It is time for Yoga Nidra,
Which we will practice in Shavasana,
Corpse pose.
Laying down,
Allow your legs to relax,
Slightly apart,
Letting your feet splay outward.
Arms at a slight angle out from the body,
Palms facing up.
Knees may be lightly supported if you have any back discomfort.
Eyes closed,
Feel free to use an eye pillow or covering.
Once you have found a comfortable position,
Proceed with a quick body scan to locate any places that might still be tense or gripping.
As you take a deep inhale,
Squeeze the muscles in those tense places.
As you exhale through the mouth,
Allow those areas to relax with a sigh.
Once again,
Inhaling and squeezing,
The face,
Shoulders,
Hips,
Feet.
As you exhale,
Allow your body to relax even further with a sigh or other noise.
Inhaling and squeezing.
As you exhale,
Let the tension drain from your body.
Once you have settled into a comfortable place,
Try not to move until the practice is complete,
As this will provide your body with the experience it most needs right now.
Inhaling through your nose and down your throat into your belly.
Become aware of the sounds around you.
Practice on one sound at a time.
Let it fill your ears without labeling it.
Gradually bring your attention closer,
Beginning with distant sounds outside the space to those just outside the room,
And then to the sounds inside the room.
Throughout the practice,
Keep listening to my voice and try to keep yourself awake and relaxed.
But know that even if you fall asleep,
The message of Yoga Nidra shall be carried into your mind and body.
Notice any scents or smells that may be present without labeling them.
Bringing awareness to the physical space you are in,
The room or perhaps outside.
Bring the walls where the ceiling is and any objects that may be nearby.
Trees and plants,
The ground or the floor,
Any clothes that you may be wearing,
Your hairs,
Blankets or other coverings.
Now bring an acute awareness to where your body contacts the floor.
Feeling gravity.
Heels,
Calves,
Buttocks,
Shoulders and head.
A heavy body.
Relaxing further.
Become aware of your natural breathing,
Entering through the nostrils,
Into your throat and down into your lungs.
Begin to deepen your inhales.
Without forcing it,
Allow your belly to fill first,
Then your rib cage and chest,
And all the way up into your throat.
Breathing through your nose,
Observing the air leaving your belly first,
Then your chest,
And finally out through your mouth.
In this three-part breath,
Notice any sensations that are available to you.
Notice cool air as it enters your nostrils.
Warm air as it exits.
In one final deep belly breath in,
Hold the air inside for a long moment and exhale with a sigh.
Feeling the force of gravity further deepen your relaxation.
Letting go of any last tension that may still be present.
In your face,
Shoulders,
Neck,
Back,
Hips,
Legs,
Feet.
It is now time to come up with your resolve or sankalpa for this session.
The sankalpa is a short positive statement that arises naturally from the heart and mind spoken in the present tense as though it is already reality.
Such as,
I am at peace,
Or I have all the strength I need.
Your sankalpa is a seed planted in the soil of your being that supports transformation and healing.
Repeat your sankalpa to yourself three times.
We will now begin a systematic journey through the body.
Allow your awareness to drift from one body part to the next as it is named.
Without moving your body,
Use your mind to bring awareness to each place.
First we will use exteroception to notice sensation on the outside of the body.
Then we will journey inward using interoception on the subtle auric body to bring all parts into alignment.
We will begin at the top of the head.
The crown of your head.
Front of your scalp.
Back of scalp.
Right side of head.
Right ear.
Left side of head.
Left ear.
Forehead.
Right eyebrow.
Left eyebrow.
Between the eyes.
Right eye.
Left eye.
Right cheek.
Left cheek.
Bridge of your nose.
The base of your nose.
Nostrils.
Upper lip.
Lower lip.
Tongue.
Jaw.
Upper neck.
Throat.
Right collarbone.
Right shoulder.
Right armpit.
Right upper arm.
Right elbow.
Right forearm.
Right wrist.
Right top of hand.
Right thumb.
Index finger.
Middle finger.
Ring finger.
Pinky finger.
The tips of your fingers.
The palm of your right hand.
Your whole hand.
Your whole right arm.
The left collarbone.
The left shoulder.
Left armpit.
Left upper arm.
Left elbow.
Left forearm.
Left wrist.
Left top of hand.
Left thumb.
Index finger.
Middle finger.
Ring finger.
Pinky finger.
The tips of your fingers.
The palm of your left hand.
Your whole left hand.
Your whole left arm.
The sternum.
The right pectoral.
And the left pectoral.
Right rib cage.
Right side body.
Right love handles.
Solar plexus.
Left rib cage.
Left side body.
Left love handles.
Upper belly.
Lower belly.
Right hip.
Right upper thigh.
Right leg above the knee.
Right knee.
Right chin.
Right ankle.
Right top of foot.
Right big toe.
Second toe.
Third toe.
Fourth toe.
Fifth toe.
The sole of your right foot.
The tips of your toes.
Your whole right foot.
Right calf.
Right hamstring.
Right buttocks.
The entire right leg.
The genitals.
The left hip.
Left upper thigh.
Left leg just above the knee.
Left knee.
Left shin.
Left top of foot.
Left big toe.
Second toe.
Third toe.
Fourth toe.
Pinky toe.
The sole of your left foot.
The tips of your toes.
Your entire left foot.
Left calf.
Left hamstring.
Left buttocks.
Entire left leg.
The anus.
The pelvic bowl.
The lowest vertebrae of your spine.
The lower right back.
The middle right back.
The upper right back.
The middle section of spine.
The right shoulder blade.
Left lower back.
Middle left back.
Upper left back.
The left shoulder blade.
The upper spine.
The back of your neck.
The entire spinal column.
Your whole head.
Your whole right arm and fingertips.
Your whole left arm and fingertips.
Both arms.
Your torso.
Your hips.
Genitals.
Your whole right leg.
The tips of your toes.
The whole left leg.
And the tips of your toes.
Both legs.
Your back.
Your whole upper body.
Your whole lower body.
Your entire physical body.
We will now align our subtle bodies with our physical bodies.
Our energetic fields can fall out of alignment and so we will bring awareness to each of the seven centers.
Visualize a spiraling white light that gently guides each chakra to a centered position in and around the body.
Align at the base of the spine.
The root chakra.
Muladhara.
Your foundation.
The earth element.
A swirling white light that nourishes your roots.
Align.
And clearing any unnecessary energy that is stuck there.
This energy flows down your legs and returns into the earth as compost.
The root chakra is aligned and centered.
Moving up into your second chakra,
Just below the belly button.
Svadhisana.
Our emotional life and our sexuality.
Where one becomes two.
Yin and Yang.
The water element that creates movement.
A swirling white light that gently washes away any unnecessary energy.
Returning it down through your legs and back into the natural water cycle.
The second chakra is aligned and centered.
Svadhisana light moves up into the third chakra,
Behind the solar plexus.
Manipura.
Our personal power.
Our drive and self-esteem.
An inner fire.
A swirling white light burns away any unneeded or stuck energy.
Turning it into ashes where it returns as nutrients back into the soil.
The third chakra is aligned and centered.
The fourth chakra,
Behind the sternum.
Anahata.
Our heart center,
Where we give and receive love.
Represented by the air element.
A white light penetrates and blows through,
Clearing out any stuck energy and is gone with the wind.
Leave in your heart center,
Aligned and centered.
Feel the column of light from your root up to your heart.
And up into the fifth chakra,
In the throat.
Visuddha.
Our center for communication and self-expression.
A white light that vibrates here,
Breaking away any bits of stuck energy that are no longer needed.
Permeating this unneeded energy out into the ether,
Where it may find its own harmony.
The throat chakra is aligned and centered.
The sixth chakra.
Ajna.
Your third eye,
Above and between the eyebrows.
Where our intuitions rest.
Our perceptions of the world and ourselves.
Psychic energies.
Where we visualize a swirling white light enter.
Becoming brighter and brighter.
Transforming all the stuck pieces that have built up there.
Returning them to the earth and ether as compost.
Your third eye is aligned and centered.
And up into the crown chakra,
Sahasrara.
At the top of the head,
Where the thousand-petaled lotus unfolds.
A place of understanding.
Realization.
Where manifestation begins.
A swirling white light fills our thoughts.
Illuminating pathways inside the mind that require transformation.
And spreading compassion to those pathways that have kept us safe,
But no longer serve us.
Releasing any stuck or unnecessary energy being stored here.
Where it may be returned to the earth as compost.
The crown chakra is aligned and centered.
Once your chakras aligned.
Notice the uninhibited channel.
Where energy may flow freely.
Using the root and the crown with ease and purpose.
From the root to the crown.
To the root to the crown.
From this place of openness and ease.
Bring back your sankalpa and repeat three times.
Allowing this resolve to find a place in each of the seven centers of your body.
And encircling you.
Being a part of your natural flow of energy.
And slowly coming back to your breath.
As it enters and exits your nostrils.
Slowly notice.
Maintain this awareness of your breath.
As you also incorporate the awareness of your physical body.
Relaxed and lying on the floor.
Eyes still closed.
Clothing where it touches your skin.
Your outermost edges.
The tips of your toes and your fingers.
Your heels and your head.
And all the points of contact between your body and the floor.
And slowly as you are ready.
Bringing movement back into your body.
Perhaps wiggling your fingertips and toes.
Raising your shoulders.
Relaxing them.
Raising arms and legs.
Eventually rolling to one side with a sigh.
Stay here for a moment.
Mindfully push yourself up to a comfortable seated position.
With hands at heart center.
And head slightly bowed.
Allow a smile across your face.
And through your heart.
The practice of Yoga Nidra is now complete.
And may open your eyes.
And all the points of contact between your body and the floor.
And all the points of contact between your body and the floor.
And all the points of contact between your body and the floor.
And all the points of contact between your body and the floor.
You you
