Yoga Nidra Meditation

with Kate Colby Nelson

Yoga Nidra, a Sanskrit term, meaning ‘yogic sleep’  is a guided meditation technique that provides profoundly deep relaxation, transformative healing, and the opportunity to work below the conscious mind. 

Yoga Nidra gently releases stress at its deepest level; digesting and metabolizing old experiences, freeing up limiting beliefs, and creating an opening for our Sankalpas, the seedlings of intentions and desires, to be received.

This guided meditation will take you through the ‘koshas’ of your being; the physical body, the breath, the subtle body, the causal body, and finally the bliss body.  We gently move through the various brain wave states of waking, meditative, dreaming, and deep sleep while becoming more and more relaxed yet still awake and aware.  

At first, it may be difficult to stay awake during your Yoga Nidra practice, but with regular practice, you will be able to reach these very deep states of relaxation while maintaining witnessing awareness; fully awake but profoundly relaxed.

In this deepest state of relaxation, healing can take place on the physical, emotional, and subtle levels.  The body/mind begins to reset, stimulating the parasympathetic nervous system that is associated with peace, freedom, and total well-being.  Yoga Nidra takes us out of the habit of fight or flight, out of our habitual stress response, and takes us into a remembering of supreme bliss.  

This beautiful practice will provide a method for enhancing your well-being in every aspect of your life.  The only requirement is that you can lie comfortably on the floor, using a mat or blanket and bolsters for the duration of the practice.