| THE PSYCHIC SLEEP : YOGA NIDRA |
| RB Agarwal |
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Professor (Retd.), Faculty of Commerce Mohanlal Sukhadia University, Udaipur, India |
| Yog nidra is an exercise in physical non-activity and mental relaxation. It is our common experience that activity causes fatigue and exhaustion while rest (i.e. non-activity) leads to relaxation and to the restoration of equilibrium. It is for this that nature has provided for sleep for restoration of energy lost during the period of activity. The 'sleep', however, provides rest (i.e. inactivity) only at the physical level while the mana (translated hereafter as mind) continues (even during the sleep) to be active- leaping and galloping in all ways and directions through dreams. Consequently while the sleeper feels physically relaxed, his/her mental and emotional stresses and strains continue unabated. The dilemma one faces in this regard is that while controlling the physical activity or non-activity is well with in ones capacity, it is generally beyond one's powers to direct effectively his 'mind' to be inactive. The 'mind' as we all know is after all, the most restive element in the world. For its restlessness and the stubbornness, the mind has been compared, in the spiritual literature, to a monkey which is intoxicated and is bitten by a scorpion. Most of the time it refuses to stay in the 'present' and plunges intermittently either into the past to recapitulate/analyse the pleasant/unpleasant happenings or into the still unknown future anticipating fortunate/dreadful events and in this process swings between cravings for 'pleasant' and aversions for 'unpleasant'. These incessant voyages of the Mind to the past and /or to the future produce several emotional and mental stresses which quite frequently lead to psychosomatic problems including cardiac ones. The treatment package for such problems should therefore, logically include (besides drug therapy, counselling etc.) various devices for mental rest (inactivity) and relaxation. yog-nidra very effectively serves this purpose. |
 YOGA |
| Yog-nidra is an easy to practice variant of yoga. Yoga proper, as we know, comprises of eight components, viz., (1,2) YAMA, NIYAM (preparatory), (3) AASANS (physical postures), (4) PRANAYAM (breath control exercises), (5) PRATYAHAR (detachment of mind from physical organs), (6) DHAARNA (training of mind for concentration), (7) DHYANA (concentration of mind) and (8) SAMAADHI (combining with the SUPREME). Yog-nidra is yoga as it incorporates three very vital components of yoga (viz. 5, 6 and 7) with a difference that while yoga aims at complete inactivity and stillness of the mind, yog-nidra permits it to move within a limited range but only according to the commands given to it. The mind as per its nature, tends to revolt against 'inactivity' and 'stillness' aimed in dharna and in dhyana, making these two very difficult (almost beyond attainment) for common men. Yog-nidra recognizes this revolting nature of the mind and makes it move within a limited and narrow range and within the limits of commands given to it. The mind is thus allowed the satisfaction of its nomadic trait. But in the process, it is lured to a relatively high level of stillness and the resultant calm and relaxation. Although the practitioners remain (during the exercise) fully awake, yet it is nidra (sleep) as it brings rest both to the body and to the 'mind' through physical non-activity and the near cessation of swings and thrusts of the 'mind'. |
| THE TEXT |
| In the practice of yog-nidra, the practitioner carefully listens and obeys the instructions coming either from an instructor (orally) or from an audio cassette. The latter will be more convenient as it will enable the practitioner to go for yog-nidra at the time and place of his/her convenience. Several yogic institutions have brought out their yog-nidra audio-cassettes which can be had from relevant sources. The text of these cassettes differ in their details and emphasis, but the basics remain the same. For the convenience of the practitioners, a text is presented here to be used either by tape-recording it into an audio cassette or by oral reading by an instructor. Needless to say that the tape recorded / oral reading should be slow in speed (with adequate pauses) and should be clear in voice. This text speaks at several places of God- Lord Hanuman. This is just for awakening and uplifting the level of faith and confidence of the practitioner and has nothing to do with theism. If one has any objection to these, the same can be suitably modified or omitted. The same is true about the cardiac references in the ultimate part of the text. The practitioners for whom these references are irrelevant, may alter or amend these to suit their needs. The yog-nidra session is expected to last 40 minutes. One can therefore, practice it any time when one can spare some 45 minutes time without any breaks or interruptions, preferably 2-3 hours after the meal. The text presented here is designed for a 40 minutes session. The short, long and longer pauses (in its reading) are indicated respectively by …. , …. and …. . For its practice one should lie down on a hard but comfortable bed / carpet on ones back in shavasana (dead-body posture) with legs apart and hands besides the body and palms loosely open and facing the sky. The garments should not be tight. If it is cold one can cover the body (below the neck) with a blanket. It is an exercise in non-activity (and not a sleep) and therefore requires that one remains fully awake during the practice. |
| COMPLETE PROCESS |
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Hari Om Tatsat. (God alone is truth). Get ready for yognidra. Adjust your body and its position comfortably. …. . Get to the position of rest …. Make no body movements after the practice starts …. Close your eyes gently and keep these closed till the practice lasts …. Breath deeply 3-4 times …. Feel your body relaxing and shedding all tensions. When body relaxes , sleep sets in. Do not sleep …. Keep fully awake. Just listen to my instructions and act accordingly. If some thoughts appear in your mind let them, Do not stuggle with them. Now with eyes closed, move your attention from your head to the toes and mentally repeat 'my body'…. 'my body'. Feel the body relaxing …. Feel it is heavy like a log. Repeat mentally that you are awake and relaxing …. . Turn to the sounds coming from some distance …. Feel their feebleness …. Move from one distant sound to another …. Now turn to near by sounds and feel their sources …. Feel their pitch …. . Now move your attention to the room …. See with closed eyes the ceiling and the paintings on the walls …. Count the doors …. The windows …. The fans …. Look at the furniture …. The floor …. The carpet …. The ground nearby …. Narrow down your attention to your body lying like a log …. Think of the body parts touching the floor …. The back of the head …. The back … the buttocks … the thigh … the calf muscles …. The heels …. The ground you are lying on …. Feel the calm of the body …. No tensions …. No strains. Now turn to the right side of the body …. Feel the thumb the index finger …. The big finger …. The ring finger …. The small finger …. The right palm …. Feel it with full care …. The wrist the forearm …. The elbow …. The arm …. The shoulder …. The waist …. Right hip …. Thigh …. Knee …. Right calf muscle …. The ankle …. The heel …. The right foot sole …. The big toe …. Second toe …. Third toe …. Fourth toe …. And the fifth toe …. And now the whole right side from shoulder to toe …. . Turn your attention to the left side of the body …. The left thumb …. The index finger …. The big finger …. The ring finger …. The small finger …. Left palm …. Wrist …. Forearm …. Elbow …. Left arm …. Left shoulder …. The waist …. Left hip …. The thigh …. Knee …. Calf muscle …. The ankle …. Left heel …. Foot sole …. Big toe …. Second toe …. Third toe …. Fourth toe and the fifth toe …. The whole left side from shoulder to toe …. . Now turn to the upper part of your head …. Look at the forehead …. Right eyebrow …. Left eyebrow …. The third eye - the point midway of the eye brows …. Meditate on the third eye …. Now your right ear …. Left ear …. The right temple …. Left temple …. The nose …. Root of the nose …. Right nasal …. Left nasal …. Right cheek …. Left cheek …. Upper lip …. Lower lip …. Chin …. Throat …. Right breast …. Left breast …. Naval abdomen …. See the abdomen rising and sinking with inhalation and exhalation …. Now turn your attention to your back …. Upper back lower back …. Right side of the back …. Left side of the back …. Your spinal column …. Move slowly from upper end of the spinal column to its lower tip and then back to the upper end …. Look at each of the vertebrae …. Now come back to your whole body …. From head to the toes …. Feel its relaxation …. No activity …. No tension …. Feel its heaviness on the floor …. Your whole body is loose …. Feel the inner peace …. Now look at your respiration …. Feel the incoming breath …. Focus your awareness on inhalation and exhalation …. . …. Feel the blood is getting purified with each breath …. Now start counting your breaths in reverse order from 30 and go up to 1. With inhalation count 30 …. Exhalation 30 …. Inhalation 29 …. Exhalation 29 …. Inhalation 28 …. Exhalation 28 make sure the counting chain does not get broken …. In case it does restart from 30 …. Devote your total attention to breaths and their counts … complete awareness …. Total concentration …. Now stop counting and proceed on a mental journey …. Imagine that you have walked down to a lonely place out of the town …. You are alone …. This is predawn time …. The area is peaceful and calm …. No noise… … no hubhub of the town …. Now you have come to a river bank …. The bank is sandy …. You take your sleepers off and start walking on the sandy bank barefoot…. Feel the softness of the sand …. Feel its cool …. Look at the green fields on both sides of the river …. Feel the cool breeze …. Look at the plants in the fields ….. Continue exploring the nature……….. Now come back to the room you are lying in. get aware of your body…. Look at the body from head to toe. With eyes closed look at the walls of the room …. Slowly move your hands and feet and slowly but in a clear voice chant thrice HARI OM TATSAT …. HARI OM TATSAT …. HARI OM TATSAT. Turn to the right side and with the support of your elbow rise and get seated …. Breathe deeply and slowly open your eyes. May God keep your calm for the whole day. YOGNIDRA is now over. |
Available Volumes
| EDITOR IN CHIEF |
| Dr.
Rajeev Gupta (MD PhD FACC) |
 |
| HON. EDITOR |
| Dr.
Soneil Guptha (MD FACC FESC) |
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