A 20-Minute Yoga Nidra for Sleep, Written Out in Full

Written and reviewed by The Kriya Yogi · Updated 22 September 2026

Yoga Nidra is a twentieth-century method of guided lying-down relaxation, systematised by Swami Satyananda Saraswati in the 1970s, drawing on older tantric ideas but assembled as the structured practice known today well after the classical period. It is not something described in the Hatha Yoga Pradipika or the Yoga Sutras, and it isn't a treatment for sleep disorders. What follows is a full script you can read to yourself or have someone read to you, written so it can be followed without an audio recording.

The short answers

Yoga Nidra is a modern method, developed by Swami Satyananda Saraswati and popularised through his book Yoga Nidra (1976), not a classical text practice.
This script includes a full rotation of consciousness — moving attention through named body parts in sequence — written out in complete sentences with pauses marked.
The whole practice is done lying still (in savasana or your normal sleep position) for the full twenty minutes; there is no movement between stages.
It is normal, and considered acceptable within the method, to fall asleep before the script finishes.
This is a relaxation practice, not a treatment for insomnia, sleep apnoea, or any other sleep disorder.
Fuller, longer Yoga Nidra scripts, including variations for different purposes, are collected at /resources/nidra-scripts.

The routine, minute by minute

Settling
Lie down, let the feet fall open, arms resting slightly away from the body, palms up. Close the eyes. Feel the weight of the body on the surface beneath you. Commit to staying still for the rest of the practice.
Setting a resolve (sankalpa)
Bring to mind a short, positive, present-tense statement, such as 'I am at ease' or 'I sleep deeply and wake refreshed.' Repeat it silently three times with feeling, then let it go.
Rotation of consciousness
Move attention in sequence through the right hand and arm, right side of the trunk and leg, then the left hand and arm, left side of the trunk and leg, then the back of the body, then the crown, face, throat and abdomen — pausing briefly at each named part without moving anything physically. Finish by feeling the whole body at once.
Breath awareness
Without changing the breath, feel it moving at the nostrils — the coolness on the inhale, the warmth on the exhale. Optionally count backwards from twenty-seven to one, one number per full breath, restarting gently if you lose count.
Opposite sensations
Imagine heaviness spreading through the body, then lightness. Imagine warmth, then coolness. Let each sensation be imagined loosely rather than forced.
Visualisation
Picture a calm night sky, then a still body of water, then a quiet familiar room, letting each image arise and fade without dwelling on it.
Return of the resolve
Bring the original resolve back to mind and repeat it silently three times with the same feeling as at the start.
Closing
Let the practice end in its own time. If sleep is already arriving, allow it. If practising earlier in the evening, take a moment before getting up to return to ordinary waking alertness.

What Yoga Nidra actually is, and isn't

It's worth being precise here, because Yoga Nidra is one of the most misdescribed practices in modern yoga writing. The term itself — "yogic sleep" — appears in tantric literature centuries earlier, but the structured, step-by-step practice taught and sold under that name today was assembled in the twentieth century by Swami Satyananda Saraswati, a disciple of Swami Sivananda, and published in his book Yoga Nidra in 1976. Satyananda drew on older tantric concepts of the body and on the concept of pratyahara (sense withdrawal) from the classical eight-limb framework, but the specific sequence — resolve, rotation of consciousness, breath awareness, opposite sensations, visualisation, closing resolve — is his systematisation, not a text you'll find in the Hatha Yoga Pradipika or the Gheranda Samhita.

This matters for two reasons. First, honesty: presenting it as ancient misleads people about where it comes from. Second, it explains the shape of the practice: it's built for a modern context, lying flat, done alone or guided by a recording, designed to be accessible without years of prior training — which is exactly why it works reasonably well as a bedtime practice.

Why it suits the end of the day

Because the practitioner stays still and mostly passive throughout — there is no seated posture to hold, no breath ratio to count precisely — Yoga Nidra removes most of the physical effort that other practices require. The main task is staying awake enough to follow the voice (yours or a recording's) while relaxed enough that falling asleep before the end is entirely normal and, within the tradition itself, not treated as a failure.

The twenty minutes, written out in full

Read this slowly to yourself in your head, or record yourself reading it aloud at an unhurried pace with real pauses, and play it back. Lie down on your back if that's comfortable for you; otherwise use your normal sleep position.

0:00–1:30 — Settling. Lie down and let your body go completely still. Let your feet fall open. Let your arms rest a little away from your body, palms facing up if that's comfortable. Close your eyes. (Pause.) Take a moment to feel the surface underneath you — the mattress, the pillow, the weight of your body sinking into it. (Pause.) You do not need to move again for the rest of this practice.

1:30–2:30 — Setting a resolve (sankalpa). Bring to mind a short, simple, positive statement — something you'd like to carry with you, stated in the present tense, such as "I am at ease" or "I sleep deeply and wake refreshed." (Pause.) Repeat it silently to yourself three times, with feeling, as if it were already true. (Pause, pause, pause.) Let it go now; it will keep working quietly in the background.

2:30–10:30 — Rotation of consciousness. Bring your attention, without moving anything, to each part of the body in turn, simply noticing it before moving on. Move at the pace of your own inner voice.

Right hand thumb. (Pause.) Right hand second finger. (Pause.) Third finger. (Pause.) Fourth finger. (Pause.) Little finger. (Pause.) Palm of the right hand. (Pause.) Back of the right hand. (Pause.) Right wrist. (Pause.) Right forearm. (Pause.) Right elbow. (Pause.) Right upper arm. (Pause.) Right shoulder. (Pause.) Right side of the chest. (Pause.) Right waist. (Pause.) Right hip. (Pause.) Right thigh. (Pause.) Right knee. (Pause.) Right calf. (Pause.) Right ankle. (Pause.) Right heel. (Pause.) Sole of the right foot. (Pause.) Right big toe. (Pause.) Second toe. (Pause.) Third toe. (Pause.) Fourth toe. (Pause.) Little toe. (Pause, longer.)

Now the left side, at the same unhurried pace. Left hand thumb. (Pause.) Second finger. (Pause.) Third finger. (Pause.) Fourth finger. (Pause.) Little finger. (Pause.) Palm of the left hand. (Pause.) Back of the left hand. (Pause.) Left wrist. (Pause.) Left forearm. (Pause.) Left elbow. (Pause.) Left upper arm. (Pause.) Left shoulder. (Pause.) Left side of the chest. (Pause.) Left waist. (Pause.) Left hip. (Pause.) Left thigh. (Pause.) Left knee. (Pause.) Left calf. (Pause.) Left ankle. (Pause.) Left heel. (Pause.) Sole of the left foot. (Pause.) Left big toe. (Pause.) Second toe. (Pause.) Third toe. (Pause.) Fourth toe. (Pause.) Little toe. (Pause, longer.)

Now the back of the body, briefly. Back of the head. (Pause.) Right shoulder blade. (Pause.) Left shoulder blade. (Pause.) Spine, top to bottom. (Pause.) Right buttock. (Pause.) Left buttock. (Pause, longer.)

And the front of the trunk and face, one region at a time. Top of the head. (Pause.) Forehead. (Pause.) Right eyebrow. (Pause.) Left eyebrow. (Pause.) Space between the eyebrows. (Pause.) Right eye. (Pause.) Left eye. (Pause.) Right ear. (Pause.) Left ear. (Pause.) Nose. (Pause.) Right cheek. (Pause.) Left cheek. (Pause.) Lips. (Pause.) Chin. (Pause.) Throat. (Pause.) Chest. (Pause.) Navel. (Pause.) Whole abdomen. (Pause, long.) Now feel the whole body at once, lying completely still. (Pause, long.)

10:30–13:30 — Breath awareness. Without changing it, become aware of your natural breath. (Pause.) Notice the breath moving in and out at the nostrils. (Pause.) Notice the slight coolness of the air on the inhale, and the slight warmth on the exhale. (Pause.) If it helps, silently count the breaths backwards from twenty-seven to one, counting one full inhale-exhale as one number, and if you lose count, simply begin again wherever feels natural. (Long pause for counting.)

13:30–16:00 — Opposite sensations. Bring to mind the feeling of heaviness — imagine your whole body becoming heavy, sinking into the surface beneath you. (Pause, long.) Now the opposite: imagine your body becoming light, as though it could float. (Pause, long.) Bring to mind warmth spreading through the body. (Pause.) Now coolness. (Pause.) These are only imagined sensations; there's no need to force them, just let the mind briefly visit each one.

16:00–18:00 — Visualisation. Picture, one at a time and without dwelling, a few simple images: a calm night sky. (Pause.) A still body of water. (Pause.) A quiet room you know well. (Pause, long.) Let each image arise and fade without holding onto it.

18:00–19:00 — Return of the resolve. Bring back to mind the short statement you set at the start. (Pause.) Repeat it silently to yourself three times, once more with the same feeling. (Long pause.)

19:00–20:00 — Closing. Let the practice come to an end in your own time. There's no need to move quickly or open your eyes with intention — if you're already drifting into sleep, that's exactly where this practice is meant to lead. If you're doing this earlier in the evening rather than lying in bed, take your time returning to a normal, waking state of alertness before getting up.

More scripts, and a caution

If a twenty-minute rotation of consciousness suits you, longer and shorter variations, including ones built around different resolves, are collected at /resources/nidra-scripts. As with any relaxation practice, Yoga Nidra is not a treatment for insomnia or sleep apnoea, and persistent sleep problems deserve a doctor's attention rather than a longer script.

Cautions worth reading

This routine is a relaxation practice, not a treatment for insomnia or sleep apnoea. If you have persistent trouble sleeping, snore heavily, wake gasping for breath, or feel excessively sleepy during the day, see a doctor rather than relying on breathing or relaxation practice alone.
Yoga Nidra is a twentieth-century relaxation method, not a classical text practice, and it makes no claim to cure or manage insomnia, sleep apnoea, or any other diagnosed condition.
Falling asleep during the practice is normal and, within the method itself, not considered a failure.
If lying still for twenty minutes triggers restlessness, discomfort, or anxiety, it's reasonable to stop and try a shorter routine instead.
This script is not a substitute for treatment of trauma-related sleep disturbance; if lying still and silent brings up distress, work with a qualified practitioner rather than a written script.

Where the evidence stands

Research on Yoga Nidra for sleep and relaxation is growing but remains limited: most studies are small, many rely on self-reported outcomes rather than objective sleep measurement, follow-up periods are typically short, and comparison conditions vary considerably between trials, making it hard to isolate Yoga Nidra's specific effect from general relaxation or expectation effects. Some trials report improvements in perceived sleep quality and reduced self-reported stress after regular practice, but the evidence base does not support describing it as a validated treatment for insomnia or any other sleep disorder.

Questions people ask

+ Is Yoga Nidra an ancient practice?

The term is old, appearing in earlier tantric literature, but the structured practice taught today — resolve, rotation of consciousness, breath awareness, opposite sensations, visualisation, closing resolve — was systematised by Swami Satyananda Saraswati and published in his 1976 book Yoga Nidra. It's accurate to call it a twentieth-century method with older roots, not a classical text practice.

+ Is it okay to fall asleep during Yoga Nidra?

Yes. Falling asleep before the script finishes is common and is not treated as a failure of the practice, particularly when it's done at bedtime rather than earlier in the day.

+ What is the rotation of consciousness in Yoga Nidra?

It's the stage where attention is guided in sequence through named parts of the body, one at a time, without any physical movement, as a way of drawing attention inward and away from ordinary thought.

+ How is Yoga Nidra different from a body scan meditation?

They're closely related — both move attention through the body while lying still — but Yoga Nidra as a specific method also includes a resolve, breath awareness, opposite sensations and visualisation stages within a defined structure, rather than only a body scan.

+ Can Yoga Nidra cure insomnia?

No. It's a relaxation practice, and while some people find it helpful as part of a wind-down routine, it is not a validated treatment for insomnia or any other sleep disorder, and persistent sleep problems should be assessed by a doctor.

+ Do I need a recording to practise Yoga Nidra, or can I read the script myself?

Either works. Many people prefer a recorded voice so they don't have to keep track of the script, but reading it to yourself beforehand, or recording your own voice reading it slowly, works just as well.

Sources

Swami Satyananda Saraswati, *Yoga Nidra* (Bihar School of Yoga, 1976) — the foundational modern text systematising the practice.
James Mallinson & Mark Singleton, *Roots of Yoga* (Penguin Classics, 2017) — on the earlier tantric use of the term 'yogic sleep' and its relationship to the modern method.
*Hatha Yoga Pradipika* (Svatmarama) and *Gheranda Samhita* — consulted to confirm that the structured rotation-of-consciousness sequence does not appear in the classical hatha corpus. Sanskrit with translation: Brian Dana Akers, YogaVidya.com.
Datta K, Tripathi M, Verma M, Masiwal D, Mallick HN, "Yoga Nidra practice shows improvement in sleep in patients with chronic insomnia: A randomised controlled trial," *National Medical Journal of India* (2021) — a small trial illustrating both promising direction and the limits of current evidence.

All twelve routines are listed on the routines index.

Educational content, not medical advice. Check with a doctor before starting new practices if you have a health condition or are pregnant.