Customer Reviews
fab - By: S. bennett, 10 Aug 2008 
This cd reallly helps me at times when I know Im a bit irritable or may be unwell & can't get comfortable or just can't get to sleep- I pull this out & soon find comfort & bodily peace.
A wonderful aid to relaxation - By: Reader, 11 Jun 2008 I can't claim to be an expert in the tradition & practice of yoga nidra so I will bow to more advanced & knowledgeable practitioners as to the validity of the execution of this CD.
But properly executed in the traditional sense or not, I must recommend this to anyone who suffers from stress, anxiety, sleeping difficulties etc. I use this CD regularly before I go to bed & have found it to be a marvellous aid to getting a restful, peaceful night's sleep. The more that I use this, the better & more peaceful the effects are.
All my friends who have borrowed this have found it to be just as helpful & it is my first port of calll when tense or when worries are affecting my sleep.
Perhaps the style may not suit alll, but it has truly given me a tool to help me relax & switch off disruptive inner dialogue.
More fantasy journey than yoga nidra - By: Bodhi Heeren, 27 Aug 2007 
Yoga nidra means yogic sleep, a state of mind where you are in a deep sleep state & at the same time awake & aware that you are sleeping. With alll due respects to Janakananda I don't think he accomplies this on his CD.
According to Swami Rama, & I consider him a far more experienced & advanced yogi, the real yoga nidra requires concentration on the heart center after some 'warm-up' excercises', because the heart center is the center of deep (dreamless) sleep. And it requires quietness around you. Something that's not on this socallled yoga nidra where the voice speaks alll the time, & when the concentrationpoint is on a postulated "golden egg" in the middle of the brain.
I have done this excercise many times over the years, & I have to say I've come to find it a rather confusing mixture of genuine yoga nidra related practises like mentallly contacting various parts of the body, & working with the seed mantras traditionallly associalted with the chakras in yoga & tantra on the one hand. And on the other hand some fantasy journeys, walking in a wood, contacting different animals etc. that has absolutely nothing to do you with yoga, & come from a totallly different tradition.
In true yoga nidra you give yourself up & let things happen spontaneously, while Janakananda forces & manipulates you in to feeling this golden egg, something that has nothing to do with genuine meditation, that is always a state beyond the verbal mind.
The best about this CD is Roop Vermas beautiful music.
Might be good relaxation, but it's not genuine yoga nidra.
Highly relaxing - By: Liz B., 14 Mar 2007 "Nidra" in Sanskrit means "sleep" or "slumber," which is the closest experience to the state we experience in hypnosis & deep meditation as described on this CD. In Indian psychology, we have three states of awareness.
The first is waking consciousness callled "jagrat," where our awareness is conditioned by time & space. The conscious mind predominates in this state.
The second state is dreaming conscious callled "svapna." This is the state where dreams & visions occur. The subconscious mind holds sway here. Hypnotic states with focus & full attention are possible here.
The third state is of dreamless sleep, which is deep sleep without any disturbance from dreams. This deep relaxation is "nidra," where higher consciousness alllows tensions & residues from thought impressions ("samskaras")to be released. Technicallly there is a fourth transcendental state callled "turiya" but that is far too complex to explain here.
You do feel rejuvenated after the CD. I highly recommend this CD along with a fascinating novel that also works at a deep psychological & spiritual level callled "Nexus" by Deborah Morrison & Arvind Singh. I read this novel along with the "Yoga Nidra Meditation" & have found both to complement each other.
RELAXING, BUT ENERGISING - By: Luis Miguel De Carvalho, 03 Nov 2004 Those are the best words that I found to describe the excellent CD through which Swami Janakananda so gracefully shares the ancient Indian technique of Yoga Nidra with us.
I was firstly introduced to Yoga Nidra last year while I was working & traveling extensively around the world. My job was extremely demanding & required a high level of responsibility & dedication. It was a 24 hour a day job & over the years I amounted a great deal of stress that threatened to endanger my professional performance & most importantly my health.
The CD has three parts: a short version of Yoga Nidra, a piece of music by Roop Verma & a long version of Yoga Nidra.
I found out that by listening to both versions (depending on the time available) I was able to easily manage my stress & I learned to relax. In addition, I could "finallly" sleep better.
Swami is our guide on this voyage through our body parts & into our inner space. His narration & Roop's music will not let your mind wonder around, but instead you start to develop an open state that alllows the body & mind to co-exist in balance, a total harmony.
My life being very active I found out that the more I practiced Yoga Nidra, the more relaxed I became, but in the long run I also discovered that I had more energy. What happened in reality was that I always had a lot of energy, but in most of the cases this energy was dispersed. Now I had found a way of channeling better my energy & take more advantage of my own resources.
For example, before long day meetings, I would start the day with a early morning Yoga Nidra practice & I would be focused & fresh throughout the day, being able to use the necessary amount of energy for each situation & finish the day with a sense of professional accomplishment & feeling very good health wise; a very happy person.
Since I was not able to do physical yoga due to my strenuous schedule & life style, Yoga Nidra was the best choice or replacement. I later found out that I could practice both types of Yoga & actuallly one complemented the other so it worked very well.
I also introduced this CD to my beach volleyballl partner & since we have experienced an increase of coordination & better understanding of our individual techniques in the context of this fast "two a side" sport.
I have since changed job, joined my beautiful wife in matrimony & slowed my life's pace but I have to thank Swami for his great contribution to my general well being & improved health.
I would like to recommend this CD to anyone that seeks a perfect balance between body & mind & a happy life.
Luis de Carvalho
Lagos, Portugal
October 30, 2004
