Get ready for yoga nidra.
You can lie down in shavasana which is the dead man's pose or if you want to do it sitting down you can do it sitting down with your legs firmly planted into the ground,
Your spine straight and your palms on your lap facing upwards.
And if you're in shavasana,
If you're in the sleeping pose let your feet plop slightly to the side and keep your arms stretched a little bit away from you with the palms facing upwards and make yourself as comfortable as possible.
Adjust your blankets,
Your clothes,
Your position so that you can practice yoga nidra without moving and also without any physical discomfort.
Please close your eyes and keep them closed.
The practice of yoga nidra is the act of hearing and the act of feeling peace are the only two important factors.
In yoga nidra you function on the level of awareness plus the level of listening.
In dreams you have no control.
In yoga nidra you are the creator of the dream.
Say to yourself mentally,
I will not sleep.
I will only listen to the voice.
Repeat to yourself,
I will not sleep.
I will only listen to the voice.
Take a deep breath and as you breathe in,
Feel calmness spreading throughout the body.
As you breathe out,
Say to yourself mentally,
Relax.
Now become aware of sounds in the distance.
Become aware of the most distant sound that you can hear.
Let your sense of hearing operate like a radar beam searching out distant sounds and following them for a few seconds.
Move your attention from sound to sound without attempting to identify the source.
Gradually bring your attention to closer sounds,
To sounds in the room that you are sitting or sleeping.
And develop your awareness of this room without opening your eyes.
Visualize the walls the ceiling the floor your body in shavasana or sitting on the chair practicing yoga nidra.
Become aware of the existence of your physical body.
Total awareness of your body which is in perfect stillness.
And develop awareness of all the physical meeting points between your body and the surface it is resting on.
Now become aware of the natural breath.
Become aware of the deep,
Natural,
Spontaneous breath.
Do not concentrate for this will interfere with the natural process.
Keep listening to me and know that you are breathing.
The practice of yoga nidra begins now.
Say mentally to yourself I am going to practice yoga nidra.
I will not sleep.
I am going to practice yoga nidra.
This is the time to state your resolve,
Your sankalpa,
Your intention.
And state your resolve now clearly with feeling and with awareness three times.
Now we will move to the rotation of consciousness.
As quickly as possible we will move awareness from point to point.
Repeat mentally the name of each part after me and simultaneously become aware of that part.
We begin with the right hand.
Right hand thumb.
Second finger.
Third finger.
Fourth finger.
Fifth finger.
Palm of the hand.
Back of the hand.
Wrist.
Lower arm.
Elbow.
Upper arm.
Shoulder.
Armpit.
Waist.
Hip.
Right thigh.
Knee.
Calf muscle.
Ankle.
Heel.
Soul.
Top of the foot.
Right big toe.
Second toe.
Third toe.
Fourth toe.
Fifth toe.
Left hand thumb.
Second finger.
Third finger.
Fourth finger.
Fifth finger.
Fifth finger.
Palm of the hand.
Back of the hand.
Wrist.
Lower arm.
Elbow.
Upper arm.
Shoulder.
Armpit.
Waist.
Hip.
Left thigh.
Knee.
Calf muscle.
Ankle.
Heel.
Soul.
Top of the foot.
Left big toe.
Second toe.
Third toe.
Fourth toe.
Fifth toe.
Now the back of the body.
Right shoulder.
Left shoulder.
Right shoulder blade.
Left shoulder blade.
Right buttock.
Left buttock.
The spine.
The whole of the back together.
Now the front side.
Top of the head.
Forehead.
Shoulder.
Forehead.
Right eyebrow.
Left eyebrow.
The eyebrow center.
Right eyelid.
Left eyelid.
Right eye.
Left eye.
Right ear.
Left ear.
Right cheek.
Left cheek.
Nose.
Tip of the nose.
Right nostril.
Left nostril.
Upper lip.
Lower lip.
Chin.
Jaw.
Troth.
Right collarbone.
Left collarbone.
Right chest.
Left chest.
Middle of the chest.
Navel.
Abdomen.
Lower abdomen.
Now the major parts of the body.
Whole of the right leg.
Whole of the left leg.
Both legs together.
Whole of the right arm.
Whole of the left arm.
Both arms together.
Whole of the back.
Whole of the front.
Whole of the head.
Legs.
Arms.
Back.
Front.
Head.
Together.
The whole of the body.
The whole of the body together.
The whole of the body together.
The whole of the body together.
Now develop awareness of the whole body.
Become aware of the space occupied by the body.
Become aware of the body.
And the space occupied by the body.
Body.
And space.
Become aware of the whole body and the surface it is resting on.
The whole body in relation to the surface it is resting on.
And at the same time become aware of the meeting points of the body and the surface it is on.
Feel these meeting points.
Become aware of all the meeting points between the body and the surface it is on.
Switch your attention.
Switch your attention to your eyelids.
Feel the narrow line of meeting between the upper and lower eyelids.
Feel the sharp points where they meet.
Intensify your awareness between the eyelids.
And then the lips.
Center your attention on the line between the lips.
The space between the lips.
From the lips we go to the breath.
Draw your attention to the natural ingoing and outgoing breath.
Feel the breath moving along the passage between the navel and the throat.
On inhalation it rises from the navel to the throat.
On exhalation it descends from the throat to the navel.
Be completely aware of the whole body.
Be completely aware of the respiration.
Navel to throat.
Throat to navel.
Navel to throat.
Throat to navel.
Total awareness.
And once again draw your attention to the natural ingoing and outgoing breath.
Now awaken the feeling of heaviness in the body.
The feeling of heaviness.
Become aware of heaviness in every single part of the body.
You are feeling so heavy that you are sinking into the surface that you are resting on.
Awareness of heaviness.
Awareness of heaviness.
Now awaken the feeling of lightness.
The feeling of lightness.
A sensation of lightness and weightlessness in all parts of the body.
Your body feels so light that it is not able to bear the weight.
Your body feels so light that it seems to be floating.
Awareness of lightness.
The experience of cold.
Awaken the experience of bitter cold in the body.
Imagine you are walking on a cold floor in winter.
Your feet feel very cold.
You feel cold all over.
Awareness of coldness.
Awareness of coldness.
Awaken the sensation of heat.
Awaken the experience of heat.
The whole body is hot.
The whole body is hot.
You feel hot all over.
Recollect the feeling of heat in summer.
Heat in summer when you are out in the sun with no shade.
Heat all over the body.
Heat all over the body.
Awareness of heat.
The experience of pain.
Concentrate and try to remember the experience of pain.
Any pain you have experienced in your life,
Mental or physical.
Recollect the feeling of pain.
Recollect the feeling of pleasure.
Any kind of pleasure,
Physical or mental.
Recollect this feeling and relive it.
Make it vivid.
Awaken the feeling of pleasure.
Check that you are awake.
Make sure that you are not sleeping.
Now withdraw your mind and concentrate on the space in front of your closed eyes.
The space we call Chidakasha.
Imagine before you a transparent screen where you can see infinite space.
A space that extends as far as the eyes can see.
Concentrate on this dark space.
Become aware of any phenomena that manifests within it.
Whatever you see is the manifesting state of your mind.
Continue your awareness of this space but do not become involved.
Practice detached awareness only.
Imagine that it is very early in the morning.
Still dark.
And you are walking through hills climbing up towards some mountains.
You are alone.
You are walking east and west.
You are walking east.
And if you look back you can see a crescent shaped moon low in the sky.
Soon the sun will rise over the mountains ahead of you.
Far below in a valley the lights of a small town twinkle through an early morning mist.
The track twists back and forth on the side of a steep slope.
It winds between huge boulders and over bridges suspended across the valley.
Suspended across deep chasm.
A gap between two hills gives a glimpse of a huge snow covered mountain ahead.
The pale sky behind it hethers the dawn.
You climb up through snow.
It makes a crunching sound as you break the surface and sink in.
A glacier lies across your path.
There are creaks and groans of moving ice as you quickly move across.
Near the top of the mountain it becomes very cold.
Winds howl around your body and snatch at your clothes.
Snow and ice cling to your shoes.
You reach the top and a magnificent scene reveals itself before your eyes.
To the east a vast range of snow covered peaks and dark valleys.
To the west hills leading to rolling plains and the sea.
Intensify your imagination and visualize this scene.
See the sun rise like a golden ball in the east.
Scattering rays of golden light of snow that dazzles your eyes.
Sweep your eyes around the sky.
To the west it is still grey.
Above you blue.
In the east a delicate pink as it nears the sun.
Watch the sunlight strike the tops of mountains and move down their sides.
Deep valleys emerge as the shadows retreat.
You sit with legs crossed and contemplate this grand scene.
The dawn of a new day.
Let yourself experience this for some time.
Let your mind flow freely with this scene.
Let your mind flow freely with this experience.
Bring your awareness back to Chidakasha.
Bring your awareness to the dark space you see in front of your closed eyes.
And this space can also be visualized in front of the forehead.
So if you want to explore it a little,
You can shift your gaze slightly upwards.
But do not strain.
Watch the darkness that you see before you very carefully.
With detachment.
Do not become involved.
Rest your mind in this warm and friendly darkness.
If any subtle phenomena manifests,
Like colors or patterns,
Simply take note of them and continue with your awareness.
If thoughts occur,
Let them come and go.
But continue watching the dark space.
Continue this with detached awareness.
Now remember your resolve,
Your sankalpa,
Your intention.
And repeat the same resolve you made at the beginning of the practice in the same words and with the same attitude.
Repeat your resolve three times clearly with feeling and emphasis.
Become aware of your breathing.
Become aware of your natural breath.
Awareness of breathing.
And awareness of relaxation.
Become aware of your physical existence.
Aware of your arms and legs.
Aware of your body.
Aware of the meeting points between your body and the surface it is resting on.
Become aware of the room,
The walls,
The ceiling,
Noises in the room and noises outside.
Take your mind out.
Become completely external.
Start moving your body and stretching yourself.
Take your time.
There is no need to hurry.
And when you are sure that you are wide awake,
Sit up slowly and open your eyes.
The practice of Yoga Nidra is now complete.
Hari Om Tat Sat Copyright © 2020,
New Thinking Allowed Foundation
