yoga nidra
sunday afternoon workshops in restorative yoga and yoga nidra make their focus being more than doing, and allow time to immerse ourselves in the nourishment of these practices.
the movement practice making up the the first half of sunday morning workshops is designed to gently settle, soften and refresh, preparing the body to drop into the stillness of either restorative yoga, or yoga nidra. on sundays, i often give a bit of context with a brief introduction to an aspect of the practice. numbers are kept small to allow for a pleasant sufficiency of space, props, and help from me.
"Our bodies know they belong. It is our minds that make our lives so homeless."
"There is a place in you that has never been wounded, where there's a seamlessness in you, and where there's a confidence and tranquility in you."
John O'Donohue
it’s an understatement to say that our cultural context does not support resting in stillness!
contemporary living for many is a juggling act of responsibilities; busy, speedy, over stimulating. furthermore, our nervous systems are wired with a “negativity bias” - a sense that something’s wrong or just about to go wrong!
refreshing, nourishing stillness is always here. it’s what we’re made of. but given what we’re up against, how human of us to find it so hard to surrender to that, or to recognise that the very energy we are employing in trying to fix or manipulate things is keeping us in exile from it.
our body never leaves the present moment. here’s the key.
how clever, how very kind, then, this embodied meditative practice. through simply lying down and listening to a guide, we can steal effortlessly into a meditative state.
this is a fine thing in itself! held alongside a deep welcoming of whatever is arising, and the invitation to re-connect in an embodied way with what matters most to us in our lives, we may become clearer about the direction we need to move in, more porous to insight, and return to challenges resourced.
i practised yoga nidra in my very first yoga class and was quietly astonished! i began working with the practice consistently after a workshop with donna farhi in 2004. it has been a central and precious part of my practice since then.
the protocols of this ancient practice vary widely and it has been developed creatively in recent years by several contemporary teachers. i share it with groups in workshops, and often tailor it to specific needs for students as part of a one-to-one practice.