Healing Yoga Nidra

This beautiful healing Yoga Nidra comes from the Tracee Stanley text Radiant Rest. In it, we lie in restful stillness whilst moving awareness consciously around the body in the vision of rose gold stars.

This practice is deeply nourishing, supporting you with clarity, compassion, and courage in your life.

Allow yourself the time and space to rest in divine Yoga Nidra and remember how it feels to embody loving kindness.

Transcript

Welcome,

We offer these meditations freely and your donations make a real difference so thank you.

Let's just make sure we've got everything we need before we get settled.

So for yoga nidra it's really nice to have something across your eyes.

If you're working with a screen then by all means when we begin when you come down into nesting turn the screen away so that you don't have that blue light anywhere near you and covering your eyes is a really great way to just to just block that as well.

As many cushions as are needed.

You don't have to lie down.

Some people do yoga nidra sitting and other people prefer to lie down.

The thing is for us we're practicing in the evening there's always the chance of falling asleep so if you want to sit up by all means do but just bring as much support as you need.

It's usually nice to have a cushion under your knees.

Sometimes it's nice to have a rolled up towel or something under your neck if you're lying down or just a low cushion can feel really good.

What other things feel great?

A blanket,

Cozy socks,

Maybe have a sip of water before we begin.

You don't want to have any candles lit or essential oils or essences burning just because it's another thing for your body to be conscious of.

It's another thing to be managing and another stimulation an external stimulation that may not be helpful.

So take your time to get ready and in the yoga nidra practice we do we are still but that doesn't mean that you are forced to be still.

You can move at any time but if any sort of fidgety urge comes usually if you just bring your awareness to it then it will dissipate or it will get so annoying you have to move.

So just see and know that you're allowed to do anything.

There's nothing in this practice that is pushing against your will so you are free to stop at any time to get up and move around do whatever is needed.

I am providing yoga nidra as means of nourishment and support to you and only you know how it's being received that's your part.

So you can change whatever needs to change to allow it to feel as resourcing as possible.

And I'm going to be taking the practice from Radiant Rest by Tracy Stanley.

It's an absolutely beautiful book I highly recommend it if you love a yoga nidra practice.

And we're doing the essential activation practice and so for this one we're going to be moving a pale pink light around the body.

So I will read to you from her book.

We're going to start sitting before we come down into the nest so get yourself comfortable and sitting.

The essential activation practice.

This practice activates your vital life force and purifies the body and mind by placing mantra,

Light or awareness systematically throughout the body in various marma points.

The benefits are that it's refreshing,

It develops one pointed focus,

Inner awareness of our cosmic nature,

Deep relaxation for body and mind and the development of discipline.

This is a good practice for when you're feeling anxious,

Before you take an exam,

When you have an important decision to make,

Anytime you need mental or physical rest and when your energy feels heavy or dull.

You can teach this anytime.

It is a go-to practice so when you're in doubt you know this is a safe one to go to and this practice will help redirect your focus inwards,

Enlivening your energetic body and settling your mind.

So quite nice to begin with a little bit of movement.

So if we're sitting,

Spine is nice and tall and you're welcome to have your eyes open or closed as you choose.

We can do a little bit of circling to get into the body but begin by feeling the cadence of your own breath.

So noticing the nature of your inhale and the nature of your exhale and then with the breath you can start to take right ear down towards right shoulder and then slowly circle chin down towards chest,

Left ear across to left shoulder and then coming up and over.

So however these circles feel maybe we could be curious around slowing it down,

Changing directions.

We're not dropping the head back behind,

We're just coming up and over so the neck gets an opportunity to be tall and long and then coming to centre and slowly circling the shoulders.

I often do this practice first thing in the morning but when you do it in the evening,

Wow it's amazing the difference after a day of whatever it is you've been doing to meet expectations.

As you circle they just kind of fall away,

The stories of the day.

Inhale as the shoulders come up towards the ears,

Rolling back and down as you exhale and then circling the elbows if you have space.

It feels different and there's breath woven in with the circles.

You might even do full arm extensions if you wish.

Resting your hands down in your lap and circling your heart as if you're drawing the circumference of the moon,

The full moon around your hips.

Slowing it down just enough so that you get to feel every part of this movement.

The lower back usually responds really favourably to this invitation and then changing direction and coming to rest in centre.

We're going to do a pranayama practice.

We'll do one-two breathing.

So for this I'm going to give ideas of instruction but it's very loose.

There's nothing rigid,

It's like water trickling this practice.

So the idea is that you roughly count the length of your inhale and then roughly breathe out for twice that length and then bringing your hands to prayer at your heart centre.

We're going to do a lovely mudra practice that I learned from Uma Dinsmortuli.

Many of you have done it with me before.

So to begin with you're going to draw the fingertips together,

Let the palms separate and then just take the fingers down towards the ground so the backs of the hands come together and then let the hands drop down towards the floor and then sweep them forwards out in front of you.

So the arms are extended,

Hands are kind of level with your heart and the backs of the hands,

The backs of the fingers are together.

And then reverse that,

So sweeping the fingertips down towards the earth,

Slowly curling the fingers in towards your heart and then bringing the palms together.

Opening up the fingertips but keeping the tip of the little finger and the tip of the thumbs together.

So it's as if the hands make the shape of a lotus flower or a chalice.

And then inhale as you reach that chalice up overhead and exhale as you draw that chalice back to your heart,

Bringing the palms together into prayer.

And then we're going to open up the palms as if they were pages of a book,

Little fingers staying together.

Bring the backs of the hands together,

Let the fingertips turn in towards the heart and again scoop the hands down towards the earth,

Slowly taking them out in front of you.

So you come to a place where you're extending the fingertips level with your heart,

Away from you,

And the backs of the hands are together.

And then scooping the fingertips down towards the ground and curling them back in towards your heart,

Moving them into the chalice or the lotus flower mudra.

Tips of little fingers touch,

Tips of thumbs touch and the heel of the hands touching.

Inhale as the lotus flower rises and exhale as that lotus flower comes back down to your heart.

Palms together.

We'll go one more time,

See if you can loosely remember it for yourself,

Beginning by opening up the hands as if they're pages of a book.

Backs of hands together,

Fingertips come towards you,

Swooping down and then forward,

Swooping back in towards your heart,

Creating the lotus flower with the hands and allowing that flower to rise as you inhale and exhale hands to your heart.

I'm going to read the suggested sankalpa.

The sankalpa is an intention for your yoga nidra practice.

May my mind be a flow of beautiful and divine resolves,

Filled with auspicious thoughts.

It's a translation from the Shiva Sankalpa Suktra.

May my mind be filled with auspicious thoughts.

So we're going to allow ourselves to come down into our yoga nidra nest.

I'll give you some time,

There's no rush.

Be sure that that blue light of technology is not anywhere that can be sensed by your body.

So this practice that we're sharing today is based on a practice known in Sanskrit as Shavaratra,

The journey of the corpse.

It's the journey of animating the body with prana energy which keeps the mind busy and withdraws your attention inward,

Sharpens concentration as it moves from point to point in the body.

Traditionally taught by placing points of light,

The origin of the practice can be traced back in Ayurvedic texts to the Shushrutasamhita.

There are many variations of this practice but for us today we're going to be placing a rose-colored light for healing.

So once you're comfortable in your yoga nidra nest,

Find your resting position,

Somewhere that you feel supported so that your body knows that it can drop into a deep state of relaxation.

Once you're settled in your resting position,

Allow your body to release even more with a few deep exhales.

Feel your body resting on the earth and notice your body breathing.

So we're opening up the invitation for the body to release and become heavy.

Notice how your body feels heavier on the exhalation and how your body gets lighter on the inhalation.

Feel the earth beneath you,

Its strength,

Its solidity,

Its unconditional support.

Remember that the earth can hold the full weight of your body and anything else you may be carrying.

Now as you inhale,

Feel the earth rising up to hold you and as you exhale,

Feel gravity pull of the earth and accept the invitation to release your full weight down,

Down,

Down into the earth.

Become aware of your breath and notice where you feel it moving.

Let the breath rise and fall in your belly and with each breath in,

Feel how your body is refreshed and purified and with each breath out,

Feel yourself let go of all tension from both your body and your mind.

Begin to count the breaths backwards from 20 to 0.

Inhale 20,

Exhale 20.

Inhale 19,

Exhale 19 and so on with each count letting go more and more until body and mind feel completely free and if you miss a number just start again at 20.

Let go of counting and scan through your body to release any residue of tension.

Remembering our sankalpa,

May my mind be a flow of beautiful and divine resolves filled with auspicious thought.

Bring awareness to the point at the center of the eyebrows and picture a rose gold light twinkling there.

See the color,

Notice the sensation,

A sparkling rose gold light.

Bringing a spark of rose gold light to the pit of your throat.

Placing a spark of rose gold light at the right shoulder,

At the right elbow joint,

The right wrist joint.

A spark of rose gold light at the tip of your little finger,

Ring finger,

Middle finger,

Index finger,

The tip of your thumb,

The right wrist joint,

Right elbow joint,

Right shoulder joint,

And the pit of your throat.

The left shoulder joint,

A spark of rose gold at the left elbow joint,

The left wrist joint,

Tip of little finger,

Ring finger,

Middle finger,

Index finger,

And tip of thumb,

Left wrist joint,

Elbow joint,

Shoulder joint,

Pit of throat.

A spark of rose gold light in the heart of your heart,

The right side of your chest,

The left side of your chest,

A spark of light at the center of your chest,

The center of the navel,

The center of the pelvis,

A spark of rose gold light at the tip of the tailbone,

Rose gold at the right hip joint,

Rose gold at the center of the right thigh,

Rose gold at the right knee joint,

And rose gold at the center of the calf,

Right ankle joint,

The sole of the right foot,

The tip of the little toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe,

And the tip of the big toe,

Sole of right foot,

Right ankle joint,

Center of calf,

Knee joint,

Center of thigh,

Right hip,

The center of the pelvis,

The tip of the tailbone,

Rose gold at the left hip,

Rose gold the center of the left thigh,

Rose gold at the left knee joint,

Rose gold at the center of the calf,

The left ankle joint,

The sole of the left foot,

Left little toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe,

The tip of the big toe,

Sole of foot,

Left ankle joint,

Center of calf,

Left knee joint,

Center of thigh,

Rose gold at the left hip,

Deep within the center of the pelvis,

A spark of gold,

The tip of the tailbone,

The center of the navel,

The center of the chest,

Right side of chest,

Left side of chest,

Center of chest,

Pit of throat,

Center of chest,

Third eye.

See a constellation of rose gold stars in your body.

See a constellation to the right and to the left of your body.

Sense a galaxy of stars above your body.

Sense a galaxy of stars beneath your body.

Feel your whole body floating in a sea of rose gold starlight.

Your body is filled with this light.

Let your awareness rest at your heart and sense that your heart is filled with a sea of liquid diamonds.

Rest in cosmic awareness.

As your breath deepens,

Remember that you have a body.

Remember the sankalpa.

May my mind be a flow of beautiful and divine resolves,

Filled with auspicious thoughts.

Deepening your breath,

Begin to move your body in a way that feels intuitive.

Maybe long stretches or folding your knees to your chest as you welcome yourself back.

Rolling to your side,

Take a moment to stay there and notice how you feel.

You might ask yourself,

What are you asleep to in your life?

And what price are you paying by remaining asleep?

And what one thing can you do every day to remind yourself to be present,

Compassionate and courageous?

What are you asleep to in your life?

What is the price you are paying by remaining asleep?

And what one thing can you do each day to remind yourself to be present,

Compassionate and courageous?

And as you come back up to sitting,

It may be that you take those three questions and journal with them.

I'll say them one last time.

What are you asleep to in your life?

What price are you paying by remaining asleep?

And what one thing can you do each day to remind yourself to be present,

Compassionate and courageous?

And bringing your hands to your heart,

Dropping your chin to your chest,

Offering up the fruits of our practice to all beings.

Namaste.

Reviews

Beautiful!!!! I slept so well!!!! Thank you so much!!!!