This yoga nidra practice is designed to deeply relax.
It can be used to assist sleep if you're having trouble falling asleep.
It can be used in place of sleep in the daytime when you just need a short rest.
In yoga nidra we bring ourselves to a state between being awake and being asleep.
Bringing awareness to the parts of ourselves that are usually hidden to our conscious thinking.
At the end of the practice you'll hear the sound of a bell which signals the end of this yoga nidra.
To begin come to lie down on your back in shavasana.
If you're not familiar with this pose it's the ultimate rest pose in yoga.
So lying down on your back,
Allowing your arms to come down by your side at a 45 degree angle away from the body.
You can place a pillow or a cushion under your head if you like to make yourself more comfortable.
Allow your legs to be long,
Allow the legs to roll open and your feet to fall away from each other.
Press your elbows slightly into your mat that will help open your shoulders and lengthen your shoulder blades down your back.
Then feel the back of the rib cage lengthening down as well.
Loosen the back of your neck.
Gently roll your head from side to side to release any tension in the back of the neck.
Allow your face to soften.
Relax your eyes and soften in your cheeks.
Allow your lower jaw to gently open a little.
Begin to notice the sounds you can hear around the room you're in and any sounds outside the room.
Just allowing your mind to gently move from sound to sound.
Just noticing,
Not needing to follow the sound or name the sound or have any stories attached to the sound.
And then bring your awareness to the sounds that you may hear inside your own body.
The sound of your breath.
The sound of the air gently moving in with your inhale and out with your exhale.
Perhaps you can hear the sound of your heart beating.
We're going to begin the rotation of awareness throughout the body.
So as I mention each body part,
See if you can just float your awareness to that part of the body.
Sometimes it can be difficult to sense or feel one part of the body.
If that's the case,
That's okay.
Just move on and follow along.
The order in which we rotate our awareness throughout the body not only deeply relaxes the physical body but also allows the mind to lie down and rest.
If as we go through the body you find your awareness drifting off,
Just come back when you remember.
Begin by bringing your awareness to your right hand.
Feel but don't move the part I mention.
Feel your thumb,
Second finger,
Third finger,
Fourth finger,
Little finger.
Feel the palm of your right hand,
The back of your hand,
Your right wrist,
Right forearm,
Right elbow,
Right upper arm,
Right shoulder,
Right armpit,
Right ribcage,
Right waist,
Right hip,
Right thigh,
Knee,
Calf,
Ankle,
The heel of your right foot,
The sole of your right foot,
The top of your right foot,
Your right big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Little toe.
Now bring your awareness to your left hand,
To your left thumb,
Second finger,
Third finger,
Fourth finger,
Little finger.
Feel into the palm of your left hand,
The back of your hand,
Your left wrist,
Left forearm,
Elbow,
Upper arm,
Left shoulder,
Left armpit,
Left ribcage,
Left waist,
Left hip,
Left thigh,
Knee,
Calf,
And ankle,
The heel of your left foot,
The sole of your left foot,
The top of your left foot,
Your left big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Little toe.
Now bring awareness to the back of your head,
To your right shoulder blade,
Left shoulder blade,
Between your shoulder blades,
Your mid back,
Your lower back,
Your right buttock,
Your left buttock,
The top of your head,
Your forehead,
Your right temple,
Your left temple,
Your right eyebrow,
Left eyebrow,
The space between your eyebrows,
Right eye,
Your left eye,
Your right nostril,
Left nostril,
Your right cheek,
Your left cheek,
Your right ear,
Your left ear,
Upper lip,
Lower lip,
Both lips together,
Your chin,
Your jaw,
Your throat,
Your right collarbone,
Your left collarbone,
The right side of your chest,
The left side of your chest,
Your upper abdomen,
Your navel,
Your lower abdomen,
Your pelvis,
The whole of your right leg,
The whole of your left leg,
The whole right arm,
The whole left arm,
The whole face,
The whole head,
The whole torso,
The whole of the back of your body,
The whole of the front of your body,
The whole body,
The whole body,
The whole body.
Feeling the vibration of the bell through your body,
Come back to the feeling of your breath flowing through your nostrils.
Follow the path of the in-breath,
Follow the path of the out-breath.
Maintain your awareness of the breath and at the same time begin to develop awareness of your physical body.
Your body is relaxed and lying on the floor.
Notice the feeling of your clothes,
Notice the feeling of the parts of your body making contact with the mat.
Notice the heaviness of your body as it rests on the floor.
With your eyes closed,
Visualize the room around you.
Sense the room around you.
Aware of the room you're in,
Aware of your body.
Begin now to bring some movement into your fingers and your toes.
Reach out gently through the arms and the legs.
Perhaps hug the knees into your chest before rolling to one side and gently pressing yourself up into a seated position.
This yoga nidra practice has come to an end.
