Hello and welcome to today's Yoga Nidra practice.
Settling in now for Yoga Nidra.
Finding a comfortable position lying flat on your back with your legs extended long,
Arms resting at your sides,
Palms facing up.
Or if it's more comfortable,
You may rest your palms lightly on your abdomen.
Rocking gently from side to side,
Make any adjustments so that your spine is in alignment.
You may wish to support the back of your head and neck with a pillow.
Or place a pillow or yoga bolster under your knees for extra support.
Placing an eye mask or a cloth covering lightly over your eyes.
Checking in with your body and noticing if there is anything you can do to get just a little bit more comfortable.
Finding a position where your body can be effortless.
Where you're fully supported by the ground beneath you.
You are free to move during the practice,
But try to remain still so your body can rest deeply.
As you come to a place of stillness in the body,
Begin to notice the quality of your mind.
Take a few slow deep breaths and allow your thoughts to wander.
With each exhale,
Your mind begins to slow down.
And now guiding your breath,
Inhale for a count of three and exhale for a count of six.
You can go at your own pace,
Just make sure the exhale is twice as long as the inhale.
Inhaling and exhaling.
Again inhaling and exhaling.
Going for three more rounds at your own pace.
And now releasing control of your breath,
Begin to notice the natural rhythm,
The natural cadence of your breath.
Bring all your attention into the torso and sense the movements of your breath.
All your attention and awareness in your chest,
Your belly,
To notice the sensations of your breath.
We'll begin the rotation of consciousness.
In this practice,
Shift your attention around the body,
Moving from part to part,
Following the guidance of my voice.
If you find it difficult to maintain your attention,
You may wish to imagine a light filling that part of your body.
You don't need to do or change anything.
Simply notice how your body feels in this moment,
Beginning at the top of the head.
Bring all your attention to the highest point on your head,
The center of your forehead,
Sliding your attention to the center of the forehead,
The right eye,
The eyebrow,
The right temple,
The left eye,
The eyebrow,
The left temple,
Inviting the small micro muscles behind both eyes to relax and soften.
Losing both eyes simultaneously,
The right ear,
The left ear,
Both ears resting but still receptive,
Welcoming sounds from this guidance and the space around you.
Awareness of the space between your ears.
You might imagine your mind as a muscle,
Able to tense and relax.
See the mind opening like the bud of a blooming flower,
Soft golden light radiating from the center of your brain,
Seeing the muscle of the mind release.
And might this suggestion to the mind be experienced in the body,
Perhaps as a wave of sensation through the scalp,
Softening the tiny muscles across your forehead and temples,
The wave of sensation continuing along your cheeks to your jaw.
Now sensing the mouth,
The roof of the mouth,
The teeth and gums,
The inside of the right cheek,
The inside of the left cheek,
The tip of the tongue and the length of the tongue.
Feeling once more the jaw.
And shifting awareness from your head to your heart,
Dropping from the thoughts and plans into sensing and feeling,
Dropping into being with your heart.
Bringing your full attention to the center of your chest.
This saturates the right shoulder,
The upper arm,
The right elbow,
The forearm,
The wrist,
The back of the right hand,
The tip of the thumb and each of the fingers,
The right palm,
Feeling the whole right arm and the right shoulder blade,
The back of your ribcage,
The right hip joint,
The thigh,
The right knee.
The lower leg and ankle,
The tip of each toe,
The big toe,
The second toe,
Third toe,
The third toe,
Fourth toe and fifth toe,
The sole of the right foot,
The whole right leg.
Feeling the whole right side of the body,
From the top of your head to the tips of each of the fingers and toes,
The whole right side of the body,
The whole right side of the body and the left hemisphere of the brain.
Allowing time for your attention to shift back to the heart center.
You might notice,
Is there a difference between the right side of the body and the left side?
This saturates the left shoulder,
The upper arm,
The left elbow,
The forearm,
The wrist,
The back of the left hand,
The tip of the thumb and each of the fingers,
The left palm,
The whole left arm,
The left shoulder blade,
The back of your ribcage,
Attention gliding down along the left side of the spine to the back of the pelvis,
The left hip joint,
The thigh,
The left knee,
The lower leg,
Ankle,
The tip of each of the toes,
The big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe,
The sole of the left foot,
The whole left leg,
The whole left side of the body,
From the top of your head to the tips of each of the fingers and toes,
Sensing the whole left side of the body,
The whole left side of the body and the right hemisphere of the brain.
Now welcoming both sides of the body and both hemispheres of the brain,
The whole body filled with the warmth of your attention,
The whole body glowing with vitality,
The whole body saturated with breath,
Welcoming clear air and fresh oxygen into every cell of your body,
Imagining each cell could breathe a deep inhale,
Imagining fresh air could enter through each pore of the skin,
Imagining that you could breathe through the top of your head and through the tips of each of your fingers and each of your toes,
Noticing the beat of your heart,
Experiencing the tingling warmth and aliveness circulate throughout your body,
All the cells of your body working to support you,
Full of vital energy.
Now we will rest in silence for a moment,
Let your breath be the anchor for your attention,
Observe the breath without trying to shape or control it,
Witnessing the natural rhythm of your breath,
You may rest here simply observing your breath or you may choose to count your breath from one up to ten and if you lose count beginning again at one,
Moving at the pace of your own breath.
Now we will rest in silence.
It is time to reawaken your body and mind,
Time to return from the sanctuary of yourself,
Time to shift your senses from this practice of observing yourself and extending your senses again toward the external world,
Becoming aware of the support beneath your body,
Feeling each place where your body connects with the floor or the support beneath you.
Begin to stretch your body,
Coming back refreshed and energized,
Fluttering your eyes back open,
You might gently tap your forehead and temples,
Tap your collarbone,
Brush your hands down each arm,
Taking another big stretch and coming up to a seated position,
Bring your hands together in front of your heart,
Thank you for taking this time to connect with yourself,
And bring your hands up in front of your forehead,
Taking a moment to notice any thoughts,
Impressions or images that are present for you.
And bringing your hands back in front of your heart,
I hope that you bring any benefits of this practice with you throughout the day.
May you be happy,
May you be free,
May you be safe,
May you be at ease.
May you be happy,
May you be free,
May you be safe,
May you be at ease.
