Hari Om Tat Sat Prepare for the practice of Yoga Nidra.
Lie on the back in Shavasana,
Arms beside the body,
With the palms facing upwards,
The feet relaxed and out to the sides,
The head,
Neck and spine in one straight line,
And the eyes gently closed.
Loosen any tight clothing,
Belt,
Wrist watch,
Take off any glasses,
And make sure you are completely comfortable.
Relax the whole body.
Surrender the whole body to the floor,
Letting go of all tensions.
Take three deep breaths.
On inhalation,
Feeling calmness spread throughout the body,
And on exhalation,
Feeling any tensions leaving the body.
During the practice of Yoga Nidra,
Keep the body still and stay awake.
Tell yourself mentally now,
I will not sleep.
Become aware of sounds in the environment.
Sounds you can hear in the environment.
Search out the most distant sounds you can hear.
Move the awareness from sound to sound,
Without staying on any one sound.
Gradually become aware of closer sounds.
Sounds within the building you are in,
Within the room,
Sounds closer to the body,
Sound of the breath.
Now it is time for your sankalpa,
Or resolve.
It should be a short,
Positive statement in simple language.
Repeat your resolve three times mentally,
With awareness,
Feeling,
And emphasis.
Now for body rotation.
As each body part is named,
Visualize that part,
Say its name mentally,
And relax it completely.
Starting with the right hand thumb,
Index finger,
Middle finger,
Ring finger,
Little finger,
Palm of the hand,
Back of the hand,
Wrist,
Forearm,
Elbow,
Upper arm,
Shoulder,
Armpit,
Side,
Waist,
Hip,
Thigh,
Right knee,
Calf muscle,
Shin,
Ankle,
Heel,
Sole of the foot,
Top of the foot,
Right big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe.
Relax the whole right side of the body.
To the left side,
Left hand thumb,
Index finger,
Middle finger,
Ring finger,
Little finger,
Palm of the hand,
Back of the hand,
Wrist,
Forearm,
Elbow,
Upper arm,
Shoulder,
Armpit,
Side,
Waist,
Hip,
Thigh,
Left knee,
Calf muscle,
Shin,
Ankle,
Heel,
Sole of the foot,
Top of the foot,
Left big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe.
Relax the whole left side of the body.
To the back,
Right buttocks,
Left buttocks,
Right waist,
Left waist,
Lower back,
Right shoulder blade,
Left shoulder blade,
Upper back,
Back of the neck,
Back of the head,
Top of the head,
To the front,
Forward,
Right temple,
Left temple,
Right eyebrow,
Left eyebrow,
Eyebrow center,
Eyebrow center.
Eyebrow center,
Right eye,
Left eye,
Right ear,
Left ear,
Right cheek,
Left cheek,
Right nostril,
Left nostril,
Nose tip,
Upper lip,
Lower lip,
Chin,
Throat,
Right collarbone,
Left collarbone,
Right chest,
Left chest,
Center of the chest,
Upper abdomen,
Right abdomen,
Left abdomen,
Lower abdomen,
Navel.
Now relax the whole right leg.
The whole left leg.
The whole right arm.
The whole left arm.
The whole right arm.
Abdomen,
Chest,
And back together.
Head and neck together.
The whole body.
The whole body.
The whole body.
Now take the awareness to the breath.
The natural breath.
Moving in and out.
Not changing the breath.
Simply watching.
And count the breath at the navel.
Backwards from 27 down to 0.
27 in.
27 out.
26 in.
26 out.
25 in.
25 out.
And so on.
From 27 down to 0.
If you lose count of the breath,
Start again at 27.
If you reach 0,
Then also start again at 27.
Counting the breath backwards from 27 down to 0.
The natural breath.
Do not sleep.
Stay awake.
Leave counting of the breath now.
And bring the awareness to the dark space in front of the closed eyes.
In this space,
Visualize each object as it is named.
Create an image with as much clarity,
Color,
And feeling as possible.
Burning candle.
Burning candle.
Burning candle.
Endless desert.
Endless desert.
Endless desert.
Egyptian pyramid.
Egyptian pyramid.
Egyptian pyramid.
Torrential rain.
Torrential rain.
Torrential rain.
Snow-capped mountains.
Snow-capped mountains.
Snow-capped mountains.
Snow-capped mountains.
Greek temple at sunrise.
Greek temple at sunrise.
Greek temple at sunrise.
Coffin beside a grave.
Coffin beside a grave.
Coffin beside a grave.
Birds flying across a sunset.
Birds flying across a sunset.
Birds flying across a sunset.
Red clouds drifting.
Red clouds drifting.
Red clouds drifting.
A cross above a church.
A cross above a church.
Stars at night.
Stars at night.
Stars at night.
The full moon.
The full moon.
The full moon.
The full moon.
Smiling Buddha.
Smiling Buddha.
Smiling Buddha.
Wind from the sea.
Wind from the sea.
Wind from the sea.
Waves breaking on a deserted beach.
Waves breaking on a deserted beach.
The restless sea.
Eternal restless sea.
Eternal restless sea.
Waves breaking on a deserted beach.
Now bring to mind once again your resolve,
Your sankalpa.
Repeat the same resolve you made at the start of the practice.
In the same words and with the same attitude.
Repeat your resolve three times now.
Become aware of the breath.
The sound of the breath in the nostrils.
The movement of the abdomen and chest caused by the breath.
Deepen the breath now.
Become aware of the body.
Sensations in the body.
The contact between the clothes and the skin.
The contact between the body and the floor.
Become aware of sounds in the environment.
Sounds you can hear in the environment.
Remember where you are.
The room that you are in.
The clothes that you are wearing.
And the time of day.
Remember that you have been practicing Yoga Nidra.
And that the practice is now coming to an end.
Slowly move the hands,
The feet,
The head from side to side.
And stretch the body.
Take a deep breath in.
And in your own time,
Slowly and gently sit up.
The practice of Yoga Nidra is now complete.
Hari Om Tat Sat.
