Yoga Nidra: For Peaceful Sleep | 27 Minutes

Welcome to your evening yoga nidra practice.

I'm so happy that you're here.

So yoga nidra translates to yogic sleep,

And they say that one hour of a yoga nidra practice is equivalent to four hours of rest for your body.

We're going to do an abbreviated yoga nidra practice,

But this should help you if you have trouble sleeping.

So let's begin.

Lie down in shavasana.

If you're familiar with shavasana,

You can just lay down on your back.

Make yourself comfortable.

Keep your feet apart.

Let the ankles flop open from each other.

Arms slightly away from the body.

Palms of your hands facing upward.

Adjust your blanket or your clothes,

Your positioning,

So that you can practice yoga nidra without moving or any physical discomfort.

Please close your eyes and keep them closed.

There's nothing to see or do.

The practice of yoga nidra is the act of hearing and the act of feeling.

Those are the only important factors.

In yoga nidra,

You function on the level of awareness,

Plus the level of listening.

In dreams,

You have no control.

But in yoga nidra,

You are the creator of the dream.

Say to yourself mentally,

I will not sleep.

Give yourself some time to feel calm and steady.

Take a deep breath,

And as you breathe in,

Feel calmness spreading throughout the body.

And as you breathe out,

Say to yourself mentally,

Relax.

Become aware of the sounds in the distance.

Become aware of the most distant sounds that you can hear.

Let your sense of hearing operate like a radar.

Searching out distant sounds and following them for a few seconds.

Move your attention from sound to sound without attempting to identify the source.

Gradually bring your attention to closer sounds.

The sounds outside of the building that you're in.

And then to sounds inside the room.

Without opening your eyes,

Develop awareness of the room,

The four walls,

The ceiling,

The floor,

Your body,

The body lying on the floor or on your bed.

Become aware of the total existence of your body in perfect stillness.

Develop your awareness of all the meeting points between your body and the floor or your bed.

Become aware of the natural breath.

The deep,

Natural,

Spontaneous breath.

Keep listening to my voice and know that you are breathing.

The practice of Yoga Nidra begins now.

Say mentally to yourself,

I'm going to practice Yoga Nidra.

I will not sleep.

I'm going to practice Yoga Nidra.

This is the time to make your intention or sankalpa a simple intention.

Please state your intention to yourself clearly with feeling and awareness three times.

Rotate your consciousness through the different centers of the body as quickly as possible.

The awareness has to jump from point to point.

Please repeat mentally the name of each part after me and simultaneously become aware of that part.

The practice always begins with the right hand.

Right hand thumb.

Second finger.

Third finger.

Fourth finger.

Fifth finger.

Palm of the hand.

Back of the hand.

Wrist.

Lower arm.

Elbow.

Upper arm.

Shoulder.

Armpit.

Waist.

Hip.

Right thigh.

Knee.

Calf muscle.

Ankle.

Heel.

Sole of the foot.

Top of the foot.

Left big toe.

Second toe.

Third toe.

Fourth toe.

Fifth toe.

Left hand thumb.

Second finger.

Third finger.

Fourth finger.

Fifth finger.

Palm of the hand.

Back of the hand.

Wrist.

Lower arm.

Elbow.

Upper arm.

Shoulder.

Armpit.

Waist.

Left thigh.

Knee.

Calf muscle.

Ankle.

Heel.

Sole of the foot.

Top of the foot.

Left big toe.

Second toe.

Third toe.

Fourth toe.

Fifth toe.

Right shoulder.

Left shoulder.

Right shoulder blade.

Left shoulder blade.

Right buttock.

Left buttock.

Spine.

Whole of the back together.

Top of the head.

Forehead.

Right eyebrow.

Left eyebrow.

Eyebrow center.

Right eyelid.

Left eyelid.

Right eye.

Left eye.

Right ear.

Left ear.

Right cheek.

Left cheek.

Nose.

Tip of the nose.

Right nostril.

Left nostril.

Upper lip.

Lower lip.

Chin.

Jaw.

Throat.

Right collarbone.

Left collarbone.

Right chest.

Left chest.

Middle of the chest.

Navel.

Abdomen.

Lower abdomen.

Whole of the right leg.

Whole of the left leg.

Both legs together.

Whole of the right arm.

Whole of the left arm.

Both arms together.

Whole of the back.

Whole of the front.

Whole of the head.

Whole of the body together.

Whole of the body together.

Whole of the body together.

Become aware of the space occupied by the body.

Body and space.

Become aware of the whole body and the floor.

The whole body in relation to the floor.

And at the same time become aware of the meeting points of the body and the floor.

These are very subtle physical points.

Feel the meeting points between the body and the floor.

Feel the meeting points between the back of your head and the floor.

Shoulder blades and the floor.

Elbows and the floor.

Back of the hands and the floor.

Buttocks and the floor.

Calves and the floor.

Heels and the floor.

Awareness of all the meeting points between the body and the floor.

Simultaneously and evenly.

Now shift your attention to the eyelids.

Feel the narrow line of meeting between the upper and lower eyelids.

Feel the sharp points where they meet.

Intensify your awareness between the eyelids.

And then the lips.

Center your attention on the line between the lips.

The space between the lips.

And from the lips we move to the breath.

Draw your attention to the natural in and out breath.

Feel the breath moving along the passage between the navel and the throat.

On the inhalation it rises from the navel to the throat.

And on the exhalation it descends from the throat to the navel.

Be completely aware of the respiration navel to throat.

Throat to navel.

Maintain your awareness and at the same time start counting your breaths backwards.

We'll start with 10 and move to 1.

Like this.

I am breathing in 10.

I am breathing out 10.

I am breathing in 9.

I am breathing out 9.

Count yourself mentally following the rise and fall of your breath from navel to throat and back again.

The breathing is slow and relaxed.

Please continue counting on your own.

Awaken the feeling of heaviness in the body.

Feeling of heaviness.

Become aware of heaviness in every single part of the body.

Feeling so heavy that you're sinking into the floor.

Now awaken the feeling of lightness.

Awareness in the body.

Feeling of lightness.

Sensation of lightness and weightlessness in all parts of the body.

Body feels so light that it seems to be floating away from the floor.

Awareness of lightness.

In the experience of cold,

Awaken the experience of bitter cold in the body.

Imagine you're walking on a cold floor in winter and your feet are very,

Very cold.

You feel cold all over.

Awareness of coldness.

Awareness of coldness.

Now awaken the sensation of heat.

The experience of heat.

The whole body is hot.

You feel hot all over in the body.

Recollect the feeling of heat in summertime when you're out in the sun with no shade.

You feel heat all over the body.

Heat all around the body.

Awaken the awareness of heat.

The experience of pain.

Concentrate and try to remember the experience of pain.

Any pain you've experienced in your life,

Mental or physical,

Recollect the feeling of pain.

Now recollect the feeling of pleasure.

Any kind of pleasure,

Physical or mental.

Recollect the feeling and relive it.

Make it vivid.

Awaken the feeling of pleasure.

Now withdraw your mind and concentrate on the space in front of your closed eyes.

Imagine before you a transparent screen through which you can see infinite space.

A space that extends as far as the eyes can see.

Concentrate on this dark space and become aware of any phenomena that manifests within it.

Whatever you see is the manifestation,

The state of your mind.

Continue your awareness of this space.

Now imagine yourself in a park in the early morning.

The sun has not risen and the park is deserted except for yourself.

It's a beautiful park,

Calm and peaceful.

Walk across the springy grass.

Listen to the birds whistle and call as they welcome in the new day.

There are gardens and flowers,

Roses,

Yellow,

Pink,

Red,

Purple.

Smell their fragrance.

See the early morning dew drops on their petals.

Nearby the rose garden is a fish pond.

Goldfish swim in and out amongst the water lilies.

See their graceful movements.

You walk between trees,

Beautiful trees,

Bare trees and trees with leaves.

Wide spreading trees,

Tall and stately.

And there's a clearing between the trees.

In the clearing is a small temple with an aura of light around it.

Go to the door.

It's cool and dim inside.

And inside on the walls there are pictures of great saints.

You sit down on the floor,

Close your eyes and become still.

Sense of deep peace and harmony envelops you as the sounds of the outside fade into the distance.

Continue your awareness of meditation inside the temple.

Stay there for some time until peace and harmony pervade.

Bring your awareness back to the dark space in front of your closed eyes.

Watch the darkness that you see before you very carefully with detachment.

Rest your mind in this warm and friendly darkness.

And if any subtle phenomena manifests like colors or patterns,

Just take note and continue with your awareness.

If thoughts occur,

Let them come and go.

Continuing to watch this dark space.

Continuing with this detached awareness.

Become aware of your breathing once again.

Natural breath.

And develop awareness of your physical existence.

Become aware of your arms and legs.

Your body lying stretched out onto the floor.

Become aware of any meeting points between your body and the floor.

Develop awareness of the room,

Walls,

Ceiling.

Noises inside and outside the room.

Lie quietly for a few moments and keep your eyes closed.

As you're ready,

You can begin moving your body,

Stretching yourself.

But take your time.

There's no rush.

When you're sure that you are wide awake,

You may sit up and open your eyes.

Your practice of Yoga Nidra is now complete.

Until next time.