Welcome and thank you for joining me today for this yoga nidra.
I recently visited the beautiful island of Bali in Indonesia which is such a special sacred place,
Rich in its culture,
Spirituality,
Traditions and its deep connection to mother nature.
I'd like to share some of that magical Bali energy with you,
Specifically tuning in to the soft nurturing energy of the frangipani flower.
A flower that is symbolic of Bali and reflects the gentle nature of the Balinese people.
So as I now begin to set the scene for you,
Lay back,
Settle yourself in and make yourself warm and completely comfortable.
We're in the small peaceful village of Nyakuning which is just outside of Ubud and our view is of lush green rice fields,
Palm trees laden with coconuts,
Frangipani trees blooming with fragrant flowers,
Some pink and some white,
And the majestic pink lotus flowers rising from the muddy water below.
It's late afternoon,
Almost dusk and it's that magical time of day.
The golden sun is saying its final farewells as it sinks down to become one with the horizon.
Rain from a recent thunderstorm has cleansed and freshened the air.
And a whisper of breeze carries the woody aroma of incense mingled with the sweet fragrance of frangipani flowers.
There's an orchestra of sounds,
A call of frogs announcing that evening is almost upon us,
Palm leaves rustling gently in the breeze,
And there's the ever-present soothing sound of cascading water from a nearby stream.
There's a sense of luxuriating back into this warm peaceful tropical environment as you lay here and start to relax.
Make any final adjustments to your position.
Once you've found your perfect place,
Nestle down into it with a sense of surrender.
And taking a deep breath in now in through the nose,
And release with a sigh.
And another deep breath in,
Sigh it all out.
One more deep breath in,
Continue with a few conscious breaths here,
Just breathing easy and letting go.
There's a sense of relief as you release your breath,
And begin to slow down and unwind.
With nothing to do and nowhere to be,
This time is all yours.
Leave the breath and become aware of the back of your body now,
Feeling into where it contacts the surface beneath you,
Your heels,
Backs of your legs,
Your back,
Neck,
And the back of your head.
Knowing that your body is beautifully held and fully supported here,
Allow yourself to sink down even further into that support.
Guide your awareness to the front of your body,
To your forehead.
Imagine your forehead becoming soft and smooth,
Allowing any tension here to just dissolve and melt away.
Invite all of the muscles of your face to relax,
Soften your eyes,
Cheeks,
Mouth and lips,
Allow your tongue to relax,
And release your jaw by parting your teeth slightly.
Now imagine your whole jaw soft and at ease,
Your whole jaw from your left ear all the way around to your right ear,
Relaxed and free.
Your whole face now,
Soft and loose,
Allow your shoulders to gently drop down away from your ears.
These beautiful shoulders of ours that sometimes feel like they carry the weight of the world,
Just let them go,
Sinking down,
Softening and releasing.
Arms and hands become loose and heavy,
Chest is open and expansive,
Belly is soft and relaxed,
Hips release down,
Legs are heavy and rested,
And your feet relax as they gently fall out to the sides.
Your whole body becomes heavier and heavier,
Sinking down and letting go.
In this still,
Quiet space there's an awareness of the breath,
Your natural breath as it flows in and out of your nostrils,
Gently following the flow and the path of the inhale and the exhale at your nostrils,
Witnessing this nourishing,
Life-giving breath,
This miracle that is the breath ebbs and flows in its own perfect rhythm.
And your awareness is right here for each and every breath,
Allowing the awareness of the breath to float away.
We will now rotate our attention on different parts of the body,
And again there's nothing you need to do here,
Just allow your body to rest while you listen and follow along with my guidance.
There's an intention to remain awake,
But if sleep does come,
Treat yourself with kindness,
There's no right or wrong here,
It's all perfect.
Starting on the right side of the body with the right hand thumb,
Picture your thumb in your mind and feel the thumb,
Moving to the index finger of the right hand,
Middle finger,
Ring finger and little finger,
The palm of your right hand,
Top of the hand,
Right wrist,
Lower arm,
Elbow,
Upper arm,
Armpit,
Shoulder,
The whole right arm,
Whole right arm is relaxed,
Right side of your chest,
Waist,
Hip,
Thigh,
Knee,
Calf muscle,
Ankle,
Heel,
Sole of your right foot,
Top of the foot,
Right big toe,
Second toe,
Third,
Fourth and fifth toe,
Feel the whole right side of your body,
Whole right side of your body is relaxed.
Move your awareness to your left side,
The left hand thumb,
Place all of your attention on the left hand thumb,
Index finger of the left hand,
Middle finger,
Ring finger and little finger,
The palm of your left hand,
Top of the hand,
Left wrist,
Lower arm,
Elbow,
Upper arm,
Whole left arm is relaxed,
Left side of your chest,
Waist,
Hip,
Thigh,
Knee,
Calf muscle,
Ankle,
Heel,
Sole of your left foot,
Top of the foot,
Left big toe,
Second toe,
Third,
Fourth and fifth,
Feel the whole left side of your body,
Whole left side of your body is relaxed.
Move your awareness to the back of your heels,
Back of the legs,
Glute muscles,
Lower back,
Middle back,
Upper back,
Back of your neck and the back,
Round to your forehead,
Left,
Right eye,
Left eye,
Right eyebrow,
Left eyebrow,
The space between the eyebrows,
Right temple,
Left temple,
Right cheek,
Left cheek,
Right ear,
Left ear,
Your whole jaw,
Chin,
Lower lip,
Up,
The whole of your nose,
The whole of your face,
Relaxed,
Soft and free of tension.
Moving down to your neck,
Chest,
Heart centre,
Feel into the heart centre,
Shoulders,
Knees,
Shins,
Tops of the feet,
Both legs,
Both arms,
Your whole torso and your head,
The whole front of your body,
Whole back of your body,
Whole body now,
Whole body,
Repeat mentally,
My whole body is relaxed,
My whole body is relaxed.
Bring to mind an image of your entire precious body,
Lying here,
Deeply rested and relaxed.
And imagine that you are in warm tropical bath,
It's early evening,
The busyness of the day is over,
You are outside in nature,
Laying back on the most comfortable daybed,
You are still,
And the warm evening breeze gently brushes your skin,
And there's a soft awareness of the evening sounds in the background,
The frogs,
The palms rustling in the breeze,
Flowing water,
And a sense that everything is peaceful and in its natural rhythm.
Now become aware of the palm of each hand,
And imagine that a pink frangipani flower has been gently placed in each palm,
The silkiness of the petals caresses your skin,
And you feel the soft,
Nurturing energy of these flowers,
And this sweet,
Rich fragrance surrounds you.
And if the frangipani flower is not a flower that you are familiar with,
Or don't feel connected with,
Just imagine your favourite flower,
Resting gently in each hand.
And you begin to connect with these flowers,
Welcoming in their softness and gentle energy,
And you now find that you are able to breathe in through the flower in each hand,
The in-breath flowing through the flower,
Into your hands,
Up through your arms,
And the breath settles at your heart centre.
As you exhale,
Your breath flows out and trickles through into your entire body,
Breathing in,
Receiving the energy of the flowers,
Gentle,
Soft,
Sweet,
Into your hands,
Up through the arms,
Resting at your heart,
Exhaling from your heart,
Feeling this soft,
Magical energy radiating through your whole body,
Breathing in your own natural rhythm,
And then sending the breath and the nurturing energy,
Use the flowers and your breath as an anchor to keep you focused,
And your breath,
Gentle,
Magical,
Loving energy through your hands,
Gifting this energy to your whole beautiful body,
Filtering right through to each and every cell,
Tuning into any body sensations now,
Maybe there's some tingling,
Warmth,
Softness,
Or you may be even experiencing some tightness or resistance,
So welcoming in all sensations,
Honouring and accepting whatever you are feeling without judgement,
There's no right or wrong here,
There's only the frangipani flowers resting in your hands,
Gently release them back to their home in Bali,
Giving thanks for their gifts of softness,
Richness,
Nurturing and healing,
Start to deepen your breath slightly now,
And transition back to the external world,
Let's take a few deep breaths together now,
Breathing in,
And releasing,
And again,
Deep breath in,
Being aware of the contact between your body and the surface on which you rest,
Sensing your body as a whole now,
And the fabric and texture of anything,
Expanding your awareness out to your environment now,
Forming an image in your mind of the space that surrounds you,
Sending your hearing out now to all of the senses,
Or staying in this rested state if you wish,
Whatever feels right for you today,
If you choose to wake your body now,
Just begin with small subtle gentle movements,
Wiggling your fingers and toes,
Moving your head and neck from side to side,
Stretching,
Yawning and slowly waking your body,
Take a moment to acknowledge this feeling of experiencing deep relaxation and nourishing rest,
Thank you so much for breathing in the magic of Bali with me today,
This practice of yoga nidra is now complete,
Namaste.
