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Hello everyone and welcome to the Awaken Together podcast. I am Jenn and today's episode is going

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to feature a very special guest. Allie Bright is a meditation guide, a teacher of yoga philosophy

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and a retreat host and a friend. So welcome Ali.

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Hi Jen, it's so nice to be here and talking with you.

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I am so happy to have you. Ali puts meditations out and I have fallen asleep to your voice

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so many times because it's so soothing and we not only are going to break down and talk

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about yoga in so much more depth and the benefits of different meditation techniques, but Ali

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is also going to share with us a full guided yoga nidra.

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I'm so excited and you're always full of compliments.

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Easy to compliment. So why don't you share with our guests, our listeners first, just

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how you kind of fell onto the spiritual path because I was even shocked to hear bits of

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your life story along the way. Like you've been on a journey.

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Yeah, who hasn't though? You know, everyone.

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I don't know.

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Well, my story, I suppose, starts when I'm really, really young. I actually could not

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speak when I was a little girl. I had so many speech impediments that I could not express

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myself at all. So that created, and I'm very introverted by nature, but it created a very,

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very shy human that was terrified to talk to anyone, even a school teacher that would

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call on you, even my mom, it did not matter. So I did actually 10 years of speech therapy

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and it taught me so much about accepting myself. And it was interesting because being a child,

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you know, you're in kindergarten, starting your speech therapy or five years old. And

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I didn't really understand. I just understood I had to make weird noises. I got pulled out

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of class and I had to make weird noises with a different teacher. I didn't know. And I

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felt really stupid. I felt like I was like something was wrong with me, of course, because

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I couldn't express myself and I was being pulled out of class every day. So I didn't

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really understand why until really until I graduated speech therapy, which was in middle

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school and I understood like, oh, okay, this wasn't to inhibit my growth was actually to

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help prepare me for the world. So my math skills may be absolutely shit, like absolute

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total and other shite. But because I was pulled out of math every day to go to speech therapy,

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but I could. So don't ask me division, please, or multiplication, nothing. But yeah, it created

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in me a being who was scared to speak, scared to express themselves. And so I delved into

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the body. And I became really obsessed with athleticism. And I was fearless, because I

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was so afraid to speak, I was fearless in my body. So I did gymnastics and I would,

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you know, it was the way to express myself to my friends, for instance, would be like,

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I'm going to stand on this picnic table and do backflip off and everyone's going to be

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amazed. I couldn't impress people with my thoughts. So I was like, I'm going to impress

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them and I'm going to be accepted in my community with my peers through the athleticism. And

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I did gymnastics, competitive gymnastics for many years. And that's what led me to yoga.

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Because once I quit gymnastics, because it's so hard on the body, and it's so time consuming,

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you know, I didn't, you know, I didn't get to go to football games or any of the things

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that quote unquote, normal kids would be able to do because I was doing four hours of gymnastics

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practice four days a week after school. So but that made me really comfortable with yoga

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asana. When I first found it, which was in high school, which I know is pretty late for

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people nowadays. But I was born and raised in West Virginia, and we just didn't have

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any yoga around. It was not a thing. And my best friend's dad actually took me to a

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yoga class at the YMCA when I was 16. And my best friend's dad, me and my best friend

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did this yoga class, and they never went back. And I just started going every time they offered

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it. I was like, Oh, this is great. I can do all this. It's easy. I feel good in my body.

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I feel impressive. You know, very ego filled my yoga practice to start. Because of body,

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I was obsessed with the body. And after, after I discovered yoga asana, I of course started

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to do a little bit of research into what yoga was its history and things. And I realized

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meditation was such an important part of the practice. And I actually had a friend who

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was an active meditator, and he would actually practice japa. So, you know, you have your

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mala your beads, and you practice mantra recitation. And he taught me how to do that. And so that's

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where I started with my meditation practice was with mantra recitation, which is such,

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I mean, it's revolved around voice as well. So it was interesting how, you know, it ended

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up it ended up coming full circle from when I was a little tiny girl, trying to find my

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voice to full circle in high school, senior year of high school, I discovered meditation.

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And of course, the style of meditation I discover is mantra recitation, which a lot of meditation

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is silent, I wouldn't have to evolve around the voice. But for some reason, I was latched

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on to mantra. And it helped me even more I found this language, the Sanskrit language,

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and how beautiful it was and how the sounds came up gutturally, they start deep, and they,

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it just made so much sense where the sounds are coming from. And I started getting deep

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into that. And then once I got into my meditation practice, I realized that a lot of yoga classes

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that were all familiar in the West with our Asana base, which I loved. But once I started

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meditating, I realized there's more to this practice. And so I was a little antsy to find

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my teacher. And that's a hard thing to do, especially when you're seeking one usually

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happens you're not looking. Yeah, we all know that, that story. But I decided, actually,

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it's kind of funny and a little embarrassing. I watched the Walter Mitty movie. Do you remember

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that Jim? Yeah, the secret life. Yeah, secret life of Walter Mitty. And for some reason,

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that movie, it was kind of like the cherry on top. I had been thinking about going to

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India. And then that I watched that movie. And I was like, if I'm going to teach yoga,

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I have to, I have to learn in India. I just knew for myself, and this is not for everyone,

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but I knew for myself, I needed to go. It's strong, Sagittarius spirit energy that you

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have. That's funny. It is. But yeah, so I went to India in 2014, which is funny, because

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I know that's when you started teaching to Jim was yeah. So that I find that really interesting,

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especially because we didn't know each other back then. Absolutely. And in India, I went

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to this yoga school, it was called Vinyasa Yoga School is very asana based for sure.

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But we had, of course, India, a lot of philosophy, a lot of mantra. And even our asana classes

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were structured differently than the ones I would attend here in the West. Like for

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instance, the asana classes, it was very, very warm when I was there, because it was

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summertime, and you weren't allowed to use any sort of artificial cooling. They said,

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if you really feel like you're going to pass out, you can turn a fan on. But the idea is

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to be in like, one with your environment, to be in the in the space you're in, quite

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frankly, like it's just to accept it, and to move beyond the fact that yeah, maybe you're

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hot, or maybe you're freezing because it's cold outside. But you adjust your asana to

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fit. And yeah, that's, that's that. So I found that really interesting, especially with here

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in America, in the US, especially we're obsessed with heating and cooling. You know, if it's

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snowing outside, we're going to keep our house inside at 75 degrees. If it's at 90 degrees

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outside, for some reason, we're going to keep our house at 64 degrees. I'm not sure why

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it changes that much. But at least at my dad's house that is how it is. But anyways, I'm

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rambling hardcore. I love it. India, and at that yoga teacher training school I went to,

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we had a quote unquote in house guru, which is kind of the silly thing I know. But in

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India, at every yoga school you go to, you're going to have a quote unquote in house guru.

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And our guru's name was Omo. So Omoji and I immediately hit it off. We just had this

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connection. And after us after our mantra classes, because he would teach us mantra,

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he would take me aside because we would have a break after that he would take me aside.

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And he is actually the one who said, I have this practice for you that I think you would

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really like. And I think you would actually be very good at and I want to guide you through

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it slowly. So over the span of two months, he slowly taught me yoga nidra. And nobody

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else I felt so special. Because everyone else was like off doing their own thing, you know,

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or exploring other parts of the city or going to a cafe and just hanging out or having a

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great time for sure. But I got the quote unquote secret knowledge from Omoji of yoga nidra.

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And ever since then, which was 2014 again, can't believe that's a decade now. I have

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just been absolutely obsessed with this practice. It is so beneficial for the mind, the body

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and the spirit. I just cannot recommend it enough. Like it's good for everyone. It is

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the one meditation practice I think that everyone can practice can practice sitting and closing

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your eyes and trying to be still is very, very, very difficult. And I'm not personally

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ADD or ADHD. But almost everyone in my family is I know you are a gin. The mind will just

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keep on you know, like a pinball machine. Yeah. And this is the practice that took me personally

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out of the darkness in my mind, got a lot of Scorpio nature in me. I'm very dark person.

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Out of the darkness and into a sense of beingness. That's, that's it. Existence, whatever. I

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don't want to because I by no means I don't think personally I don't think enlightenment

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for instance is like this crazy thing that is unattainable. I think that we can each

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reach little tiny moments of moksha in everyday life. Maybe you're staring at a sunset. Maybe

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you're playing with your kitty and you're just totally immersed in that moment. And

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you're not thinking about anything. You're not doing anything. You're just being and

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yoga Nidra taught me how to just be. And it's so beautiful that came as such a seed for

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what would be so much of your path. And I love the synchronicities in your story even.

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Yeah, what you came in with and then what your calling ended up being in so many deeper

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ways. It's beautiful to see how each step mattered in its own way to kind of create

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this. Blueprint for everything. Totally blueprint. When you're in it, you don't know it, right?

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You got to look back. Yeah. Absolutely incredible. And yeah, to bring it back to your, yeah,

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your points of actually I love that you like went and actually saw like the world's and

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its steps instead of just kind of taking it like West Virginia, especially Oh my gosh,

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so behind. So I lived there for yeah, three and a half years and I found a lot that was

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definitely when I was in a more reflective state of my life. Life had just been really

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chaotic and I found a lot of my like self practices there. But there was also there

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was such a different mindset there. So it was yeah, there wasn't a whole lot. It was

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tough to kind of I had to find a lot within at that time to kind of figure it out. But

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it's it's crazy how yoga is being perceived. And Kat and I have talked about this on the

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podcast before that yoga. Yes, there's the asana practice and moving your body that you

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see, but it's so much more than just those classes. The body movement is really disposed

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to be even another guide to help you tune in deeper. And I remember in teacher training,

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actually getting to do my first yoga nidra. And I was blown away. I think it was the first

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meditation practice, where I got into a state that wasn't, yeah, sleeping or awake. I remember

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that was like the first practice where I was like, Whoa, like I am in a true state. And

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it was beautiful because yeah, with my ADHD, it's hard to find, I definitely have had to

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get way more exploratory and finding what works. And a lot of times, having the physical

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practice to kind of wear my body out is like important for me to be able to drop in more,

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which is really the main point of the flow is to help you in the final posture, to be

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able to be more present. And I need that often a lot. So the actual flow practice is really

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good for me. But I also was blown away when I took my first meditation class, like, okay,

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I can get into this state. And there is such a cadence and a guide to it. But yeah, let's

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share a little bit too about what you've kind of I know you've delved so much deeper into

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yoga philosophy, just what you think listeners should know about some of the like depth because

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we are so far from yoga philosophy in the US, like it's been taken very far away. So,

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yeah, some of the points you've kind of learned along the way of that I loved even what you

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said about matching the environment because yeah, we are deeply scared of being uncomfortable

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over here. That's a huge part of it. Absolutely. And that's where you really start to actually

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when you set in some levels of discomfort. That's where you really learn how to release

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emotion and feel into so much deeper you were given this as a quest from, you know, the

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very beginning. Yeah, I wasn't quite ready philosophically, but in retrospect. Yeah,

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no, it's this has been a really big journey for me actually, because when I first came

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back from India, I was so dogmatic and so upset with the yoga community here in the

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US. I lived in Los Angeles for 10 years, and that is a very difficult yoga community as

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well because it's yoga has been there for so long compared to the rest of the US. Yeah.

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That it's rampant. It's everywhere. It's literally around every corner on every street corner,

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you've got yoga studios, right? You've got places of worship like Hindu worship that

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have become completely westernized as well. And so these things used to really upset me

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when I came back from India because I was like, this is not how it's supposed to be.

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But then as I continued studying and learning, I discovered yoga has been evolving since

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the dawn of time. Like any other practice or philosophy, it's just these things evolve

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over time. Scholars argue how old yoga is, right? They're like between 2000 and 5000

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years old. So it's like old. Let's just say that. It's friggin old. And over that time

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period, it has morphed and evolved and grown and become less secretive, which was a big

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part of it used to be very secretive because it was an oral tradition yoga. And so it was

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not written about. And yoga is a Hindu practice. It is so coupled up in its history with Hinduism.

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And that's not to say if you're a Christian or if you're Muslim or if you're Pagan or

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whatever, an atheist, that you cannot practice yoga because you can separate it from your

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own practice. But its roots are in Hinduism. And we can't deny that. You can practice asana

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and not be a practicing Hindu, of course. That's a body practice. But it's important

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for us to recognize that it is from India. It is Hindu, like full stop, period. It's

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interesting because I work, this is so weird, but I work at a church and the church I work

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at has yoga classes. And I'm not a religious person at all. It's just, it's a great job,

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to be honest. It's very, very lovely. It's got great hours. The people I work with are

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awesome. But I'm not a religious person. I kind of am more agnostic or maybe believe

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a little bit in all religions. I think every religion has this trinket of truth in it,

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that it's depth, that it's heart. And a lot of times we just, we talk too much. And so

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our vocabulary doesn't know how to, our language, we don't know how to express these deep inner

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meanings and truths that are universal and that are within every religion. I'm rambling

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again. So I apologize. I love it. Oh yes, yoga philosophy. I'm trying to remember where

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we've gotten. But yeah, so it was a really hard journey for me because of my dogmatic

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view of it. And now I'm coming to terms with the fact that there are different kinds of

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yoga and there is the yoga that some people practice that's all about getting a nice butt.

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You know what? Let them have it. You're nice, but you know, great, awesome. At least your

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body is healthy. That's not what I used to be able to say. I used to be like, just call

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it Pilates. Just call it. I mean, I love Pilates. It's great, but like, don't call it yoga.

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But now I'm like, okay, I'm way more accepting because that's what yoga is. It's a practice

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of acceptance. So if I'm over here just getting angry that these people aren't doing it right,

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like, no, let go.

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I think where I've evolved in some of that thinking as well is just when you see how

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disconnected, you know, I do physical therapy so I can see how disconnected I have so many

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patients that if I ask them to feel into their body to describe something like how challenging

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that can be, like some people's baseline is so, so detached from body sensations that,

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you know, giving the multitude layers of what I believe will inevitably come out if you

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do a consistent practice even on the mat. I don't think you can avoid the layers if

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you show up long enough. It happens because what you're doing is tapping into this deeper

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internal truth and knowing that we all have, which I love how you worded that, that like

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language can't even fully capture the depth of that. But there is a magic that happens

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and you, yeah, it really ends up meeting you where you're at. And I also very ego-y, and

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I would say it was the perfection aside of myself. Like I, it took probably a year and

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a half of yoga to like actually get out of the, like head and actually be like in a flow

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state and then having the layers of emotions start to release and having these deeper truths

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just start to come out. Like I was so neurotic about getting posture right that like I bypassed

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the, I intellectualized the practice to the point of not even being able to cultivate

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a feeling. So this is also why I'm just like, if I can get people on the mat to at least

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start creating a basic blueprint of tune in with the body, I honestly do believe that

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the practice itself with its breath and its pacing and its slowness, regardless of how

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it's being taught, I think it's the energy of it and just the sacredness of the actual

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depth of yoga as a whole will shine through in the way it's meant to.

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I couldn't agree more, but I, since the first time we spoke, I found that really admirable

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about you is you're really, you're really willing to meet your students, your clients

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at their, at their point, at the beginner stage. And I really respect that because I

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don't feel the same way personally. And so that's actually why I stopped teaching Asana

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is because I, I wanted to know that when someone came my class, that they were looking for

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what I wanted to teach them, what I wanted to share with them. I just got so frustrated

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and I realized I don't have to teach Asana. Nobody says I have to teach Asana. And I was

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so sick of people walking out of Shavasana because I need these 30 minute Shavasana because

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they're essentially yoga nidras. And that's how I would always do my classes. And so many

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people would just leave. They wouldn't stay for it. And it just, it was starting to, I

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was starting to get jaded and I didn't want that for my, my, myself, for my practice,

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for my yoga. And so I just kind of removed myself from teaching Asana. But I've always

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respected you for just being able to meet people where they are.

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This is a thank you firstly. And this is also why the variety of teachers and past is so

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important because we need people that can meet on all levels. So what you're sharing

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is also so deep and there are, there are people that getting to experience that level of depth

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from the get go, it works for them and it really like, yeah, has a blooming effect of

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everything. And I think, you know, for some there's just different levels that have to

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be met, which is showing why the variety of teachers is so important. But I'd love to

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hear when you first started, yeah, that transition and started teaching in that way, I would

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love to hear some of the experiences that came up for you just like stepping into that

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integrity for yourself.

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I actually got really lucky. I was living in Los Angeles. I had a job where I didn't

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have to work all that much. I would work a couple of days a week. And then the rest of

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the time, I was very privileged in that sense, trust me, like I hated my job so much, but

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it gave me a lot of free time, which I dedicated to my yoga studies. But I was teaching with

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another teacher at that this point in time. And she is still a very close friend of mine.

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She's absolutely wonderful. Her name is fairy, but not like a fairy, like she's Persian.

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So it's a traditional name. And she would teach Asana and then she would let me guide

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a yoga Nidra asker. And so that's really how I transitioned out of Asana. And then I still

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practice Asana. I just don't teach it. So that's really how I began my transition out

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of teaching Asana and into mainly being a meditation guide. I was just so I was so lucky

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to have met her. I went to one of her classes and we just immediately connected. And she

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actually is the first teacher I started hosting yoga retreats with. And I at the yoga retreats,

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that's what I got to do. I got to guide yoga Nidra's every day. And that's all. It was

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great. It was glorious.

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And it's beautiful. You're bringing that practice and class to West Virginia now and

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gonna get to share and teach actually the depths of of it as well.

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Well, actually one thing that's very interesting about West Virginia, and I think it's because

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we have a lot of pain here. We have a lot of loss. We have a lot of poverty, we just

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have a lot of dukkha. We have a lot of suffering here. And so when I taught for about six months,

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I had to come back to West Virginia to finish my college degree. And so I taught at a local

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studio here for that period of time. And it was one of the best experiences I have ever

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had. I taught mysticism. So I taught about Hindu deities. I had the biggest classes I've

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ever had people would stay at I would always bring tea, and people would stay after class

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for three to four hours, because I'll make sure my class was the last of the day. So

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I wouldn't get out of that studio till 11 o'clock at night. And let me tell you, I am

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not a night person. I like mornings. I turn off at nighttime. And so there are just all

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these people that are looking searching for meaning for deeper meaning for accepted for

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acceptance. I think that's probably the best way to put it. Because we deal so directly

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and from such a young age here with mortality. And it's so rare. It's so rare to at age 20,

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you know, have already lost three or four friends. Yeah. You meet people from other

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places and they just don't have those experiences. My partner's like, I don't like it's crazy.

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Like, I am 10 years older than you. And I don't know even like, a tenth amount of the

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people you know, that has passed. I really do think that's why yoga and Appalachia is

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going to have such I think the future of yoga and Appalachia is really important, actually,

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really, really important. And for me, yoga, over time, and once I started delving deeper

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into my studies, it's a practice as are all religions, to be honest, it's a practice of

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accepting mortality. It's the greatest suffering any of us will experience losing

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someone we love. And starting to lose ourselves too, you know, I haven't had to start to confront

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that yet. But that is such an important aspect of yoga practice is just coming to terms with

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mortality, with the fact that when there is life, there is death, and they come together,

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they they can't have one without the other. It's impossible.

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Yeah, the dance of duality. So real. I love that. And yeah, you're so so right. It's,

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it's potent and powerful. And I definitely experienced so much in that area too. And

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very shocking for me to not being from there. And I commend you on, yeah, sharing what you

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do in the area you do. Before we dive into your meditation, which I'm so excited to experience,

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can you just give us some of the main overview and points of Yeah, this meditation practice,

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what you recommend for our listeners who maybe this is their first time getting to do it.

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And just some of those points. And thank you for all the stuff on your story to it. We've

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shared so much wisdom. So thank you for that too. Glad you put up with my rambling. I feel

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like I love it everywhere. I think it's it's there's so much wisdom, your story. I love

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it. Thank you. So yoga Nidra is such a richer and more meaningful practice than so many

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of us realize it has such a rich history. Let's just talk about what is yoga Nidra?

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What is the state of Nidra? Yoga Nidra induces a deep non-rem sleep state. So you're not

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in dream state. But you're not completely it's it's deep sleep. But you're still conscious.

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It's a very interesting in between being and non being waking and sleeping or even waking

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and death, you know. And actually, when we're practicing yoga Nidra, most of us 99.99999%

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of us are not actually practicing yoga Nidra, we're practicing a preliminary practice. Yoga

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Nidra is the state. The practice of yoga Nidra is trying to get to that state, you know,

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you're trying to allow your consciousness to relax so much that you can be from EEG

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scans, you can see delta brainwaves, which are characteristic of deep, deep sleep. But

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you are able to hear and listen to everything that's being said. And when you're woken

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up, you you remember everything. So you know how a lot of people when they have babies,

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they like play Beethoven to their baby, because when they're sleeping, that's the argument

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for yoga Nidra to you practice yoga Nidra. So when you're in the state, you can download

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information, you know, while sleeping, while while rejuvenating body and mind. One of the

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fun facts that teachers and people and books like to throw around is that yoga deep yoga

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Nidra state is care is as beneficial, like one hour of yoga Nidra state is as beneficial

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as four hours of deep sleep. That's like the thing people love to throw around. One hour

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is equal to four hours. I don't know how accurate that is. But I feel it. I feel so oh my gosh,

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I feel so incredible after it's like something you haven't felt. Yeah, I am so energized

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after I do Nidra practice. It's like, I just woke up in the morning. I'm just bouncing

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off the walls like my cats. So yeah, so that's the state of yoga Nidra. So again, pretty

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much with all meditation practices. Meditation is the state, what we practice is trying to

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reach that state. It's subtle, it's a subtle difference. But I always find it's a really

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important difference. Because people are like, I can't meditate. And I'm like, well, pretty

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much none of us can meditate. Like not really, you're just you're practicing one pointed

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concentration. So maybe your breath, maybe your mantra, maybe counting, it could be all

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sorts of things, right. But I always just like to make that differentiation, especially

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because there's multiple words for meditation in Sanskrit. So you know, you have the eight

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ones of yoga. And it ends with three different types of meditation, Dahana, Dhyana and Smaghi.

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Those are all types of meditation, but it's just you're practicing Dahana is, you know,

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you're practicing that one pointed concentration. So that is one point of concentration is what

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that means. And then Dhyana is meditation, which is when you don't have to practice any

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sort of concentration, you just are. And then Smaghi is enlightenment, right, which I think

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is a very subtle difference between Dhyana and Smaghi. That's unimportant right now.

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Anyways, reverse, reverse, going back. The interesting, one of the most interesting things

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I find about yoga Nidra practice is when it was first researched in the West. So there

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was this guru of the Himalayas, this this yogi named Swami Rama. And he was the very,

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very first person to undergo trials and EEG studies of this yoga Nidra state. And this

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was not that long ago. Yes, me. This was in 1971 in Kansas, believe it or not, at the

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Meninjur Foundation. It was just this place that happened to be like, yeah, let's research

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this, you know, Indian guru. And he put himself in a state of yoga Nidra through the rotation

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of consciousness in the body, which if you practice Nidra, you know, that's how the practice

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is one of the beginning starts for the practice is you rotate consciousness in your body,

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you do a body scan, in other words. And while he was doing this, he fell into a deep sleep

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showing only delta brain waves on the EEG scan. And when he woke up, he was able to

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recount everything that was said while he was asleep, demonstrating full awareness.

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So that was the first time anyone had ever seen this. It was unheard of. And it's worth

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noting that during these trials, they also did things like they asked him to raise his

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blood pressure and then drop it and he would do it on command or speed up his heart rate

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and then slow it down or just do these things that were like, you can't control that. That's

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not something you have. Like how am I supposed to make my heart beat in a different way other

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than practicing cardio or, you know, not just sit there and will it too. And so that kind

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of shows like this yoga mitra stays is not an easy state to get to. But even scientifically,

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it has such strong, beneficial qualities. Yeah.

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It shows it's so much deeper. We can go so much deeper at this existence than what so

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many tap into. It's so incredible to hear stories like that. And then to actually be

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able to throw what was proven before. I love that they so believed we couldn't control

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our autonomic nervous system. They're like, no, heart rate, you can't control like, you

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know, these beliefs. And then yeah, what the yoga meditation community and people that

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have spent time, you know, going into the layers and depths of that these different

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practices, they knocked where science was at fully off the map and had to create a whole

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other blueprint for what was possible for our human bodies. And I think the layers of

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that will keep expanding too. I could not agree more. Like it really truly

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is incredible the amount of scientific knowledge there is in these systems without there being

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the background of science to back it up. You know, we have to catch up. We're learning.

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Oh my gosh, they were right. How? How did they know this?

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Yeah. And I love when something has to expand because of an individual person's story, because

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there's so much, so much magic in that. I love that so much.

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And the best part about this is it's not only Swami Rama, right? So Swami Rama was just

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the first person to undergo these trials. And then there were other people who under

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underwent them. And while they like they would do EEG scans on just serious meditators, and

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while they would reach these states, they wouldn't be quite as deep where versus someone

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who a lot of the meditators who are getting research done on them now are Westerners simply

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because of the community that we live in and you know, the country that we live in and

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everything they just happen to mainly be Westerners. And so they haven't been practicing meditation

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since they were born. Yeah.

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Versus Swami Rama and then all of these people under Swami Rama, who has a bunch of his disciples

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were then like Swami Veda Bharati. He was a disciple who then underwent the same very

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similar EEG studies and trials in 2004. And he reached the same state and they reached

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the same conclusions in the research study, but they haven't been able to do any successful

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research on Westerners to where they have reached this state yet, which I find really

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interesting. And I wonder if as as a people, as we grow more conscious of meditation practice

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and we start teaching it to our children when they're babies, when they're little kindergarten,

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you know, if maybe that will change and start to, you know, we'll be able to reach these

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really deep, beautiful, unified states. I love it.

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I mean, why not? But I see the vision and we need it. And it honestly says so much in

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itself that we are so far from what our essence can be over here just in how our system is

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designed and the expectations that, you know, have been kind of funneled through it shows

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why that disconnects there. It says a lot in its own, you know, it says a lot in itself.

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And yeah, I am so honored to be able to share with our listeners this practice. Like, I

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hope that you guys can return to this meditation and support Ali. Share a little bit, Ali,

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how people can support and find your stuff so that our listeners know. And then we can

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go into this incredible meditation. Thank you. I feel like I just rambled my way,

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my my my my way through this. I feel like I didn't get to share any of the textual history

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of yoga nidra, but that will just be for next time. Or if you want to take part two, yeah,

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we're going to take my university class. You could always sign up. I love that. But yeah,

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I share my yoga nidras now. I don't use social media. I am trying to decide whether or not

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I'm going to get back on. It's been about four years now since I've used it. Other than

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just to like post something that's, you know, if like my mom passed away. So I posted her

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obituary, you know what I mean? Like come to my mom's funeral. But other than that,

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I haven't used social media in four years. And I'm trying to decide if I want to use

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it again to share the meditations. But for now, I use insight timer. So I don't know

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if, you know, your listeners are familiar with insight timer, but I'm sure they are.

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It is one of the best apps for meditation, free meditations. It's just phenomenal. And

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what do they search on there to find you on that app? Um, you would search my name, Ali

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bright and pretty easy. A L L I E and bright like the sun is bright. I have all your meditation

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saved. I highly recommend and I did not find this to be one bit of a ramble. I so appreciate

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all the wisdom and words spoken. I so appreciate you sharing even just a little couple main

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points on this practice. And yeah, we appreciate all the listeners for coming and thank you

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Ali for being here. Thank you Jen for having me. It really, it meant a lot. You just asking

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me, you know, I wanted to do this. I was like, yeah, I so appreciate having you. I love the

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work you're doing. And with that, let's dive into this meditation. Please come to a comfortable

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lying position. Perhaps with a pillow under your head to release the cervical spine and

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a pillow under the knees to release the lower back. And once you found your comfortable

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00:48:16,560 --> 00:48:35,920
lying position, bring your awareness to your breath, your inhalations and exhalations.

400
00:48:46,560 --> 00:49:09,920
Inhaling deeply and fully in through the nose and exhaling, sighing out of the mouth.

401
00:49:09,920 --> 00:49:28,640
Inhaling in through the nose and exhaling, sighing out of the mouth.

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00:49:28,640 --> 00:49:50,800
One more time. Inhaling and exhaling, sighing.

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00:49:59,040 --> 00:50:11,280
Allowing your body to melt into the ground, the floor, the bed beneath you.

404
00:50:11,280 --> 00:50:33,680
Letting go of the external world, of any stress or tension.

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00:50:33,680 --> 00:50:44,080
Freeing yourself from the worries of the outside world.

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00:50:44,080 --> 00:51:09,040
And allowing yourself to delve inward, becoming one with your breath, your natural breath,

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00:51:09,040 --> 00:51:14,480
in and out of the nose.

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00:52:09,040 --> 00:52:36,880
Bringing

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your awareness to your face, to your mouth. Relaxing and releasing the jaw, the lips,

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00:53:06,880 --> 00:53:19,520
the tongue. Relaxing, releasing.

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00:53:36,880 --> 00:53:57,520
Moving up to the nose. Feeling the breath in and out of the nose.

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00:54:06,880 --> 00:54:25,360
And on up to the eyes, the eyelids, the eyebrows.

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00:54:25,360 --> 00:54:34,480
Relaxing, releasing.

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00:54:34,480 --> 00:54:45,040
And all the way up to the forehead.

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00:54:45,040 --> 00:55:01,040
And all the way up to the forehead.

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The top of the head, the crown.

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Feeling the back of your head against your pillow or the ground.

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And all the way to your ears. Relaxing, releasing.

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00:55:51,360 --> 00:56:17,600
And moving down to your neck and your shoulders.

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00:56:21,360 --> 00:56:48,560
And from your shoulders down your biceps, triceps.

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Elbows and wrists.

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00:56:59,360 --> 00:57:17,920
Relaxing, releasing both arms.

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And moving on down to your hands, your thumbs, index fingers, middle fingers,

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00:57:48,080 --> 00:58:02,720
ring fingers, and your pinkies.

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Relaxing and releasing each and every finger.

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00:59:03,520 --> 00:59:24,320
And moving this restorative energy back up the arms, back into the shoulders, into the chest.

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The heart, the heartbeat.

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Feeling the gentle, steady beat of your heart.

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01:00:06,320 --> 01:00:30,320
And moving on down, down to the diaphragm.

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01:00:30,320 --> 01:00:40,320
The mid-back.

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01:00:40,320 --> 01:01:08,320
Down to the belly, feeling the belly, the diaphragm rise and fall as you inhale and exhale.

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01:01:10,320 --> 01:01:38,320
And moving to the hips.

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01:01:40,320 --> 01:02:08,320
Relaxing and releasing the hips.

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01:02:10,320 --> 01:02:38,320
And bringing your awareness to the legs, the thighs, the knees.

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01:02:40,320 --> 01:03:08,320
The shins and calves. All the way down to your ankles. Relaxing, releasing.

436
01:03:10,320 --> 01:03:20,320
From the ankles to the feet.

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01:03:20,320 --> 01:03:40,320
To each and every toe. Relaxing, releasing.

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01:03:50,320 --> 01:04:02,320
Allowing your entire body to melt.

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01:04:02,320 --> 01:04:24,320
Relaxing and releasing.

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01:04:24,320 --> 01:04:52,320
Moving this restorative energy from the feet back up the legs, the hips, the belly, the chest.

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01:04:54,320 --> 01:05:00,320
The neck.

442
01:05:02,320 --> 01:05:10,320
The head.

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01:05:10,320 --> 01:05:38,320
And bringing your awareness back to your breath.

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01:05:40,320 --> 01:05:50,320
And moving to the feet.

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01:05:50,320 --> 01:06:12,320
Relaxing.

446
01:06:12,320 --> 01:06:40,320
If you are familiar with Shambhavi Mudra, you can now take your inner gaze to between the eyebrows at the third eye center.

447
01:06:42,320 --> 01:07:10,320
You are welcome to keep this Mudra for the rest of the practice.

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01:07:12,320 --> 01:07:24,320
Relaxing.

449
01:07:24,320 --> 01:07:40,320
Relaxing.

450
01:07:40,320 --> 01:07:50,320
Relaxing.

451
01:07:50,320 --> 01:08:10,320
Relaxing.

452
01:08:10,320 --> 01:08:20,320
Relaxing.

453
01:08:20,320 --> 01:08:40,320
Relaxing.

454
01:08:40,320 --> 01:08:50,320
Relaxing.

455
01:08:50,320 --> 01:09:10,320
Relaxing.

456
01:09:10,320 --> 01:09:20,320
Relaxing.

457
01:09:20,320 --> 01:09:30,320
Relaxing.

458
01:09:30,320 --> 01:09:50,320
Relaxing.

459
01:09:50,320 --> 01:10:06,320
To stay awake and aware. To prevent us from drifting off into deep sleep.

460
01:10:06,320 --> 01:10:34,320
And to keep us just on the edge of consciousness. Just between sleep and wakefulness.

461
01:10:36,320 --> 01:11:04,320
A state between the conscious and the unconscious.

462
01:11:06,320 --> 01:11:16,320
Relaxing.

463
01:11:16,320 --> 01:11:36,320
Relaxing.

464
01:11:36,320 --> 01:11:46,320
Relaxing.

465
01:11:46,320 --> 01:12:14,320
The ego exists in the sphere of duality. In a state of identification with the physical body.

466
01:12:16,320 --> 01:12:30,320
And its heeds and desires.

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01:12:30,320 --> 01:12:58,320
Because of this, it becomes subject to a series of kleshas or afflictions. Such as pride, egoism, competitiveness, hate and jealousy.

468
01:13:00,320 --> 01:13:16,320
And this only brings about dukkha or suffering.

469
01:13:16,320 --> 01:13:30,320
Relaxing.

470
01:13:30,320 --> 01:13:46,320
The Self is universal, eternal, one.

471
01:13:46,320 --> 01:14:02,320
Relaxing.

472
01:14:02,320 --> 01:14:18,320
The Self is rooted in the sphere of oneness, of unity.

473
01:14:18,320 --> 01:14:40,320
And this expansive awakening does not constitute egoism. But quite the opposite.

474
01:14:40,320 --> 01:15:08,320
This awareness brings one to the realization of the wholeness, the unity of all beings, of all things.

475
01:15:10,320 --> 01:15:36,320
The ego is the feeling, the thought that I am this or I am so-and-so.

476
01:15:36,320 --> 01:16:04,320
The ego sees itself as a whole separate entity, not unified, not one with all.

477
01:16:06,320 --> 01:16:34,320
And while we perceive subject and object as dual, the fact that they must interact makes them non-dual.

478
01:16:34,320 --> 01:17:00,320
Up does not exist without down. Left without right.

479
01:17:00,320 --> 01:17:28,320
These seeming dualities do not exist alone, but only together.

480
01:17:30,320 --> 01:17:58,320
It is this sense of duality, this false perception of oneself as a separate being

481
01:17:58,320 --> 01:18:18,320
that creates the suffering in our world today.

482
01:18:18,320 --> 01:18:46,320
Egoism manifests itself in many ways, such as ownership, desires and attachments, pride and arrogance.

483
01:18:48,320 --> 01:19:16,320
Selfishness, aggression, judgment, and lack of acceptance and understanding.

484
01:19:18,320 --> 01:19:46,320
Any feeling, thought, idea, action or response, which arises in a state of duality, has the ego at its source.

485
01:19:46,320 --> 01:20:10,320
The ego is the barrier that prevents us from seeing the world.

486
01:20:10,320 --> 01:20:23,320
The ego is the barrier that prevents us from seeing the truth of ourselves.

487
01:20:23,320 --> 01:20:52,320
It is the wall, the cell, which keeps one locked inside, in the prison of one's mind.

488
01:20:53,320 --> 01:21:22,320
When we remove the separation,

489
01:21:22,320 --> 01:21:36,320
the duality, we will see the world as an extension of ourselves,

490
01:21:36,320 --> 01:21:56,320
and we will enter the vast feeling of oneness with all.

491
01:21:56,320 --> 01:22:19,320
The vast feeling of oneness with all that is seen and experienced.

492
01:22:19,320 --> 01:22:42,320
This awareness of self, this unity with all, manifests in ways such as kindness, compassion,

493
01:22:42,320 --> 01:23:04,320
empathy, bliss, knowledge, improved skills in listening and silence,

494
01:23:04,320 --> 01:23:23,320
sight and awareness, and a lack of desires and attachments,

495
01:23:23,320 --> 01:23:52,320
and ultimately, a lack of suffering.

496
01:23:52,320 --> 01:24:19,320
As we unveil the self,

497
01:24:19,320 --> 01:24:45,320
the ego dissipates, becomes less powerful, and we live humbly in wonder.

498
01:24:45,320 --> 01:25:08,320
There is no more hatred or war, no jealousy or pain harbored within our bodies.

499
01:25:08,320 --> 01:25:24,320
Life becomes a universal understanding and acceptance for all.

500
01:25:24,320 --> 01:25:40,320
And so, to free ourselves from the drama, the neurotic emotions and judgments,

501
01:25:40,320 --> 01:25:55,320
our clinging to the I thought, we must first become aware that it is there at all.

502
01:26:10,320 --> 01:26:39,320
To remove our attachment, our clinging to the I thought,

503
01:26:39,320 --> 01:26:54,320
we must go within, not without.

504
01:26:54,320 --> 01:27:09,320
We must sit with ourselves in reflection, and as in Ramana Maharshi's spiritual teachings,

505
01:27:09,320 --> 01:27:26,320
we must ask ourselves, Who am I?

506
01:27:26,320 --> 01:27:41,320
Not the I of the ego, but who you really are,

507
01:27:41,320 --> 01:28:05,320
not the societal standards or the projected self, but the deepest, truest you,

508
01:28:05,320 --> 01:28:33,320
the self that extends infinitely, and that is one with all.

509
01:28:33,320 --> 01:28:58,320
A self of understanding and compassion.

510
01:28:58,320 --> 01:29:13,320
A self of understanding and compassion.

511
01:29:13,320 --> 01:29:33,320
Sat, Chit, Ananda.

512
01:29:33,320 --> 01:29:47,320
Sat, Chit, Ananda.

513
01:29:47,320 --> 01:29:57,320
Truth, Consciousness, Bliss.

514
01:29:57,320 --> 01:30:26,320
Sat, Chit, Ananda.

515
01:30:26,320 --> 01:30:55,320
You are welcome

516
01:30:55,320 --> 01:31:04,320
to continue this meditation for as long as you'd like,

517
01:31:04,320 --> 01:31:20,320
or perhaps even drift off into sleep.

518
01:31:20,320 --> 01:31:34,320
But if you're ready to come back to the physical space around you,

519
01:31:34,320 --> 01:31:54,320
please bring your awareness back to your breath, your natural breath in and out of the nose.

520
01:31:54,320 --> 01:32:20,320
Bringing your awareness back into the physical body

521
01:32:20,320 --> 01:32:34,320
by gently wiggling the fingers and the toes.

522
01:32:34,320 --> 01:33:03,320
And if you're ready, gently rolling over to one side and pushing yourself up to a comfortable seat.

523
01:33:03,320 --> 01:33:20,320
Thank you for meditating and contemplating the ego with me.

524
01:33:20,320 --> 01:33:48,320
Namaste.

525
01:33:50,320 --> 01:34:18,320
Thank you.

526
01:34:20,320 --> 01:34:42,320
Thank you.