Yoga Nidra For Self-Growth & Playfulness

You are about to practice Yoga Nidra,

A deep and relaxing meditation experience that will allow you to let go of distractions and worries and to connect with your deeper self.

Please lie down on your back and relax in a comfortable position,

Palms of the hands facing up and the feet falling gently out to the side.

Position your head comfortably with the head and neck in a neutral position.

Feel free to place a blanket under the head or a bolster under the knees.

Whatever you need to feel very comfortable and at ease in this relaxed posture.

Now please soften and close the eyes.

Allow the body to slowly relax and settle into the posture.

Come to a place of stillness and try to remain still throughout the practice.

If you notice discomfort anywhere in the body at any time,

First observe.

If it continues to bother you,

Make any necessary adjustment and then come back to a place of stillness as soon as possible.

Take a deep breath and as you exhale,

Allow the mind to relax completely.

Follow the sound of my voice throughout the practice,

Remaining awake and aware.

Now let the sound and the easy rhythm of your breath to further relax the body.

Allow each breath to flow through you like a rolling sea wave.

Observe sounds outside and inside the room,

Noticing them without finding any of them disturbing.

Feel awareness of the body from the crown of the head to the tips of your toes.

During Yoga Nidra,

Welcome every experience as a messenger that is inviting you to explore sensations,

Emotions and thoughts without trying to change,

Fix or make anything happen.

Become aware that you are going to practice Yoga Nidra.

Say to yourself,

I am aware and awake.

The practice of Yoga Nidra begins now.

Welcome aware of your breath.

Feel the flow of your breath in and out of the lung.

Do not try to change the rhythm.

The breathing is natural,

Automatic.

You are not doing it.

There is no effort.

Maintain awareness of your breath,

Complete awareness of the breath.

Now concentrate your awareness on the movement of your navel area.

Concentrate on your navel movements.

Your navel is rising and falling slightly with every breath.

With each and every breath,

It expands and contracts.

Concentrate on this movement synchronized with the breath.

Now start counting your breaths backwards from 27 to 1 like this.

27 navel rising,

27 navel falling,

26 navel rising,

26 navel falling,

25 navel rising,

25 navel falling and so on.

Say the words and numbers mentally to yourself as you count your breath.

Be sure that you don't make a mistake.

If you do,

You must go back to 27 and start again.

With total awareness that you are counting,

Go on counting from 27 to 1.

Keep on with the practice.

No mistakes.

Now stop your countings of the navel breath and shift your attention to the chest.

Please shift to the chest.

The chest is rising and falling slightly with each and every breath.

Become aware of this.

Continue concentrating on the movement of the chest and start counting backwards from 27 to 1 in the same way as before.

27 chest rising,

27 chest falling,

26 chest rising,

26 chest falling and so on.

Again repeat the words and numbers mentally to yourself as you count.

If you are lost in the counting,

Start again from 27.

Continue counting 27 to 1.

Keep on with the practice.

Counting and awareness,

Awareness and counting.

Seize your counting of the chest breath and move your awareness to the throat.

Please move to the throat.

Become aware of your breath moving in and out of the throat.

Become aware of this.

Concentrate on the movement of the breath and start counting backwards from 27 to 1 in the same way as before.

Complete awareness of counting and the breath.

No sleeping please.

A total awareness that you are counting.

Keep on with the practice.

Continue counting your breath in the throat.

Stop counting the breath in the throat now and go to the nostrils.

Become aware of the breath moving in and out of the nostrils.

Concentrate on the movement of the breath in and out of the nostrils and start counting as before.

You know it very well by now.

27 breathing in,

27 breathing out and slowly release your efforts concentrating on the breath.

Now is the time to state your sankalpa,

A positive affirmation or intention stated to yourself.

If you do not yet have any affirmation you are working with,

Simply say to yourself,

I am opening myself up to live in joy,

Playfulness and celebration of my life.

Formulate your sankalpa with your own words in the present tense.

Repeat your sankalpa in your mind three times with full awareness,

Sincerity and faith.

You will now experience a sensory journey through the body.

I will guide you to different parts of the body and you will move your awareness to it.

You don't have to do any movement.

Concentrate on the part that I will name and observe.

The practice begins on the right side.

Bring your awareness to the right hand thumb.

Second finger,

Third finger,

Fourth finger,

Fifth finger,

Palm of the hand,

Back of the hand,

Wrist,

Forearm,

Elbow,

Upper arm,

Shoulder,

Armpit,

Waist,

Hip,

Thigh,

Knee,

Calf,

Ankle,

Heel,

Sole of the foot,

Top of the foot,

Right 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,

Forearm,

Elbow,

Upper arm,

Shoulder,

Armpit,

Waist,

Hip,

Thigh,

Knee,

Calf,

Ankle,

Heel,

Sole of the foot,

Top of the foot,

Left big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe,

Fifth toe.

Now go to the back of the body.

Right heel,

Left heel,

Right calf,

Left calf,

Right thigh,

Left thigh,

Right buttock,

Left buttock,

Lower back,

Middle back,

Upper back,

The entire spine,

Right shoulder blade,

Left shoulder blade,

Back of the neck,

Back of the head,

Top of the head,

Forehead,

Right temple,

Left temple,

Right ear,

Left ear,

Right eyebrow,

Left eyebrow,

Middle of the eyebrows,

Right eye,

Left eye,

Right nostril,

Left nostril,

Right cheek,

Left cheek,

Upper lip,

Lower lip,

Both lips together,

Chin,

Jaw,

Throat,

Right collarbone,

Left collarbone,

Right side of the chest,

Left side of the chest,

Upper abdomen,

Navel,

Lower abdomen,

Right groin,

Left groin,

The pelvic floor,

The whole right leg,

Whole left leg,

Whole right arm,

Whole left arm,

The whole face,

The whole torso,

The whole body,

The whole body,

The whole body.

Awaken the sensation of heat in the body.

You are outside on a scorching hot sunny day.

Feel the sweat running down your body.

Feel the intense heat on the skin.

Even your clothes are so hot from the blazing sun,

They seem to scorch your skin.

Now allow the sensation of heat to fade away.

Experience the sensation of intense cold.

Imagine you are standing in the snow without enough clothing,

With no shoes on your feet.

Visualize the goosebumps rising on your skin,

The whole body shivering.

Now allow the sensation of cold to fade away.

Awaken the sensation of being wet.

You are walking outside in a jungle during a torrential rain.

Water is dripping from your hair.

Your drenched clothes are sticking to the skin.

Now allow this wet sensation to dissipate.

Experience the sensation of being dry.

You are standing outside in the desert,

The most arid desert in the world.

Your skin feels parched and tingles from lack of moisture.

The throat feels like sandpaper,

Craving even a single drop of water.

Now allow this sensation of intense dryness to leave you.

Concentrate on the space in front of your closed eyelids.

In this space,

Begin to notice the screen of the mind we called Shidikasha.

This space extends as high and wide and distant as the eyes can see.

Concentrate on this mind screen and become aware of any colors,

Patterns or light you may see.

Whatever you see is manifested by your mind.

Continue to be aware of this space but do not become involved.

Practice detached awareness only.

Now intensify your imagination and visualize you walking on the shore of a beautiful beach.

The sun is rising,

Illuminating brilliant shades of pink and orange in the clouds.

You can feel the breath of the sea breeze tickling your skin.

Smell the salt in the air and feel the squeeze of sand between your toes.

You can hear the sound of gentle waves rolling onto the sand.

You look out over the endless expanse of blue-green water and notice a turtle swimming close to the shore where you are walking.

You stop and watch it.

You see one small head up out of the water and then dive down so gracefully.

Its dark green shell is the last thing to disappear beneath the surface of the water.

Another turtle comes close.

You see two turtles chasing each other now.

You smile as you observe the turtles playing.

You flash back to when you were a child,

Back in those youthful days.

You would skip or run or dance to a favorite song or turn a cartwheel and rolling in the grass.

But you don't do those things anymore because there are too many serious things to do and you are expected to act like an adult.

But you glance around and notice the beach is deserted.

A laugh escapes your lips.

You find yourself skipping through the sand and the shallows along the shore,

Watching the sea water splash all around you.

You allow this playful feeling to wash over you like another rolling wave.

You break into a run,

Watching for a flash spot in the sand.

Then you rotate downward,

Placing your hands onto the sand and feeling your legs fly over your head as you execute a cartwheel.

The years seem to drop away.

You feel happy and full of joy,

Like an innocent child.

You feel so free.

You raise your arms in the air and twirl around,

Inhaling a breath of life that has never felt so renewing.

Now allow these images to slowly fade away.

Bring back to your mind the resolve that you've made at the beginning of the practice.

Repeat your sun kalpa to yourself three times with full awareness,

Sincerity and faith.

Now return your attention to the rhythm and soft sound of your natural breath,

Feeling its flows in and out of the nostrils.

As you maintain your awareness of your slow,

Easy breath,

Develop the awareness of your state of physical relaxation.

Notice the whole body resting on the floor.

Notice each part of the body touching the floor,

The head and the upper back,

The elbows and hands,

The buttocks,

The calves and heels.

Begin to notice sounds outside the room,

Sounds inside the room.

Visualize the floor,

The windows and walls and the ceiling in the room where you are laying.

Slowly start to do some slow movement.

Start to do larger movements and some stretches.

Roll over to your right side and take at least five deep breaths before slowly making your way back up into a seated position.

The practice of yoga nidra is now complete.

When you feel ready,

You can slowly open your eyes.