Sleep Restfully: Yoga Nidra

Yoga Nidra is a practice designed to bring you into a state of deep mind body relaxation, and facilitate the transition of your brain waves into Delta waves, the state of deep restorative sleep. This meditation is set up so that you can fall asleep to it in bed, as such it does not lead you out at the end but gently trails off.

Note: Artwork and recording credit to Glenn Thomson

Transcript

Come to lay in a comfortable position in a way that supports you to fully and completely relax.

Closing the eyes and feeling your body becoming heavy as you let go and release,

Sinking into the support of the earth.

Bring to mind a place where you feel totally and completely safe,

Secure and comfortable.

This could be a place you've been to before or a place you can imagine now.

Allow this safe and sacred space of inner safety and comfort to come completely into your awareness.

Noticing what objects or people are around you.

Noticing what you see,

Hear,

Feel,

Smell and taste.

Know that you can return here at any time during your practice of Yoga Nidra or throughout your day.

Whenever you need a few moments of feeling safe,

Secure and comfortable.

Take this time now to set an intention.

Repeat it to yourself and hold it in your awareness.

It could be one you are already working with or use the following intention.

I fall asleep easily and sleep deeply.

I will now guide you to move your awareness throughout different parts of your body.

Be aware of the sensations that are present in each body part without changing anything or wishing for them to be different than what they are.

Welcome whatever is arising in awareness.

Bring your attention to your face.

Bring tension into your face.

Hold for a moment.

Attention,

Noticing sensation and then let go completely.

Now scrunch your shoulders,

Only your shoulders.

Let your hands,

Mouth and eyes remain completely relaxed and still.

Just tension in the shoulders,

Holding the tension.

And then when you are ready,

Completely release and relax your shoulders.

Feel down into your fingers and palms,

Curling the hands into fists.

Building tension all the way up into your forearm,

Elbow,

Biceps,

Triceps.

Slowly building tension all the way up the arms,

Holding and let it go.

Becoming naturally drawn to the sensations that are present.

Feel the chest,

Abdomen and begin to tighten the abdominal muscles and chest.

Bring the entire torso into as much tension as you can.

Feeling it,

Experiencing it,

Keeping the mouth and face completely relaxed.

And then when you are ready,

Completely release.

Bring your attention to your legs.

Bring tension into the feet,

The ankles,

Calves,

Thighs,

Glutes,

Tensing the toes,

The entire legs and hips in full tension.

And keep holding it,

Feeling the tension building.

And when you are ready,

Releasing the legs and hips.

Noticing where your attention is naturally drawn by sensation.

Feel the free flow of sensation throughout the entire body now,

Still and relaxed.

As you move your awareness through different parts of the body,

Be aware of the sensations that are present.

Feeling not thinking,

Sensing not visualizing.

Bring your undivided awareness to the space between the eyebrows.

The throat,

Right shoulder,

Elbow,

Wrist,

Right thumb,

Pointer finger,

Middle finger,

Ring finger,

Little finger,

Wrist,

Elbow,

Shoulder,

Throat,

Left shoulder,

Elbow,

Wrist,

Left thumb,

Pointer finger,

Middle finger,

Ring finger,

And little finger,

Left wrist,

Elbow,

Shoulder,

Throat,

Center of the chest,

Right side of the chest,

Center of the chest,

Left side of the chest,

Center of the chest,

Navel,

Center of the pelvis,

Right hip joint,

Knee,

Ankle,

Right big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe,

Fifth toe,

Right ankle,

Knee,

Right hip,

Center of the pelvis,

Left hip joint,

Left knee,

Ankle,

Left big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe,

Fifth toe,

Left ankle,

Knee,

Left hip,

Center of the pelvis,

Navel,

Center of the chest.

Notice the body breathing itself,

Watching the ebb and flow of the breath.

Watch how the breath slides in and out like waves on a beach.

Rest in awareness at the shore,

Watching the waves move in and out in harmony with the breath,

Slow and easy.

Now,

Noticing there is a natural pause at the top of the wave,

The top of the breath,

Where the wave is not moving any further in nor moving out.

Then the wave slides back out and there is that pause at the end of the wave,

At the bottom of the breath.

Notice the suspension in between,

The space between the waves,

The breath,

The thoughts,

The space between from which all things emerge and all things return.

Observing the body breathing itself,

Feeling the breath as sensation,

The gentle rise and fall of the belly with each breath,

And for a few moments,

Count each breath,

Counting backwards from 11.

If you drift away,

Start again at 11.

No destination,

Just counting backwards.

Every once in a while,

Noticing the body,

Noticing any residue of tension that may be present,

Releasing and exhaling any tension.

Now,

Letting the counting fall away,

Stay with the flow of breathing,

The flow of sensation that arises through the body breathing itself.

Allow my words that follow to become your words.

My mind and body are calm and relaxed.

I am free from attachment or aversion to any thoughts.

I simply let them drift away.

I offer any returning thoughts up to the power that created me,

And I relax knowing that everything looks clearer in the morning.

I am peaceful and serene,

Knowing that the universe is holding me in a warm embrace.

Peace is within me and around me.

My body is fully relaxed and ready for sleep.

I fall asleep easily and sleep deeply.

I am calm and peaceful,

Relaxed and sleepy.

All is well in my world.

I release,

Relax and let go.

Every cell in my body is calm.

Every cell in my body is resting in its natural state of divine peace,

Calm and bliss.

Here I experience authentic wholeness,

Peacefulness and the steady,

Natural bliss of my true nature.

I feel joy and happiness,

Like liquid sensation pouring throughout my whole body.

I rest in the peace body,

In the bliss body.

All is well in my world.

I release,

Relax and let go.

Reviews

Her voice very comforting

I didn’t fall asleep this time but I’ll try it again. It was very pleasant to listen even when I couldn’t quite let go. Bird sounds and instruments I don’t know the name of. I started to really relax after all the music faded out and there were just aspirations. Maybe I could use a whole meditation of sankalpa.

Edit: I listened again right after leaving the previous comment. I fell asleep pretty quickly. :)

Very nice! Good tone and pace. I enjoyed y he music as well and the ending affirmations were beautiful n

Progressive muscle relaxer with yoga nidra body awareness.

Very enjoyable body scan. Nice, soothing, joyful voice. I particularly like the background music, and love the bird songs interspersed throughout. Eastern Wood Peewees, Wrens, Song Sparrows and a distance Crow. Is this mediation also offered without voice? How can I discover more about the background music?

My new go-to. Down to earth, gentle without being too woo-woo, some music, later silence... perfect length. Really -it’s pretty perfect ! Thanks so much :))

Sleep came to me so sweetly... Thank you!

Very good thank you 💕

Thank you🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻All is well in my world, I release, relax, let go: I like that. I used your meditation last night to fall asleep. At 5:30 am, I did it again, realizing that last night, I fell asleep, halfway through. Now, I heard/ experienced it fully, and I like it. Thank you🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻

Thank you that was so relaxing.

Nice voice and pace. Very calming and peaceful. Will bookmark and return. Heartfelt thanks. 💖🙏

Very relaxing. You have a very pleasant voice

Really helpful practice thank you