Meditation > Yoga Nidra

****Yoga Nidra--meditative yogic practice****

Yoga Nidra is a meditative yogic practice. It is a state on borderline of sleep and wake fullness. Its nothing but Perfect Relaxation. Yoga Nidra can be practiced individually or together with any no of participants but in a room or closed hall. You have to follow the instructions given under the sub heading Prerequisites, Preparation and Preposition.

This practice has been Designed by Paramhansa Swami Satyanand Saraswati, the founder of the Institute " Bihar School Of Yoga" at Munger, Bihar, India.

Prerequisite for Practicing

You should have the following.

1. Continuous & undisturbed time of 30 min.
2. A separate calm and quiet room where nobody should disturb.
3. Dim light (Bright light or Dark light should be avoided).
4. A carpet of about 8' x 4' in size laid on ground level or bed.

Preparation

Wear loose clothes, remove your wrist watch, belt, etc., and just make yourself relaxed and at ease.
--There should be total silence, no disturbances in surrounding
--Lie down on the levelled ground.

Preposition

Preposition for Yoga Nidra is Shavasana

The practice procedure is very simple as you have to just listen to the prerecorded commentary and follow the instruction mentally. It is adviced that one should go through the course of Shavasana first before practicing Yoga Nidra.

The use of Prerecorded commentary will be made available in the 'Practice Period'. Tailor made commentary supporting your resolve also can be made available on request. The founder of Yoga Nidra 'Swami Satayanand Saraswati' had warned in the following paragraph of his book of Yoga Nidra, for some of the achieved practices may bring about a deep state of relaxation and meditation. It is very important, therefore, the mind be brought out of this state gradually.

An abrupt transition for this deep state to waking consciousness temporarily shocks the mind. And may cause a headache.

Similarly the depth of their relaxation frightens some people if they are brought out of relaxed state too quickly. In either case the subject should lie in shavasana and Practice awareness of breath until one becomes calm.