Just take this time right now.
Drop all thoughts.
Stop everything and lie down on your back for Yoga Nidra.
Release your entire physical body and sink down into the surface beneath you.
Release every muscle,
Every nerve,
And every thought.
Bring your awareness to the nostrils and just watch the breath flowing at your nostrils.
Watch the breath flowing in and out of the nostrils.
Just continue watching,
Observing,
And becoming still.
Now take a deep breath in and release,
Exhaling aloud,
Letting go.
Of all the nervous tension throughout your body.
Breathe in all the way to your toes.
Breathe out,
Releasing.
Be gentle with yourself.
Allow the breath to become calm and soothing.
Reflect on these words of Buddha.
Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else while you are the one who gets burned.
Become perfectly still and silent now.
Witness everything you are thinking and feeling from the detached perspective of the silent witness within.
Beyond the body.
Beyond the mind.
And beyond the outer world of the senses.
Just observe all the gross outer dimensions of your being without judging or over-analyzing anything.
As you withdraw your awareness from the outer world of the senses,
You can now experience the deep peace at the inner core of your being.
Release that last little bit of muscular tension in the large muscles of your legs and arms.
Release the muscles in your mouth,
Tongue,
And cheeks.
The muscles surrounding your eyes.
Release the muscles of respiration.
The diaphragm.
And the belly.
Bring your awareness up to the sternum and experience the heart space within the cavity of your chest.
Experience that inner point of perfect peace where the inhalation dissolves in the core of the chest.
And that same location outside your body at the same level as the sternum where the exhalation dissolves.
Just watch your breath now.
Experiencing the soothing ebb and flow of each and every breath.
That's it.
Don't try to change or modify the breath.
Just ride with the waves of each incoming and outgoing breath.
As the breath becomes calm and serene,
The mind also becomes calm and serene.
And as you become increasingly more centered within the core of your being,
Not identifying with the outer manifest body and mind,
You enter into a state of total imperturbability where nothing can disturb your perfect inner peace and serenity.
Bring your awareness to the subtle points of contact where your body meets the center of the surface beneath you.
Surrender to the force of gravity and feel all your cares and concerns for the world sink down into the earth and fall away from you.
That's it.
You are now back in control of yourself.
Now let's begin Yoga Nidra.
We will begin with a sankalpa.
If you already have a sankalpa,
That's great.
Otherwise choose the most positive,
Self-empowering affirmation that you can now think of.
Repeat your chosen affirmation three times silently.
We will now begin body scan.
Allow the mind to rotate around each individual body part rapidly without focusing for too long at any one place.
Feel a flow of energy spreading from the right hand thumb to your second finger,
Third,
Fourth,
Fifth finger,
Palm of the hand,
Back of the hand,
Right wrist,
Lower arm,
Elbow,
Right arm,
Upper arm,
Shoulder,
Armpit,
Right side,
Waist,
Hip,
Thigh,
Left arm,
Left arm,
Right thigh,
Back of the thigh,
Right knee cap,
Back of the knee,
Shin,
Calf muscle,
Left ankle,
And heel,
The sole of the right foot,
Top of the foot,
Right big toe,
Right knee cap,
Right knee cap,
Second,
Third,
Fourth,
And fifth toe,
The whole right side of the body together.
Now the left hand,
The left hand thumb,
Second,
Third,
Fourth,
And fifth finger.
Palm of the hand,
Back of the hand,
Lower arm,
Elbow,
Upper arm,
Right arm,
Left arm,
Shoulder,
The left side,
Waist,
Hip,
Thigh,
Back of the thigh,
Right knee cap,
Left knee thigh,
Left knee cap,
Back of the knee,
Shin,
Calf muscle,
Ankle,
Right knee cap,
Left knee cap,
Heel,
Sole of the left foot,
Top of the foot,
Right big toe,
Second,
Third,
Third,
Fourth,
And fifth toe.
The whole left side of the body together.
Now bring your awareness up to the crown of your head.
Feel a soothing wave of relaxation descend down the front side of your body to the forehead,
Right eyebrow,
Left eyebrow,
The center of the eyebrows,
The right eyelid,
Left eyelid,
Right eye,
Left eye,
Right ear,
Left ear,
The nose,
And the mouth.
And the tip of the nose,
The upper lip,
Lower lip,
Mouth,
And the tongue.
The right cheek,
Left cheek,
And the chin,
Throat,
Right collarbone.
Left collarbone,
Right chest muscle,
Left chest muscle,
The sternum,
Abdomen,
Left elbow,
Navel,
Lower abdomen,
Right groin,
And left groin.
Now become aware of the entire right leg,
The entire left leg,
Both legs together,
The whole right arm,
Whole left arm,
Both arms together,
The whole front side of the body,
Whole back side of the body,
Both the front and back sides of the body together,
The shoulders,
Neck,
Face,
And head,
The whole body together.
Experience your whole body together from head to toe.
Now feel the subtle points of contact where the body meets the surface beneath you,
Starting with the back of the head and the floor,
Right shoulder blade and the floor,
Left shoulder blade and the floor,
Right elbow and the floor,
Left elbow and the floor,
Right hand,
Left hand,
Right buttock,
Left buttock,
Right calf muscle,
Left calf muscle,
Left calf muscle,
Right heel,
And the left heel.
Now return your awareness to the natural flow of the breath.
Visualize the sensation of the breath flowing in and out of the nostrils.
Visualize the breath being drawn in through both nostrils,
Meeting at the brow center,
Forming a triangle.
Imagine mental alternate nostril breathing,
An alum-vilam,
By visualizing the breath being drawn in through the right nostril,
Out through the left nostril,
In through the left nostril,
And out through the right.
This is one round.
Continue on alum-vilam while counting the breaths down from 27 in the following manner.
Breathe in through the right 27,
Out through the left 27,
In through the left 27,
Out through the right 27,
In through the right 26,
Out through the left 26,
In through the left 26,
And out through the right 26.
And continue.
If you lose track,
Make a mistake,
Or come to zero,
Again return to 27 and continue.
The point is not to complete a full 27 rounds.
The point is to breathe with each and every individual breath without skipping even one inhalation or exhalation.
Breathe in through the left 27,
Out through the right 26,
Out through the right 26,
And out through the right 26.
Breathe in through the left 26.
Breathe in through the right 26.
Breathe in through the right 26.
Now drop the counting of the breaths and bring your awareness to the calm and soothing space in front of the closed eyes.
Recreate a scene in front of your closed eyes which is most soothing and relaxing.
Perhaps your favorite childhood vacation spot or a place you would simply escape to during your youth.
Perhaps a place very special to you,
Even today.
Or someplace you have never been but can imagine now in your mind's eye.
See the finer details of your special place.
Now involve the sense of feeling.
How does it really feel to be in this place?
What other senses can you involve?
What sounds can you hear?
And what smells are unique to this place?
The more that you release the outer world and withdraw into your own self,
The more you can reunite with your higher self.
And the more you reunite with your higher self,
The more you can remain in control of your responses to the outer world.
You don't need to react to the outer world any longer as this only causes you to lose power.
You can remain in control of your inner state and your breath.
That's right,
The key to remaining in control of your inner state is to watch your breath at all times and refrain from acting or speaking when the breath is disturbed.
Now quickly scan your body and release any habitual muscular tension.
Become aware of the first muscles that become tense whenever mindfulness is lost.
Release the diaphragm and the muscles of respiration.
Allow yourself to sink down into your inner sanctuary which is always there at the very core of your being.
Feel the perfect peace and self-born bliss of your own innermost state of being.
When you are calm and collected like this,
You are able to act congruently with your highest values with whom you most know yourself to be.
You are in control of every muscle and your entire neurology.
You are fully grounded and anchored in the peace of your own true nature.
Nobody can take this away from you,
It can never be lost.
Even when all the outer manifest aspects of your existence change,
The inner self is always there,
Pure,
Content and complete.
Know,
Breathe in to your most powerful self.
Trust your breath to know exactly how to breathe in a way that is most powerful and that will most recharge you.
That's right,
Breathe consciously and purposefully.
Make each breath count.
Feel at home in your body.
Relax and breathe.
As you continue breathing in this way,
You can picture yourself moving through the world in a different way,
Proactively rather than reactively.
You are your own master and the world is your oyster.
Step into this vision of yourself and see the world from the eyes of your most powerful self.
You will now enjoy two minutes of silence.
Although my voice will now stop for a while,
Your ability to feel strong,
Centered and self-empowered continues to increase each and every moment.
Stay with your breath and your innermost state of being.
Two minutes of silence begins now.
You are your own master and the world is your own master.
You are your own master.
You are your own master.
You are your own master.
You are your own master.
You are your own master.
Now,
Bring your awareness back to your body,
Lying on the surface beneath you and your immediate physical surroundings.
Become aware of the room you're lying in,
The ceiling,
Walls and the floor.
See yourself lying in shavasan in this room.
Take your time.
When you are ready,
Very gently begin by moving just a single finger at first.
And then slowly begin moving and stretching your body and open your eyes to end this practice.
The practice of yoga nidra is now complete.
Om shanti shanti shanti.
Om shanti shanti.
