Years is not a faraway destination.
But a place inside each of us that we can return to.
Ease is built into our body-mind.
Ease is built into our nervous system.
It's not something we have to create.
It's a place we learn.
To return to.
A pocket of ease can be as small,
As giving ourselves one full breath.
In and out.
Especially on busy days.
It can be stepping outside and taking five minutes between tasks to feel our feet on the ground.
And look up at the sky.
It could be taking an actual lunch break without multitasking.
And It can be right now.
Offering ourselves.
A pocket of ease.
In the form of Yoga Nidra.
A time for you to come back to yourself.
Give yourself this time to settle.
To downshift.
To restore.
We don't need to add anything to experience ease.
Instead,
We subtract.
We let go.
When we release constraints and holding patterns in the body and mind,
Ease.
Can naturally arise.
Today will move.
With awareness.
Looking.
For places.
Wear We can let go.
Open up a little more space.
A little more comfort.
A little more smoothness.
Not adding anything.
But removing things so ease can happen.
As you get started,
Just notice how you are showing up today.
How are you feeling?
Your energy level?
Your body.
Your mind.
And for this practice,
Will lie down.
Yoga Nidra is a practice of non-doing.
Set yourself up in any way that's comfortable for you.
You might lie on your back,
Possibly with a blanket over you or under you.
You might lie on a yoga mat or you might lie on a bed.
Or you might just recline in the easy chair.
Noticing your body.
Begin to Explore.
Where?
You feel at ease,
The parts of your body that feel relaxed,
Comfortable.
And where you may feel a constraint or any constriction.
Make any adjustments so you can be just a little more comfortable.
And then.
.
.
Bring your awareness to your breath.
Feeling and sensing the breath.
Take a moment and inhale.
And lengthen through the spine.
As you breathe in,
Just notice where it might lengthen or release just a little bit.
And then with the exhale,
Feel the way you can.
Draw the shoulders,
Releasing.
And allow the collarbone area to open up in a relaxed way.
Shoulders dropping away from the ears.
Arms and hands settling.
In whatever way feels good.
Feeling the position of your body.
As you rest into the support.
Beneath you.
Settling in.
Hand.
Feel the wing.
Into the natural rhythm of your breath.
N.
And out.
Noticing the way the inhalation refreshes.
And the way the exhalation invites your body to release into the support of the earth beneath you.
And I invite you now.
To take the image of water.
The image of water being poured.
On any flat surface.
Just noticing that.
Perhaps the image.
And.
The imagined experience.
Of water.
Being slowly poured over you.
And just noticing what in your body can spread.
Just feeling.
A spreading and a softening as though water is poured on the crown of your head.
And notice how the skull.
Itself.
Can soften.
Sometimes there's a holding pattern deep within our heads,
Our skulls.
Just imagine warm water pouring over the crown of your head.
And feeling.
A softening and opening up.
Inside your cranium.
As you take your awareness downward,
Feel the way you can take that spreading soft energy down into your forehead,
Smoothing the forehead.
And let's take now that spreading energy down into the eyes.
Feeling the way the little muscles around your eyes can spread and soften.
And taking that spreading energy.
Gliding,
Smoothing that energy down your temples.
Soothing your temples.
Taking that energy down into the area around and inside your ears.
Without strain,
Just letting the ears hear whatever there is in your environment.
Easy listening.
And taking your awareness back.
2.
The place where your skull meets the earth and just feel that resting.
Of the back of your skull into the earth.
And how the more the head releases back.
The more the forehead and the temples and the ears can soften.
The eyes softening as well.
And letting awareness.
Move down your face.
Feeling as though you could take that sliding energy down the bridge of your nose.
Sensing and feeling the breath.
Moving in and out through your nostrils.
Without strain.
Fill the way to cheeks.
Can soften.
And taking that smoothing,
Easeful energy into your mouth now.
Letting your lips soften and spread.
Feeling inside the mouth.
Softening the structures inside your mouth.
The tongue.
The jaw.
As the jaw softens.
Letting your awareness sweep.
Across your jawline.
Softening your skin.
Touching your chin.
And taking that smoothing energy down through your neck.
Feeling the front of your neck soften.
The sides of your neck softened.
Ta-ta.
Of your neck softening.
Feeling gently where the head rests.
Where your shoulder girdle rests.
As you release the backs of the shoulders.
Notice what happens now to the front of the throat.
As you invite that area to soften.
Imagining your water is being poured.
Across.
The upper chest.
Feel the way that energy can spill down over the collarbones.
Touching and softening the tops of the shoulders.
Smoothing the whole area from your sternum out toward your shoulders.
Feeling the backs of your shoulders resting into the support of the earth.
Smooth energy across the front,
Releasing constraints in the neck and shoulders.
And letting that smoothing soft energy begin to move down.
Over the shoulders.
Down into the armpits,
Down through the arms.
Smoothing the upper arms.
Smooth energy,
Pooling for just a moment in the elbows.
And then flowing down through.
The lower arms.
Energy flowing.
Into your wrists.
Feeling the resting of the backs of your hands into the support of the earth.
Feeling the smooth,
Soft energy in the palms of your hands.
Like a smooth touch.
Touch of awareness into both thumbs now,
Both index fingers,
Both middle fingers,
Ring fingers,
Both pinkies.
Soft hands.
Soft fingers.
Both hands saw.
Relax.
Resting into the support of the earth.
Fingers and palms.
Soft.
And smooth.
Letting that awareness now sweep back up.
From the hands up through the arms.
All the way back up into the shoulders.
Just touching into those soft places now.
And moving awareness into the center of the chest.
Inviting awareness now to pool.
For a moment in the center of your chest.
Your heart center.
Breathing right there into your heart center.
Noticing as you inhale and exhale.
Howl this area.
Can open.
Any constraints there being released.
Feeling the way the back of the heart rests into the support of the earth beneath you.
Feeling the way the right and left sides of your chest open and soften.
Letting that softness now flow down into your navel area.
Taking a nice belly breath there.
Breathing in and out,
Relaxing that area,
Letting go.
Awareness spread there.
Inviting.
Awareness to move down into your pelvic bowl.
Breathing into the contents of your pelvic bowl.
Feel the way the back of the pelvis settles into the earth.
The whole region of Bali.
And pelvis.
Breathe open now.
With the exhale releasing constraints or holding patterns deep in those areas.
And letting your awareness now.
Move it down.
And smooth open the groins.
The fronts of your thighs.
Feel the way your buttocks settle,
The backs of the thighs supported by the earth beneath you.
Following this flow of soft energy downward.
Letting it pool for just a moment into the knee joints.
And then letting that energy flow down into the lower legs.
Smoothing this energy down into the ankles.
Feeling the heels.
Touching the earth.
Sensing the soles of your feet.
Smoothing energy into the soles of your feet.
And then onto the tops of your feet.
Releasing any constraints in your feet or ankles.
And feeling into the mounds of your big toes,
Your second toes,
Third toes,
Fourth toes.
Pinky toes.
Soft toes.
Soft,
Relaxed feet.
Soft,
Relaxed ankles.
Soft,
Relaxed legs.
Back up into your soft,
Relaxed belly.
Heart.
Shoulders,
Arms,
And hands.
Soft,
Relaxed face.
Feeling now the whole body supported by the earth beneath you.
Noticing that as the body releases into the support of the earth.
The front body.
Can be a little more open.
Less constrained,
More free.
Noticing now the ceaseless movement of breath breathing you.
Hmm.
In and out.
Allowing your awareness to rest on the breath.
And inviting yourself to move inside.
Feeling into this inner resource of ease.
That you carry on the inside of you.
Getting to know this place,
This space inside your inner landscape.
How it can feel roomy,
Supportive,
Soft,
And calm.
Giving yourself a moment here.
To bask in that inner space of well-being and ease.
Taking a nice deep breath in.
And a long,
Slow breath out.
Deep breath in.
Long,
Slow breath out.
And just feeling this pocket of ease.
That you have for yourself.
Right here.
Inviting yourself to soak it in.
So that this ease becomes.
A resource place.
From which you can.
Access for the rest of your day.
You might even take a hand to your heart and a hand to your belly.
With this touch,
Feeling.
For your own commitment.
To your well-being.
A form of stewardship.
Self.
Stewardship.
You.
Taking care of you.
Breathe in and out.
Feeling this ease.
Feeling this care.
This care that you give yourself.
Eventually.
As you're ready.
You can take a deeper breath in.
And exhale out.
As you're ready,
You might stretch the arms,
The legs.
Inviting any movements that feel natural and good to you.
As you stretch the body.
And gradually prepare to come into the rest of your day.
Gently rolling to your side.
Making your way up to sitting.
If you wish,
You might bring your hands together at your heart.
And a gesture of.
Honoring yourself.
Honoring.
That ease is something you can give yourself.
Honoring the downship.
That's possible.
When you pause and let go.
Reminding yourself.
The pockets of ease.
Are so often available to us when we're willing to take notice.
And receive them.
