Yoga Nidra For Sleep (The Floating Feather)

Hello.

You're more than welcome here.

We're going to experience together a yoga nidra designed for a good night's sleep.

We're going to travel through this time together to help you feel deeply restful and prepared for the night ahead.

So it's time to get comfy and start your yoga nidra for a nice restful sleep.

Begin by lying down on your back and making sure that you are perfectly comfortable.

If you don't feel at ease right now,

Take any adjustments for yourself so you can set yourself up for a beautiful yoga nidra.

The less we move during the next while,

The more benefits we tend to be able to reap during our session.

However,

If you need to move at any time,

Just make the movements gentle,

Minimal and conscious.

So there's our intro.

Let's begin.

Closing your eyes,

Shifting the palms to face the sky,

Settle the body down.

Allow your eyelids to be heavy and still.

We'll begin to connect with our wondrous breath.

Breathing in and breathing out.

Breathing in and breathing out.

Breathing in and breathing out.

Breathing in calm.

Breathing out peace.

Calm peace.

Calm and peace.

Next as you breathe out,

I want you to feel all of the cares and worries of the day flow out of you in a gentle stream.

Just let it all fluidly leave you,

Carried away on the water.

In the following practice,

You are going to develop the feeling of relaxation throughout the entire body.

No need to move or even try to relax.

Simply foster the feeling of relaxation throughout the body.

Although we're taking this yoga nidra to help us sleep,

We're not going to go to that place just yet.

Make a resolution to yourself now that I will not sleep.

I will remain awake throughout the practice of this yoga nidra.

We are letting all awareness fall into the background.

Just holding on to your sense of hearing.

Let my voice guide you along this gentle,

Soothing river of relaxation.

Let the instructions flow in without overanalyzing.

Simply follow my voice with total attention and feeling.

Allow yourself to bring in this simple mantra.

Whisper it lightly in your mind.

I am going to practice yoga nidra.

I am going to practice yoga nidra.

I am going to practice yoga nidra.

The practice of yoga nidra begins now.

Let's take the time to make your sankalpa and attention from your heart space.

If you don't already have one,

Some that are very helpful include I am at ease.

I am deeply relaxed or even I have the full ability to fall asleep.

Really it's about choosing whatever sounds right to you in this moment.

And if something immediately pops into your head,

Then that's often the right one to choose.

Now repeat your sankalpa to yourself three times in your mind with complete conviction and gratitude for its realization.

And then settling back into the breath,

We'll begin the rotation of consciousness.

I'm going to name different parts of the body and you're going to repeat the sound in your mind filling each body part with your direct awareness.

Breathing space into that body part.

So let's begin.

Bring your attention to your right hand and repeat after me in your mind.

Right hand thumb,

Second finger,

Third finger,

Fourth finger,

Fifth finger,

Palm of the right hand,

Back of the right hand,

Your wrist,

Lower arm,

Elbow,

Upper arm,

Shoulder,

Armpit,

Right waist,

Right hip,

Your right thigh,

Your kneecap,

Your calf,

An ankle and heel,

The sole of the right foot,

The top of the right foot,

Big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe and fifth toe.

Become aware of the left hand thumb,

Second finger,

Third finger,

Fourth finger,

Fifth finger,

Palm of the left hand,

The back of the left hand,

Left wrist,

Lower arm,

Elbow,

Upper arm,

Left shoulder and armpit,

Left waist,

Left hip,

Left thigh,

Left kneecap,

Your left calf,

Ankle,

The sole of the left foot,

The top of the left foot,

Big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe and fifth toe.

Now we're going to take our awareness to the back of the body.

Become aware of the right shoulder blade,

The left shoulder blade,

Right buttock,

The left buttock,

Your spine,

The whole back together,

Now the top of the head,

The forehead,

Right eyebrow and left eyebrow,

The space between the eyebrows,

Left eyelid,

Right eyelid,

Right eye,

Left eye,

Right ear and the left ear,

Right cheek,

Left cheek the nose and the tip of the nose,

The upper lip and lower lip,

The chin,

The throat,

The right chest,

Left chest,

Center of the chest,

Navel,

Abdomen,

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 the front together,

The whole of the head,

The whole of the body together,

The whole body together,

The whole body together.

Let your mind be conscious,

Embracing total awareness,

Not sleeping or moving,

Just effortlessly aware of your whole body resting.

See your body reclined in this room,

See the bed you are laying on,

Any furniture,

Windows or curtains and your body,

Breathing in and breathing out,

Completely at ease.

Feel the breath flowing in and out of your lungs,

Allowing the rhythm to be natural and free,

Natural and free,

Natural and free,

No effort.

See if you can maintain this awareness of breath.

Let's try taking our concentration on the movement of your navel area.

Become aware of your belly button rising and falling with each breath.

Rising and falling.

Rising and falling.

Rising and falling.

With each and every breath it expands and contracts.

Concentrate on this movement in synchronization with your breath.

Awareness of breathing,

Awareness of breath.

Thank you.

Awareness and breathing.

Breathing and awareness.

Now start counting your breaths backwards from 27 to 1.

Like this.

27 navel rising,

27 navel falling,

26 navel rising,

26 navel falling,

25 navel rising,

25 navel falling and so on.

Say the words and numbers mentally to yourself as you count your breaths.

If you make a mistake simply return to 27 and begin again.

Effortless awareness.

Effortless awareness.

Awareness.

If you get lost that's okay.

Simply return to 27 and begin again.

Thank you.

Now you can stop your counting of the navel breath and shift your attention to your chest.

Your chest is rising and falling with each breath.

Become aware of this.

Become familiar with it.

Continue concentrating on the movement of the chest and start counting from 27 to 1 as you did before.

27 chest rising,

27 chest falling,

26 chest rising,

26 chest falling,

25 chest rising,

25 chest falling and so on.

Again repeating the words and numbers to yourself as you count.

Again if you make any errors please don't see them as that.

Just return to 27 and begin again.

Awareness of breathing,

Awareness of counting,

Counting your breath backwards.

It doesn't matter if you don't make it to one.

Just continue with the practice.

Cease your counting of the chest breathing and move your awareness to your throat.

Become aware of your breath moving in and out of your throat.

Become aware of this.

Concentrate on the movement of the breath and continue counting as you did before from 27 to 1.

27 breathing in,

27 breathing out,

26 breathing in,

26 breathing out.

Complete awareness of the counting and of the breath.

Continue the practice.

The counting and the breathing.

The breathing and the counting.

Not moving,

Nor sleeping.

You can release the count now.

And travel to your nostrils.

Become aware of the breath moving in and out through your nose.

Concentrate on the movement of the breath in and out of the nostrils.

27 breathing in,

27 breathing out,

26 breathing in,

26 breathing out.

And so on.

Complete awareness and effortless awareness.

Continue the practice.

Counting and breathing.

Breathing and counting.

Not moving,

Nor sleeping.

Just breathing and counting.

You can release your counting now.

It doesn't matter if you came to one.

Just leave your breathing to be natural.

We now go on to visualisation.

I will name the names of different objects and as I say them try to develop an image of them on all levels.

Feeling,

Awareness and emotion.

As best as you can.

If you are able to find each vision your relaxation is complete.

Burning candle.

Endless desert.

Egyptian pyramid.

Torrential rain.

Snow capped mountains.

Greek temple at sunrise.

Coffin beside a grave.

Birds flying across a sunset.

Red clouds drifting.

Across above a church.

Stars at night.

Full moon.

Smiling Buddha.

Wind from the sea.

Waves breaking on a deserted beach.

The restless sea.

Waves breaking on a deserted beach.

Imagine a bright white feather resting on the thick bow of an oak tree.

The tips are so wispy thin that they're nearly invisible to your eyes.

The edges of the feather curl in towards each other.

Imagine that you are this feather.

Light on this heavy supporting branch.

Just now a soft breeze takes your feather and gently lifts you.

There is no fear here as the wind holds and cradles you.

You sway back and forth.

You keep swaying.

You descend into a stream.

Finally the bottom of your feather touches the gentle stream.

And the water is just the right temperature and very comforting.

You are at ease and content.

Allow sleep to drift you further down the stream.

Floating as a feather slowly around each bend.

Watching the colourful trees pass.

They're heavy branches creating little ripples where the outer leaves and twigs sink into the waters.

Another bend offers you a better look at the setting sun.

Gloriously shining in the purpling sky.

And just peeking out from a rolling hill.

As the sun sets you feel your body settling down with it.

The pull of the sun under the horizon pulls you further into sleep.

Further into contentment.

As you float.

Rocked and swayed so softly by the flowing water of the stream.

As you picture this scene and yourself in it.

Gently allow the edges to fade when you're ready.

As the scene fades.

You begin to drop into a deep restful night's sleep.

Now is the time to repeat your sankalpa.

Your resolution.

The same sankalpa you repeated at the beginning with the same feeling and gratitude.

Please repeat your sankalpa three times to yourself now.

Pass all efforts.

Become aware of awareness itself.

Awareness of your whole body.

Breathing.

Quietly.

And slowly.

Developing awareness of your body from the top of the head to the tips of the toes.

Become aware of the position of your body lying on your bed.

Visualise the room around you.

Noticing your surroundings with your eyes closed.

And you.

Right there in the scene.

Sleeping soundly.

And now.

Allow yourself completely to drift off.

Gently,

Deeply.

Drift off.

The practice of yoga nidra is now complete.

Sleep well.