Hello and welcome to this yoga nidra.
And this yoga nidra is all about connecting to the element of water.
So do whatever you need to do to get as comfortable as possible.
Make sure you have everything that you need.
Perhaps a pillow,
An eye mask or blanket.
And remember,
Everything that I say throughout this practice is just an invitation.
You are welcome to just listen to the sound of my voice and drift off into sleep if you prefer.
And you are of course welcome to move as needed throughout this practice with the intention of coming back to stillness again.
Now just notice any sounds that are around you.
And there's no need to latch onto these sounds or to investigate the sounds with your mind.
Because as soon as they are there,
They are gone again.
Any sound that you hear can just deepen this practice.
As you're lying here,
Maybe you could see yourself floating in a body of water.
And this could be any body of water.
It could be a river,
A lake or an ocean.
Whatever feels best to you at this time.
And you are completely safe and at ease in this body of water.
And as you are floating,
Are you able to feel how the water below supports your body?
How does it feel to settle into this space?
Settle into this body of water?
Feeling your own body effortlessly be?
How does it feel to be held here by the water?
Is the water warm or is it slightly cool to the touch?
However it feels,
Allow yourself to just be.
This is your time to just be.
In this space,
Perhaps an intention for this practice today might arise.
And this could be a thought,
A feeling,
Or perhaps an image.
And if there's no intention,
That's absolutely fine.
The intention to just receive rest in this present moment is more than enough.
Now let's turn our attention to our breath.
Just allowing the body to be breathed however it wants to be.
There is nothing to be forced here.
Notice how the breaths go in and out again,
Just like the waves of the ocean on the shoreline go in and out again,
Feeling the gentle tide of the breath like the gentle waves of the sea on the sand.
And as you're floating in the water,
Breathing gently,
Perhaps you could start to see it rain.
Gentle droplets of water falling from the sky above you and a droplet falls onto each part of the body,
Starting at the third eye,
The space in between the eyebrows,
A drop on the base of the throat,
A drop on the right shoulder,
The right elbow,
The right wrist,
And little drops of rain on the tips of each of the fingers,
The right hand thumb,
Index finger,
Middle finger,
Ring finger,
And little finger,
A drop on the wrist,
Elbow,
Right shoulder,
And again a droplet at the base of the throat,
A drop on the left shoulder,
The left elbow,
Left wrist,
And again little droplets on the tips of each of the fingers,
The left hand thumb,
Index finger,
Middle finger,
Ring finger,
And little finger,
A drop on the wrist,
Elbow,
Left shoulder,
And another drop at the base of the throat,
A drop at the centre of the chest,
Drops on the right and left side of the chest,
Another drop in the centre of the chest,
A rain drop on the navel,
The pelvis,
The right hip,
Right knee,
Right ankle,
Drops on all of the toes,
The right big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
And fifth toe,
The right ankle,
Knee,
Hip,
And a drop of rain on the pelvis again,
The left hip,
Knee,
Ankle,
And drops on all of the toes,
The left big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
And fifth toe,
The left ankle,
Knee,
Hip,
And another drop at the centre of the pelvis,
Drops on the navel,
Centre of the chest,
Base of the throat,
And again at the third eye where we started,
The whole of the body,
The whole of the body,
Covered in droplets of rain,
The whole of the body,
Resting,
And how does it feel to be resting in your body of water,
With your breaths still going in and out,
Like the waves,
Can you feel the warmth of the sun on your skin as you lie here,
And can you feel the coolness of the water holding you,
Can you feel the weight of your body,
And the buoyancy of the water,
Could you feel both the warmth and the coolness at the same time,
And can you notice the feeling of the weight of your body and the buoyancy of the water at the same time,
Let's play a little visualisation game,
I'm going to say some words,
And if you like,
You can picture them in your mind for a few moments,
And we'll start with a still lake,
A waterfall,
A gentle stream,
Rain on a window,
A deep well,
A storm,
A fish pond,
A babbling creek,
The waves of the ocean,
Waves lapping against the sand,
An empty beach,
And perhaps you could see yourself on this empty beach,
Just you,
The sand and the sea,
How does it feel to be here in this space,
This is your beach,
Your space,
To just rest,
Maybe you could see yourself walking along the shoreline on this empty beach,
And you can see little shells and stones in the sand,
And you come across some seaweed,
And maybe a mermaid's purse,
Reminding you that water holds the key to life,
We all need water,
And we are all water,
I was walking along a beach near my home a few days ago,
And I came across a beautiful mermaid's purse,
I took it home,
And I filled it with small sea stones,
Attached it to a long wavy driftwood handle,
To create an ocean rattle,
And I'm going to gently play this ocean rattle for you,
For about five or six minutes,
To connect us with the sound of the sea,
To connect to the water,
To take you deeper into this practice,
Deeper with the sound of the water,
Reconnecting to your intention at the beginning of the practice,
You can gently place this intention into your heart space,
Allowing it to ripple throughout your whole body,
Like a stone dropped into a lake,
And just stay here for a few moments,
Allowing the ripples to reach every part of you,
And now as we come to the end of the practice,
You may want to take a deeper breath,
Feeling the weight of the clothes,
And the blanket on you,
And feeling the air on your skin,
Noticing any smells in the room with you,
And perhaps you could slowly wiggle your fingers and toes,
And move your jaw,
Just moving in any ways that feel supportive to your body right now,
Slowly opening your eyes and adjusting to the room,
And I hope you have a lovely restful rest of your day or night.
Take care.
