Here is a complete yoga nidra script that takes about 10 minutes. It follows the usual stages: settling, an intention, a body rotation, the breath, opposite sensations, a few images and a quiet ending. Read it slowly aloud, record it in your own voice, or go through it in your head.
Below you will find the script with a timing note for each stage, how to turn it into a sleep version, a daytime version or a 20-minute one, and how to read it so it works as a recording. For what yoga nidra is and what research says, see our guide to yoga nidra and NSDR. This page is only the script.
The script at a glance
| Stage | Time | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Settle | about 1 minute | Lie still, feel the weight of your body |
| Intention | under 1 minute | One short sentence, said silently three times |
| Body rotation | about 3 minutes | Attention touches each body part in turn |
| Breath | about 1.5 minutes | Notice the breath, count nine breaths backward |
| Opposites | about 1.5 minutes | Heavy and light, warm and cool |
| Images | about 1.5 minutes | A few quick pictures, then one calm place |
| Return or drift | about 30 seconds | Repeat the intention, then open your eyes or let sleep come |
Total: about 10 minutes. The script has about 550 spoken words, which take about 5.5 minutes at a slow 100 words a minute, plus about 4.5 minutes of marked pauses (12 pauses of 15 seconds and 3 long pauses of 30 seconds). Those are our assumptions, so time yourself once and adjust the pauses.
How to read it
- Voice. Lower and slower than normal speech. Do not whisper, and do not perform. A flat, warm voice works well.
- (pause) means about 3 slow breaths, roughly 15 seconds.
- (long pause) means about 6 slow breaths, roughly 30 seconds.
- Lines on their own are separate thoughts. Leave a short breath between them even when no pause is marked.
- Position. Lie on your back on a bed, a mat or the floor, with a pillow under your head and a blanket over you. If your back is uncomfortable, bend your knees or lie on your side.
A 10-minute yoga nidra script
Settle (about 1 minute)
Let your body find its position, and then let it be still.
There's nothing to fix and nowhere to go for the next ten minutes.
(pause)
Feel where your body touches the surface under you. The back of the head. The shoulders. The back. The backs of the legs. The heels.
Let the surface hold your weight. You don't have to hold anything up.
(pause)
Intention (under 1 minute)
Now choose a short sentence, in the present tense, that feels true or kind. For example: "I am allowed to rest." Or: "I can let this day end."
Say it silently, three times, slowly. Then let it go, like setting down a cup.
(pause)
Body rotation (about 3 minutes)
Now your attention will travel. You don't need to move or relax anything on purpose. Just touch each place with your mind when you hear its name, then move on.
Right hand. Right thumb. Index finger. Middle finger. Ring finger. Little finger. Palm. The back of the hand. Wrist. Forearm. Elbow. Upper arm. Shoulder.
Left hand. Left thumb. Index finger. Middle finger. Ring finger. Little finger. Palm. The back of the hand. Wrist. Forearm. Elbow. Upper arm. Shoulder.
(pause)
Right foot. Toes. Sole. Heel. Ankle. Shin. Calf. Knee. Thigh. Hip.
Left foot. Toes. Sole. Heel. Ankle. Shin. Calf. Knee. Thigh. Hip.
(pause)
The belly, rising and falling. The chest. The lower back. The upper back. The sides of the ribs.
(pause)
The throat. The back of the neck. The jaw. The tongue, resting in the mouth. The lips. The cheeks. The eyes, soft in their sockets. The space between the eyebrows. The forehead. The scalp. The whole head.
(pause)
Now the whole body at once. Everything you just touched, lying here together.
(long pause)
Breath (about 1.5 minutes)
Now let your attention rest on the breath. Don't change it. Just notice it coming in, and going out.
(pause)
We'll count backward from nine. Breathing in, nine. Breathing out, nine. Breathing in, eight. Breathing out, eight.
Keep going at your own pace, all the way down to one. If you lose count, start again at nine, or simply let the numbers go and keep the breath.
(long pause)
Opposites (about 1.5 minutes)
Now we'll feel some opposites. Just imagine each one and see what your body does with it.
Feel the body heavy. As if it were made of wet sand, sinking a little more with each breath out.
Now feel the body light. As if it were floating a finger's width above the surface.
(pause)
Feel warmth. A blanket warmed by the sun.
Feel coolness. Fresh air on the face.
(pause)
Now let go of both. You don't need to feel anything in particular.
(pause)
Images (about 1.5 minutes)
Pictures may come now. Let each one appear, stay a moment, and fade. You don't need to hold on to any of them.
A pencil line drawn slowly across white paper.
A kettle's steam rising and disappearing.
A wooden bench under a tree, in no hurry.
Rain on a window, seen from a warm room.
A single lamp, left on in a quiet hallway.
(pause)
Now let one calm place stay with you. It can be one of these, or somewhere you know well. You don't need to build it. Just rest there.
(long pause)
Return or drift (about 30 seconds)
Bring back your sentence, once, softly.
For the daytime: Notice the room and the sounds. Wiggle your fingers and toes, take one deeper breath, and open your eyes when you're ready. Turn onto your side before you sit up.
For sleep: Leave the room and the sounds as they are. There is nothing left to follow. If you are still awake, rest in the stillness of the body. If sleep comes, let it come.
Adapting the script
| You want | Change |
|---|---|
| Sleep | Do it in bed. Skip the return. Speak more slowly and let the last pause run as long as you like. |
| Waking in the night | Skip the intention and start at the body rotation. For more on this, see how to fall back asleep. |
| A daytime rest | Use the return. Set an alarm, since you may drift off. Avoid doing it right before something that needs you alert. |
| About 5 minutes | Settle, the intention, a shorter rotation (hands, feet, face) ending with the whole-body long pause, the breath counting, and the return. Leave out opposites and images. |
| About 20 minutes | Do the body rotation twice, the second time slower. Count the breath from twenty instead of nine. Make each pause twice as long. Do not add more words. |
If you want a script with a different feel, our body scan meditation goes more slowly through fewer places, and progressive muscle relaxation adds tensing and releasing. For a version made for bed, see our sleep meditation guide. For how yoga nidra compares with other practices, see yoga nidra vs meditation.
Tips for reading it well
- Read it once first. You will know where the pauses fall and which parts you want to shorten.
- Keep the order of the body parts. The predictability is the point. You do not have to decide where to go next.
- Do not wait for a feeling. Heavy, light, warm or cool may not show up. Imagining them is enough.
- If your mind wanders, that is fine. Come back to the next word you hear. Nothing is lost.
- Record at your own pace. A recording of your voice is easy to replay. Use your phone's voice memo app and leave the pauses as real silence.
- Keep sleep habits in mind. The NHS suggests going to bed and waking up at around the same time each day and giving yourself time to relax before bed. A script can be part of that wind-down.
Using it with the app
If you would rather listen than read, AI Meditation: Sleep & Calm writes a new meditation after a short mood check-in and reads it aloud with an AI voice. It also has guided meditations and sleep stories, soundscapes and a practice mode with a timer. Try it for free, no account needed. The app is a wellness app and is for adults. It does not diagnose or treat anything. See how the app works.
Your health
This page is general wellbeing information and not medical advice. NCCIH's fact sheet covers relaxation techniques in general, not yoga nidra specifically. It says they are generally considered safe for healthy people, but occasionally people report increased anxiety, intrusive thoughts or fear of losing control, and there have been rare reports of symptoms getting worse in people with epilepsy, certain psychiatric conditions, or a history of abuse or trauma. NCCIH also says that if you have severe or long-lasting symptoms of any kind, or if depression or anxiety persists, you should see a health care provider, and it encourages you to tell your health care providers about any complementary health approaches you use. The NHS says that if you regularly find it hard to fall asleep, stay asleep or wake up too early, you may have insomnia, and that if changing your sleep habits does not help you should speak to a GP. Our own suggestion, separate from those sources: open your eyes and stop if the practice feels unpleasant, and do not listen while driving.
What a script can and cannot do
A yoga nidra script is one way to practice slowing down on purpose. Be careful about sleep, though. NCCIH writes that relaxation techniques on their own "don't seem to be especially promising for sleep." So use the script for rest and wind-down, and do not rely on it alone if you regularly find it hard to fall or stay asleep. The health note above says when the NHS advises speaking to a GP. For the research, see our guide to yoga nidra and NSDR.
Sources
All pages accessed on October 15, 2026.
- NCCIH: Relaxation Techniques: What You Need To Know. Safety and side effects of relaxation techniques in general, when to see a health care provider, and that relaxation on its own does not seem especially promising for sleep.
- NHS Every Mind Matters: Sleep problems. A regular sleep routine with time to relax before bed, and insomnia and when to speak to a GP.
