Yoga Nidra Meditation

Deirdre shared this meditation at Bective in March 2019

Welcome to Bective Monday Night Meditation.

Tonight I am going to do a meditation based on the practice of Yoga Nidra. This is also called Yogic sleep and is to induce a state of consciousness between waking and sleeping and to bring deep relaxation to the body and mind.

Preparation

Sit down and make yourself comfortable. Adjust the head, neck and shoulders so that they are in line with your spine. Place your hands so that the palms face upwards. Make any necessary adjustments so that the body can as remain as still as possible throughout the practice however if any discomfort prevents you from following the practice there is no harm in adjusting the body.

During Yoga Nidra, we focus on the acts of hearing and feeling. Try to give your complete attention.

Now close your eyes. Allowing them to soften and sink towards the back of the head. Bring your awareness to the breath in the body.

Take a big inhale and in the exhale let your body feel completely heavy. And again, big inhale and exhale. Completely letting go. Let your body feel heavy, sinking deeper and deeper. Just letting go.

Now become aware of the sounds outside the room, one by one.
And now bring your awareness to the sounds inside the room, one by one.

And now bring your awareness to the entire physical body sitting in complete stillness, from the top of the head to the tips of the toes. Feel aware of the body from the top of the head to the tips of the toes. Bring your awareness to the whole body.

Feel the body become heavier and heavier. The legs feel heavy, the arms feel heavy, the head feels heavy. The whole body melts.

Letting go. Say to yourself silently within.

"I am awake and alert. I am practicing yoga nidra."

Sankulpa

At this moment you should make your resolve or Sankulpa.. Pause..… Pause…

Create a short, clear and positive intention… Pause…

State your resolve three times to yourself with awareness, feeling and emphasis…

Body

And now we will begin to rotate the consciousness to different parts of the body. We will move from one part to another and all you have to do is listen and bring your awareness to each part of the body. So now we begin

Become aware of the right hand, pause...

(right side) Right hand thumb, second finger, third finger, fourth finger, fifth finger, palm of the hand, become aware of your palm, back of the hand, the wrist, the right lower arm, the right elbow, the right upper arm, the right shoulder, the right armpit, the right waist, the right hip, the right thigh, the kneecap, the calf muscle, the right ankle, the heel, the sole of the right foot, the top of the foot, the big toe, second toe, third toe, fourth toe, fifth toe…

(left side) Become aware of the left hand thumb, second finger, third finger, fourth finger, fifth finger, palm of the hand, back of the hand, the wrist, the lower arm, the elbow, the upper arm, the shoulder, the armpit, the left waist, the left hip, the left thigh, the kneecap, the calf muscle, the ankle, the heel, the sole of the left foot, the top of the foot, the big toe, second toe, third toe, fourth toe, fifth toe…

(back) Now to the back. Become aware of the right shoulder-blade, the left shoulder blade… the right buttock, the left buttock… the spine… the whole back together…

(front) Now go to the top of the head. The top of the head, the forehead, both sides of the head, the right eyebrow, the left eyebrow, the space between the eyebrows, the right eyelid, the left eyelid, the right eye, the left eye, the right ear, the left ear, the right cheek, the left cheek, the nose, the tip of the nose, the upper lip, the lower lip, the chin, the throat, the right chest, the left chest, the middle of the chest, the navel, the abdomen…

(major parts) The whole of the right leg… the whole of the left leg… both legs together, pause The whole of the right arm… the whole of the left arm… both arms together, pause The whole of the back, buttocks, spine, shoulder-blades… the whole of the front, abdomen, chest… the whole of the back and front… together… the whole of the head… the whole body together… the whole body together… the whole body together.

Stay awake, remain alert… total awareness… no sleeping… no movement, pause

The whole body on the floor, become aware of your body lying on the floor, pause

Your body is lying on the floor, see your body lying perfectly still on the floor… in this room, pause...

Visualize this image in your mind.... Long pause.

Breath Awareness

Become aware of your breath, pause

Feel the flow of your breath in and out of your lungs, pause

Do not try to change the rhythm, the breathing is natural, automatic… you are not doing it, there is no effort, pause maintain awareness of your breath, continue, continue… complete awareness of breath, long pause

Now concentrate your awareness on the movement of your breath… concentrate on the movement of your breath…. Pause.

Feel the rise and fall of each breath. With each and every breath feel your body expand and contract… concentrate on this movement in synchronization with your breath… pause

Go on practicing, but be sure that you are aware, long pause

Now start counting your breaths backwards from 30 to 1 like this:

30 Breath in, 30 Breath Out, 29 Breath in, 29 Breath out, 28 Breath In, 28 Breath Out, 27 Breath In, 27 Breath Out, 26 Breath In, 26 Breath Out, 25 Breath In, 25 Breath Out and so on.

Say the words and numbers mentally to yourself as you count your breath. If you lose track, go back to 30 and start again, long pause

With total awareness that you are counting, go on counting from 30 to 1. long pause

Keep on with the practice… and no sleeping.., long pause

Image Visualization

Stop your counting and leave your breathing… we now come to visualization, pause..

A number of different things will be named now and you should try to develop a vision of them on all levels… feeling, awareness, emotion, imagination, as best you can…

Jump from image to image as soon as you hear it. pause

Burning candle… burning candle… burning candle
Endless desert… endless desert… endless desert…
Egyptian pyramid… Egyptian pyramid… Egyptian pyramid…
Torrential rain… torrential rain… torrential rain…
Snow capped mountains… snow capped mountains… snow capped mountains…
Greek temple at sunrise… Greek temple at sunrise… Greek temple at sunrise…
Coffin beside a grave… coffin beside a grave… coffin beside a grave…
Birds flying across a sunset… birds flying across a sunset… birds flying across a sunset…
Red clouds drifting… red clouds drifting… red clouds drifting…
A cross above a church… a cross above a church… a cross above a church…
Stars at night… stars at night… stars at night…
Full moon… full moon… full moon…
Smiling Buddha… smiling Buddha… smiling Buddha…
Wind from the sea… wind from the sea… wind from the sea…
Waves breaking on a deserted beach… waves breaking on a deserted beach… waves breaking on a deserted beach…
The restless sea… eternal restless sea… eternal restless sea… long pause

Resolve

Now is the time to repeat your resolve… repeat the same resolve that you made at the beginning of the practice, one and the same, do not change it… repeat the resolve three times with full awareness and feeling. pause

Finish

Before ending the session of yoga nidra slowly the awareness is externalized.... become aware of the external sounds, objects and persons, slowly moving and stretching the body.

Relax your body, become aware of your breathing… become aware of the natural breath, pause

Become awareness of the whole body, and awareness of breathing, pause
Your body is lying totally relaxed on the floor… you are breathing quietly and slowly, pause

Become aware of your body from the top of the head to the tips of the toes.

Become aware of your surrondings, and the position of your body…

Visualize the room around you, become aware of your surroundings, pause.

Sit quietly for some time and keep your eyes closed, pause

Start moving your body and stretching yourself. Please take your time, do not hurry, pause

When you are sure that you are wide awake; sit up slowly and open your eyes.

The practice of yoga nidra is now complete.

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You can download this meditation by clicking here... Yoga Nidra Meditation