Yoga Nidra, or yogic sleep, is a restorative yoga practice that brings calm, stillness and increases clarity. Whether staying home with young children, working full time or going to school while raising a family, our society is busier than ever and most people are losing sleep.
Incorporating Yoga Nidra into your practice has a rejuvenating effect. If you have trouble sleeping, the problem is often related to a constant inner monologue, reminding you of all your responsibilities and worries, making sleep elusive.
Yoga Nidra is an ancient practice that involves several levels of meditation. The instructor guides students in quieting the conscious mind, into a meditative state and gradually into a state of stillness, where insight and awareness are found.
The mind is resting in the deep sleep state, but the body is not fully asleep. You remain awake and aware, but experience a deeper level of relaxation and restoration than in the typical yoga class or through meditation alone. The practice allows the mind to rest, allowing you to enter a deeper state of conscious awareness.
The practice of Yoga Nidra has applications in the field of mental health. The practice is being used with soldiers returning from Iraq with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Yoga Nidra helps these men and women let go of the horrors they have witnessed and gain peace and mindfulness in the present moment.
The classes use techniques that involve scanning the body to locate and release all tension, as well as many other relaxation and meditation techniques. Students spend half, or more, of the class in a supported corpse pose, unlike the minute or two spent in relaxation at the end of a typical yoga class.
A growing number of yoga studios are embracing and incorporating Yoga Nidra classes into their schedules. Working with a teacher is the most effective way to begin the practice. However, there are DVDs and audio classes for people without access to a class near their home.