Drift Into Deep Rest: Yoga Nidra For Sleep & Renewal

Hello and welcome to Yoga Nidra Sanctuary.

I'm so glad you're here and I am so looking forward to offering you a practice that will create a sense of deep deep relaxation through the physical body,

The energetic body,

Your mind,

Your spirit,

Taking everything back to zero.

So go ahead and gather your things,

Get comfortable and have a good rest.

So in case you're new to Yoga Nidra,

This is an effortless guided meditation.

There's nothing that you need to do.

That's the best thing.

Really the only thing you need to do is remain comfortable and warm and cozy and just let my voice guide you into a deep state of rest.

And this rest is nourishing you on every layer of your being.

In yogic philosophy it's said that our consciousness is five layers or sheaths and they're called the koshas.

And Yoga Nidra is a journey through the koshas to find the union with our pure essence,

Our true essence of what we are.

And we are blissful,

Peaceful spirits made of love and our physicalness here on earth is just part of all that we are.

So this practice helps us find that union again.

It's kind of like cleaning the slate of this earthly life with our natural mind,

Our ego,

Our thinking mind that has a lot of beliefs,

A lot of habits that might not serve us.

I think maybe we could all think of one or two things that we do that we're like,

I would be okay letting that go.

And so what happens in Yoga Nidra is through the use of our sankalpa we are essentially creating new neural pathways in our brain towards how we do want to live,

Who we want to be,

And what we want to do.

And I know it sounds kind of magical but Yoga Nidra is pretty magical in the fact that it's not even that we have to be like,

Okay I'm gonna tackle this belief or thought and we're gonna let it go.

Nope.

It's just the techniques of the practice that are the magic and your consciousness knows exactly what to do to to shift into living more in your highest good,

Your highest state of being.

And that doesn't happen through one practice.

That's why it's called a practice because we keep keep going,

We keep doing it,

We keep answering this call to connect with and embody who we truly are.

All right so I trust by now you've had time to snuggle in and get warm and comfy.

So go ahead and close down your eyes if you haven't already and just tune into the comfort that you have created.

Notice how you've taken care and time to snuggle your head in just right.

Feeling how your shoulder blades and lower back are supported.

Just sensing the warmth.

Maybe you have on extra clothes or a blanket maybe it's warm in your climate.

Just sensing your body,

Yourself,

Your being here and now.

Feel into your own weight and the space that your body is taking up wherever you're doing this yoga nidra.

Really just being here.

Think of it like this,

This first part we're slowing down a fast-moving train and so we're noticing all the different aspects of our comfort,

Our surroundings.

You might hear any little sounds or noises.

Not really getting attached to one certain noise you hear.

Moving from sound to sound.

Now are there any aromas in the space you're in?

You might run your tongue over your teeth.

Are there any tastes in your mouth still?

Maybe even swallowing a few times.

Opening and closing the jaw.

Sensing how the eyes are now shrouded by the lids.

Sensing the warmth.

Knowing that the eyes being covered is only facilitating a deeper journey inward.

In the outer seeing eyes now have a break.

Consciously drawing your awareness inward.

Letting your awareness wander to the nostrils.

Just a sense of the breath happening at the nostrils.

The air might feel a little cooler coming in.

Maybe a little warmer,

Moister coming out.

Letting all of your attention just be here on the breath.

Now feeling a sense of the breath going in to the sinuses or even imagining that if you don't necessarily feel it.

I think your nostrils are pulling the breath deep into the nasal cavity.

Becoming one with this prana,

Your breath of life.

Now let this expand and just the experience of the weight of your head.

You might even feel how your head and neck let go a little bit more as you place your attention here.

Like every exhale the head is becoming a little bit heavier.

That melts down through the whole backside of the body.

The whole backside of the body connected to the earth.

All of you being received by the earth.

Where you can effortlessly and energetically just let go of what no longer serves you.

Within this stillness it just fades away.

You're coming back to center.

Aligning with the truth of who you really are.

Welcoming even more balance by doing a pranayama practice called sama vritti.

This is equal breathing.

We'll be breathing in for four and out for four.

In and out through the nose if you can.

I'll guide you through the first three rounds and then I'll have you take some more rounds on your own.

Ready?

Breathe in 2 3 4 out 2 3 4 in 2 3 4 out 2 3 4 in 2 3 4 out 2 3 4 keep going.

Reach inhale and exhale if unfolding into the next breath.

Do one more round.

Felt sense of your whole body relaxed at ease.

There's nowhere else to go.

Nothing else left to do.

Welcoming your sankalpa if you're currently working with one.

If you're not that's okay you can create a secondary sankalpa.

Sankalpa is akin to an intention.

It's something you want to live on the regular every day of your life.

Maybe that's working with the way you share your language.

I speak kindly and articulately could be your sankalpa or perhaps you are healing and evolving from a sickness.

I trust in my body's innate healing capacity.

There's some ideas for you.

Take another moment to cultivate your own sankalpa.

If you're bringing your sankalpa and then as you're ready when you're ready repeat this sankalpa three times.

This sankalpa is planted in the subconscious.

It can flourish and grow there.

Essentially repeating it like that is speaking it into being is manifesting it and that's an infinite vibration.

So trust and know you're creating what you want beyond the specifics of your sankalpa.

Next on our journey is the rotation of consciousness.

We'll move around the body and you'll place your awareness your attention on each area.

Notice what you feel.

Notice if there's a sensation or an energy.

We'll start at the center of the chest,

Your heart center.

Allow your attention to rest at the center of your chest.

Now move to the hollow of your throat.

Could you sense the root of your tongue.

Now the tip of your tongue.

The whole surface of the tongue.

The sides of the tongue.

The right side and the left side.

Now can you sense the roof of the mouth.

The gums and the teeth.

The nostrils.

Just imagining the orbs of the eyes resting beneath the lids.

Now sense of the warmth of the eyelids.

Imagine you could feel your eyelashes.

Move to the third eye center.

Now become aware of the right ear.

Imagining the structure of the ear and even the ear canal.

Now guide your attention over to the left ear.

As if you were simply hearing my voice only out of the left ear.

Imagining the ear canal and the structure of that ear.

Now both ears listening at the same time.

Both ears listening.

Now take your attention to the top of your head.

Just imagining the crown of your head.

And then dropping into the center of your head to the pineal gland.

Imagine you could feel the brain within your skull.

And then expand to sense your entire head.

Sensing the whole head.

Move attention to the point between your shoulder blades.

And then expanding to sense the whole upper back.

Sense your whole upper back.

Now your right shoulder.

The shoulder on the top,

In the front,

On the side.

That whole right shoulder.

Now the left shoulder.

The top,

The front,

The side.

Now can you feel both shoulders at the same time?

Good.

Now to the crease of the right elbow.

And the crease of the left elbow.

And then both elbows.

The whole elbow.

Right side,

Left side.

Now to the wrists.

Feel both wrists at the same time.

The tops and the insides.

To the palms and the backs of the fingers.

Tuning in to see if there's any subtle sensations in the palms and fingers.

Both hands.

Both hands,

Both arms.

Both hands and arms.

Back to the center of the chest.

Feel the whole chest and the whole rib cage.

Awareness of the back of the rib cage and the sides and the chest and the front and the rib cage.

Around the solar plexus.

To the navel.

Expanding into an awareness of the whole abdomen.

And the lower back.

Can you sense the sacrum and the glutes?

The lower abdomen and the pelvis within.

Imagine the joints of the hips.

And now the back of the right knee.

And the back of the left knee.

And the tops of the knees.

So the kneecaps.

On the right side,

The left side.

Now to the ankle.

And the soles of the feet.

Let your awareness rest on the base of the heels,

The arches,

And the balls of the feet.

Now all 10 toes.

Noticing any warmth or energy in the soles of the feet.

Let's expand awareness to the toe tips.

All 10 toe tips.

Both feet.

Both legs.

Saturate awareness into the whole body.

Aware and sensing the energy of the whole physical body.

Trillions of cells.

The whole body shimmering with white.

The whole body filled with light.

Can you imagine now a light at the crown of the head?

Glowing white.

White light glowing at the top of the head.

Visualize or just pretend to see.

Now see a light at the third eye center.

An indigo light at the third eye center.

Dropping to the hollow of the throat.

See a blue light glowing here.

Move to the center of the chest.

An emerald green light pulsating,

Glowing here at the heart.

Moving down to the solar plexus,

That spot where the ribs meet.

Emanating from this space.

Slowly move attention to just below the navel.

Can you start to manifest an orange glow here?

Now all the way to the tip of the tailbone area.

The perineum.

A red glowing hue.

And in this space,

In your mind,

Love.

This is the mantra for the first chakra,

Lam.

Saying that over and over as you continue to hold your attention in this spot.

Moving back to the orange glow of the second chakra.

Lam.

Repeating this mantra silently.

Sensing the color orange.

Moving back to the solar plexus,

A yellow glow.

Lam.

To the center of the chest.

Creating that green glow again.

Welcoming the awareness of the heart chakra.

Yam.

Yam.

Yam.

Yam.

To the hollow of the throat,

A beautiful blue glowing energy.

Hum.

To the third eye center,

An indigo.

Silently repeating Om.

All the way up to the crown.

A white light.

High frequency.

Now might you imagine,

Visualize,

Sense all of these colors glowing within.

All of these colors vibrating.

Sensing the whole body filled with energy and color.

Imagine breathing this rainbow of light up and down your body as if you were moving a wave of color up and down the body.

Knowing however you are experiencing this.

Breathing this color through the body,

Up and down the body.

Energy.

Energy.

All of your nadis,

Your channels of energy,

Cleansed and purified.

Now can you return to the feeling of your breath again at the nostrils.

As if you're the observer now.

Observe this body as heavy.

A whole body heavy as if filled with sand.

Body heavy.

Sense the impression the body is making.

Now start to sense this body as light.

The body light and floating.

Buoyant with life force energy.

Sense the body elevated.

Floating.

Now create the body as heavy again.

Filling with sand.

Weighted down.

Weighted down.

Heavy.

Whole body.

Heavy and dense.

Feel the body heavy.

With each breath the body getting lighter.

Buoyant and floating.

Airy like a balloon.

Whole body.

Floating.

Now could you feel the body as heavy and light simultaneously.

Body as heavy and light at the same time.

Observing this duality.

Light and heavy.

Sensing and feeling the body as energy.

Whole body resting deeply.

Sensing a quiet glow in your heart space.

Soft shimmering energy emanating from your body.

Notice the texture of this shimmering energy.

This light radiating from your body.

With each breath this light grows warmer and brighter.

Your whole body emanating this gentle radiance.

Gentle radiance shimmering in the whole body.

Sensing this subtle shift.

This feeling of expansion.

As if your inner space becomes too big for the confines of the physical body.

Energy radiating far and wide.

Energy radiating.

Sensing the body radiating light.

Complete.

Resting back in this luminous field of energy.

Rivers of stars.

And in this space welcoming insights.

Answers.

Inspirations.

Open and receptive.

Floating in cosmic bliss.

Presence.

Filled with this quiet infinite knowing as you drift for a bit longer.

Let yourself merge with this vastness.

This is where you can call back the Sankalpa.

Repeating it three more times.

Aware of the breath.

Feel the effortless ease of your already happening breath.

Could you start to deepen the breath?

Two sips of breath in.

Again.

Going out your exhale.

Feeling the life force within you.

Your breath.

You might feel your ribcage expanding and contracting.

Or your belly rising and falling.

If you're planning on resuming your day or evening,

You might want to start to wiggle around your fingers and toes.

Squeezing open and closed the hands.

Rolling the ankles and the wrists.

Just in general,

Going nice and slow.

Really,

If you can,

Going as slow as possible.

Stretching your body.

Or giving yourself a little hug.

Pulling your knees to your chest.

A little rock.

Back and forth on your back.

You take your own time to switch positions depending on how you've been resting.

Really just taking your time.

You might even consider seeing this as sacred space.

This space of profound relaxation.

Aligning you with the truth of all that you are.

This is a perfect time to reflect.

To carry this mindful,

Peaceful energy into whatever might be next for you.

I hope that this yoga nidra practice was everything that you needed today.

If you enjoyed this yoga nidra,

I hope that you will leave me a comment and let me know how you're feeling.

And maybe share it with a friend who could use some deep rest.

I also would love if you subscribed to my channel.

I'm very new here and I would love to build my following to help more people get really relaxed.

Wishing you all the best.