Yoga Nidra, or conscious sleep--complete relaxation--has nothing to do with hypnosis or self-hypnosis. It is a technique in which we remain fully aware, and everyone can practice it, from children to seniors. It can easily be incorporated into everyday life, and it is familiar to all of us. Remember times when you lay down in the afternoon and, in just a few minutes, managed to relax deeply, so you felt like you had been sleeping for hours. This is the basis of the first stage of this technique: to be able to completely relax in a few minutes and eliminate muscle tension caused by stress. Stress is also the most common cause of the weakening of our immunity, and it is extremely important to us during the COVID-19 pandemic to keep our immune system strong.
Sometimes when we lie down in the bed we feel like our whole body is trembling, pulsing in the rhythm of the heart. This is a tension caused by stress. When we enter a deep state of relaxation, the tension disappears instantly. Yoga Nidra is a yogic way of sleeping in which we voluntarily (consciously) switch from a very active sympathetic state (fight-flight reaction) and enter into a parasympathetic state (rest and digestion reaction). Yoga Nidra provides deep relaxation of the whole body, calms the flow of thoughts, balances our emotions, and thus eliminates a number of psychosomatic diseases.
Technique:
Lie on your back (Anandasan posture) with legs slightly apart and arms slightly apart from the body, palms facing the ceiling so our chest is open and we are able to breathe more fully. You can cover yourself to keep the body warm.
Once or twice, inhale a little deeper and exhale slowly (through your nose), and feel how the tension leaves your body. Feel the weight of your body, and the contact of the body with the ground. Slowly, in your mind (without moving the body), feel your whole body from the toes to the top of the head and from the top of the head to the toes. This is a purely mental exercise, and there is no need for physical movements. As you go through your body, mentally relax part by part. Try to feel how every part of your body becomes relaxed and light.
When you have relaxed your whole body, focus your attention on your breathing. Just be aware of inhaling and exhaling; try to feel how your abdomen increases when you inhale, and decreases with exhalation. Do not change the rhythm of breathing. This awareness and relaxation of the body, awareness of the breath, and "abdominal breathing" (breathing with the diaphragm) calms the nervous system, balances the left and right hemispheres of the brain, calms emotions and leads to the elimination of stress and insomnia. Observe for a few minutes your breathing; the harmony of breathing and body; the expansion and contraction of the body. Feel how the tension leaves your body with each exhalation, and how fresh energy (Prana) fills your body with the inhalation. 
At the beginning and at the end of Yoga Nidra you can repeat a Shankalpa, your decision, desire, or goal. The Shankalpa should be positive, short, completely understandable, and stated in the present time. Once you have formulated a Shankalpa, repeat it three times mentally and you can be sure that it will come true. In this way, we can eliminate bad habits, accept good habits and improve our health.
After about 15 minutes, again slowly become aware of the whole body. Be aware of the position of your body and that you are not sleeping but practicing Yoga Nidra. Inhale and exhale a few times a little deeper. Slowly move your fingers and toes. Then, with the inhalation, place your hands above your head and stretch the whole body, and with the exhalation, relax and bring back the hands. Rub your palms and place your warm palms on your eyes, warm your face and slowly open your eyes. This completes the Yoga Nidra. Sit up slowly. 30 to 45 minutes of Yoga Nidra has as much value as many hours of sleeping.
This is just a small part of the Yoga Nidra technique from the system "Yoga in Daily Life" that can bring you great benefits.
We know that many solutions to scientific problems and great artistic inspirations have come from this state between sleep and awareness. The state between unconscious, subconscious and conscious is the state of the first part of the practice of Yoga Nidra.
Give yourself 15 minutes a day and you will instantly experience the benefits of Yoga Nidra. Better physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health; better memory; creativity; and better problem solving. With Yoga Nidra we will deal better with the problems that life brings to us, and we will strengthen the immunity that will protect us from COVID-19.
Practice Yoga Nidra with us until the next sequel, when we will talk about the impact of diet and spices on immunity.
Swami Vivek Puri Yoga in Daily Life
+385 91 505 2255
www.yoga-in-daily-life.hr
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