A Yoga Nidra To Realise Your Sankalpa

Hello,

Welcome and thank you for joining me for this autumnal yoga nidra.

Let's start by making ourselves a cozy nest.

Notice how you can make yourself the most comfortable nest possible.

Notice if your head may like a pillow,

If you may like to put something underneath your knees to support your knees and ease the lower back.

If you're pregnant you may like to come on your side and place a pillow between your legs.

Are you warm enough?

You may like an extra blanket,

Your fluffy socks.

Taking your time to become as comfortable as you possibly can.

Imagine that you are making this nest for a beloved,

For somebody you really really care for and you want them to experience this yoga nidra to its highest potential.

You want them to experience a feeling of calm and safety.

You may like to put something over your eyes but this isn't an obligation,

Just notice what feels right for you.

Eventually allowing your body to release into the nest that you've made.

And as you're laying there in your nest,

Just take a little moment to notice if your fingers may like to move a little further away from your wrists,

Your wrists a little further away from your shoulders,

Your shoulders a little further away from your ears.

The crown of the head may like to come a little further away from the back of your neck.

You may notice that your heels may like to come a little further away from each other and maybe a little further away from your hips.

Just noticing any other ways that the body may like to shift,

Move,

To come into the most comfortable position possible.

And when you've found the place that feels just right,

Taking a large sigh,

Almost as if you're signaling to your body that you are coming into yoga nidra,

A place of rest,

A place to release,

A place to connect.

Becoming aware now of the sounds around you,

From the most obvious sounds to the subtlest of sounds.

Becoming aware of the sound of your own breath.

I wonder if your inhale sounds different to your exhale.

You may observe that your inhale feels cool as it rides up the nostrils and your exhale feels warm as it rides out the nostrils.

I wonder now if you can follow your cycles of breath in and out of the nostrils.

How about following 10 cycles of breath?

If you lose count,

Simply return back to one.

Allowing your awareness to shift now through your body as you notice how your body slightly expands on the inhale,

Releases and softens with each exhale,

Softening down towards whatever is supporting you.

And as you allow yourself to be held in this space,

Become curious to see if a sankalpa may arise,

A heartfelt intention.

If a heartfelt intention does not arise,

Then a sankalpa such as I make inner peace my first priority may feel right for you.

Or it may be I am simply practicing yoga nidra and that is all.

But keeping curious enough to welcome your inner wisdom and notice what may arise as your sankalpa.

Now let's invite the nourishment of rest into the body.

Starting at the crown of the head,

Flowing through to the back of the head,

The whole of the scalp,

All the way through to the whole of the forehead,

To the spaces of the temples,

Eyebrows,

The space between the eyebrows,

The left eye and all the muscles around the left eye,

To the right eye and all the muscles around the right eye,

The left cheek,

Right cheek,

The left ear,

All the curves of the left ear,

Into the space of the left ear,

Into the space just behind the left ear,

To the right ear and all the curves of the right ear,

Into the space of the right ear,

Into the space just behind the right ear,

To the deepest area of the headspace,

All resting in nourishment.

Inviting rest into the left nostril,

Into the right nostril,

To the tip of the nose,

Whole of the nose,

The upper lip,

Lower lip,

The meeting place between the lips,

The upper gums,

Lower gums,

The front teeth,

Back teeth,

The space between the upper and lower teeth,

The floor of the mouth,

The roof of the mouth,

The inside of the cheeks,

Right and left,

The jaws,

To the tip of the tongue,

All the way down the tongue,

Into the space of the throat,

Into the back of the neck,

Front of the neck,

Left side of the neck,

Right side of the neck,

The collarbones,

And the space between the collarbones,

All the way to the tops of the shoulders,

Both left and right,

Along the outer sides of the upper arms,

Through to the tips of the elbows,

The sides of the forearms,

Backs of the wrists,

Both left and right.

Feeling the nourishment in the tips of each and every finger and thumb,

Into the spaces between the fingers,

Through both thumbs,

Both index fingers,

Both middle fingers,

Both fourth fingers,

And the two little fingers,

Into the palms of the hands,

The palms,

The inner wrists,

The inner forearms,

The inner elbow,

The inner surface of upper arms,

The armpits,

All the way through now into the left ribs,

The spaces between the left ribs,

And into the right ribs,

The spaces between the right ribs,

Into the left shoulder blade,

The right shoulder blade,

The spaces between the shoulder blades,

Through to the front of the breastbone,

And the space behind the breastbone,

To the very centre of the chest.

Inviting rest and nourishment to the very centre of your chest.

Inviting rest and nourishment into the right side of your belly,

The left side of your belly,

The whole of the belly,

The navel,

The spine behind the belly,

The lower back,

Around and within the left hip,

Around and within the right hip,

The right buttock,

The left buttock,

The right groin,

The left groin,

The pubic bones,

The tailbone,

The floor of the pelvis,

The whole of the pelvis.

Inviting rest to nourish the legs,

The top of the left thigh,

The top of the right thigh,

The back of the right thigh,

The back of the left thigh,

The back of the right knee,

The top of the right knee,

The back of the left knee,

The top of the left knee,

The left shin,

The right shin,

The left calf,

The right calf.

Inviting rest to nourish the feet and toes,

The left ankle,

Right ankle,

Top of the right foot,

Sole of the right foot,

Top of the left foot,

Sole of the left foot,

The big toes of both right and left foot and all the through each and every toe,

Second toes,

Third toes,

Fourth toes,

Little toes,

The tips of all the toes and all the spaces in between the toes on both feet.

Inviting rest to nourish the whole body,

The whole right side of this body is nourished by rest,

The whole of the left side of this body is nourished by rest,

Both sides of this body together are nourished by rest,

Left leg and right leg are nourished by rest,

Legs and pelvis are nourished by rest,

Right arm and left arm are nourished by rest,

Both arms together are nourished by rest,

All the limbs are nourished by rest,

Chest and belly are nourished by rest,

Head,

Neck and spine are nourished by rest,

The whole of this body is nourished by rest.

Allow yourself to settle here,

Settling between the summer's radiance and winter's stillness,

Between the release of falling leaves and the promise of new growth,

Between the clarity of waking and the drifting of sleep.

I wonder if you notice the solid floor beneath you,

How it supports you,

And the freedom of the air that flows around your skin.

You rest between the two,

The solid,

Solid earth.

Imagine now that you are standing at the edge of an autumn forest.

Notice the air around you,

Perhaps it is crisp and cool,

Welcoming.

Notice the colour of the leaves.

Ahead of you is a soft path,

You feel a gentle breeze between the trees.

Notice the scents of the season.

Perhaps it's a sense of change,

Of letting go,

Of quiet renewal.

Begin to walk slowly along the path.

You may feel the gentle gift of leaves beneath your feet.

You may hear the soft rustle with each step.

Perhaps sunlight filters through branches touched with red and gold,

Warming your skin in patches,

Guiding you deeper into this peaceful place.

With every step,

Notice how the forest becomes more still,

How your mind becomes clearer,

How your body feels naturally supported.

Leaves drift down around you,

Some spinning.

They fall effortlessly,

Without hesitation,

Trusting the air to hold them.

As you walk,

Notice one leaf drifting gently through the air towards you.

Its colour is vibrant,

Its movement slow and graceful,

Almost as if it's chosen you.

Now,

Extend your hand.

The leaf floats closer and closer,

Until it lightly lands in your palm.

Now,

Hold the leaf gently.

How does it feel?

Maybe it feels warm.

Maybe you feel that the leaf carries the same energy as your sankalpa.

The intention you set at the beginning of your practice.

It vibrates with the seed within you that is ready to take root.

Close your fingers softly around the leaf and bring it towards your heart.

Feel its message,

Its support,

Its quiet affirmation of your path.

You are on your right path.

Becoming aware once again of the sounds around you.

The sounds that may be within the room,

Or the sounds just outside the room.

And becoming aware of the air on your skin.

And becoming a little bit more aware of the vibrance that carries into your body with your inhale.

Feeling that vibrance and energy flowing through your body into the depths of your body,

Right out through to the periphery of your body,

Waking up the body all the way through to your heart.

The fingers,

All the way through to the toes,

All the way through to the front body,

The back body,

The whole body.

Until you may like to have a wiggle of the fingers and a wiggle of the toes,

Maybe rubbing the palms together,

Creating some heat and putting that heat maybe over your eyes or any other part of your body,

Maybe asking for some loving affection.

And if your eyes are closed,

You may now like to open your eyes,

Gently having a little wander around the room with your eyes,

Feeling into the space around you.

And moving in any way now to wake up the body fully.

And I wish you a beautiful day or evening ahead of you.