Namaste.
Welcome to Yoga Nidra.
My name is Shelley.
I'll be your guide for this practice.
Please begin by settling in,
Making yourself as comfortable as possible,
Lying down on the ground or on a bed or a couch or maybe even sitting up.
Some way of being in your body that supports deep relaxation and rest.
Bringing in any props for nourishment and ease,
A pillow behind the head,
Support behind the knees,
Maybe a blanket for warmth or something to cover the eyes.
As you are settling in,
A reminder that Nidra in Sanskrit means sleep.
You are preparing yourself for a sweet oasis of yogic rest.
Dropping down and in,
Letting go,
Beginning to unwind.
I invite you to stay gently awake during the practice if you can.
Yet if you drift off to sleep,
Please know that is perfect too.
In Yoga Nidra,
We trust the inherent wisdom of the body.
Taking a few final moments to settle,
Making any last wiggles or adjustments for comfort,
Nestling in.
As you are ready,
Gently closing down the eyes,
Making that sweet turn to come within,
Arriving inside yourself,
Right here,
Right now.
Relaxing the shoulders,
Softening the throat,
Releasing any tension in the belly,
The hands,
The feet.
Bringing gentle awareness to your face and allowing it to soften,
To melt,
Releasing any holding patterns.
Relaxing all the little muscles around the eyes,
Softening and widening the forehead out to the temples.
Gently opening the ears,
Shifting into listening,
Sensing,
Feeling,
Allowing the weight of your body to sink down into the support beneath you.
Sense your connection with Mother Earth,
Rooted,
Held.
Noticing the air around you,
Its gentle touch on your skin,
And noticing the movement of air in and out of the body,
The natural rhythm of your breath.
Where do you notice the breath in this moment?
Sensing the breath's ebb and flow,
Filling and emptying,
Rising and falling.
With each exhale,
Might you surrender just a little bit more,
Releasing,
Yielding,
Unwinding,
And untangling.
And now,
As you're ready,
You'll take two sips of air in through the nose,
Hold for just a moment at the top,
And then open the mouth and gently sigh it out.
And again,
Two sips in,
Hold for a moment,
And then opening and letting go.
And one more time,
And returning to the natural breath,
Inviting in your sankalpa,
Your deep heart's desire.
What you already know is true for your soul,
Waiting to be known,
To be expressed.
A simple sentence stated in the present tense,
Beginning with the words,
I am.
With sankalpa,
We plant a seed,
A seed that is already there,
Waiting for permission and the light of awareness to grow.
It may be as simple as,
I am spacious,
Or I am free,
Or I am resting deeply in myself.
Speaking your sankalpa silently three times.
Now beginning a gentle journey through the body,
Guided by the sound of my voice.
Starting in the mouth,
Sacred portal to what is hidden,
Our flesh compass to spirit in all directions.
The tip of the tongue,
Root of the tongue,
Pit of the throat,
Center of the chest,
Center of the belly,
Center of the pelvis,
Base of the spine,
Small of the back,
The space behind the heart,
Back of the neck,
Back of the skull,
Crown of the head,
The space between the eyebrows,
Both eyes,
Both ears,
Both nostrils,
Both lips,
Both jaws,
The center of the throat,
Left shoulder,
Front and back,
Elbow,
Wrist,
Palm of the hand,
All five fingers,
The whole left hand and arm,
The whole left hand,
Arm and shoulder,
Left waist,
Left hip,
Front and back,
Knee,
Ankle,
Sole of the foot,
All five toes,
The whole left foot and leg,
The whole left foot,
Leg and hip,
Center of the pelvis,
Right hip,
Front and back,
Knee,
Ankle,
Sole of the foot,
All five toes,
The whole right foot and leg,
The whole right foot,
Leg and hip,
Right waist,
Right shoulder,
Front and back,
Elbow,
Wrist,
Palm of the hand,
All five fingers,
The whole right hand and arm,
The whole right hand,
Arm and shoulder,
Center of the throat,
The whole left side of the body,
The whole left side from toes to fingers to crown of the head,
The whole left side,
Front and back,
The whole left side of the body streaming in all directions,
The whole right side of the body,
The whole right side from toes to fingers to crown of the head,
The whole right side,
Front and back,
The whole right side of the body streaming in all directions,
The whole left side of the body,
Pulsing with presence,
The whole right side of the body,
Pulsing with presence.
Now welcoming both sides of the body together at once,
The left and the right,
The right and the left,
The whole body,
From toes to fingers to crown of the head,
The whole body,
Front and back,
The whole body streaming in all directions.
And within that radiant streaming body,
Bringing awareness to the left side of the chest,
The physical organ of the heart,
Great drum beating blood and life through the body.
Honoring this sacred life giving drum,
Might you gently whisper,
Thank you.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Bringing awareness to the center of the chest.
Anahata chakra,
The energetic heart center,
Space of unstruck sound.
Honoring the space of universal peace within,
Might you gently whisper,
Love,
Love,
Love.
Bringing awareness to the right side of the chest,
The inner temple,
Hriddaya,
Cave of the heart,
Hrid,
Hriddaya,
Inner sanctum,
Whose essence is silence.
Resting as spacious awareness in the silence of the heart.
Resting in the heart,
And welcoming a gentle rotation of images.
Mountain peaks above an alpine lake.
Tall green tree against a clear blue sky.
Great bird soaring overhead.
Crescent moon at dusk.
The Milky Way in infinite vastness.
View of Earth from out in space.
Earth and moon circling and revolving.
Moonlight streaming across an alpine lake.
First light of dawn in the east.
Toes tipping into the edge of the lake.
Sound of water gently lapping.
Great silence before and after words.
Abiding as spacious awareness in the great silence.
Might you invite your sankalpa to come and be with you everywhere.
Allowing your heart's desire to resound through the universe.
Witnessing the natural breath,
Air coming in,
Air moving out.
Body gently filling and emptying.
And breath by breath beginning to count back from 12 to 1.
Inhale 12.
Exhale 12.
Inhale 11.
Exhale 11.
And continuing at your own pace.
And beginning to bring your awareness back into the body.
Becoming aware of your body resting here supported.
The whole earth supporting you as you rest.
And gently becoming aware of the air all around you.
The ocean of air holding you and staying just as you are.
As you begin to gather yourself to yourself.
Coming back into your form.
Perhaps finding a deeper breath or some small movement to bring the body back to life.
Wiggling fingers or toes.
You might swallow or lick your lips.
Perhaps gently stretching some of the muscles of the face.
Or reaching your arms over a head for a good morning stretch.
Savoring the sweet shift from abiding deep within to slowly slowly coming back up and out.
Taking your time.
And when you're ready,
Perhaps rolling on to your right side and pausing for a moment.
Noticing how you feel.
Noticing what's right here right now.
And using your hands to help bring your body up and around to a comfortable seat.
Just a simple seat.
Bringing the spine upright.
Balancing the head on top.
Noticing how you feel.
And when you are ready,
Gently opening the eyes.
Maybe glancing around.
Moving the head,
The neck just a bit.
To look and see.
Taking in the space around you.
Maybe noticing light,
Shadow,
Colors,
Shapes,
Contrasts.
Drinking in this conscious return to the waking world.
Thank you for sharing this practice of Yoga Nidra with me.
I invite you to continue resting,
Taking your time,
Shifting and savoring the transition for as long as feels right.
My name is Shelley.
It has been my honor to hold space for this practice.
Thank you for taking the time to drop into the deep wisdom of your body.
Namaste.
