Find a comfortable position for yourself.
Perhaps lying on the back with the arms and the hands resting by the sides of the body.
The legs and the feet in a neutral position.
Maybe a blanket or pillow under the knees to release through the low back.
Or taking any other position that works for you today.
The main important factor of how you place yourself is that you can be comfortable and that you are able to remain still for a period of time.
Feeling the connection between yourself and the supports beneath you.
Letting yourself release into that support.
Letting go physically.
Almost kind of melting into the couch,
The pillows,
Or the yoga mat.
Letting it all go.
And acknowledging any thoughts or feelings you have in this moment here.
Just noticing what's happening within you.
Observing yourself.
Noticing anything that might be going on physically.
And then beginning to notice your breath.
The natural inhales and exhales that your body is breathing.
Following the rhythm of your inhalation and exhalation.
And paying a little more attention to the inhales.
Focusing a little on the inhale breath.
And observing how the inhale breath makes you feel.
The sensations of the inhale might not be something you necessarily need to put into words,
But just simply feel and experience.
Or maybe it makes you feel a little more energized,
Lighter.
Just notice the effects of the inhale.
And then draw your awareness to the exhale breaths.
Bring your focus to the exhale breaths.
Just observing the sensations that occur with the exhale.
Maybe you notice a release,
A letting go with the exhale.
The sensation of letting go that happens even more when you let go of control of the breath.
When you relax the muscles and just let the exhale happen.
Feeling that release in the physical sense and maybe also emotionally or mentally.
And then notice the spaces between the inhales and the exhales.
There is a pause between each inhale and exhale.
And notice these pauses between the breath.
They might be negligible,
Very small.
Or something a bit longer and more noticeable.
Maybe the pause between inhale and exhale is shorter than the pause between exhale and inhale.
Or vice versa.
But just letting yourself become aware of those spaces between the breath and all the aspects of the breath.
The inhales,
The exhales,
The exhales.
The inhales,
The exhales,
And the space in between.
Now say to yourself mentally,
I am practicing Yoga Nidra.
Say to yourself mentally,
I will remain still for Yoga Nidra.
And say to yourself mentally,
I will stay awake for Yoga Nidra.
And then bring your awareness to your heart space.
And here feel your heart's desire,
Your sankalpa.
The sankalpa is an intention we set for ourselves during the Yoga Nidra practice.
Planting the seed of our intention to grow and manifest in our lives.
To grow and manifest in our lives.
So feel in your heart something you'd like to be true for yourself in your life.
Visualize it clearly in your mind.
And phrase it in the present tense,
As if it's already happening.
And then repeat your sankalpa three times mentally with the same wording and the full confidence that it will happen for you.
Moving on now to the rotation of consciousness through the body.
The body stays still while we let our consciousness travel from part to part through it.
As each part is named,
Simply bring your awareness to it.
It might help to visualize or mentally repeat the name of the body part as well.
And welcome any and all sensations that may or may not occur.
So now bring your awareness to your right hand thumb.
Index finger,
Middle finger,
Ring finger,
Little finger,
Palm of the hand,
Back of the hand,
The whole right hand,
Wrist,
Lower arm,
Elbow,
Upper arm,
Shoulder,
Armpit,
Right side of the ribcage,
Waist,
Hip,
Thigh,
Hamstring,
Knee,
Back of the knee,
Thigh,
Shin,
Calf muscle,
Ankle,
Heel,
Sole of the foot,
Ball of the foot,
Arch of the foot,
Toe of the foot,
Top of the foot,
Right big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe.
Now bring your awareness to the left side of the body starting with the left hand thumb.
Index finger,
Middle finger,
Ring finger,
Little finger,
Palm of the hand,
Back of the hand,
The whole left hand,
Wrist,
Lower arm,
Elbow,
Upper arm,
Shoulder,
Armpit,
Left side of the ribcage,
Waist,
Thigh,
Hamstring,
Knee,
Back of the knee,
Thigh,
Shin,
Calf muscle,
Ankle,
Heel,
Sole of the foot,
Ball of the foot,
Arch of the foot,
Top of the foot,
Left big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe.
Stay awake and aware and draw the awareness to the back of the head.
Neck,
Right shoulder blade,
Left shoulder blade,
Upper back,
Middle back,
Lower back,
The whole back,
The whole spinal column,
Buttocks,
Hamstrings,
Calf muscles,
Heels,
And then bring awareness to the top of the head,
The top of the head,
Forehead,
Right temple,
Left temple,
Right eyebrow,
Left eyebrow,
The eyebrow center,
Right eye,
Left eye,
Right cheek,
Left cheek,
Right ear,
Left ear,
Right nostril,
Left nostril.
Bridge of the nose,
Tip of the nose,
The whole nose,
Sinus passages,
The brain,
Upper lip,
Lower lip,
Both lips together,
Teeth,
Tongue,
Gums,
The whole mouth,
Chin,
Jawbone,
Throat,
Right collarbone,
Left collarbone,
The hollow between the collarbones,
Right chest,
Left chest,
Center of chest,
Upper abdomen,
Navel,
Lower abdomen,
The whole right leg,
Whole left leg,
Both legs together,
Whole right arm,
Whole left arm,
Both arms together,
The whole head,
Whole right side of the body,
Whole left side of the body,
Whole back of the body,
Whole front of the body,
The legs,
Arms,
Head,
Right,
Left,
Front,
Together,
Awareness of the whole body together,
The whole body together,
The whole body together.
Now,
Become aware of the body and where it touches the supports beneath you.
Become aware of that connection between the heels and the floor.
The backs of the legs and the floor,
The buttocks and hips and the floor,
The back and the floor,
Right elbow and the floor,
Left elbow and the floor,
Right hand and the floor,
Left hand and the floor,
Back of the head and the floor.
Feel all the points where the body touches the supports beneath you.
Feel all the points together wherever the body touches the floor.
Now,
Bring awareness back to your breath,
An awareness if you are awake or asleep,
And try to stay awake and aware,
Aware of the practice,
Aware of yourself,
Aware of the breath,
Feeling the inhales and exhales in the body,
The breath rising and falling.
Feel the breath rising and falling at the lower belly.
With inhale,
The belly rises,
And exhale,
The belly falls.
Inhale,
Belly rises.
Exhale,
The belly deflates.
And keeping this focus on the breath at the belly,
Start to count the breaths backwards from the number 27,
Inhaling 27,
Exhaling 27,
Inhaling 26,
Exhaling 26,
Inhaling 25,
Exhaling 25,
And so on,
Continuing to count the breaths backwards from 27 to zero with awareness of breath at the lower belly.
If you lose focus or where you are in the count,
Simply start again at the number 27,
Inhaling 27,
Exhaling 27,
Keeping all your focus on breathing and counting,
Counting and breathing.
Now,
Let go of the count,
An awareness of breath at the belly,
And feel heavy.
Feel heaviness in the body.
The body is connected to the supports beneath you,
And let yourself sink into them.
Feel heavy,
Like you are made of stone or lead.
Completely give in to gravity,
And let yourself feel completely heavy,
So heavy it's hard to lift an eyelid or a finger,
So heavy it's hard to wiggle a toe.
Let yourself feel heavy in the body.
Now,
Release heaviness and feel a sense of lightness.
The body is very,
Very light now.
All of the places where the body is touching the floor beneath you,
You can now feel yourself lifting away from them,
So light you're lifting away from the supports beneath you,
So light it feels like the body's made of a mist or a cloud,
So light it floats and drifts,
So light you feel heavy not at all,
But light and airy.
Feel a lightness in the body.
Now,
Let go of lightness and feel your normal body weight again.
Feel like your normal self.
The you you think of as you.
And now we will bring awareness to the chakras,
These hubs of energy in our body,
Typically located along the spinal cord.
We begin at the root chakra,
Which is at the base of the spine at the pelvic floor,
Drawing awareness to this area and picturing there a red star glowing brightly.
The root chakra,
The center of energy for our sense of safety,
Security,
And stability.
Picture a red star at the pelvic floor,
At the pelvic floor,
Bringing awareness to the sacral chakra at the lower belly,
The sacral chakra in the lower abdomen,
And at the sacrum and the spine.
Picture in this area an orange star glowing.
Maybe you can feel the star or simply just visualize it.
The sacral chakra,
An energy hub for creativity,
Emotions,
And balance.
In our unconscious self.
Now bringing awareness to the solar plexus chakra at the navel or a little above it,
And in the same area of the spine behind the navel.
Feel here a yellow star sparkling.
Like the sun,
The solar plexus,
Our own inner source of energy and self-confidence.
Picture here a yellow star.
Bringing awareness to the heart chakra in the heart space at the center of the chest.
Picture here a green star sparkling.
The heart chakra,
Our center of empathy,
Compassion,
And love.
Picture the green star here.
Maybe feel the qualities of the heart chakra.
Glowing with the green star.
Drawing awareness to the throat chakra at the throat.
Here a sky blue star sparkles at our center for expression and communication.
Feel the blue star sparkling.
Here at the throat chakra.
Now bring awareness to the space between the eyes.
And follow that space to the center of the mind.
And there see an indigo star in the center of the mind,
The third eye chakra.
The seat of intuition,
Knowledge,
Wisdom.
Feel there in the mind space a sparkling indigo star.
And then bringing awareness to the top of the head,
The crown chakra.
See there a violet star sparkling.
This center,
Our connection to the universe around us,
The divine.
The chakra that connects us to the energies beyond us.
To the energies beyond us.
See a sparkling violet star at the crown of the head.
And then see yourself as this rainbow of stars following the line of your spine from the base,
A red star,
A orange star at the belly,
A yellow star at the navel,
Green at the heart,
Blue at the throat,
Indigo at the mind space,
And violet at the top of the head.
Sparkling and shimmering,
Illuminating you.
Now come back to your body and your breath.
Become aware of your breath again.
Aware if you are asleep or awake.
And feel again the inhales and the exhales.
Noticing how the inhale brings a sense of energy and renewal with it.
The exhale,
A sense of release.
And then think of yourself in all of your thoughts,
Your feelings,
Your physical sensations that you feel define you in this moment.
That you feel define you in this moment.
And observe which of those feelings,
Thoughts,
And sensations are truly yours or perhaps impressions that have been placed upon you from your day-to-day living,
Your work,
Your task,
Your family.
See these as individual objects.
And if there are feelings,
Sensations,
Or thoughts that aren't yours but really belong to someone or something else,
You can now let them go using the natural breath to release what is not yours.
With each inhale,
Feel your own energy returning to you.
And with each exhale,
Feel that which is not yours drifting away.
As you inhale,
You come back more and more to yourself,
Cleansing yourself.
And with the exhale,
You let go that which is not yours.
And with the exhale,
You let go that which is not yours.
Feel each inhale bringing you closer and closer to home.
Each inhale bringing renewed vitality and energy back to you.
And each exhale letting whatever you don't need go.
And now,
Bring to mind again your sankalpa.
Now that you have cleaned house of yourself,
Recall your sankalpa.
Envision it as if it's already happening.
And repeat it again mentally three times with full awareness and the conviction that it will happen in your lifetime.
Begin to become aware of the body and its space in the room.
Notice the temperature of the air,
The sensation of the clothes on the skin.
Listen to the sounds that are all around you.
Becoming aware of all the little individual sounds that make up your space.
And seeing if you can recall the space in great detail,
The colors,
Objects,
And textures that make up the room.
And gradually begin to reawaken the body,
Gently moving the fingers and the toes,
Perhaps circling the wrist a few times in one direction and the ankles,
And going the other way.
You can either stay lying down a little bit more with the eyes open,
Taking in the light around you,
Or come to a seated position.
Wherever you are,
Take a moment to thank yourself for taking this time out today,
For making time for your practice so that you can take this out into the world,
Making the world a better place for you and those who get to share it with you.
I thank you all so very much as well.
Namaste.
