Yoga Nidra: Settling The Nervous System

Welcome to this practice of Yoga Nidra,

A Yoga Nidra for settling the nervous system and finding a felt sense of safety,

Guided by me,

Simone McKay.

In this practice,

We begin to bring ourselves back in connection with our body.

Before we begin,

Let's be sure to have all that we need nearby,

So you can come into sublime comfort.

So have cushions,

Eye pillows,

Blankets,

Sarongs,

Maybe even sandbags,

Within reach,

And then I'll guide you to when we'll need them.

We'll begin by letting your inner child have a temper tantrum.

So lying flat on your back,

Bend your knees and place your feet flat on the ground,

Arms alongside the body in preparation for the temper tantrum.

In a moment,

I'll have you make a face and push the breath out of your mouth as you pound your feet and fists on the ground.

So now,

Breathe in,

Tighten your face,

And begin.

Let go and feel.

This time,

Put yourself fully into it.

You can even move your head from side to side and let sounds come out of your mouth if you want.

Take another deep breath in and begin.

Now stop.

Release your legs to the floor,

Arms by your sides.

Become aware of the released energy in the body.

Let it flow into any holdings,

Physical,

Mental,

Emotional.

Allow the body to settle into a deep state of balance and relaxation.

Emerge into it.

Now allow yourself to take a comfortable position.

Take your time to settle in.

You can lie on your back in Shavasana,

Or you can come into any other position your body would like to be in for the next while.

Be sure to use cushions.

A sarong to cover yourself up.

Any props to support your body for finding supreme comfort.

If you'd like to have a sense of containment,

Then place a sandbag on your feet or pelvis or anywhere else you'd like some weight.

Allow your spine to be long,

Your pelvis resting on the surface beneath you.

Open the spaces between the armpits.

Let your arms soften by your sides,

And your legs grounding gently into the earth.

Let lightness overcome your face and head,

And let the whole body be in sublime comfort.

Close your eyes if that's comfortable and turn your attention inward.

Bring the attention to your breath.

Feel your body softening with each progressive exhalation.

Now come to silence.

And sound dissolving into silence.

Merge into that silent space.

As you soften into the earth beneath you,

Know you are welcome here,

On this land,

In this space.

Fully welcome.

And whatever arises within,

Be it sensation,

Feelings,

Emotions,

Thoughts,

Desires,

Images,

Tears,

Smiles,

All are welcome here.

If any distractions arise from outside,

Allow it all to be here with a sense of welcoming,

An invitation to move you more deeply within,

Knowing all along that you are held here in a safe space.

Give yourself full permission to simply move through this practice in any way that feels good to you.

There are no pressures,

No demands placed on you to be any other way than you truly are.

This practice is to fully support your body's deepest healing wisdom.

Now take a deep breath in through the nose,

And hold for a moment,

Let a bit of tension build,

And then let go into the earth beneath you with a long,

Outgoing sigh.

As we enter a quieter state of being,

Invite your inner resources back into your awareness.

This is an inner sanctuary.

Take a moment to ask yourself what is needed to invite a deeper sense of felt safety.

Is it an animal,

Perhaps a power animal,

A loved one or wise one?

Is it a place in nature,

Or an element of nature like a plant or a tree?

Or perhaps something else like a magical object,

Or a special connection with the angelic realms,

Or anything else that can be invited in to deepen your sense of well-being.

Let this sense of protection and peace echo through your whole being,

And let the echo settle you more deeply into your ground of being,

Which can never be touched by an outside force.

Know you are held safely here.

Know that you can call forth this inner sanctuary with your innate resources.

If any disturbances arise,

Whether internal,

Be it images,

Emotions,

Memories,

Or be it external distractions like sounds,

Let your inner sanctuary reconnect you to this ground of your own being.

Know you can return here at a moment's notice.

Now allow my voice to be your guide as we travel through the body.

Feel your attention awaken sensation in each body part that is mentioned,

And equally drop into the silent spaces between my words.

This deepens relaxation of the body-mind.

Invite your awareness to remain present and aware.

Now bring attention to your mouth,

Tongue,

Jaw,

Cheeks,

Right ear,

Left ear,

Eyebrow center,

Right eye,

Left eye,

Both orbits of the eyes.

Sense both eyes as orbs of radiant sensation.

Temples,

Forehead,

Scalp,

Back of the head,

Throat.

Sense the whole head as an orb of radiant sensation.

Right shoulder,

Upper arm,

Elbow,

Lower arm,

Wrist,

Palm of the right hand,

All five fingers,

Wrist,

Lower arm,

Elbow,

Upper arm,

Shoulder,

Right arm as an orb of luminous sensation.

Sense the hollow between your collarbones,

Center of the chest,

Navel center,

Pubic bone,

Pelvic bowl,

Upper back,

Middle back,

Lower back,

Sacrum.

Sense the whole length of the spine as a highway of vibrating sensation.

Right hip,

Thigh,

Knee,

Calf,

Ankle,

Sole of right foot,

All five toes,

Ankle,

Shin,

Knee,

Thigh,

Right hip.

Sense the whole right leg as an orb of radiant sensation.

Now bring your attention to left shoulder,

Upper arm,

Elbow,

Lower arm,

Wrist,

Palm of the left hand,

All five fingers,

Wrist,

Lower arm,

Elbow,

Upper arm,

Shoulder.

Sense the whole left arm as an orb of luminous sensation.

Sense the hollow between your collarbones,

Center of chest and heart space,

Navel center,

Pubic bone,

Pelvic bowl,

Upper back,

Middle back,

Lower back,

Sacrum.

Sense the whole length of the spine as a highway of luminous energy.

Left hip,

Thigh,

Knee,

Calf,

Ankle,

Sole of left foot,

All five toes,

Ankle,

Shin,

Knee,

Thigh,

Left hip.

Sense the whole left leg as an orb of radiant sensation.

Sense both legs as orbs of vibrating sensation.

Sense the whole torso as an orb of radiant luminosity.

Sense both arms as vibrant sensation.

Sense your head a pulsing sphere of radiance.

Sense the wholeness of your body radiating in all directions.

Legs,

Arms,

Torso,

Head,

Whole body,

Whole body.

One global field of radiating sensation.

Reaching out into the silent space around you.

Allow the body to descend into stillness.

At any time,

Sense your inner resources as the ground of being that is safe and at ease.

Sensing your whole body resting upon and being held by the earth beneath you.

Your attention now sinks into a subtler layer of your being that of your breath and energy body.

By stepping back from the need to direct or manipulate the breath,

It can simply be observed as effortless movement.

Simply watch the ease of in and out flow without interfering with its depth,

Strength,

Or pace.

Release any tendency to want to push or pull on the breath.

Release any need for control of the breath and witness how the breath happens in its own time.

With ease and no effort.

Bring attention to the moments when the breath turns.

For these gentle pauses,

These moments of transition,

Are brief windows into a timelessness in which a movement turns from one into another.

Watching with curiosity and effortlessness,

We can learn from this and observe how these moments of transition occur on other levels of our existence,

Marked by a pause,

A stopping,

And moving from one direction into another.

Completely naturally,

Without the need to control or manipulate,

A cycle ends and a new one begins.

A pattern as old as existence itself.

Sense the cyclical rhythms of breath expanding and contracting at the heart space.

Feel these rhythms travel through your body like rivers of energy.

The circle of breath connecting us with the circle of life.

This cyclical rhythm allowing for a reconnection with all that moves and nourishes life.

The in and out flow of breath connecting us with the cycles of the coming and going,

Like the expression of the dawning of a new day and the easing into night.

Remembering that our bodies are expressions of the cycles of nature herself.

The movement of breath reflected in the ebb and flow of ocean tides.

Sensing the flow of breath.

The expanding,

Opening energy of the in-breath.

The calming,

Grounding energy of the out-breath.

Experience the expanding,

Dynamic in-breath.

And the calming,

Grounding out-breath.

Easing into your own rhythm.

A rhythm that moves in cycles.

A rhythm that encompasses the experience of opposites.

Yet nonetheless a part of the rhythm of life.

A rhythm that is held in the greater trust of the supreme intelligence of nature and of life.

Let yourself flow in trust with each breath.

Knowing the next in-breath will arrive just as the next out-breath will arrive too.

Knowing how it connects you deeply with the rhythms of life.

Simply being in this flow calls us home to a place where we are held and nourished.

Where we can trust and let go.

Letting go into being openness of a wearing presence.

Feel a profound sense of peace descending down over your body and being.

Now release attention from the close observation of the breath.

In this deep state of awareness,

Allow us to move to deeper layers of our body-mind in which we will invite the following experiences to arise and dissolve.

Simply allow all experiences to move through without preference,

Labels,

Or judgment.

By cultivating the ability to witness,

A space is made to release pre-programmed thoughts,

Feelings,

And beliefs.

Call on your inner resources any time you need to.

Now reach back and rest as the witness while you receive the following feelings.

Sense coolness.

Notice where in your body you sense coolness.

Coolness.

And now sense warmth.

Warmth.

Notice where in your body you sense warmth.

Now sense back into your awareness where you can hold both coolness and warmth at the same time.

Now let that go.

Bring your attention to your eyebrow center.

Allow the following images to arise and dissolve.

If visualizing does not come easily,

Simply sense into what the images evoke.

The full moon rising over the horizon.

The cracking open of a little seed beneath the moist earth.

A majestic jungle tree with its canopy of leaves sheltering you from the hot sun.

Calm,

Clear seas shimmering under starlight.

And now be still.

Still in the space behind the forehead and observe what passes.

Witnessing unattached to all that passes.

If nothing appears,

Just be aware of that.

Lay everything down.

Here all of time dissolves.

And this alone,

This allowing of just being,

Absorbed in the sense that there is no doing that needs to happen,

A softening out of time-bound reality occurs.

This is the medicine,

Nourishing this space of non-doing.

Welcome the timeless,

Boundless peace and compassion available to you in these moments.

Be totally present,

Resting in the sacred stillness of your own being.

Here you are held within the domain of grace.

When there is a natural urge to rise to the surface of awareness,

Allow yourself to drift without effort,

Without pull,

A natural rising back into eyes open state of consciousness.

As your consciousness rises,

Keep a tendril of awareness deeply rooted to the timeless,

Boundless peace of your own beingness,

Where you remain untouched,

Boundless and free,

Connected to your own body's wisdom.

This is an ancient knowing to be remembered,

With your own inner resources holding you safely.

Sense yourself rested,

Grounded,

Open and radiant.

Take a moment to gently scan your body for what feels good,

What feels pleasurable.

Rest for a moment in this sense of goodness.

Savor it.

Perhaps it's a bubbling joyfulness or a simple sense of pleasure.

If it feels good to place a hand on your belly and a hand on your heart,

Feel free to do so.

Remaining curious and connected to your inner felt sense,

Perhaps allow your eyes to gently open and close,

Keeping your peripheral vision wide and relaxed,

Taking in what you see in a receptive manner.

Let the eyes wander and notice something in your visual field that brings a sense of pleasure.

And let your eyes rest on it for some time.

Then notice the sounds around you.

Perhaps birds chirping,

Or a fridge humming,

Or rizzling rain,

Or the distant sound of traffic.

Noticing distant sounds.

Sense the flow of air on your skin,

The pressure of any clothing or props.

Observe any scents in the air.

And when you are ready,

Begin to invite some movement back into your body.

And shifting to move back into your day or your evening.

Coming back fully.

Anchoring to your breath.

Being fully in your body.

Sensing the earth beneath you.

This Yoga Nidra is now coming to a close.

We come in peace.

We go in peace.

Om Shanti Shanti Shanti