Yoga Nidra: Journey Through The Seasons

A welcome to this practice of Yoga Nidra,

Guided by me,

Simone McKay.

Welcome home to yourself.

Settle into a comfortable position,

Either lying back or seated in the most supportive way possible.

Allowing your eyes to gently close,

Taking time to settle into a position that feels just right.

Arrange yourself so you feel supported for entering a deep state of self-inquiry and exploration as we move through the elements within you.

In Yoga Nidra,

You are guided to notice and feel physical sensations,

The breath and feelings,

Tuning in with presence.

Allow for the experience of yourself as the witness of all that comes and goes.

Ensure you experience this perfect,

Just as it is.

No need to change anything.

Now simply rest at ease and follow my guidance.

And now take a deep breath in.

At the top of the inhale,

Hold the breath for a moment.

Allow a bit of tension to arise,

And then release the breath.

As you release,

Listen to your exhale as it gently,

Audibly releases,

Hearing a gentle hum.

And do this one or two more times.

Deep inhale,

Hold,

And release with an audible sigh or hum.

Inhale,

Hold.

Now allow all your senses to be wide open.

As you feel the earth beneath you,

Notice the smells in the air,

More dominant smells and more subtle smells.

And bring attention to the water in your mouth,

And notice any taste.

Now observe the light dancing behind your closed eyelids.

Maybe images appear.

Maybe darkness.

Simply notice,

Without judgment or engaging any thoughts about it.

And perceive now the sensation of air touching your skin.

Notice any difference of temperature of the air and in your body.

Notice warmth in a certain area,

And coolness in another area of your body.

And now allow your attention to drift to the sounds you hear carrying through the open spaces surrounding you.

Notice the sounds in the distance.

Notice the spaces between the sounds.

Notice the sounds close by.

Notice the spaces between the sounds close by.

Notice the sounds in this space.

Notice the sounds within you.

Notice the spaces between the sounds within you.

Allow your senses to be wide open and alive.

If any disturbances occur,

External or internal,

Let them draw you more deeply within.

As you settle in more deeply,

Let yourself move within,

Becoming still.

Simply following the guidance of my voice.

Allow yourself to let go of all thoughts,

Worry,

And tension.

Now shift from thinking and doing to feeling and being.

And breathe in fully,

And exhale with a deep sigh.

And again,

Breathe in fully,

And exhale with a deep sigh,

Letting go even more.

And as you let go,

Sense the earth beneath you.

Sense the earth rising up to embrace the weight of your body.

Know the earth welcomes you.

You are welcome here,

For you are made up of all the same elements as she is.

And the same spirit infuses all of you.

The same spirit infuses all of you.

Sense the connecting points of your own body with the body of the earth.

Feel your own body fusing with the body of the earth.

Your body and the earth's body becoming one unified body of land.

All the while,

Knowing you are held safely in this container of healing.

Within the awareness that is Yoganidra,

Invite your inner sanctuary anytime you need to.

This place within you that evokes a sense of peace,

Calm,

And safety.

And now allow us to plant in the heart,

The land of your body,

A seed of intention that is your Sankalpa.

This is a way of being that is born of your heart.

If words cannot be formulated in this moment,

Simply trust in the deeper intuitive guidance of your own soul's wisdom that already knows the way.

Can you listen to your heart and say yes?

Or allow for an intention or resolve to arise that may take form through words that are stated several times in a positive way in the present tense,

As an expression of your heartfelt mission or desire that give your life meaning and direction.

Perhaps it is an image or a felt sense.

Let it echo in your body as though it were already so.

And now letting that go.

We will move through the land of your body and as we work with the element of water and as each body area will be named,

Let the healing waters seep into the land of your body.

Let your attention activate each area as the element of water washes over and through the area.

Let your attention,

As it is invited to each area,

Activate energies throughout the body of land,

Feeling each area activated and connected to the next through a stream of flowing,

Cooling waters.

Just like the lands of this earth are infused with a grid of interconnected rivers and water pathways,

The depths of the land of your body is a network of blood vessels and energy circuits,

And your very own being can be cleansed and nourished,

Healing waters cleansing all impurities throughout the land of your body,

Clearing outgrown patterns,

Matter and energies that no longer serve the deep well of your soul.

As you bring attention to the areas in the land of your body,

Sense an activation of meridians or nadis,

As little rivers of pranic flow,

Dissolving all tensions and holdings,

Thereby letting yourself settle more deeply into direct communion with your body and soul's inherent wisdom.

We will now begin with venturing through the land of your body.

In the rich soils of your body and for seeds to grow,

The fresh nourishing waters begin to flow,

Inviting you to sense and feel all that is moving through you.

Invite your attention to come to rest on the point between the eyebrows,

Deep within the rich dark soils of the brain,

Where a spring of pure aqua clear waters gurgles forth from the intelligence of the earth,

Gaia,

And bubbles down to the hollow between the collarbones.

Here,

The waters trickle in until they overflow,

And a stream of aqua clear waters flows down to the right shoulder,

Picking up any impurities along the way,

Flowing into the right elbow,

Into the wrist,

And then whirlpooling in the palm of the hand,

Then brimming over into the thumb,

Then flowing into the first finger,

Second finger,

Third,

Little finger,

And the water fills all the fingers,

And fills back up to the palm,

Wrist,

Elbow,

Shoulder,

And cascades down the right side waist,

Pooling in the right hip,

Which overflows down the right leg,

Into the knee,

Ankle,

Pooling in the sole of the foot,

Which in turn overflows into each toe,

First big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe,

Fifth toe.

As the toes fill up,

The aqua clear waters return to the whirlpool in the sole of the foot,

Filling to the ankle,

Into the knee,

And the current flows across the pelvis,

Gathering as a whirlpool in the left hip,

Streaming down the left leg,

To the knee,

Ankle,

Pooling in the sole of the foot,

And pouring into the toes,

First big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe,

Fifth toe,

Which then in turn whirls into the left sole,

Up to the ankle,

Into the knee,

Hip,

And like a gentle tidal wave swells up the left side waist,

Splashing into the left shoulder,

Where it orbits before streaming down the left arm,

To the elbow,

Elbow,

Wrist,

Pooling in the palm,

Flooding into the fingers,

Into thumb,

Thumb,

Then flowing into the first finger,

Second finger,

Third finger,

Little finger.

The waters accumulate and rise from the fingers,

To the palm,

To wrist,

To elbow,

To shoulder,

Forming into a river between the collarbones,

And this river then cascades down the river valley of the spine,

Flushing out all the debris that has built up in stagnant pools and returning to the free-flowing,

Pure,

Aqua,

Clear waters.

Invite your inner sanctuary of inner calm and peace any time as we continue our journey through the land of your body.

Sense this sparkling living life force fully throughout your entire being.

Sense the land of your body as the planet earth herself.

Sense the magnificent dark blue oceans that cover 70% of the land of your body.

Sense the sun shining down brightly above you.

Sense the deep well of these dark blue waters reaching down into vast depths of the ocean.

The life-giving force of light of day shining down upon the land of the body into these deep oceans.

Sense just pure sunlight.

Hold pure light fully in your awareness.

And now sense into the dark blue waters infusing the land of your body where there is a vast depth and where deep inner knowing resides.

Sense these dark blue waters as a living life force containing wisdom.

Sense these dark blue waters that support complete inward contemplation and restoration.

Sense pure dark blue waters.

Sense the depths of these dark blue waters held within the lands of the body.

Now sense back into the full light of day.

Full luminosity of the bright sunlight.

Bright sunlight.

Now sense back into the dark blue watery depths of your body.

Dark blue waters.

Now go back to sensing total light of the sun.

And then back to total dark blue ocean depths.

At your own rhythm going back and forth between the two.

And now sensing with your whole being held in both the restorative deep blue depths as well as the enlivening bright light of the sun.

Just sensing with your full awaring presence.

Presence that is able to be in the dark blue watery depths and the bright shining light of day.

Now let that go.

Bring your attention back to your eyebrow center.

Here allow images to appear as though projected onto a movie screen.

Simply allowing the images to arise naturally without judgment.

Allow the images to invoke a felt sense if the imagery does not come naturally.

Clearly capture with your mind's eye the experience and observe the effects as they resound through you.

Stars twinkling in a crisp winter night sky.

A tall majestic tree with snow covered bare branches conserving its energies.

The gentle stirring of a sprouting seed in the warming soils beneath the ray of the spring sunshine.

Unfurling green leaves in a meadow.

The chirping sounds of birds in the morning.

The chirping sounds of birds in the morning.

Allow for any spontaneous images to arise.

Now revisit the living vibrating life force moving through the land of your body and observe that there are also a vast pervading stillness,

Silence,

And spaciousness.

Reach with your awaring presence into all directions above you,

Beneath you,

To your right,

To your left,

Top of your head,

Bottom of your feet.

Sense the land of your body as your own little planet surrounded and infused by wide,

Open space and stillness.

Trust that you are the space of loving awareness,

The substrata of everything that is seen,

Felt,

And experienced.

Bring your attention to the space of loving awareness that you are and deeply rest.

No effort.

No struggle.

Just allowing whatever comes to you to rest.

Let go of any need to make anything happen.

Listening without effort.

Trusting in the inner knowing that arises from this space.

A rest in this vast,

Open space.

Trusting fully that you are held in this ocean of compassionate,

Loving awareness.

In this space,

You can listen deeply to your own soul's whisperings.

A welcoming joy.

Now recall a memory of a particular person,

Animal,

Place,

Power animal,

Or circumstance that invites joy or happiness into your being.

Experience the feeling of joy or happiness expanding throughout the land of your body.

Every cell in the land of your body welcoming its natural feeling of joy and happiness.

Perhaps experience an inner smile radiating from the cave of your heart,

Radiating throughout the entire landscape of your body.

Joy.

Happiness.

An inner smile welcoming you to your inner being.

An inner smile washing through all the hills and valleys of your body's landscape.

Through the meadows,

Rivers,

And lakes that make up your face,

Torso,

Arms,

And legs.

The entire land of your body alive with the feeling of joy and happiness.

In the soil of being,

The seed of intention can take root.

Take this moment to revisit your sankalpa.

Remember,

This is a way of being born of the heart.

Here,

Your intention or resolve can be actualized and fulfilled with effortless ease.

By trusting your heart's deep wisdom,

Its guidance will show up when needed in its own perfect time.

There is no need for you to do anything about it,

Simply allowing for an openness of welcoming the soul's wisdom to emerge.

Or repeat silently your chosen words and let them echo through your being as a direct present-moment experience,

As though it were already so.

Allow it to be received at the most subtle level of your being.

Know that your intention has been heard,

Received,

Is being heard.

Received is being acted upon without you having to do anything about it.

Don't do anything.

Simply allow it to happen.

Now begin to become aware of the rising and falling of your belly with your breath.

Slowly,

Feel yourself rising to the surface of your awareness.

Sense your own body now resting on the earth.

Become aware of the sensation of air touching your skin.

The feeling of the in-and-out flow of your breath,

Like the ocean waves lapping on the shores.

Notice how relaxed your body is,

How soft the breath is,

How quiet your heartbeat is.

Remain open to the whisperings of your soul and invite them with you into your waking state.

If there is an impulse to move or stretch,

Do so.

Then slowly roll over and rest on your side.

Sense the residual effects of the practice echoing through your body.

Trust you have received exactly what you need from this practice.

When you are ready,

Gently ease your way back up into a seated position.

Take your time.

Don't hurry.

Now begin to gradually open your eyes when you feel ready.

This practice of Yoga Nidra is now complete.

We come in peace,

We go in peace.

Om Shanti Shanti Shanti.