So come into a comfortable lying down position for this yoga nidra.
You can either lie on a yoga mat on the floor or on your bed,
As long as it's supportive.
And make sure you're warm and comfortable with a blanket over you,
If it's suitable for your climate.
Your spine should be straight.
Your hands resting at your sides,
With your palms face up.
Your knees can be bent,
Particularly if you've got lower back pain.
Or your legs can be straight,
With your feet falling out to the side,
As in the traditional Shavasana position.
And begin by simply noticing the weight of your body against the floor.
Get a sense of its heaviness,
The field of gravity pulling you down.
And as you do that,
You can imagine that all the tension,
All the tiredness,
All the stress,
Is just draining away through the floor,
Out your feet,
Leaving you to feel more and more relaxed.
And this yoga nidra is intended to help you relax,
And also to help you just settle down and let go,
For falling asleep,
If you prefer to use it that way.
So begin by taking a deep breath in through your nostrils.
Breathing in,
Feeling the lungs,
Feeling the chest,
All the way down to the abdomen.
And breathing out,
Exhale through the mouth,
Very consciously letting go of any tightness,
Any holding in the body.
And we can do this three times,
Conscious,
Deep breathing,
Feeling the body relax with each exhalation.
And now I'll guide you through the body parts systematically.
Just listen to my instructions in a relaxed way.
If thoughts come in to intrude,
To distract,
Just simply direct your attention gently back to my voice and to the instructions.
Follow what I say in an easy way to help you let go and relax.
Take your attention to the body now,
To the palm of your right hand,
And notice the sensations there.
Move the attention now into the right thumb,
The right index finger,
Middle finger,
Ring finger,
And little finger,
The whole of the right hand,
The back of the hand,
The wrist,
The right forearm,
Up to the right elbow,
The right upper arm,
And the right shoulder,
Allowing this part of the body to soften and relax.
Moving the attention now to the left hand,
The left thumb,
Index finger,
Middle finger,
Ring finger,
And the little finger of the left hand,
The palm of the left hand,
The back of the left hand,
The wrist,
Left forearm,
Elbow,
Upper left arm,
And the left shoulder,
Again allowing this part of the body to completely soften and relax.
Now feel both the left arm from the left shoulder and the right arm from the right shoulder,
And feel the weight,
The heaviness,
And the relaxation deepening into both these body parts.
Gently moving your attention now to your throat,
And sweeping your attention down the front part of the torso,
Just like a warm oil flowing down into the upper chest,
The right breast,
The left breast,
Down into the rib cage,
The upper part of the stomach,
The middle part,
Down into the abdomen,
The right hip,
The left hip,
And gently sweep your attention from the throat all the way down the front part of the torso,
Simply noticing whatever sensations are there,
Feeling the gentle movement of the abdomen,
With each breath in and each breath out,
Allowing the relaxation to deepen and deepen.
Gently shifting your attention now to the neck,
Feel the muscles in the neck,
And now we'll gently move the attention down the back part of the body,
Feeling the right shoulder,
The left shoulder,
The shoulder blades,
The upper part of the spine,
The attention moving down like a warm oil into the middle part of the back,
And slowly drifting down to the lower back,
Feel the whole of the spinal column,
From the neck all the way down to the lower back,
Any tension,
Any pain in the back,
Just imagine it passing out through the floor,
Every tendon,
Every muscle,
Every nerve,
Softening,
Relaxing,
Letting go,
Letting go,
Letting go,
Shifting the attention down again into the right buttock,
Down into the thigh,
The front part of the thigh,
The back of the thigh,
The knee,
The right shin,
The right calf,
Down to the ankle,
Into the feet,
The sole of the foot,
Of the right foot,
The first toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
And the little toe,
Feeling all the tingling,
The warmth,
The different sensations in your right foot,
And imagine any tension just draining away through this foot,
And again sweep your attention from the buttock all the way down to the foot,
Becoming heavier and heavier,
More and more relaxed,
Gently shifting your attention now to your left buttock,
Sweeping down into the left thigh,
The back of the thigh,
The left knee,
The shin,
The left ankle,
The top of the left foot,
The sole of the left foot,
The first toe,
The second,
The third,
The fourth,
And the fifth toe,
Feeling the aliveness,
The sensations,
All the way from the left buttock to the left foot,
Just sweep your attention down and up,
And notice all the tension simply draining away through your foot,
Feel both legs now at the same time,
And feel the weight,
The heaviness,
The gravity,
Earthing you,
Grounding you,
And relaxing you,
And now gently bring your attention to your face,
Starting at the forehead,
The temples,
The eyes,
Eyelids,
The nostrils,
The cheeks,
The jaw,
The tongue,
The lips,
All the face muscles now,
Relaxing,
Softening,
Letting go,
Including your awareness from the top of your head,
All the way down through your skull,
Imagine a warm oil just moving all the way from the top of your head over your skull,
Over your face,
Everything soft,
Having surveyed the whole body now,
Part by part,
Just bring your attention again to the whole of your body,
Lying still,
Relaxed,
At ease,
Noticing how quiet the mind is,
The deep calm,
The stillness,
The body is completely relaxed,
The mind is calm,
The awareness is bright,
Peaceful,
And you can continue with this yoga nidra now as long as you like,
Getting up when you feel ready,
Or if you are using it to drift off to sleep,
The music will play for a little while,
And you can enter into a deep,
Peaceful,
Calm sleep.
