Yoga Nidra
This Yoga nidra practice for inviting deep, satisfying sleep begins with the setting of a Sankulpa: An intention for your sleep and dreams. Then you will be guided through a body and sensation awareness to deeply relax the body and settle the mind.
Transcript
Welcome.
This evening we're going to practice yoga nidra together.
Yoga nidra is an ancient yoga practice for deeply relaxing the body and preparing for sleep.
So I hope that you are somewhere very cozy where you would like to spend the night.
Sleeping a deep restful sleep with beautiful engaging dreams that illuminate your life with insight and meaning.
That's our goal today and we're gonna start not doing exactly what you might think we're gonna do.
We're gonna start by setting a sankalpa.
That's spelled S-A-N-K-U-L-P.
A sankalpa is your dream intention.
Your intention for the yoga nidra practice.
Your intention for this night of sleeping.
Your intention for this night of dreaming.
During the course of the night you'll spend about two to two and a half hours dreaming.
So this is an opportunity for you to take note of what you would like from this beautiful unfolding eight to ten hours of sleep.
So I invite you to pause the recording if you'd like to do that and take a moment to write what you want.
Would you like to meet God in your dreams?
You can be ambitious.
Would you just like to fall asleep and stay asleep and have a really restful night and wake up restored?
Or perhaps you want to have adventures in your dreams or you want to address something that you're dealing with in the dream.
So take a moment and write down those thoughts.
Beautiful.
Now that you've created a sankalpa we're going to start the practice of yoga nidra.
So the first thing to do is to lie down in shavasana.
Shavasana is the yoga pose also known as the dead man's pose because you're laying on your back with your arms just laying by your sides but just a little bit away from the body and your feet wider than your hips with your feet flopping to the sides.
Your goal here is to get very very comfortable.
So at this point you should be lying either in your bed or some other cozy spot and you really want to let your body sink into the bed.
Get really comfortable.
Make any adjustments if you wish at this point.
Is there anything else you can do to be even more comfortable as we practice this session?
Make sure you're warm enough and now we're gonna relax the body starting with your face.
Softening the face,
The eyes,
The jaws,
The scalp.
Take a moment and just check in with every part of your head and face and make sure that you're letting go of whatever tension is there and move to relaxing your shoulders,
Relax your arms,
Relax your hips,
Relax your back,
Your knees,
Your ankles.
Lift your head a couple of times just to release any tight spots from the back of your neck.
Now allow your eyes to close and keep them closed for the whole duration of the practice.
If you feel any tension or tight spots in any part of your body take your awareness to that body part and consciously relax that body part.
Just take a moment to scan the body looking for any hidden pockets of tension and intentionally letting them go.
It is best that you remain still during the practice of yoga nidra.
However,
If at any point you become uncomfortable please feel free to make changes with very minimal movement.
It is natural to flow in and out of consciousness during this practice.
Understand that whatever your experience is today,
The experience is what is meant for you.
There's no way to do this wrong.
You can release from ideas of right and wrong and just relax into whatever is happening in this moment.
Look around you,
Appreciate the safety of your environment in this cozy,
Cozy bed.
If your mind starts to wander as I speak,
That's so natural.
Just notice and come back to the sound of my voice.
And now say to yourself,
I am practicing yoga nidra.
I'm offering my practice for the benefit of all beings.
That I may be more aware and more kind.
That I may sleep deeply and awaken restored and refreshed.
Now we move into the practice of sound awareness.
Become aware of any and every sound that you hear in this moment.
Nothing else but what you can hear without straining your ears.
Start by focusing on the most distant sounds.
Move your attention from sound to sound without labeling the source.
Now move your awareness to sounds within this room and then to the sound of your breath.
Bring your attention to the sound of your breath flowing freely between your nostrils.
Now visualize yourself within this room.
Visualize the four walls of the room that you are in without opening your eyes.
Imagine the ceiling.
Imagine the floor.
The walls.
Visualize your position in the room.
Your body laying on the bed.
The parts of your body that are touching the bed.
Your jammies or whatever it is you might be wearing.
Your hair.
Your face.
Visualize your entire body laying in the bed.
Become aware of your natural breath.
Become aware of your natural and spontaneous breath that moves in and out of your body without any effort.
Your natural breath flows in through both nostrils.
Notice the feeling of the breath as it comes in and out of your nostrils.
Just breathing an easy,
Gentle,
Relaxed breath.
Beautiful.
You're doing such a good job.
And now that you are so deeply relaxed and resting so beautifully in your bed,
Turn your awareness to your sankalpa.
The resolution that you wrote at the beginning of our practice.
Speak those words to yourself.
Whatever it is that you crave or care for or long for in this beautiful period of sleep.
Your request for the night.
Your intention for the night.
Offer that to yourself now.
Reflecting on it in a state of deep relaxation.
Repeat your sankalpa to yourself.
Inviting a kind of mental clarity.
Speak your sankalpa in your mind with a sense of faith and focus in the integrity of your intention.
Now that you are so very clear about your intention for this yoga nidra session and for the night,
You can release from that.
Let it go.
Let it work its magic on its own.
And we turn to a systematic journey of awareness throughout your body.
You will move your awareness to different parts of your body as soon as you hear them named.
We will begin with the right side.
As I say each part of the body,
Let your attention rest there for a moment before moving to the next part.
And we start with the right hand thumb.
Second finger.
Third finger.
Fourth finger.
Fifth finger.
Palm of the right hand.
Back of the right hand.
Wrist.
Forearm.
Elbow.
Upper arm.
Shoulder.
Right side of the chest.
Right waist.
Right hip.
Right thigh.
Right knee.
Right calf.
Right ankle.
Top of the right foot.
Right big toe.
Second toe.
Third toe.
Fourth toe.
Fifth toe.
Moving to the left side.
Left hand thumb.
Second finger.
Third finger.
Fourth finger.
Fifth finger.
Palm of the hand.
Back of the hand.
Wrist.
Forearm.
Elbow.
Upper arm.
Shoulder.
Right side of the chest.
Right waist.
Right hip.
Right thigh.
Right knee.
Right calf.
Right ankle.
Right heel.
Left heel.
Soul of the left foot.
Top of the left foot.
Left big toe.
Second toe.
Third toe.
Fourth toe.
Fifth toe.
You're doing a beautiful job.
Now go to the back of the body.
Souls of the feet.
Right heel.
Left heel.
Right calf.
Left.
Back of the right knee.
Back of the left knee.
Back of the right thigh.
Back of the left thigh.
Middle back.
Upper back.
Entire spine.
Right shoulder blade.
Left shoulder blade.
Back of the neck.
Back of the head.
Top of the head.
Forehead.
Right temple.
Left temple.
Right ear.
Left ear.
Right eyebrow.
Left eyebrow.
Space between the eyebrows.
Right eye.
Left eye.
Nostril.
Left nostril.
Right cheek.
Left cheek.
Upper lip.
Your entire mouth.
Chin.
Jaw.
Throat.
Right collarbone.
Left collarbone.
Chest.
Upper abdomen.
Navel.
Lower abdomen.
Your whole torso.
Your whole body.
Your whole body.
You have done such a good job with body awareness.
Now we're going to change directions and focus on the breath.
Become aware of your breath now.
Feel the flow of your natural breath in and out of your nostrils.
Your breathing is normal and spontaneous,
Without any effort.
Maintain awareness of your breath.
Continue breathing through the belly.
With every inhalation,
The abdomen is expanding.
With every exhale,
The navel is drawn in towards the spine.
You don't have to do anything to make this happen.
You're simply observing the way that your body breathes when you are so deeply relaxed.
Now,
As you breathe in,
Mentally say the number 9 in your head.
And as you breathe out,
Mentally repeat 9 to yourself.
Breathing in,
Say 8 to yourself.
And as you breathe out,
Repeat 8 to yourself.
Continue this way,
Counting backwards from 9 to 1 with every inhale and exhale.
If you lose track of the count midway,
Then just begin again from 9.
9 for the inhale.
9 for the exhale.
8 for the inhale.
8 for the exhale.
Counting all the way down.
And if you lose track,
Simply starting over again.
Are you feeling very,
Very sleepy?
Take a moment and continue counting.
Just counting the breaths.
Now,
Take in a very deep,
Deep breath and let it go.
And as you let that breath release again and again with each inhale and exhale,
Imagine your body becoming more and more relaxed with each breath.
Imagine what this feels like.
Your body becoming soft,
Loose,
Gentle,
Free,
And so calm.
Allow this feeling of relaxation to grow inch by inch throughout your body.
Inhaling all calmness into your system.
Exhaling any lingering tension or stress out.
Breathing in all the relaxation.
Breathing out any worries or fears.
Just letting it flow out.
Letting your body relax more and more.
Now,
Begin to create an image in your mind.
An image of someone who is deeply comforting to you.
Perhaps it's one of your ancestors.
Perhaps it's God or your higher consciousness.
A call to mind,
Something that gives you nourishment,
Spiritual nourishment.
Whatever that image is for you.
It could be anyone or any place where you derive maximum comfort and peace.
Imagine receiving a huge light of positive energy and creating a circle of protection around you.
Imagine yourself cocooned inside this circle of protection where you are able to be so peaceful,
So stress free,
Released from all anxieties into a sense of deep,
Safe,
Calm.
Take a moment to enjoy the way you feel in this safe place.
Safe and secure here.
While staying in this place of safety and peace,
Revisit now for a moment how you felt at the beginning of our Yoga Nidra session.
Just remembering it and then releasing back into this beautiful protected space.
Letting whatever anxieties or tensions you used to have melt away completely.
Savor this peaceful place while you breathe in and out longer and deeper.
Imagine all of your tensions and pains and worries are floating away from you.
Just floating away.
And right now in this moment,
You are happy.
You are calm and so very peaceful.
You have been doing such a beautiful job of participating in the Yoga Nidra practice.
Now we are going to engage your imagination and this will deepen your experience of dreaming.
So let's let your imagination fly as I call out a number of different things.
Visualize them on the level of emotion,
Memory,
And imagination as each idea resonates with you.
Jump from image to image and don't linger on any image for long.
And now what I want you to do is simply imagine cool,
Clear water.
Imagine a vibrant sunset.
Allow your emotions,
Memory,
And imagination to flow into the idea of a vibrant sunset.
Imagine tall mountains,
Traffic lights,
A good night's rest,
Deep breathing,
Breathing,
A beautiful garden,
Temple bells ringing,
A deep blue sky,
A relaxing afternoon,
A cat stretching,
A warm hug,
Your reflection in a mirror,
Mother,
Ancestral home,
Laughing with friends,
The sound of my voice,
Your body laying on the floor,
Your body laying on the floor.
Now one more time,
Repeating your sankalpa,
Sankalpa.
Remembering your dream intention,
Your intention for sleep,
Your intention for the next eight to 10 hours of deep,
Deep rest.
Remember your intention and speak your sankalpa in your mind.
Visualize your sankalpa taking shape.
Feel your sankalpa shaping your sleep tonight and your dreams.
Visualize you having success with your sankalpa and release the body,
Releasing the mind.
You are invited to sleep deeply.
You're invited to dream richly.
Let go,
Let go into sweet dreams.
