moonlight illuminates the landscape,
Reflecting off the still water.
You turn to your side and see a narrow foot track leading into the field.
You step forward and begin to walk along the path.
You make your way along the winding foot track,
Leading through the field of tall grass.
You feel the soft earth beneath your feet as you walk,
And notice the breeze moving through the grass.
You walk along the path,
Step by step,
Until you hear a rustling sound beside you.
You turn towards the sound and see a white deer walking through the grass.
The deer looks at you,
Stops,
And sits down.
The deer is perfectly still and looks at you with her large sparkling eyes.
You pause for a moment to connect with her and take in the experience.
And then the deer stands up and begins to walk once again,
Disappearing into the tall grass.
You continue forward along the path as it gradually widens,
Until you reach a small clearing.
Ahead of you in the clearing is an ancient-looking stone building with a domed roof.
You walk over to the building,
Which has a wooden door that is partially open.
Through the doorway,
You can see flickering golden light emanating from inside.
You walk forward to the entrance and step into the building.
The floor beneath your feet is made of rectangular pieces of stone,
Worn to a smooth texture for many years of people walking upon it.
The walls are dotted with many alcoves,
Each containing a single lit candle.
And in the center of the room is an opulent daybed,
Covered with blankets and cushions.
You walk over to the daybed,
Arrange the blankets comfortably,
And lie down on your back.
As you look up towards the ceiling,
You see the full,
Bright moon shining down through a circular opening.
And you continue to lie on the daybed,
Bathed in moonlight from above and the warm glow of candles around you,
And enter a deeply relaxed,
Restorative state.
As you're lying on the daybed within the stone building,
You feel a breeze from outside flow across your body.
You sit up and walk towards the door and step back out into the clearing and onto the pathway.
You walk along the path the way you came,
Further and further as the path narrows and winds through the tall grass.
You pass the place where you saw the white deer,
Continuing along the path through the field,
Until you arrive at the place where you began,
At the edge of the silvery lake.
The moon is reflected in perfect detail on the still water.
And you stand here before the lake,
Looking out towards the horizon at the endless night sky.
And now,
Let the visualization fade,
Letting go of the visualization,
Letting it go.
And bring your awareness up to the mind space,
To Chittakash,
The deep,
Dark,
Infinite space of the mind behind the forehead.
It's like a viewing screen for the mind,
Yet it is infinite on the inside.
Look deeply into this space now,
Becoming aware of any thoughts or feelings,
Any colors,
Patterns,
Or pictures,
Remaining as an observer without becoming involved.
Simply be a witness of the space of the mind.
Where is your awareness?
Have you become lost in a thought,
Or are you the observer?
You are not the thoughts.
You are not the thinker.
You are the awareness.
Keep cultivating a witness consciousness.
And now,
Withdraw your awareness from the mind space.
Withdraw your awareness now from the mind space.
Keep withdrawing your awareness now from the mind space,
And bring your awareness back to the breath.
Feel the breath in the nostrils,
And deepen the breath a little.
And now,
Bring to mind the resolve you made at the start of the practice,
Your sankalpa.
Bring it to mind now,
And repeat it to yourself three times,
Sending it deep into the system for manifestation.
And now,
Bring your awareness back to the body,
The whole body,
Whole physical body,
Lying across your space,
Making sure you are fully aware of your whole physical body,
Of who you are,
And where you are.
The yoga nidra practice is now complete.
Start to introduce some gentle movement into the body by wiggling the fingers and the toes.
Take a deep breath in,
And raise your arms up above your head,
Stretching from fingers to toes.
Breathing out,
Allow the arms to float down beside you.
Take a few moments now to tune into your body.
If there's any movement that you wish to take,
Such as drawing the knees in towards the chest,
Rolling out your wrists,
Or anything else that your body is calling you towards,
Go ahead and do that now.
And then when you feel ready,
Roll onto one side,
And rest there for a few breaths.
And then whenever you're ready,
Come to sit up and close your practice.
Om Shanti Shanti Shanti.
