Yoga Nidra - What's All the Fuss?
There are so many effective healing modalities out there. So why am I always talking about Yoga Nidra? Yes, practicing the technique of progressive relaxation used in Yoga Nidra reduces stress. Yes, there are wonderful health benefits with regular practice that come from a relaxed nervous system and stronger immunity. But Yoga Nidra is not the technique and not the side benefits. Yoga Nidra is a PROFOUND state of consciousness which happens to have lots of side benefits. So why am I always talking about accessing this Yoga Nidra state?
1. It's blissful. Yoga Nidra can feel like taking an energetic bath, like a lot of toxic, frazzled disturbances are being swept away.
2. It's something you can do for yourself. While it helps to do this in a group so you can be inspired to practice on your own, it's empowering to know that this is a tool that comes entirely from within yourself. You don't need anyone but your willingness to be still, awake, and aware.
3. Yoga Nidra can be accessed by novices. If you've struggled with meditation in the past, you may find that you're actually successful with Yoga Nidra. I've meditated regularly for more than 20 years, but I also know many people who simply struggle with meditation. I find that far more people can have an immediately powerful response to Yoga Nidra. I've seen so many people who stun themselves when they realize that they have just laid still for close to an hour with very little movement and felt profound peace. The "I can do this" look that Yoga Nidra produces is so deeply heartening. Faces light up when the body and mind share a glimpse of a new life ahead.
4. AND MOST IMPORTANT - Yoga Nidra unlocks the door to manifest the life you want . Yoga Nidra gives you the tools to become a conscious creator in your life, activating your potential to create your experience of health and of life. There is more involved with the body than what we see physically. In this deep state of Yoga Nidra, you begin to access levels of subtle energy. As tension is removed from each part of the body, we make way for a deep connection with the subtle realm. In this realm of subtle energy, a template for our physical body and life exist. Normally, we are unconsciously controlled by this energetic template. Our emotional reactions, our sense of limits and possibilities is defined by what's happening in that energy body. But what would happen if we can actually start to consciously shif what's lurking in that energy body? That's where Yoga Nidra comes in.
In a section from Lila Amrit, one passage describing the Yoga Nidra state reads:
"He gains knows knowledge of the Tattvas.., Because his consciousness has returned to its heavenly home."
The "Tattvas" are referring to the primoridal elements from which we create. So when you access the Yoga Nidra state of consciousness, you are accessing your ability to mold your energetic template that defines your life.
That's why one of the most important moments in the practice of Yoga Nidra comes at the end during the practice of the healing sankalpa (intention with all your heart). It is a brief moment, but it is the moment in the practice, when you are visualizing yourself in your most sincere, ideal state. You are creating a new blueprint for your subconscious. You are remaking your reality.
Get started with your Yoga Nidra practice. Here's what you can do to get started.
- If you're in Los Angeles, join me at my office on the first and third Tuesdays of every month at 7:30pm. Check out this link for more information - https://www.rebuildrecovery.com/yoganidra.
- If you're not in Los Angeles, check out an audio from Dr. Marc Halpern, my teacher in Yoga Nidra. You can download that from Amazon.
- If you're interested in becoming a Yoga Nidra teacher, I'm offering a Yoga Nidra teacher training on the second week of July in Los Angeles. Certification will be provided through the California College of Ayurveda.
