Yoga Nidra- A spiritual Bliss

My first experience of Yoga nidra was at the end of the first day of the yoga class. Lied in a mat, in Savasana; quite aware of the yoga teacher’s instructions, little did I know what Yoga nidra was all about. The teacher guided through a series of breathing exercises with simple instructions, a mental scan of the body and then visual imagery. I had no clue what had just happened, but I felt an ineffable sense of calmness and rejuvenation. I became curious to learn more.
I continued my yoga classes and started looking forward to the rejuvenating moments at the end of each class. After the practice of yoga Nidra session, every day I started feeling a sense of balance within me. But was completely unaware what I was trying to balance within me? In due course of time it dawned upon me that it had started balancing my very own nervous system – No distractions, no hindrances but being in a state of constructive rest and relaxation. Probably, the kind of stressful life I was leading demanded a deep relaxation for a while every day. The city dwellers lead quite a stressful life with the information overload in the palms of our hands -our smart phones – emails, facebook, Instagram, twitter and all its pressure News, blogs and off course chores at home and office– the list had been endless. I realized that I hardly got any moment to just switch off my own system which led to stress.
Stress, these days is so much amalgamated in our daily life that we fail to recognize a few of them as stressor. These hidden stressors act like fusillade, missiles thrown all at the same time and commingled, they lead to several health issues including, insomnia, indigestion, high blood pressure, heartburn, addictions to alcohol, drugs and tobacco, degenerative diseases, Ovarian cysts, PCOs, PCOD and more. While physical tension can be eased by stretching, exercise or massage, mental stress and tensions are difficult to recognize and even harder to release. In the yoga nidra state, we facilitate ourselves to calm our body and mind first and then dwell in the realm of our own mental or emotional self. The yogis had discovered these thousands of years back and now modern science is also focusing reactivation of hormones from the pineal gland located in the centre of the brain. This hormone, melatonin, gets secrted to the optimum when in relaxed state. Studies confirmed that this hormone secreted by the pineal gland is a powerful agent in reducing stress, retard premature aging, prevent illness, induce more restful sleep, boost the immune system, and most importantly promote healing.
Every time I practised Yoga Nidra, I started to feel like entering a very beautiful quaint place within myself which is free from worries, frustrations and stress. Months went by and never realized when I entered a zone within me which was vast within me. Perhaps the best thing has started happening was letting go of the experiences I had held in my life for long without my own knowledge. Letting go was challenging as well as splendid. To let go, one need to witness; just be without any judgement and prejudices. In the witnessing process gradually brought acceptance preaparing the ground for self-love, in the most positive and truest sense. I was evolving as a more confident person who handle challenging situations with more ease and conviction. I was neither praying to nor performing any religious rites, but I was becoming spiritual; doing the rituals of connect with my spirit. I found the very me, my authentic self and I got my answer for what stands for spirituality; Yoga Nidra being a pure spiritual bliss.