Nowadays, people find it difficult to cope up with a hectic lifestyle. As they try to manage things, emotions might dominate them and lead to psychological problems. So, in order to stabilize the mind, they can try Yoga Nidra. In Sanskrit the words, ‘Yoga Nidra’ mean psychic sleep or sleeping with full awareness.
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What is Yoga Nidra?
Yoga Nidra is nothing but a state of consciousness between sleeping and walking. Under the supervision of a yoga expert, the person can increase the awareness of the inner world. As compared to meditation, the person withdraws himself from the five senses with four of them internalized.
The concept of Yoga Nidra can be recapitulated from the traditions of Buddhism and Hinduism. In fact, the form of meditation is associated with Lord Krishna in Mahabharata.
In the modern era, Satyananda Saraswati was the person who experienced Yoga Nidra. As the studies the scriptures thoroughly, he was able to develop a whole new system of relaxation. Later, the form of practice became popular with eight stages.
Stages of Yoga Nidra
Yoga Nidra is normally divided into the following stages:-
Preparation
Yoga Nidra is practiced when the person gets into the Shavasana pose. In this stage, the body as well as the mind is relaxed by controlling the breath and posture. Listening to surrounding sounds the person can attain a peace of mind.
Sankalpa
Once the body relaxes, the person is requested to make a resolution. While this stage is short and positive, the person needs to repeat Sankalpa at least three times mentally.
Rotation Of Consciousness
In this stage, the awareness is taken through different body parts in a systematic way. As the person follows the instructions, he needs to think swiftly without moving the body. The awareness is then shifted to the right side of the body, starting with the right hand thumb and till the toe of the right foot. Moving, the instructions are followed with the left half of the body.
Breath Awareness
At this instance, the individual has to be aware of how he exhales or inhales air. He has to pay attention to the nostrils, chest and abdomen. The practitioner can be conscious about what he is doing by inhaling and exhaling air.
Opposite Feelings & Sensations
At this stage, the person has to recall the emotional and physical sensations. The experience is totally different when the person senses pain and pleasure or love and hate.
Visualization
As the individual goes through the visualization stage, the focus drifts to the dark space appearing in front of closed eyes. The practitioner is then requested to imagine situations in the Chidakasha.
Sankalpa
Once again, the individual needs to go through Sankalpa. He needs to determine his goals and follow the stage for at least three times.
In the end, when the practice comes to an end, the person has to shift his mind to external sounds, people and objects. The instructor tells the person to move his body slowly and start stretching the body parts.
9 Benefits of Yoga Nidra
1) Anybody can practice Yoga Nidra even when they are unable to hold asanas for a longer time. Once the person wants to relax, he can lie down with his back resting on the mat. If he can’t lie down on the mat, then he can practice meditation in the seated position.
2) Yoga Nidra helps to introspect yourself through an inner voice. Every time you start off, you would go through a new experience. It’s completely fine if you fall asleep, but you would still benefit from the form of meditation as the unconscious mind does the role.
3) Yoga Nidra is easier to practice in day to day life. While you practice meditation in the seated position, you can clear a cluttered mind and focus in a much better way. The practice can either be for just five minutes or about an hour. The best way to accommodate the practice is to include it in the daily bedtime routine. If you don’t want anything to distract you, then you can listen to music, and go to sleep.
4) Practicing meditation can be the best way to alleviate stress. In fact, once you start off Yoga Nidra for sleep, you would be able to relax better than average meditation. As you control your breath and scan the entire body in your mind, you can boost mental strength and be able to calm down the nervous system.
5) If you are looking for something that would prolong the relaxation period, then Yoga Nidra is the best way. While the form of meditation offers you space to explore, you still have an opportunity to release the emotions held back for a long time. You get to learn where you might had gone wrong and experience feelings and emotions.
6) As Yoga Nidra serves as a pathway to release the stress, it also helps in reducing the effect of samskara. As the mental groove is suppressed, negative thoughts are driven away and the five layers / koshas can be aligned properly.
7) Once the individual starts practicing Yoga Nidra regularly, he can relieve the pressure from the coronary system. The delta waves of 1 to 4 Hertz lead to hike of positive thoughts, and habits.
8) Apart from keeping stress under control, Yoga Nidra reduces chronic pain and helps the individual to move out from trauma. The form of meditation is always effective for people who have diabetes, hypertension, disorders related to the digestive system, and asthma.
9) Once the person starts off with Yoga Nidra meditation, he can rest for a longer time span and get rid of sleep disorders like insomnia. Over a period of time, regular practice of meditation can also assure the individual with healthy sleeping patterns.
Hope you enjoyed reading everything pertaining to Yoga Nidra. Feel free to share the blog in case your friend wants to take off the load after a stressful day.
