Heavenly Sleep

Prepare for the heavenly sleep practice.

This guided relaxation calms the mind and relaxes the body in preparation for sleep.

It can be done when you go to bed or to get back to sleep if you have woken during the night.

Lie on your back in a comfortable position and close your eyes.

Take a moment to adjust your position,

Your coverings and pillows so that you will be comfortable and warm.

Separate your feet about hip width apart and rest the arms down beside your body.

Check that your coverings are not restrictive and feel that the body is completely supported by the surface beneath you.

Take a longer breath in and out and as you do this let go of any cares and worries.

Take another breath in and out and feel that the tensions of the day are melting away.

Do this breath one more time and allow your whole body to surrender and let go.

Now scan through your body to see if there are any areas of tension.

Allow your face to become expressionless,

Softened around the eyes,

The cheeks,

The jaw,

And let the lips lightly press together and have the teeth slightly separated.

Let the muscles in the neck relax so the weight of the head is supported by the pillow.

Allow your fingers to curl naturally and relax all the big muscles down through your back and into your buttocks.

Become aware of the different sensations in the body.

Start by feeling into the parts of the body that come in contact with the surface beneath you.

Take your awareness along the back of the body and feel the different areas of contact of the body and the surface beneath you.

And now feel the sensations or the coverings on the body and notice any areas of exposed skin.

Turn your attention to the sounds around you.

Take the awareness out into the distance and become aware of all the different sounds that are in your environment.

As you find a sound,

Listen to it,

Then drop it and move to another sound.

Try not to analyze or judge the sounds,

Just listen.

Notice the sounds just outside the room.

And the sounds closer to you inside the room.

Tune into the sound of the natural breath.

Listening to the sound of the breath as it comes in and out of the body.

Let go of the sounds.

Prepare to take your awareness around the body.

As each part of the body is named,

Feel into it and have an experience of that part of the body.

And in this way,

Allow your awareness to be guided around the body,

Lightly moving and part to part.

Begin by feeling into the right thumb.

Move to the first finger on the right hand,

Middle finger,

Ring finger,

Little finger,

Palm,

Wrist,

Forearm,

Elbow,

Upper arm,

Right shoulder,

Armpit,

Side of the waist,

Hip,

Thigh,

Knee,

Calf,

Ankle,

Right heel,

Sole of the foot.

Feel into the right big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth,

Fifth toe.

Now move the awareness to the left side.

Feel into the left thumb,

First finger,

Middle finger,

Ring finger,

Little finger,

Palm,

Wrist,

Forearm,

Elbow,

Upper arm,

Left shoulder,

Armpit,

Side of the waist,

Hip,

Thigh,

Knee,

Calf,

Ankle,

Heel,

Sole of the left foot.

Feel into the left big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth,

Fifth toe.

Bring the awareness to the back of the body,

The buttocks,

Right side of the buttocks,

Left side of the buttocks,

The tailbone,

Lower back,

Middle back,

Upper back,

Back of the neck,

Back of the head,

Crown of the head.

Coming onto the front side,

Have an awareness of the forehead,

Right temple,

Left temple,

Right eyebrow,

Left eyebrow,

Eyebrow center,

Right eye,

Left eye,

Right ear,

Left ear,

Right cheek,

Left cheek,

Right nostril,

Left nostril,

Upper lip,

Lower lip,

The chin,

Jaw,

Throat,

Right collarbone,

Left collarbone,

Right side of the chest,

Left side of the chest,

The center of the chest,

The sternum,

Upper abdomen,

Navel center,

Lower abdomen,

And the pelvis.

Feel into the right arm,

The right leg,

Left arm,

Left leg,

The buttocks,

Back,

Abdomen,

Chest,

Neck,

And head.

Feel into the whole parts,

Both arms together,

Both arms,

Both legs,

Feel both legs together,

The trunk of the body,

The neck,

And the head.

We're now develop an awareness of the whole body.

Feel into the whole body,

Whole body,

More relaxed,

More settled.

Let's go through the body again,

And this time as you move around the body,

Deepen your awareness of each part of the body.

Start with the right thumb,

First finger,

Middle finger,

Ring finger,

Middle finger,

The palm,

Wrist,

Forearm,

Elbow,

Upper arm,

Right shoulder,

Arm pit,

Right side of the waist,

Hip,

Thigh,

Knee,

Calf,

Ankle,

Heel,

The sole of the right foot.

Feel into the right big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe,

And the fifth toe.

Move to the left side,

Feel into the left thumb,

First finger,

Middle finger,

Ring finger,

Little finger,

Palm of the left hand,

Wrist,

Forearm,

Elbow,

Upper arm,

Left shoulder,

Armpit,

Left side of the waist,

Hip,

Thigh,

Knee,

Calf,

Ankle,

Heel,

Sole of the left foot,

And feel into the left big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe,

Fifth toe.

The area of the buttocks,

Right side of the buttocks,

Left side of the buttocks,

The tailbone,

Lower back,

Middle back,

Upper back,

Back of the neck,

Back of the head,

And the crown of the head.

Come onto the front side,

Feel into the forehead,

Right temple,

Left temple,

Right eyebrow,

Left eyebrow,

The eyebrow center,

Right eye,

Left eye,

Right ear,

Left ear,

Right cheek,

Left cheek,

Right nostril,

Left nostril,

The upper lip,

Lower lip,

Chin,

Jaw,

Throat,

Right collarbone,

Left collarbone,

Right side of the chest,

Left side of the chest,

The center of the chest,

Upper abdomen,

Navel center,

Lower abdomen,

And the pelvis.

And now become aware of the main parts of the body,

Right arm,

Right leg,

Left arm,

Left leg,

Feel the area of the buttocks,

Back,

Abdomen,

Chest,

Neck,

And head.

Whole parts of the body,

Both arms,

Feel into both arms,

Feel into both legs,

Both legs together,

The trunk of the body,

The trunk of the body,

The neck and the head,

The neck and the head.

Become aware of the whole body,

Feel into the whole body,

Soft,

Comfortable,

And free of tension.

In one more rotation around the body,

Feel right thumb,

First finger,

Middle finger,

Ring finger,

Little finger,

Palm,

Wrist,

Forearm,

Elbow,

Upper arm,

Right shoulder,

Armpit,

Right side of the waist,

Hip,

Thigh,

Knee,

Calf,

Ankle,

Sole of the right foot,

And become aware of the right big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe,

Fifth toe.

Move to the left side,

Feel into left thumb,

First finger,

Middle finger,

Ring finger,

Little finger,

Palm,

Wrist,

Forearm,

Elbow,

Upper arm,

Left shoulder,

Armpit,

Left side of the waist,

Hip,

Thigh,

Knee,

Calf,

Ankle,

The sole of the left foot,

Feel into the left big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe,

And the fifth toe.

Come to the back of the body,

Be aware of the area of the buttocks,

Lower back,

Middle back,

Upper back,

Back of the neck,

Back of the head,

Come to the top,

Crown of the head,

Moving to the front side,

Feel into the forehead,

Right temple,

Left temple,

Right eyebrow,

Left eyebrow,

Eyebrow center,

Right eye,

Left eye,

Right ear,

Left ear,

Right cheek,

Left cheek,

Right nostril,

Left nostril,

Upper lip,

Lower lip,

Chin,

Jaw,

Throat,

Right collarbone,

Left collarbone,

Right side of the chest,

Left side of the chest,

The center of the chest,

Upper abdomen,

Navel center,

Lower abdomen,

And the pelvis.

Feel into the whole right arm,

The whole right leg,

The whole left arm,

The whole left leg,

And the area of the buttocks,

Back,

Abdomen,

Chest,

Neck,

And head.

Become aware of the main parts of the body,

Both arms,

Feel into both arms together,

Both legs together,

Feel into both legs together,

The trunk of the body,

The trunk of the body,

The neck,

And the head,

The neck and the head.

Become aware of the whole body,

Feel into the whole body,

The whole body,

The whole body,

The whole body,

The whole body,

The whole body.