Spring is the season of new beginnings.
After the stillness of winter,
Nature awakens.
Buds burst open,
Birds begin to sing,
And everywhere you see growth and movement.
In this Yoga Nidra session,
We embrace that energy of spring.
Spring stands for growth,
For creativity,
For the courage to begin again.
It's the moment when everything seems possible.
You might feel those spring tingles,
That feeling that you want to do something,
Create,
Move.
The days grow longer,
The light returns,
And there's a promise in the air,
A promise of bloom and abundance.
This session helps you to feel that spring energy in your own body,
To make space for what wants to be new,
To grow and bloom in your own way,
At your own pace.
Find a comfortable spot where you can lie down without being disturbed,
Maybe on your bed,
Your couch,
Or on a blanket on the floor.
If the weather is nice,
You could also consider lying outside to feel the spring air on your skin.
Make sure you're comfortable.
You may want to place a thin pillow under your head.
Spring is often still a bit cool,
So if you get cold easily,
Put a light blanket over yourself.
Or maybe it's already nice and warm,
And you just want to wear a T-shirt.
Listen to what your body needs.
If you have a window nearby,
And you can,
Open it just a crack.
Let the fresh spring air come in,
Or imagine that you're doing that.
Feel that new fresh air.
Lie down on your back,
Place your legs slightly apart,
And let your feet relax and fall to the sides.
Place your arms beside your body,
A little bit away from your sides,
With your palms facing up.
And when you're ready,
You may close your eyes.
Now become aware of your breathing.
You don't need to change anything,
Just observe.
Feel how the air enters your nose.
Maybe you smell spring.
Grass,
Flowers,
Moist earth.
Or perhaps you don't smell anything in particular.
Both are fine.
Feel how your body moves with your breath.
Your belly rises as you inhale,
Sinks as you exhale.
Your ribs expand and move back.
It's like a gentle wave,
A natural rhythm.
Just as plants and trees breathe,
You too breathe in a natural rhythm.
Giving and receiving.
Letting go of old,
Bringing in new.
We're now going to work with Ujjayi breathing.
Maybe you already know it,
Maybe it's new to you.
It's a way of breathing where you create a little bit of resistance in your throat,
So your breath sounds like a gentle rushing,
Like wind through leaves or waves on the beach.
To practice Ujjayi,
You breathe in through your nose while slightly narrowing the back of your throat.
Imagine you want to fog up a mirror.
You make a soft,
Ah,
Sound,
But with your mouth closed.
Go ahead and try.
Breathe in through your nose,
And breathe out,
Also through your nose,
Making that soft,
Rushing sound in your throat.
One more time.
Breathe in,
Feel the air flow through your throat,
And breathe out,
Slowly and with control.
If it doesn't work for you,
No problem.
Just breathe calmly through your nose,
And imagine your breath sounds like a gentle,
Gentle breeze.
We're going to breathe like this for a few more rounds,
And try with each inhalation to feel something of the newness,
New air,
New energy,
New possibilities.
And with each exhalation,
You let go of what you no longer need,
All thoughts,
Tension,
Everything that feels heavy.
Breathe in,
New,
Fresh,
Full of energy.
And breathe out,
Letting go,
Making space.
Breathe in,
Growth,
Expansion.
And breathe out,
Softness,
Space.
Keep breathing like this at your own pace.
Feel how each breath nourishes you,
Gives you energy,
And prepares you for growth.
Let go of your ujjayi breath.
Return to your natural breath.
And in this moment of fresh air and new energy,
You can set an intention,
A spring intention,
Something you want to grow in yourself,
Something you want to develop or begin.
What is your deepest desire for this new phase?
Maybe something comes to you immediately,
Or maybe you need some inspiration.
Your intention could be something like,
I dare to begin,
Or I grow at my own pace,
Or I am full of energy and zest for life.
And once you've formulated your intention,
You may repeat it three times silently.
But before you do that,
Gently place your hand on the place where you feel this intention wants to grow.
Maybe that's your heart,
Maybe your belly,
Maybe your forehead.
There's no right or wrong place.
Place your hand where it feels right for you.
And now repeat your intention three times silently,
While feeling your hand resting on that place.
Very good.
Now let your hand return to rest beside your body,
Palm facing up,
And let your intention go.
It's planted,
Like a seed.
You don't need to do anything more with it now.
It may grow at its own pace.
We're now going to travel slowly through your body,
A body that's ready for spring,
To bloom,
To feel energy flowing.
Bring your attention to your feet.
Start with your right foot.
Feel how it rests on the ground.
Your right foot is connected to the earth.
Feel your big toe,
Your second toe,
Your third toe,
Your fourth toe,
Your little toe.
All relaxed,
But they almost tingle with liveliness.
Your right ankle,
Supple and strong.
Your right shin,
Your calf.
Feel how there's strength there,
But also softness.
Your right knee,
Your right thigh,
Strong.
And now your left foot,
Also connected to the earth.
Your left big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Little toe.
All resting,
But ready for what's to come.
Your left ankle,
Soft and open.
Your left shin,
Your left calf,
Your left knee,
Your left thigh.
Powerful and supple at the same time.
Feel your pelvis,
Your hips,
The center of your body.
Here lies stability,
But also movement,
The flexibility to bend with the wind.
Your lower back rests on the ground.
All the small vertebrae relax.
Your upper back becomes broad and open.
Your shoulder blades sink down.
Your entire spine can be relaxed and have strength at the same time.
Your belly becomes soft.
Feel how it moves with your breath,
Rising and sinking like grass moving in the wind.
Your chest is broad and open,
But also open.
Here is space for all that new air,
All that new energy.
Maybe you feel spring tingles in your heart,
A gentle excitement,
A tingle of new possibilities,
Of things that want to grow.
Your right shoulder lets go,
Heavy and relaxed.
And that relaxation flows through your right arm,
Your right upper arm,
Your right elbow,
Your right forearm,
Your right wrist,
Your right hand.
Your right thumb,
Index finger,
Middle finger,
Ring finger,
Little finger.
Maybe you feel spring tingles in your fingers,
A gentle urge to make something,
To create,
To begin something new with your hands.
Your left shoulder sinks into the ground.
The relaxation spreads through your left arm,
Upper arm,
Elbow,
Forearm,
Your left wrist,
Your left hand,
Your left thumb,
Index finger,
Middle finger,
Ring finger,
Little finger.
Here too,
You perhaps feel those spring tingles,
That urge to make,
To shape,
To create.
Your neck is long and free.
Your throat is open and soft.
The back of your head rests heavy.
The top of your head feels light.
And your face,
Let your jaw drop open a little.
Your mouth and lips become soft.
Your nose relaxes.
Your cheeks become supple and warm.
Your eyes rest deep in their sockets,
As if they're looking at a beautiful spring scene behind your eyelids.
Your eyebrows are relaxed.
Your forehead is smooth and soft.
And the spot between your eyebrows is wide open,
Ready to see new things,
To receive new perspectives.
Your whole body rests now,
Connected to the earth,
But also light and open,
Ready to grow,
To bloom,
To live.
And now let me take you outside,
To the spring in all its glory,
Imagine you're walking down a path.
It can be a path you'll know,
Or one you're imagining.
You're walking through a landscape that's slowly awakening from winter.
The air is fresh and clear.
There's a clarity in the light,
Not the warmth of summer,
But something that sparkles,
The light of new beginnings.
You hear birds,
Birds everywhere.
Blackbirds whistling from roofs and trees,
Great tits chirping,
Pigeons cooing.
It's a concert of sounds,
Cheerful and energetic.
The birds are busy,
Building nests,
Claiming territory,
Looking for mates,
So active.
You walk past a meadow and there you see them,
Lambs.
Little white balls on legs,
Jumping and frolicking.
They run to their mother,
Jump over each other,
Discover the world.
So playful,
So full of life.
You smile as you watch them.
In the distance,
You see flower fields,
Rows and rows full of color.
Purple crocuses that came first,
Yellow daffodils turning their heads towards the sun,
And tulips.
Red,
Yellow,
Pink,
Orange,
Tulips lying like a colorful carpet over the land.
And if you're very quiet,
You can hear the buzzing of bees flying from flower to flower.
You walk further and come to a little lake.
The water is clear and you see ducklings swimming.
A mother with a row of tiny,
Fluffy chicks behind her.
They bob on the water,
Perfectly content.
Along the path stand trees.
And when you look up,
You see blossoms.
White and pink blossom petals on every branch.
Cherry blossoms,
Apple blossoms.
A gust of wind comes and petals from the blossoms flutter down.
They fall on your head,
Your shoulders,
And the ground.
You reach out your hand and catch a petal.
It's soft and delicate.
You smell the earth,
That rich,
Moist scent of earth coming back to life.
Worms digging,
Seeds germinating,
Little plants pushing up through the ground.
Everything is working as it should.
Everything is growing.
You find a spot in the grass to sit for a moment.
The grass is still a bit damp from the dew,
But it feels fresh and good.
You feel the sun on your face,
Not hot yet,
But warm enough to caress your skin.
As you sit here,
You see something special nearby.
In a place where recently there was nothing,
Now a little plant is coming up.
You see the green tip that has pushed itself through the earth.
Day after day,
Bit by bit,
Always a little bit further,
Until it came above.
And you realize that's also growth.
It's not spectacular,
Not dramatic,
Just consistent,
Patient,
Persistent.
A little bit every day.
And one day,
You break through the ground and see the light.
You think of your intention which you planted earlier.
That too is a seed.
And just like that little plant,
It's growing.
Maybe you don't see it yet,
But it's there,
Beneath the surface,
At work.
You only need to trust the same force that makes buds burst open and birds sing,
That works in you too.
The energy of spring,
The power of new beginnings,
That's also in you.
Everything in spring is transition.
From dark to light,
From cold to warm,
From still to lively.
It's a season of change and you are part of that change.
You feel the energy in your body,
Those spring tingles,
The urge to move,
To create,
To grow.
But you don't need to do anything yet.
You may just feel.
Just be here in this perfect spring moment.
Enjoy this feeling a bit longer,
This energy,
This zest for life,
The promise of new beginnings.
Now slowly become aware of my voice again.
Become aware of the space you're in.
Maybe you hear sounds,
Inside or outside,
Traffic,
Birds,
Winds.
Just let them come.
Begin to make small,
Gentle movements.
Move your fingers.
Move your toes.
Make small circles with your feet.
Breathe a bit deeper.
Feel how that spring air fills your lungs,
Awakening your whole body.
Maybe you want to stretch completely,
Your arms above your head,
Making your whole body long.
Stretch like a cat in the spring sun.
And then roll to your favorite side and stay here for a moment.
Feel what it's like to lie curled up like this.
Small,
Protected,
But also full of potential.
And when you're ready,
Gently push yourself up to a comfortable seated position.
Your eyes may remain closed.
Bring your hands together in front of your heart.
Feel the warmth between your palms.
Feel the energy that's there.
And thank yourself for taking this time to pause at growth,
At new beginnings,
At all the possibilities that exist.
And as you close this session,
Take the energy of spring with you into your day.
The playfulness of the lambs,
Persistence of the little plants,
The beauty of the blossoms.
It's all in you.
Maybe you want to take a walk today to really see spring.
Or perhaps you'll just start that one project that's been waiting so long.
Or maybe you'll do nothing special at all,
But feel that tingle of new energy.
And that's more than enough.
Namaste.
