Your Bedtime Story And Relaxation: Inner Quest

Namaste,

Once upon a time,

In a peaceful village,

Situated between rolling hills and meandering streams,

There lived a young and curious soul named Arjun.

Arjun was known for his insatiable hunger for knowledge and a deep yearning for understanding the purpose of life.

One day while sitting beneath the shade of a wise old tree,

Arjun watched as a group of travellers passed by,

Talking animatedly about a renowned sage who resided in a distant ashram.

They spoke of the sage's profound wisdom and the transformative power of his teachings.

Arjun's heart leaped with excitement and he knew he had found the answer to his quest.

Determined to seek the truth and meaning of life,

Arjun set off on a journey to find the sage.

The path was arduous,

Filled with challenges and temptations.

But Arjun persevered,

Driven by an unwavering desire to understand the ultimate reality.

After many months of travel,

Arjun finally arrived at the sage's ashram or monastery.

He prostrated himself before the sage and asked,

O revered one,

Please share with me the profound wisdom you possess.

I seek to know the truth about the purpose of my life and the nature of reality.

The sage with a gentle smile looked into Arjun's eager eyes and said,

Dear seeker,

The answers you seek are not found in words alone.

They are revealed through deep contemplation and inner realization.

You must turn your gauge inward,

For the truth lies within your own heart.

Arjun was puzzled.

But wise sage,

I have traveled so far to learn from you.

How can I find answers within myself?

The sage replied,

Imagine a beautiful lotus that grows in the muddiest waters.

The lotus remains unstained by the impurities around it,

Just as your true self remains untouched by the world's illusions.

You are like that lotus,

Pure and unchanging,

And you must realize your own divine nature.

Arjun,

Though still a bit perplexed,

Felt a profound shift within.

He realized that the journey he had embarked upon was not external but internal.

He had to seek the truth within his own being.

With the sage's guidance,

Arjun began the practice of self-enquiry,

Meditation and introspection.

As days turned into weeks and weeks into months,

He delved deeper into the recesses of his own consciousness.

And then,

One day,

As he sat in meditation,

A profound realization dawned upon him.

He experienced a moment of pure awareness where the boundaries of his individual self seemed to dissolve and he felt connected to the entire universe.

In that moment,

Arjun understood the essence of Vedanta,

The unity of Atman,

The Self,

With Brahman,

The vast,

Or universe.

He returned to the sage with a newfound light in his eyes,

And with a deep sense of gratitude,

He said,

I have found the answers I sought,

Not in words but in the stillness of my own heart.

Thank you for guiding me on this inner journey.

And so Arjun's quest for truth had just begun but it had taken a profound turn.

He now knew that the path to understanding life's purpose and the nature of reality lay within,

In the realization of the real self.

With this,

Let's prepare to sleep.

Now before we get started,

Just take a moment or two to get comfortable lying in your bed.

Make sure you are under the covers if you do fall asleep during this practice and even if you don't usually go to sleep on your back.

I would like you to begin the practice by lying flat,

Maybe your knees slightly bent.

You can keep a small pillow under the back of your knees if you like.

Just lie flat on the bed in supine position.

Now gently close your eyes and start taking a few nice big deep breaths,

Breathing in and out through the nostrils only.

As you inhale,

Feel that whole body is getting healed and with exhalation feel that all the cares,

Tensions and worries from the day are flowing out.

Let go of the deep breaths now,

Releasing any tension from your entire body.

It is not necessary to deliberately release tension in each part of the body.

Just develop the feeling of total relaxation.

Just enjoy that feeling of letting go.

Body is relaxed,

Sinking into the bed beneath you.

We are going to have a simple practice to wind down.

Just follow along with the voice and the instructions.

Try not to over-analyze or intellectualize.

Try not to over-analyze or intellectualize the instructions.

Now gently shift your awareness to your surroundings.

Start to notice all the different sounds present here.

Without getting struck with any one particular sound,

Try to keep your awareness moving from sound to sound.

Observe one sound,

Notice it and then move to the next sound.

Observe this sound and then move to other sound.

Like this,

Keep your awareness moving from sound to sound.

Keep the awareness moving from sound to sound and try to find the most distant sound which you can hear.

Let go the sound awareness and feel your body from within.

Now we begin body scan.

I will name a body part.

You just become aware of that body part,

Feel it and then just move to the next body part which is named.

Become aware of the right hand,

Right hand thumb,

Fingers of right hand,

Whole right hand,

Whole right arm,

Right shoulder,

Right side of the chest,

Waist,

Hip,

Whole right leg,

Right foot,

The toes.

Now left hand,

Left hand thumb,

Fingers of the left hand,

Whole left hand,

Whole left arm,

Left shoulder,

Left side of the chest,

Waist,

Hip,

Whole left leg,

The left foot,

The toes.

Feel the both legs together,

The buttocks,

Stomach,

Chest,

Back,

Shoulder blades,

Arms,

The neck,

Forehead,

Eyes,

Nose,

Right cheek,

Left cheek,

Mouth,

Lips,

Chin,

The whole face,

The whole head,

The whole neck,

The whole back,

The whole body.

The whole body.

The whole body.

Again we will go through the whole body.

This time a little more slower and in detail.

Starting with the right hand thumb,

First finger,

Second finger,

Third finger,

Little finger,

Fingers and thumb together,

Palm of the hand,

Back of the hand,

Wrist,

Forearm,

Elbow,

Upper part of the right arm,

Right shoulder,

Right armpit,

Right side of the torso,

Right side waist,

Right thigh,

Kneecap,

Calf muscle,

Ankle,

Heel,

Sole of the foot,

Big toe,

Second toe,

Third,

Fourth,

Fifth,

The whole right side of the body,

From toes to the fingers,

Fingers to the toes,

The whole right side of the body.

Now go to the left hand.

Become aware of the left hand thumb,

First finger of left hand,

Second finger,

Third finger,

Little finger,

Fingers and thumb together,

Palm of the hand,

Back side of the hand,

Wrist,

Forearm,

Elbow,

Upper part of the arm,

Left shoulder,

Left armpit,

Left side of the torso,

Left side waist,

Hip,

Thigh,

Kneecap,

Calf muscle,

Ankle,

Left foot heel,

Sole of the foot,

Big toe,

Second toe,

Fourth toe,

Fifth,

Whole left foot,

The whole left side of the body,

From toes to the fingers,

Fingers to the toes,

The whole left side of the body.

Now to the back.

Become aware of the lower back,

The right buttock and the left buttock,

Middle back,

Upper back,

Right shoulder blade,

Left shoulder blade,

Back of the neck,

Back of the head,

The whole back side together.

Now go to the top of the head,

The crown of the head,

Forehead,

Both sides of the head,

Right eyebrow,

Left eyebrow,

The space between two eyebrows,

Right eyelid,

Left eyelid,

Right eye,

Left eye,

Right ear,

Left ear,

Right side cheek,

Left side cheek,

Bridge of the nostrils,

Right nostril,

Left nostril,

Upper lip,

Upper jaw,

Tongue,

Lower jaw,

Lower lip,

Chin,

Throat,

Right collarbone,

Left collarbone,

Chest,

Right part of the chest,

Middle part of the chest,

Left part of the chest,

Upper part of the belly,

Middle part of the belly,

The navel area,

Lower part of the belly,

The whole of the right leg,

The whole of the left leg,

Both legs together,

The whole of the right arm,

The whole of the left arm,

Both arms together,

The whole of the back,

Buttocks,

Spine,

Shoulder blades,

The whole of the front,

Abdomen,

Chest,

The whole of the back and front together,

The whole of the head,

The whole body,

The whole body,

The whole body,

Become aware of your breath now,

Just feel the flow of your breath,

In and out through the body,

The breathing is natural,

Automatic,

We are not trying to change the rhythm of the breath,

We are not doing it,

Just witnessing the breath,

Maintain the awareness of breath,

Total awareness of breath,

Now,

Keeping the awareness on the breath,

Start mentally counting down your breath from 54,

As the breath comes in,

Count 54,

As it flows out,

54,

Breathe in 53,

Breathe out 53,

Like this,

Continue,

Not trying to fall asleep,

Just counting down the breath,

And knowing that,

It really doesn't matter too much,

When the sleep comes,

As you lie there in this way,

Both the body and the mind,

Are getting all the rest that they need,

If you lose track of the countdown,

Come back to 54 and start over.