Welcome to this yoga nidra for honoring winter.
In this practice I will lead you on your own personal journey through the different layers of your body into a deep sleep-like state.
Yoga nidra quiets the mind,
Calms the body,
And helps us go to that place of deep peace and stillness that resides in us all.
So I invite you to get comfortable either lying on your back or your side,
Covering yourself with blankets as your temperature will drop during this practice.
Winter is a time of darkness and shadow,
Barren,
Cold,
And lifeless,
But it is also a time to go within,
To store of energy for new growth,
To reflect,
Dream,
And contemplate new beginnings.
Like the season of winter,
A yoga nidra practice gives us a chance to experience renewal and rebirth.
It allows us to slow down,
Get quiet,
Experience deep peace.
So make any final adjustments,
And once you feel completely comfortable,
Try not to move your body too much during this practice so your nervous system can rest.
Gently close your eyes and begin to tune into your physical body,
Scanning your body and noticing without judgment any sensations,
Pulsing,
Or vibration,
Maybe even sensations of pain,
Tightness,
Or numbness.
Noticing your whole body.
And start to become aware of the feeling of the air against your skin,
And the places where your body is making contact with the surface below you.
So noticing the back of your head,
Shoulders,
Upper back,
Mid-back,
Low back,
Hamstrings,
Calves,
Ankles,
And heels.
Entire back of the body,
Sinking down a little further now.
Take a really deep breath in,
Filling your whole belly,
Rib cage,
And upper chest with air.
And then slowly and gently exhale it all out.
Again,
Take a deep breath in,
Filling the whole body with air.
As you slowly exhale it out,
Release any patterns of holding or clenching in the body that you're aware of.
Keep breathing deeply and generously.
It's time to transition from busyness to rest.
There's no right or wrong way to practice yoga nidra,
But ideally you will stay awake and alert,
But find the edge of sleep and learn to hover there in a place of complete relaxation.
If at some point you lose track of my voice or feel like you've fallen asleep,
There's no need to worry.
Trust you will hear everything that you need to in the deepest parts of yourself and you will still benefit from this practice.
It's normal to get distracted by thoughts.
Just gently bring your attention back to my voice using it like an anchor.
This practice is not about pushing away the thoughts or feelings.
It's about going deep within and meeting whatever arises and everyone's journey will be different.
Remember there is nothing to do but follow my voice.
We play a memory in your imagination,
A happy winter memory.
So maybe it's a playing in the snow or a special holiday memory from childhood or sitting around a fire on a cold winter's night.
Find a happy winter memory and bring it to your mind,
A moment in time that when you think about it,
It makes you feel incredibly joyful and happy.
And now let the memory go but the feeling of happiness remain and focus on this feeling of happiness in your body and visualize this happiness spreading through your entire body.
This feeling spreading through every bone,
Every organ,
Every nerve and every cell.
Know that you can always come back to this happy winter memory if any uncomfortable feelings arise during this meditation or in your everyday life.
I now invite you to set your personal intention for the practice.
So think about what you want to manifest most in your life for you and not for anyone else.
What do you want to embody or become?
Is it related to healing,
Self-love,
Speaking your truth or facing your fears?
Everyone's statement will be different but it should be short,
Concise and use present tense language.
Whatever your statement is,
Repeat it silently to yourself three times now.
You will now rotate your consciousness through your body and will be moving quite quickly so your mind doesn't get attached to the thoughts.
Without forcing,
Try to see if you can feel the body part as I name it.
Staying awake and alert as you listen to my voice.
Begin by bringing your attention to the space between the eyebrows,
The hollow of your throat,
Your right shoulder,
Right elbow,
Right wrist,
Right thumb,
Right index finger,
Right middle finger,
Right fourth finger,
Right small finger,
Right wrist,
Right elbow,
Right shoulder,
Back to the hollow of the throat,
Over to the left shoulder,
Left elbow,
Left wrist,
Left thumb,
Left index finger,
Left middle finger,
Left fourth finger,
Left small finger,
Left wrist,
Left elbow,
Left shoulder,
Hollow of the throat,
Center of the chest,
Right side of the chest,
Center of the chest,
Left side of the chest,
Back to the center of the chest,
The navel,
Top of the pelvic bone,
The right hip,
The right knee,
Right ankle,
Right big toe,
Right second toe,
Right third toe,
Right fourth toe,
Right small toe,
Right ankle,
Right knee,
Right hip,
Top of the pelvic bone,
Left hip,
Left knee,
Left ankle,
Left big toe,
Left second toe,
Left third toe,
Left fourth toe,
Left small toe,
Left ankle,
Left knee,
Left hip,
Top of the pelvic bone,
Navel,
Center of the chest,
Hollow of the throat,
Back to the space between the eyebrows,
And become aware of your whole body from head to toe welcoming all sensations,
Feeling the right side of your body,
The left side of your body,
The back of your body,
The front of your body,
Deep inside your body,
And the surface of your body.
Feel the sensations of your body radiating out of you in all directions.
And if there's any area of your body that you sense needs healing,
Send white light to that area now.
Moving now from the physical body to the more subtle layer of your breath,
Just notice your breath flowing in and out without changing your breath,
Observe the inhalations and the exhalations.
And now start to count backward with your breath from 10 to 1,
Saying silently to yourself,
10 breathing in and 10 breathing out.
So start back at 10 and count backwards silently from 10 to 0 to yourself at your own pace.
And each time you take a breath,
Feel your body releasing and softening a little bit more.
If you lose count,
Just return to the beginning.
Good job.
Stop counting and notice any sensations in your body Staying awake and alert as you listen to my voice,
We will now explore the opposites of heavy versus light.
So start to become aware of the sensation of heaviness in your body.
Your whole body feeling heavy.
Hands heavy,
Legs heavy.
Elvist torso and head all heavy.
Like gravity is pulling you down.
The whole body heavier and heavier like it is made of lead.
And now lightness.
Feel the sensation of lightness in your body.
Whole body relaxed and light.
As if you were as light as a feather.
Legs are light.
Arms are light.
Elvist torso and head all light like they weigh nothing at all.
Whole body lighter and lighter.
And now try to alternate between light and heavy.
So first feeling light and then heavy.
And then try to feel light and heavy at the same time.
And then notice if it is possible to feel both of these sensations at once.
Now exploring cold versus hot.
Feel your body becoming very cold.
Notice if you are standing outside on a cold winter's day.
Hands are cold.
Feet cold.
Lips and ears cold.
Whole body colder and colder.
The body as cold as ice.
And now feel your whole body becoming hot.
As if you are standing in the middle of a desert and the sun is beating down on you.
Head,
Upper body,
Lower body all hot.
Like you are sitting next to a hot fire.
Whole body hotter and hotter.
And now try to feel cold and hot flowing back and forth.
Cold and then hot.
And then both at the same time.
Just exploring how this feels.
Flooring darkness versus light.
Experience darkness in your whole body.
However this feels to you.
Whole body filled with darkness.
And now light.
Experience light filling your whole body.
Whole body filled with light.
Now moving back and forth between light and dark.
And then try to feel both together at the same time.
And now release any feelings of dark or light.
And repeat your personal intention again three times silently to yourself with conviction.
Staying awake and alert as you listen to my voice.
Flowing down now even deeper.
I invite you to tap into your inner wisdom by imagining a blank movie screen in your mind's eye.
Listening to my words and imagining them unfolding on this movie screen.
Begin by seeing yourself on the screen.
Standing outside in the deepest darkest part of winter.
Standing in the middle of a beautiful Scandinavian landscape.
The earth blanketed with snow as far as you can see.
It's night time but the sky is illuminated with green and blue patterns and swirls of the northern lights.
The Aurora Borealis.
Noticing your surroundings.
The incredible light show illuminating the sky.
Snow covered mountain peaks in the far distance.
The temperature of the air on your skin.
Standing right in front of you is a shallow pool of water.
Water that has been heated by thermal dynamics of the earth.
This warm pool looks peaceful and inviting.
Steam is rising in the air and the water is starting to take on the blue green glow just like the sky above.
There's no one else around you.
No sounds of activity.
Nothing but silence in this magical wintry place.
Feeling calm,
Protected and completely at ease.
Standing by the pool you see steps leading down into the water.
You descend the steps and dip a toe in the warm water.
Noticing it's the perfect temperature for you.
Stepping slowly into the water and feeling it against your feet,
Ankles,
Calves,
Knees,
Thighs and hips.
Water relaxing your whole lower body as you immerse yourself further.
Let your whole body now drop into the water.
Healing energy and warmth circulating through your entire body.
Feel sense of peace and calm washing over you as you bathe in this wintry landscape.
Feel the water seeking out the places in your body where healing and renewal is most needed.
The water releasing any worries,
Stress or pain that you're holding onto.
Forgiving all that needs to be forgiven.
Just let it drift away.
Restoring health and wellbeing to your body as you slip deeper into relaxation and deeper into peace.
And as you soak in this medicinal pool of water,
Open your ears and listen for any messages.
Any messages arising from deep inside.
What is being revealed to you?
Keeping yourself up to whatever comes,
Whatever you hear,
Feel or see.
Stepping into your inner wisdom and intuition.
Remembering any messages that you receive,
You may receive or you may not receive messages.
Either is fine.
Just continue to rest here feeling formless,
Timeless and eternal.
You are whole,
Complete and perfect in every way.
Step out of the ego and into the divine self.
All noises dim.
Mental thoughts recede.
Step into the universal consciousness.
And now from this place of peace,
Repeat your intention again three times silently to yourself.
Imagine that you're planting a seed deep in your body,
Deep in your subconscious.
Slowly start to make your way back towards the steps.
As you step out of the water,
Feel revived,
Restored and renewed.
The practice of yoga nidra is now coming to a close and we're ready to leave this healing place.
Come back to the room that you're lying in.
Back to your body.
Back to your breath.
Noticing all sensations in your body and noticing how it feels compared to when we first started this practice.
When you're ready,
Decide what part of your body wants to move first.
Maybe wiggling your fingers and toes,
Stretching your body out long.
Thank yourself for giving yourself this time to restore a sense of calm and ease in your body.
I'd like to end with a quote by Gary Zukoff.
The winter solstice has always been special to me as a barren darkness that gives birth to a verdant future beyond imagination.
A time of pain and withdrawal that produces something joyfully inconceivable like a monarch butterfly masterfully extracting itself from the confines of its cocoon bursting forth into unexpected glory.
I'll leave you with a question to think about as you leave this practice and go back into the world.
How can you use this darkest time of the year to withdraw,
Go within so you can ultimately create and reimagine something new for yourself in the coming season?
This practice of yoga nidra is now complete.
Remember that is always here for you whenever you need it.
