Yoga Nidra 61-Point Sleep Relaxation

Yoga Nidra relaxes your body into restorative sleep while your mind, like a night-blooming flower, opens to formless awareness. Based on the teaching of Swami Jnaneshvara Bharati this short version offers a 61-point body scan. See the long version if you also want the additional practices. Yoga Nidra deepens meditation and unhooks the neuro-conditioning that keeps you stuck. Studies show regular practice alleviates stress and improves wellbeing. Enjoy.

Music by Christopher Lloyd Clarke.

Transcript

Begin by relaxing yourself as I briefly describe the practice to follow.

In Yoga Nidra,

Your body relaxes into deep restorative sleep,

While paradoxically,

Your awareness opens like a night blooming flower.

You can think of it like the light of the sun that is always streaming through space,

But only becomes visible when it shines on an object.

In Yoga Nidra,

You open to the light of awareness that streams through the luminous darkness of sleep.

You open to the light of awareness that you are.

These practices help to evoke the state of consciousness called Yoga Nidra.

You may or may not experience Yoga Nidra itself.

It doesn't matter.

With practice,

You will arrive at this state of consciousness,

Or rather be restored to it,

To your pure essence,

Which you may experience as an open field of awareness,

Pure being,

A fullness that's empty,

An emptiness that's full.

The recognition that you are not separate.

So as your body sinks into relaxation,

Set an intention for your awareness to open like a night blooming flower.

Invite a seed of transformation into your life however it wishes to manifest.

Your soul knows what it needs.

Yoga Nidra means yogic sleep.

It is a state of conscious deep sleep.

In Yoga Nidra,

We leave the waking state and go to the deep sleep state,

And yet we remain fully awake and alert.

It can seem impossible to be asleep and awake at the same time,

But this is what happens in Yoga Nidra.

Your mind is actually more relaxed in Yoga Nidra than in typical deep sleep.

There's a reverie state between waking and dreaming,

Which we've all experienced.

This reverie has a brainwave frequency called alpha.

Yoga Nidra goes deeper than alpha.

During Yoga Nidra,

The brainwave frequency is much slower at the delta frequency,

The frequency of deep sleep.

In the waking and dreaming state,

Our minds remain active.

However,

In deep sleep,

Our minds recede into the silent place from which thought patterns arise.

Yoga Nidra is extremely relaxing and also a very useful state for spiritual practices.

Decent sages use this practice to examine their thought patterns in their latent,

Non-active form.

These formless forms or deep pattern habits are the driving force of action or karma.

Yoga Nidra can help us to examine,

Attenuate,

And eventually dissolve those deep pattern habits that keep us stuck.

We touch the awareness that is beyond the activity of the normal waking mind.

With the practice of Yoga Nidra,

The nature of your sleep will begin to change.

It will be more conscious when you want it to be.

And when you choose to go to sleep,

It will be much easier to go into a deep sleep quickly.

These guided practices will gently lead your attention inward,

Allowing the activity of the mind to grow still along the way.

Lay comfortably on your back in Shavasana,

The corpse posture.

Lay in such a way that your head and neck and trunk and your spine are aligned left and right.

Check the position of your head.

Make sure it's comfortable,

Straight,

And in alignment.

Allow your feet to be a comfortable distance apart,

Just letting them fall away from each other.

Allow your arms to be at a comfortable distance from your sides.

Palms up if comfortable.

If not,

You can allow your palms to be down.

Most important is to be comfortable and to let go.

Now becoming aware of your body.

Be aware of your whole body from head to toe and toe to head.

However you experience your body is fine.

You cannot do this wrong.

Just gently be aware of your body.

Be aware of the ability to move your body,

But you are not using that ability.

Become aware of the stillness in your body.

You can move your body,

But you are choosing not to.

Feel the stillness moving into your whole body.

You can move,

But you are choosing not to move.

Just resting in the stillness,

Surveying your body from head to toe and toe to head.

However you experience your body is fine.

Gently and non-judgmentally noticing your body.

Be aware of the body as one whole being.

Allow your attention to come to rest on your forehead.

Be aware of your forehead as a feeling,

Sensation or awareness.

You may see light such as a point of light,

Like a blue star.

Be aware of your throat.

You may experience it in some physical way,

Or as a feeling awareness or sensation.

Point of light,

A blue star.

Be aware of your right shoulder,

Feeling awareness,

Sensation,

Point of light,

Blue star.

Your right elbow,

Noticing feeling awareness,

Sensation,

Point of light,

Blue star.

Feeling awareness to your right wrist.

Be aware of the tip of your right thumb.

Be aware of the tip of your right index finger.

Be aware of the tip of your right middle finger.

Be aware of the tip of your right ring finger.

Be aware of the tip of your right little finger.

Be aware of your right wrist.

Be aware of your right elbow,

Your right shoulder,

Your throat.

Your left shoulder.

Your left elbow.

Your left wrist.

The tip of the left thumb.

The tip of the left index finger.

The tip of the left middle finger.

The tip of the left ring finger.

The tip of the left pinky finger.

The left wrist.

The left elbow.

The left shoulder.

Your throat.

The space deep in your heart center.

Your right breast.

Space deep in your heart center.

Just below your breastbone.

The left breast.

Your heart center.

Your navel.

Your lower abdomen.

Your right hip.

Your right knee.

Your right ankle.

The tip of your right big toe.

The tip of the right second toe.

The tip of the right middle toe.

The tip of the right fourth toe.

The tip of the right little toe.

Your right ankle.

Your right knee.

Your right hip.

Your lower abdomen.

The left hip.

The left knee.

The left ankle.

The tip of the left big toe.

The tip of the left second toe.

The tip of the left middle toe.

The tip of the left fourth toe.

The tip of the left pinky toe.

The left ankle.

The left knee.

The left hip.

The lower abdomen.

The navel.

Your heart center.

The space in the middle of your chest.

Your throat.

Your forehead.

Breathe as though your whole body is breathing like a current moving up and down your spine.

Feel the current slide back and forth.

Feel the current slide back and forth.

Feel the current slide back and forth.

Be aware of the space between your eyebrows.

Breathe as though you are breathing from this space between your eyebrows.

Breathe with tender,

Intimate awareness.

Be aware of the space at your throat.

Bring tender,

Intimate awareness to your throat.

Be aware of the space in your heart center between your breasts.

Go deep,

Deep into this space,

Deep into the silence.

Go deep into the stillness and the silence in this space deep in your heart center.

This voice will go quiet now and will speak again in 10 minutes.

Rest with tender awareness deep in your heart center.

This voice will go quiet now and will speak again in 10 minutes.

Rest with tender awareness deep in your heart center.

This voice will go quiet now and will speak again in 10 minutes.

Rest with tender awareness deep in your heart center.

This voice will go quiet now and will speak again in 10 minutes.

Rest with tender awareness deep in your heart center.

This voice will go quiet now and will speak again in 10 minutes.

Rest with tender awareness deep in your heart center.

This voice will go quiet now and will speak again in 10 minutes.

Rest with tender awareness deep in your heart center.

This voice will go quiet now and will speak again in 10 minutes.

Rest with tender awareness deep in your heart center.

This voice will go quiet now and will speak again in 10 minutes.

Rest with tender awareness deep in your heart center.

This voice will go quiet now and will speak again in 10 minutes.

Rest with tender awareness deep in your heart center.

This voice will go quiet now and will speak again in 10 minutes.

Rest with tender awareness deep in your heart center.

This voice will go quiet now and will speak again in 10 minutes.

Rest with tender awareness deep in your heart center.

This voice will go quiet now and will speak again in 10 minutes.

Rest with tender awareness deep in your heart center.

This voice will go quiet now and will speak again in 10 minutes.

Rest with tender awareness deep in your heart center.

This voice will go quiet now and will speak again in 10 minutes.

Rest with tender awareness deep in your heart center.

This voice will go quiet now and will speak again in 10 minutes.

Rest with tender awareness deep in your heart center.

Be aware of the space in your heart center.

Be aware of the deep stillness and silence that is in that space.

Allow your attention to hold on to that deep stillness and silence.

Be aware of the space in your throat bringing with you that deep stillness and silence.

Be aware of the space between your eyebrows.

Be aware of the quietness of your mind.

Feel the presence of that stillness.

Be aware of the smoothness of the breath.

Be aware of the deep silence and stillness that is within the breath.

Be aware of the stillness of the physical body.

Bring that deep stillness and silence with you.

While you resolve to return to this place of silence and serenity that is always here for you,

Always available.

Be aware of the deep stillness and silence that is within the breath.

Be aware of the deep stillness and silence that is within the breath.

Be aware of the deep stillness and silence that is within the breath.

Reviews

I really enjoyed this nidra. The pacing is very slow, which made it easy for me to relax and get into a good state. Thank you!

Wonderful, I fell asleep so fast! I really needed that. 🙏💙

Very peaceful and wonderful 61 point nidra practice. Thank you so very, very much.