Yoga Nidra Durga Power Meditation

Hello and welcome to our power Durga Yoga Nidra.

My name is Jen.

I'll be guiding you through practice today.

I would encourage you to find a comfortable position either lying down or seated in a comfortable place.

If you choose to lie down you might like a blanket,

A bolster or towel rolled beneath your knees,

A pillow for your head,

And an extra blanket to cover yourself in case you become chill during practice.

You're also welcome to stay seated.

You're also welcome to dim the lights if you'd like.

Everything in our yoga nidra practice is about being as comfortable as possible so that we can stay still throughout the practice.

You're welcome to close your eyes or keep them open and if you do keep them open I recommend just softening your gaze and finding a focal spot two to three feet in front of you.

I also like to open nidra by explaining that I do a softer exit than I would normally do in yoga practice to allow for you to stay in that position and meditative state if you so choose.

Either way if you get up and go about your day or move into a state of sleep the benefits of yoga nidra will still leave you feeling rested and restored.

So you can go ahead and get prepared for nidra as I share just a little bit about Durga before we roll into our practice.

Durga is a powerful goddess from the Hindu pantheon.

She is one of my personal favorites.

She's known as the goddess of strength and protection.

One can call her energy in for support to do a whole host of different things.

For example you might ask for her to show herself in support of completing a project,

Beginning new healthy habits,

Ending a toxic relationship,

Or protecting other people just to name a few.

Durga is a powerhouse that being that is filled with ferocity and a deep well of love.

She's a great example of someone like a social worker making efforts to end social injustice or a mother who would protect her children if she felt they were threatened in any way.

She has long dark lustrous hair and has ten arms with various weapons and tools that while they appear daunting actually have beautiful meaning.

She holds a trident for purity,

A bow and arrow to destroy difficulties in our paths,

And a lotus for spiritual awakening.

There's a conch shell for happiness,

A sword for discernment,

A chakra for righteousness,

A thunderbolt for firmness of spirit,

And a flame for wisdom.

Her spear destroys negativity and brings good luck,

And a snake is about learning and intellect.

She rides in on a lion or tiger so she appears intimidating and she can be,

But what is beautiful about her is her blood to protection and strength balanced with her love.

So now moving into that space of being prepared for a yoga knee-jerk,

I hope that you've come to a comfortable position of your choosing.

And pausing here to just close your eyes and notice how you are feeling physically,

Emotionally,

And mentally.

Finding an even breath,

Sinking and settling here,

Relaxing the breath,

Just connecting for a moment,

Letting go of everything that led up to this moment and clearing space for what is happening right now.

Take a moment to just give a nod to what has happened in your day before coming to this practice.

Any thoughts,

Feelings,

Plans,

Now imagine boxing those up and setting that box aside,

Maybe even outside your space,

Until you are done with practice,

And it'll be waiting for you then.

This class is for you and about you,

So just relaxing and releasing here.

Making any adjustments to your props,

Clothing,

Or body is needed just to be that much more comfortable.

And we will breathe together here for a few moments.

Just watch that your breaths are even on the inhale and the exhale,

Taking three breaths this way.

And now begin to extend that exhale if possible by just one count longer.

And we're going to do that for five breaths.

So if your inhale was a count of three,

Then we would just exhale for a count of four.

So on your own with your own breath pace,

Taking five of those breaths,

Which is just a slightly extended exhale,

And when you complete those,

Just returning to that normal relaxed and even steady breath.

And now releasing that breath count wherever you are.

Again,

Any final adjustments to your props,

Body,

Setting anything you need to be just that much more comfortable.

Even steady breath here,

No effort,

Even inhales and exhales,

Sinking into the body of the day,

Completely present.

As you sink and settle here into this relaxed state,

You will fall even deeper into relaxation as I count down from five to one.

Five,

Relaxing and releasing.

Four,

Letting go of any thoughts,

Feelings,

Or sensations.

Three,

Falling deeper into relaxation.

Two,

Allowing yourself to be in this peaceful place.

And one,

Completely relaxed and ready for yoga nidra.

In the beginning of our practice,

I always invite you to create an intention or sankalpa.

You're welcome to create your own or borrow mine.

And to really set that in to our beings,

I always repeat it three times.

I am grateful to be lit with a radiant energy of strength and protection,

As I emulate these qualities in my own actions and manifestations.

I am grateful to be lit with a radiant energy strength and protection,

As I emulate these qualities in my own actions,

And manifestations.

I am grateful to be lit with the radiant energy of strength and protection,

As I emulate these qualities in my own actions and manifestations.

And now just listening to the sound of my voice and doing the things that I offer in your mind and rather than moving anything in your body,

I offer that you just follow along in your mind and alight the energy and awareness in the spaces that I offer.

Now bringing the light of awareness to the right thumb,

Second finger,

Third finger,

Fourth finger,

And fifth finger,

Right palm,

Wrist,

Elbow,

Shoulder,

Armpit,

Waist,

Thigh,

Knee,

Calf,

Ankle,

Right heel,

Sole,

Big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe,

And fifth toe.

Again bringing that light of awareness on the right side from up to down,

On the right thumb,

Second finger,

Third finger,

Fourth finger,

And fifth finger,

Right palm,

Wrist,

Elbow,

Shoulder,

Armpit,

Waist,

Thigh,

Knee,

Calf,

Ankle,

Right heel,

Sole,

Big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe,

And fifth toe,

Sole,

Heel,

Ankle,

Calf,

Knee,

Thigh,

Waist,

Armpit,

Shoulder,

Elbow,

Wrist,

Palm,

Right thumb,

Second finger,

Third finger,

Fourth finger,

And fifth finger.

Healing radiant light of awareness on the whole right side,

The whole right side,

The whole right side of the body.

And now placing that light of awareness on the left side,

The left thumb,

Second finger,

Third finger,

Fourth finger,

And fifth finger,

Left palm,

Wrist,

Elbow,

Shoulder,

Armpit,

Waist,

Thigh,

Knee,

Calf,

And ankle,

Left heel,

Sole,

Big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe,

And fifth toe.

Again placing that light of awareness on the left side from up to down,

And the left thumb,

Second finger,

Third finger,

Fourth finger,

And fifth finger,

Left palm,

Wrist,

Elbow,

Shoulder,

Armpit,

Waist,

Thigh,

Knee,

Calf,

And ankle,

Left heel,

Sole,

Big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe,

And fifth toe,

Sole,

Heel,

Ankle,

Calf,

Knee,

Thigh,

Waist,

Armpit,

Shoulder,

Elbow,

Wrist,

Palm,

Left thumb,

Second finger,

Third finger,

Fourth finger,

And fifth finger.

Healing light of awareness now on the whole left side of the body,

The whole left side of the body,

The whole left side.

And now bringing that light of awareness to the top of your head,

The top of your head,

Light of awareness filling the crown of your head,

The crown of your head,

The crown,

The crown,

The forehead,

Right eyebrow,

And left eyebrow,

The space between the brows,

Right eye,

Left eye,

Right nostril,

And left nostril,

Right cheek,

Left cheek,

Right ear,

Left ear,

Right jaw,

And left jaw,

Upper lip,

Lower lip,

The space between the lips,

Chin,

Throat,

Right side of the chest,

Left side of the chest,

The whole chest,

Navel,

Upper abdomen,

Lower abdomen,

Right abdomen,

And left abdomen,

Right side of the pelvis,

Left side of the pelvis,

Right side of the thigh,

And left side of the thigh,

Right knee,

And left knee,

Right toes,

And left toes.

Golden healing radiant light of awareness in the whole front of the body,

The whole front of the body,

The whole front of the body,

And now placing that light of awareness and feel in your mind the backside of your body,

Noticing where the back of your head is touching the ground or is in space,

And bring awareness to the right shoulder blade,

Left shoulder blade,

The whole spine,

Right hip,

Left hip,

Right seat,

And left seat,

Back of the right thigh,

And back of the left thigh,

Right calf muscle,

And left calf muscle,

Right ankle,

And left ankle,

Right heel,

And left heel.

Just noticing that healing radiant light now in the whole back of the body,

The whole back of the body,

The whole back of the body,

And now sensing that healing light at the top of the crown,

And then the feet,

Holding these two senses together now,

Lit up the crown,

The crown,

The crown,

The feet,

The feet,

The feet.

Now as you breathe,

Moving that awareness from the crown to the feet,

Allowing the breath on an inhale to run from the crown to the feet.

Feel that energy moving and exhaling from the feet up to the crown.

Breathing like this for a few moments,

Inhaling from the crown down to the feet,

Exhaling from the feet up through the crown,

In a circle of light,

Inhaling and exhaling.

Try to see the whole body as if you are seeing yourself up,

Lit up in beautiful healing light.

As if an energetic light is in you and you can see your own reflection,

See your own body,

Your own light.

Seeing your whole body lit from the inside out,

Saying to yourself,

This is the light of my body — the light of my body — the healing light of my body,

The healing light of my body,

The light of my body.

Now imagine that you call the Durga,

Saying,

Durga,

I need your strength and protection.

Can you please show yourself?

And as you pause and evenly breathe here,

You see Durga off in the distance,

Riding her lion in all her glory.

Dark lustrous hair flowing behind her,

Crown of gold,

Sheath of red.

All of her symbols and tools she wields in her many arms.

And you can feel her strength vibrating before you even fully make her out in detail.

Finally,

Durga is standing in front of you.

She is standing tall in all of her power and strength.

Her strength and righteousness apparent as is her love for you.

She bows down at the parts of her within you.

She lovingly places her hands on your feet and with each inhale you take,

You breathe in her strength,

Her fight,

Her sense of justice.

You can see all of her warrior tools she's holding.

Her club,

Her sword,

Her lotus,

Her bow and arrow,

Her fire.

And as you inhale in here,

Feel that energy flowing in through your feet,

Going up to the crown and back down again with the breath.

Feeling that energy and vibration resonate in through the feet,

Up through the crown and back through the feet.

And feeling the power and strength she imbues within you.

And in this place she asks you,

What do you need to love yourself more?

You must know your worth so now I'm here to give you the tools to love yourself the most.

She also asks what challenges are before you?

What areas do you need to make change?

Where can you most use my power and strength?

And releasing her hands from your feet,

She sits down in a cross-legged position across from you.

You mirroring one another.

And as you contemplate her questions,

You pause here taking note of this vibration of strength that is coursing through your body after you asked her energy in.

As you breathe here,

Allow yourself and your mind to wander,

To listen to what tools and weapons you need to show up,

To fully love yourself for strength,

For overcoming challenges where you need her most.

And as you breathe here,

Allow Durga in your mind to take your hands as she fills you with the knowledge of what will serve you most.

And you feel that strength and energy flowing from Durga into your hands,

Into your body,

In every cell of your being.

Just breathing here and imagining the tools you need to succeed in moving challenges,

Loving yourself more.

Just breathing here,

Even inhales and even exhales.

And checking in with the flow of the breath,

Even inhales and exhales,

Allowing the wisdom and insight of Durga to flow into your hands,

Fill up every single cell of your body,

Connect you with that internal wisdom and light,

Your own awareness,

Imagining she's gifting you these tools,

This awareness.

And now you stand,

Durga as well,

Standing face to face.

She lovingly places your hands on your hips in a show of strength.

She too places her hands on her hips as you share this moment of solidarity,

Strength,

And fill that deep well of protection that she has for you well up.

You too fill that sense of protection and love well up in you,

Full of strength,

Radiant light and strength.

And you see that this moment,

This moment of strength is both muscular and also spiritual,

Also in the form of having a voice.

It is a strength of the mind of speaking up when you see wrongdoing,

Stepping in to help someone who needs it,

And seeing and knowing the deep importance of having those same qualities for yourself.

Self-love,

Self-care,

Boundaries,

All of this coming from a place of deep love.

Again,

Checking for any tools you may need to fight any battles necessary,

Whether yourself or another being who may need those weapons and tools.

Again,

Symbolic of various strengths and qualities you may need,

Trusting Durga and yourself to have an internal wisdom about what that is,

What they look like,

And knowing you have as many hands as necessary to hold each and every one of those tools.

As you stand strong and firm in your stature,

Looking Durga in the eyes,

Seeing her love and strength and protection for you,

And feeling that in every cell of your body.

And now in your mind's eye,

Bringing your hands to heart center,

Again mirroring Durga's posture,

And you send gratitude to her for her insight,

Her imbuing you with strength,

Power,

Love,

Protection,

And the wisdom for how you will best show up with her qualities in this world for strength,

Love,

And protection.

Resonating in this vibration,

We will stay here for a few minutes longer,

Just like this.

You you you Again,

We revisit that intention or sankalpa you may have said at the beginning of practice.

I am grateful to be lit with a radiant energy of strength and protection as I emulate these qualities in my own actions and manifestations.

I am grateful to be lit with a radiant energy of strength and protection as I emulate these qualities in my own actions and manifestations.

I am grateful to be lit with the radiant energy of strength and protection as I emulate these qualities in my own actions and manifestations.

Evenly breathing here and beginning to know that your body is still vibrating with strength as we slowly come back from our Durga journey.

Imagine in your mind that you are saying,

I am lit from the inside out,

Breathing strength inside and out.

I am lit from inside out,

Breathing strength inside and out.

I am lit from inside out,

Breathing strength inside and out.

Imagine how you will take this strength and protective energy into your life.

And if it feels good to stay in this relaxed meditative state,

Just staying here and otherwise you might slowly begin to move fingers and toes,

Gently coming into awareness in your space.

Aware of any sound,

Sensation,

And where your body is lying or seated.

Gently opening the eyes if that feels right.

I want to thank you for joining me in this Durga practice and hope it leaves you feeling refreshed,

Empowered,

And focused on taking care of yourself and aware of the strength that you have within.

The love,

Light,

And healing energy in me honors the love,

Light,

And healing energy in you.

Namaste.