Prepare yourself for Yoga Nidra,
The yogic sleep technique which can help you refresh,
Rejuvenate and reconnect both with your inner self and your higher self.
Please lie down on your back in shavasana pose.
Make yourself comfortable and allow your whole body to become completely relaxed and sink into the surface of the bed or the floor.
Do not hold any tightness in your body.
Keep your legs slightly apart and allow your feet to flop on their sides facing outwards.
Keep your hands by the side of your body,
Slightly away from your body,
Palms of your hands facing the ceiling and fingers slightly curved.
Remember you are going to practice yoga nidra.
Yoga nidra means yogic sleep.
You will feel like sleeping but you will stay awake.
You will not sleep.
During this practice you have to remain totally still.
If you wish to make any final adjustments before we begin the practice,
Now is the time to make these adjustments.
Roll your shoulders,
Scratch your face,
Adjust yourself.
Make these final adjustments and let's get ready.
Scan your body gently,
Ensuring that you are not holding any part of your body tightly.
If you are holding something tightly,
Please relax it and let it go.
Check whether you are holding the muscles in your neck,
Shoulders,
Hands,
Back,
Buttocks,
Thighs,
Legs tightly.
If you are holding any part of your body tightly,
Please relax and let it go.
Please take a nice deep breath in and as you breathe out,
Feel your body sinking down into the floor,
Relaxing.
With every breath your body sinks further and further down into the floor,
Completely relaxed.
Say to yourself mentally,
I am practicing yoga nidra.
I will keep listening to the voice of the instructor.
I will not sleep.
Your body is relaxed,
Your body is still,
Your mind is relaxed,
Your awareness is active.
Now become aware of all those parts of your body that are in contact with the floor.
You have to observe the fine points of contact between your body and the floor.
Your head and the floor,
Your right shoulders and the floor,
Left shoulder and the floor,
Right arm and the floor,
Left arm and the floor,
Back and the floor,
Right buttock and the floor,
Left buttock and the floor.
Right leg and the floor and left leg and the floor.
Develop awareness of all the points of contact between the body and the flow.
Intensify your awareness of the sense of touch between the body and the flow.
Now,
Become aware of the sharp line of contact between your eyelids.
Observe the fine points where your eyelids are touching each other gently.
Move your awareness to your lips.
Become aware of the upper lip and lower lip gently touching each other.
Observe the fine points where they meet.
Now,
Bring your awareness further up a little.
Become aware of the tip of your nose and observe the breath flowing in and out on its own.
As the breath flows in,
Feel the chill air,
The freshness and health coming in.
As the breath flows out,
Feel the warm air going out,
The heat,
The pain,
The discomfort,
The fatigue,
All the negativity going out of your body.
With every breath,
You feel more and more relaxed and your body sinks deeper and deeper into the flow.
Do not sleep.
Stay with the voice of the instructor.
Now,
We are going to do rotation of consciousness.
We are going to take our awareness on a tour to the different parts of the body.
As I mentioned the name of a body part,
You will immediately repeat the name of the body part mentally and simultaneously become aware of the part.
For example,
If I say right hand thumb,
You have to mentally repeat right hand thumb and quickly become aware of your right hand thumb.
In the same way,
You have to take your awareness as quickly as possible to different parts of the body as called out by me.
Rotation always begins with the right hand thumb.
Right hand thumb,
Second finger,
Third finger,
Fourth finger,
Fifth finger,
Thumb and finger of right hand,
Right hand palm,
Back of the palm,
Wrist,
Forearm,
Elbow,
Upper arm.
Shoulders,
Armpit,
Sides,
Waist,
Hips,
Thighs,
Right knee,
Calf muscle,
Ankles,
Sole of your feet,
Top of your right foot,
Big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe.
Now become aware of your left hand thumb.
Left hand thumb,
Left hand thumb,
Second finger,
Third finger,
Fourth finger,
Fifth finger,
Thumb and fingers of left hand,
Palm of your hand,
Back of the palm,
Wrist,
Forearm,
Elbow,
Upper arm,
Shoulder,
Armpit,
Sides,
Waist,
Hips,
Thighs,
Left knee,
Calf muscle,
Ankles.
Sole of your feet,
Top of your feet,
Big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe.
Now become aware of the whole right side of the body.
The whole right side,
The whole right side.
Now become aware of the left side,
The whole left side,
The whole left side of your body.
Bring your awareness now to the whole back of your body.
The whole back,
The whole back,
The whole back.
Become aware of the whole front side of your body.
The whole front,
The whole front,
The whole front.
Bring your awareness to the whole body.
The whole body,
The whole body.
Go on,
Continue listening,
Continue the practice.
No sleeping please.
Keep on listening.
Keep on practicing.
The whole body,
The whole body,
The whole body.
You are deeply relaxed.
Feel the peace,
The harmony,
The tranquility,
The vitality.
Experience them in every bit of your body.
Now prepare to gradually externalize your awareness.
You can begin to move your body slowly,
Fingers,
Toes.
Now gently turn over to any one side.
Take your own time.
In your own time please come to a sitting position.
The practice of Yoga Nidra is complete now.
You can come to a sitting position and slowly open your eyes.
