Welcome to this guided Insight Nidra meditation.
Please take a few moments to get comfortable.
Lie down on a soft mattress,
Bed or couch,
Not a yoga mat.
Making sure the surface you lie on is soft,
So the body can remain still for the duration of the practice.
It's best to meditate in a dark room.
Use an eye mask if needed.
Being slightly cool helps not to fall asleep.
You can elevate your head and shoulders or sit up if you tend to fall asleep.
Move into Shavasana,
Resting on your back.
Lie with your legs a bit wider than hip-width apart.
Roll your shoulders down and rest your arms by your side.
Palms gently facing upward.
Put a cushion under your knees and head for added comfort.
Adjust your clothing and blankets to ensure that you can remain completely still during the practice.
Close your eyes.
Allow your body to enter complete stillness.
There are intentional pauses during the guided instruction to allow for integration of the Insight Nidra instructions.
We start our meditation with chanting to enliven the relevant chakra and move into emotional energy.
We'll now begin.
Working with the crown chakra,
We're going to chant OM for a couple of minutes.
That's A-U-M.
As you do so,
Realise that the A is the beginning,
The U is the middle,
The life,
And M is dissolution,
As you chant for the next couple of minutes.
Chanting OM,
A-U-M,
For another 30 seconds or a minute.
Gradually bring your chanting to a close.
Inhaling,
Tensing your body,
Breathing out,
Relaxing your body and mind.
Repeat twice more.
Tensing your body,
Inhaling,
Tensing your body,
Breathing out,
Relaxing your body and mind.
Inhaling to a count of six,
Or whatever is comfortable.
Holding your breath for the same count.
Then exhaling for that same count.
And just keep repeating.
Just coming back to your natural breath.
Just making sure that you're relaxed.
Observing any tension,
Just letting it go.
Observing any sensations in your body.
Feeling your body supported by the ground.
Allowing your mind to dissolve into waking sleep.
We're going to rotate our awareness.
Starting with both your thumbs.
Putting your attention on both your thumbs.
Moving your awareness to the index fingers.
Both index fingers together.
Both middle fingers.
Ring fingers.
Little fingers.
Putting your full awareness onto your fingers.
Onto both palms together.
We also have chakras.
Onto your wrists.
And remember you've got the sides and back of the wrists as well.
Forearms.
Feeling any sensations throughout the whole of the forearms.
Back,
Front,
Sides.
Your elbows.
The upper arms.
Both your shoulders.
Remembering the back of your shoulders.
Bringing your awareness to the third eye chakra.
Between the eyebrows.
Your throat chakra.
Remembering the back of the throat chakra at the base of the neck.
The heart chakra.
And its origin in the middle of the dorsal spine,
The middle of the back.
Moving down to the bottom of the ribs at the beginning of the solar plexus chakra.
Just tracing it through the body.
Just below the ribs at the front.
Moving down to the top of the sacrum,
The wedge shaped bone at the base of the spine.
Bringing awareness through the body to the opening of the sacral chakra just below the navel.
A chakra between the pubic bone and the tailbone pointing downwards into the ground.
Both hips.
Feeling the sides,
The front,
The back of both hips.
Going through the body like this helps to form neural connections with the brain.
Both your knees together.
Remembering the back of the knees.
Your legs.
The soles of your feet.
On many of these areas you also have tiny chakras like the palms,
The soles of your feet.
Moving through your big toes,
Second toes,
Middle toes,
Fourth toes,
And little toes.
Feeling energy streaming through all your toes and your fingers at the same time.
Just coming back to your breath.
Some of the areas,
Some of the joints that we've covered may have felt tight or maybe you couldn't feel them very well.
They felt blank.
So just return to those areas.
Just watching,
Feeling any sensations that may arise.
If you don't feel anything,
It doesn't matter.
The main thing is just to observe those areas that maybe your attention skipped over or you couldn't feel or were numb.
Just for the next couple of minutes going through those areas.
For another minute,
Breathing gently into any tight areas where you've got pain or places where you couldn't feel anything.
When you're ready,
Just putting your attention on your feet.
On the soles of your feet.
Breathing in from the soles of your feet through the whole body.
Through the whole body up to your crown chakra.
Relaxing your breath as if sunlight is filtering through all the layers of your body.
Back down to your feet.
Just keep repeating for the next few minutes.
Starting with your feet.
Finding the hidden parts of your body,
The hidden parts of yourself.
Parts which are numb or which you can't feel.
Or your attention skips over.
Breathing in from the soles of your feet.
Just taking your time.
If you take several breaths and use several breaths to reach the crown.
Relaxing your breathing as if sunlight is filtering through all the layers of your body.
Back down to your feet.
Just keep breathing up from the soles of your feet up through your body to the crown.
Then from the crown relaxing your breath as if sunlight is filtering through all the layers of your body.
Back down to your feet.
Just keep repeating.
Breathing helps to bring trauma from where it's held deep within up to the surface.
Breath and observation helps to meld disconnected parts of yourself.
This is why observation,
Just watching,
Is so important.
It helps to bring together from the emotional layer where feelings and fears are stored.
Helps to bring them to the surface.
Also helps to bring from the mental layer of our system where belief systems,
Thoughts and perceptions are stored.
Brings it to the surface.
Also from the spiritual layer of our being where habitual life patterns are held.
The samsaras.
Again it brings it to the surface.
Keep working through with your breath from the soles of your feet up through the body up to the crown.
Relaxing your breath.
Back to the soles of your feet.
Narrow your focus more to your spine.
Again starting with the soles of your feet or if you wish from the base of your spine.
Breathing up from the base of your spine through the spine up to the crown of your head.
Again relaxing breathing out.
Visualising sunlight flowing down back through your spine.
Just keep repeating.
We especially bring our breath through the spine.
Because that's where the nerves,
The parasympathetic,
The sympathetic nervous system goes to all the organs in our body.
Bring your breath,
Your awareness through the spine.
Just gently.
Up to the crown.
Relaxing visualising sunlight flowing back to the base of the spine.
We'll be here for another couple of minutes.
Just take your time.
While you're breathing through your spine.
From top to the bottom.
Bottom to the top.
Just reflect that when we achieve complete rapport with another person.
Ourself,
Our small self no longer exists.
When you're ready.
We're working with the crown chakra which is also linked to the base chakra between our pubic bone and tailbone.
We're going to work with both of them together.
Just simultaneously feel sensations on your crown chakra at the top of your head and the base chakra between the pubic bone and tailbone.
Just feel sensations in both of those areas together.
Could be any sensation,
Maybe a prickling,
A warmth.
Slight aching.
Tingling.
Could be a spreading sensation.
Anything at all,
It doesn't matter what the sensation is.
Also connected to the base chakra are the adrenal glands and the 5 light freeze reactions.
The base chakra also is our security,
Family,
Financial stability.
We need to have a properly functioning base chakra,
A good foundation for the crown chakra to work properly.
Just keep observing sensations when you're connected to crown and base chakras.
That's in the last minute.
Feelings,
Sensations on the crown of your head and base chakra simultaneously.
Just observation when you're ready.
We're going to move into the metta practice,
Compassion practice.
This is in the form of an archetypal story which is common to many traditions.
You arrive at the sacred spring which represents truth and healing.
You step into it and like meditation you start to cleanse the fears that obscure your true self.
You realise that loneliness can gradually be overcome when we realise that everything is connected.
Have a sense of expanding beyond the limitations of yourself.
Keep expanding outwards until your energy body encompasses the nearby flowers,
Trees and the wild areas in nature.
If you wish,
Just visualise yourself as a bubble filled with a violet mist.
Your body pulsating with energy.
Visualise healing energy gathered from this group meditation.
Visualise this healing energy including other family and friends or a favourite pet.
Family and friends,
One or two of them maybe from the past.
Just give this metta of compassion to another or if you need it for yourself,
Absorb this loving energy into your body and mind for the next few minutes.
For another minute or two,
As you meditate in the sacred spring,
Just feeling yourself expand.
Just keep expanding until your energy body encompasses the nearby flowers,
Trees and the wild areas in nature.
Visualising yourself as a bubble filled with violet mist.
Your body pulsating with energy.
Healing energy rising from the crown of your head.
The violet streams of healing energy gathered from this group meditation are sent out to family or friends or to yourself.
For another minute,
When you are ready you are going to go deeper into yoga nidra.
Turning your eyes slightly upward without strain.
As if looking at a mountain.
Observing infinite space above your crown chakra,
Either white or violet.
Watching your natural breath.
Just examining the air in your nose and the sensations on the outside of your nose.
See the air and the nose as having the same solidity.
No difference between the air and your face.
Feel the sensations merging.
We'll be here for about 15 minutes and I'll speak from time to time.
Observing infinite space above your crown chakra.
Just examining the air in your nose and the sensations on the outside of your nose.
As having the same solidity.
No difference.
Feel the sensations merging.
Expanding.
Our consciousness operates beyond the physical.
It communicates by feeling.
If you find you've already gone to a deep place,
Just use any words to carry you further.
We feel that things are pleasant or unpleasant.
But where do we feel them?
Where do we feel these things which are pleasant or unpleasant?
Do we feel them in the body?
Or do we feel them in the space within the body?
Pleasant or unpleasant sensations.
Do we feel them in specific locations in the body?
Or just generally in the space within the body?
Gradually,
With longer meditation,
Our mind comes to stillness.
Our heart becomes more open.
Yoga Nidra is about realising your true nature and being in contact with that.
Reflect.
Reflect on the I witnessing and observing all things.
Realise that you're spatial.
Awareness.
Spacious.
Awareness.
Your breath moving through space.
Keep meditating,
Your mind gradually coming to stillness.
Your heart opening.
Reflect on the I witnessing,
Observing all things.
You're still having trouble going deeper.
Just count back from your present age.
Stopping any time you feel resistance or a scene arises or a story.
Just observing until it passes.
Keep counting backwards for a little bit longer.
You're welcome to carry on with Yoga Nidra.
Or if you wish,
Just coming back into relaxation.
Just noticing the space between the back of your spine and the ground.
The space between the back of your spine and the ground.
The space above your crown chakra extending upwards.
The space above your crown chakra extending upwards.
The space between your eyelids.
The space,
The gap between your lips.
The space between your shoulders and your neck.
Just notice space within you and surrounding you.
Notice space within you and surrounding you.
Let your body expand wider into those spaces.
Let your body expand wider into those spaces.
Bring your awareness back from the silence and stillness.
Notice the surface beneath you and the sounds around you.
Begin to deepen your breath.
The practice of Insight Nidra is now complete.
You may choose to rest,
Meditate or slowly move your body.
When you're ready,
Open your eyes.
Please have a look at my Insight Timer profile for upcoming retreats and live Yoga Nidra sessions.
Thank you for practicing with me and have a beautiful rest of your day.
