Experience Inner Peace & Stillness With Yoga Nidra

Hello and welcome to Yoga Nidra for experiencing inner peace and stillness.

In this session,

We will still the waters of the mind and sink deep into our own inner ocean of energy.

To begin,

We will want to make sure that we are as comfortable as possible.

So if you need to pause this recording to make any adjustments to your space,

Take a moment to do so.

And whenever you are ready,

We'll begin with the eyes closed.

If they're not already,

Begin to bring your attention inward.

Take a deep breath in through the nose,

Open the mouth and let it go.

Good.

Again,

One more deep breath in through the nose,

Open the mouth and let it go.

Allowing your body to relax,

Slowly disengaging from thoughts,

Images,

Or worries.

Allow yourself to be fully immersed in the experience of this moment.

Bring your awareness now to your breath.

Notice the rise and fall of every breath in,

Of every breath out.

We will now combine the breath with the sounds of a humming bumblebee.

And as we do so,

Let your awareness be filled completely with the vibration of the humming and vary the pitch to maximize the personal impact.

We'll begin by receiving our first breath out of three.

Deep breath in through the nose and begin to hum.

Whenever you're finished with your first,

With your first,

Take a second breath.

When you finished with your second,

Take your third breath and now breathe normally and bring your full awareness to the remnants of the vibration of the bumblebee breath.

Feel the remnants of the vibration throughout your head,

Your chest,

And your arms,

The legs,

And your whole body.

From this point forward,

Remain as still as possible.

And if you need to make any adjustments to your posture during this practice,

Do so mindfully and very slowly and return to stillness as soon as you are able.

Stay connected to the sound of my voice and let your whole body respond to what I say without any commentary or judgment from the mind.

Effortlessly and automatically as if my voice was your voice.

Now move from thinking into feeling and from doing into non-doing.

Relax.

Now bring your awareness to the breath.

Slowly begin to deepen your inhalations and lengthen your exhalations.

Feel the breath moving up the front of the spine as you inhale from pubic bone all the way up to the crown of the head.

And feel the breath moving down the back as you exhale from the crown of the head all the way down to the tailbone.

Bring your full attention to the movement of breath.

Follow along with its flow,

Inhaling up the front,

Exhaling down the back.

Stay connected to this circular flow of energy and breath.

Now we will begin the So Hum breath,

Integrating the silent sound of So Hum.

As you inhale,

Feel the silent sound So travel with the breath up the front of the spine.

And as you exhale,

Feel the sound Hum travel with the breath down the back of the spine.

Be totally immersed in the sound,

The vibration,

And the movement of the So Hum breath.

Energy flowing,

Attention moving,

Breath rising,

Breath falling.

Remain present and engaged in the silent sound So Hum.

I am that.

Now let the breath return to its normal state and rest in silent stillness,

Feeling any lingering sensations,

From the experience of vibration and breath.

From this point forward,

Do absolutely nothing.

Feel your body entering a state of deep stillness.

Let go.

Now,

Softly,

Guide your attention to meet the experience of the breath,

Specifically the breath as felt in the nostrils.

Sense coolness and warmth,

Movement and stillness,

Or whatever is present.

Devote your attention to the range of sensations derived from the breath moving through the nostrils.

With your next inhalation,

Let your attention follow the flow of the breath into the nostrils,

Back into the sinus cavities,

And out through the nose.

The awareness curls forward into the mouth to experience the roof of the mouth,

The teeth,

The gums,

And lips,

Feeling all the experiences in the present moment as a swirling and ever-changing galaxy of sensations.

Allow attention to expand beyond the mouth to include the chin,

The lips,

The cheeks,

The eyes,

And the entire face and head.

Inside and out,

The entire head and face felt as a radiant,

Swirling galaxy of sensations,

Feeling all of the various sensations present in the entire head,

Tingling,

Vibrating,

Pulsing,

Relax,

And feel.

Now know the experience of the head is arising in a particular location.

It has a particular shape and a particular size.

And see how this mini-galaxy of sensations exists in a vast,

Open space of awareness,

A space unbounded and effortlessly present to all that is within it.

Now relax into and as this spaciousness,

Be this vast space of awareness,

Perfectly open and allowing of all objects and experiences.

Let go.

Inhale slowly and guide attention to the pit of the throat.

Feel again,

Making no effort to visualize or label the sensations.

Simply relax into the experience present at the pit of the throat.

Now allow attention to flow outwards along the collarbones to the shoulders,

And from the shoulders down the arms to the wrists and fingers.

Watch as attention broadens to include the torso,

The ribs,

The belly,

And the back.

The entire torso,

Shoulders,

And arms are bathed in an evenly hovering awareness.

Relax and feel.

Now notice how the entire experience of the torso and the arms also has boundaries,

A location,

A shape,

And a size.

And that this experience is yet another galaxy of sensations,

Floating in the same vast and boundless field of awareness.

Draw attention to this surrounding spaciousness.

And once again,

Relax into and as this vast awareness itself.

Be the space in which this experience is happening.

Let go.

Be vast.

And with your next exhalation,

Allow attention to flow down to the pelvis,

Feeling all the sensations present.

Inhale,

And with your next exhalation,

Watch as awareness flows down and into the thighs,

Into the knees,

The shins,

The ankles,

And the feet.

Awareness filling the entire lower body,

Connected to every detail,

Feeling every sensation.

Relax and be present.

Now notice how the entire experience of the lower body also is arising in a particular location,

Has a particular shape,

And a particular size.

Bring your attention to the boundaries of this experience of the lower body.

Notice how it is happening in the same vast field of awareness.

Bring your attention now into this space of awareness.

Relax into and as this space.

Experience yourself as this ever-present spaciousness in which all experience arises.

Just be.

Breathe in,

And with your next exhalation,

Feel attention moving up from the feet as if a blanket of attention was being slowly drawn up towards the head.

This blanket of attention covers the ankles,

Shins,

And knees.

It covers the thighs and pelvis,

Moving up to cover the belly,

The hands,

Chest,

And arms,

The shoulders,

The neck,

Face,

And head.

Breathe and feel the experience of the entirety of the body.

Every sensation in every cell felt simultaneously and equally.

Experiencing the body as a radiant,

Pulsating galaxy of ever-changing sensations and movements.

Relax.

Note once again how this experience,

The experience of the entire body,

Is happening in you in this vast,

Open space of awareness.

The tingling,

The heat,

The heaviness,

The lightness,

Whatever is arising,

It all is occurring within a particular location that has a particular shape and various qualities.

And it all arises in this vast,

Boundless field of awareness that you are.

Bring attention to the spaciousness around the experience of the body.

Now relax again as that space,

Boundless and free.

Continue to relax in and as this spaciousness,

The field in which all sensations all images,

All thoughts,

All smells,

All tastes,

In fact,

All experience arises.

Just be.

Now imagine a soothing place,

Any place where you feel peaceful,

Calm,

Happy,

And relaxed.

Calm,

Happy,

And relaxed.

A place where there are no concerns about the future or past.

A place that makes you feel safe.

It doesn't have to be a real place.

It might be a place that you create for yourself right now.

You might find yourself relaxing on a tropical beach,

Listening to the ocean,

Smelling the salty air,

Or you might find yourself on a mountain ridgeline overlooking a beautiful green valley.

Or maybe you're in the cozy embrace of a comfortable sofa inside a cabin in a peaceful forest.

Whatever it is,

Trust and relax in the rightness of this place.

Now allow yourself to be in this place fully.

Feel it.

Look around.

Breathe deeply and take in your surroundings.

The full experience,

The feelings,

Sights,

Sounds,

And the smells of this place are filling you fully.

And now select a comfortable place to sit or lie down.

And choose a place where you can let go fully.

Go to that spot now.

Relax into it and feel a soft smile spreading across your face.

Now close your eyes and feel and feel what it is like to be in this safe place.

Breathe in the air of this place.

Listen to the sounds of this place.

Let yourself completely enjoy the feeling of safety,

Of peace,

And allow yourself to deeply rest.

Notice how your entire being is softening with each inhalation feeling more peaceful and with each exhalation feeling even more relaxed.

Now notice something in this place that you can bring back with you as a reminder to help you find the state of calm anytime you wish.

It could be a feeling like the sun on your body.

It could be the smell of the mountain air.

Or it might be a small keepsake like a shell,

A leaf,

Or a heart-shaped stone.

Whatever it is,

Select it now.

Notice it.

Remember it.

And once again feel that smile spreading across your face.

Know that you can return to this safe and nurturing place anytime you want.

Relax and allow yourself to drop into the deepest state of relaxation right now.

Do absolutely nothing.

As you receive the following intentions,

Allow every cell in your being to remain open,

Relaxed,

And receptive.

I am the spacious awareness in which my entire life arises.

I am the spacious awareness in which my entire life arises.

I am peaceful in the midst of commotion.

I am changeless in the midst of change.

I am peaceful in the midst of commotion.

I am changeless in the midst of change.

I am the witness observing thoughts,

Images,

And sounds like clouds moving through a clear blue sky.

I am the witness observing thoughts,

Images,

And sounds like clouds moving through a clear blue sky.

Notice now that you have uncovered a new and more harmonious way of seeing and being.

And this new perspective will allow you to relate to your thoughts,

Your emotions,

And the world around you in a new and more accepting way.

Remember that this perspective can be cultivated and expanded and all you need to do is resolve to nurture it.

It is in this way that you create your experience of life.

Now gently begin to bring your attention back to your breath without any effort to change the breath.

Simply become aware of the rising and falling of the abdomen.

Just observe the spontaneous flow of breath moving in and moving out.

Now begin to become more aware of your physical experience.

Feel the weight of the body on the surface you're on,

The temperature of air on the skin,

And the movement of breath in the belly.

Stay relaxed and as you feel ready,

Begin to bring a bit of movement into fingers and toes.

Be mindful and move slowly,

Maybe even allowing some gentle stretching of arms or legs.

And of course,

If the impulse is to remain still,

Simply relax.

And you may choose to stay here lying down for a bit longer,

Or if you would like to come out of the session,

Bend into the knees and gently roll over onto your right side.

Right side.

Rest here in fetal position with the eyes closed.

And again,

You can stay here for a bit longer if it feels good for your body.

Or if you'd like to continue coming out,

Use the strength of your arms to press yourself up to a comfortable seat,

Keeping the eyes closed if possible.

Sit tall and allow the heart to be buoyant.

Notice the calm of the breath,

The stillness of the mind,

And the spaciousness of your being.

And bring your hands together in front of the heart center.

And whether you're sitting up or lying down still,

Just take a moment to thank and appreciate yourself for showing up here for you today.

And for taking the time to nourish yourself,

Your being,

And your life with this practice.

And as always,

I thank you so,

So very much for allowing me to help facilitate this experience for you today.

I'll see you next time.