Yoga Nidra Meditation For Deep Relaxation And Calm Awareness

Lying down on your yoga mat,

A bed,

Somewhere comfortable on the floor,

Lying on your back,

Using a soft but small pillow or a towel underneath your head,

Taking some strain off your neck,

Letting the legs go long in Savasana,

Creating a bit of a V shape with the feet gently splayed out to the sides,

Arms on the side of your body,

Palms up,

Or if you like,

You keep the palms on the belly,

Whatever's more comfortable.

Just trying to sink into the most relaxing position on your back you can be in at the moment.

If you tend to have back problems,

I'm gonna offer an alternative position for your posture,

Which is to bring the feet flat and the knees up,

Knees lightly touching,

Feet just wider than hips,

As if you're creating a series of triangles.

This will take strain off your lower back and you'll realize it's a little more aligned this way.

So whatever's comfortable,

Connect with the breath at the belly.

Let your awareness unhook from the mind,

Drop into the body,

And be with the rising and falling of the belly.

As we work in this yoga nidra practice,

We start with what they call a sankalpa.

It's a resolution,

An intention,

Something we wanna cultivate within this practice.

You need to come up with it yourself.

Anything from,

I'd like to cultivate a sense of mindfulness or I'd like to drop into a relaxed state of being,

Reduce my stress.

I'd like to live more mindfully and kind and loving,

Compassionate.

But it's something big,

Something deep and meaningful.

So come up with your own sankalpa.

For me,

It's usually cultivating a state of calm,

Calm state of awareness.

So you say that to yourself a few times,

Your sankalpa.

And just like planting a seed in a garden,

Plant the seed,

You tend it,

And then you let it go,

Let it be.

So drop it now,

We'll return to it later.

Now we're gonna move into a rotation of awareness.

We're not trying to visualize.

We're not trying to intellectualize.

We're just being with felt sensations as you follow the instructions of my breath.

Follow the instructions as we move through the body.

So bring in your awareness to the third eye point,

The spot between the eyebrows.

Just feeling.

And bring your awareness to the throat,

Feeling the breath moving,

A bit of windpipe.

And bringing your attention to the right shoulder.

And bringing your attention to the left shoulder.

And feel your attention slowly run down the upper arm to the right elbow.

Down the lower arm to the right wrist.

To the right thumb.

Index finger,

The middle finger.

Third finger and pinky.

Feeling into the palm of the right hand.

Back to the right wrist.

Slowly run that awareness up the lower arm to the right elbow.

Upper arm to the right shoulder.

Or go across to the right collarbone.

To the left collarbone.

To the left shoulder.

Run the awareness down the upper left arm to the left elbow.

Down the upper arm to the left wrist.

Feeling into the left thumb.

To the left elbow.

Index finger,

Middle finger.

Third finger and pinky.

Feeling into the palm of the left hand.

The left wrist.

Slowly run that awareness back up the arm to the left elbow.

Upper arm.

To the left shoulder.

Bring your attention to the left part of the chest.

And the right chest.

Into the heart center.

Slowly let that awareness come down the torso to the solar plexus.

Right below the sternum,

The diaphragm engages.

Run your awareness down to the navel.

Slowly comes down further to the pelvic region.

Bring your attention to the right hip bone.

The upper right leg,

The thigh,

Hamstrings,

And psoas.

To the right knee.

The lower right leg.

The calf muscle and shin.

To the ankle.

The heel.

The bottom of the foot.

Top of the foot.

Arch of the foot,

The outside of the foot.

And all five toes of the right foot.

And coming up to the left hip bone.

Run your attention down the upper left leg.

Thigh and the back of the upper leg to the left knee.

Lower leg.

Calf muscle and shin.

Down to the ankle and heel.

The sole of the foot.

The arch of the foot.

And all five toes of the right hip bone.

The sole of the foot.

The arch of the foot.

Top of the foot.

And all five toes.

Now bring your awareness to the lower back.

The left part of the lower back,

The right part of the lower back.

Bring your attention to the mid back,

The left side and the right side.

Now the upper back.

The left side and the right side.

Feel the scapula,

The left shoulder blade,

The right shoulder blade.

Feeling into the neck.

The left shoulder blade.

Bring your awareness to the face.

The jaw and the mouth.

The right cheek and the left cheek.

The right ear and the left ear.

The forehead,

The right temple and left temple.

The spot between the eyebrows,

The third eye.

And then the eyes.

Feel the right eye and the left eye.

And soften the eyes.

Now bring your attention to the nose.

Bring full awareness to the breath.

Feel the slight cool sensation at the tip of the nose as you breathe in.

Feel the slight coolness as you breathe out.

Feel the slight coolness as you breathe out.

Just being with the breath at the tip of the nose.

Following the inhale as you breathe in.

The full breath out.

Just surfing the breath.

I'm gonna do this for a couple minutes.

All your awareness at the tip of the nose.

Just be with feeling.

Follow the inhale and exhale.

Not trying to control the breath,

Regulate it.

Just being with sensation.

Bring your awareness to the third eye.

As if you're breathing in directly into the spot between the eyebrows.

As if a little hole is opened up.

You're breathing in.

Feel the breath enter into the skull.

As you exhale,

As if the brain and skull just soften up and letting go.

Now bringing your attention to the top of the head.

The crown.

Let's spot two thirds of the way back.

Feels if there's a little opening like the blowhole of a well.

As you breathe in,

Breathing in the breath.

Straight through this crown.

Once again,

Into the body,

Into the skull.

And exhale,

The breath just gently drifts back up through this hole.

Opening through the crown.

We're keeping the same tension as we breathe it in through the crown.

We're gonna let this breath and the energy come down the spine,

The central channel just inside the spinal column.

So breathing in,

Feel it come down to the base of the neck,

That big bone.

The top of the back,

Below the neck.

Just feel the rising quality of the head and neck.

Feel it open.

Let the breath come further.

As if the breath just kind of opens up the spinal column,

The central channel.

Come down behind the heart center.

Breathe in every time through the crown.

Just opening up down to the center of the chest.

Right behind the center of the chest.

Creating this openness,

This clearing of the central channel.

Coming down further to the solar plexus.

Let the breath clear out the central channel.

Opening,

Relaxing.

Letting the breath run further down.

Breathe in through the crown.

Clearing out this channel in front of the spine,

Just below the navel.

Finally bringing it down to the root,

Perineum.

The root of the body,

Between the genitals and hands.

Feel the whole central channel open up.

Feel as if the body has dropped away and the only thing solid right now is this central channel.

Clearing out from the base pelvic floor through the crown of the head.

The rest of the body just falls away,

Dissolves with every exhale.

And now returning to your sankalpa,

That resolution we made at the start of the practice.

That resolution we made at the start of the practice.

Your resolution,

Your intention.

Abide and cultivate a state of calm,

Relaxation or awareness,

Kindness,

Compassion,

Whatever it was.

And tend to that feeling again.

Connect back to your sankalpa.

Once again,

Making the resolution.

That whatever your sankalpa is,

Cultivate it.

Integrate it into your life,

Not just when you're in your yoga nidra practices.

Connecting with a sense of gratitude.

Bring into mind three things in your day that you're grateful for.

Could be as simple as experiencing a couple nice moments in nature or seeing a loved one.

Something nice that you did or ate or saw.

Could be something as simple as just being grateful for being alive and overall happy and healthy.

And now bring in your attention to someone in your life.

Could be a family member,

A partner,

Friend,

Be even a neutral person,

Someone you know,

Who you care about,

But maybe is going through a bit of a hard time.

And bring them into your mind's eye,

Take a moment to reflect on them.

Take a moment to find this person.

Gonna cultivate a sense of kindness and compassion for them using what they,

It's translated as the four immeasurables.

So having this person in front of you,

Just right in front,

Two meters,

Five feet.

First,

Connect with a feeling of kindness.

Towards this person,

You might wanna say something like,

May you be safe and well.

You'd say those exact words or something that connects more,

Resonates more with you.

Just feeling a sense of kindness to them.

Next,

Compassion.

May you be free of suffering,

Any physical or psychological pain.

Next,

Cultivate and express a feeling of joy.

May you be happy,

Experience joy and laughter in your life.

Finally,

We balance it out with the feeling of equanimity.

No matter how high or low,

Good or bad,

Ups and downs.

Wishing on this person that they're able to connect with a deep sense of contentment,

Sense of deep happiness,

Not dependent on external circumstances.

Once again,

Keeping them in your mind's eye.

Kindness,

Compassion,

Joy and equanimity.

Connecting back with the breath.

Just surfing the breath now.

Being in the body on the inhale.

Just relax and release on every exhalation.

Being in the body as you breathe in,

Feeling the swelling,

This ocean wave-like quality.

So breathe in with the body,

And as you breathe out,

Let it go.

Let it be.

Every exhale,

Let yourself drop deeper and deeper the relaxation of the breath.

Let it be.

Every exhale,

Let yourself drop deeper and deeper the relaxation.

If any time,

Stay with this breath.

Find yourself getting more tired,

Ready for maybe a little sleep.

Roll onto your side.

This optimal sleeping position in fetal,

The knees up,

And let yourself drift off and follow the body.

Until then,

Just surf the breath.

Feel the inhale in the body.

Completely relax,

Release,

Let go and dissolve as you exhale.