Integrative Restoration with Richard Miller

Anahata Press; www.nondual.com

By Richard Rosen

Yoga Nidra (yogic sleep) is a collection of simple relaxation techniques based on an ancient practice of self-investigation. The aim is to uncover and release repressed unconscious material. As a metaphor, the sleeping yogi, like the rest of us when asleep, is oblivious to her limited self and the world around her; but when she's asleep, she's "awake" to her infinite Self, which is the goal of all schools of yoga.

These and other principles of Yoga Nidra are explained in nearly four hours of instruction and five in-depth practices in this six-CD set. The practice itself is fairly simple. Performed sitting or reclining, Yoga Nidra employs a host of relatively familiar meditation techniques—breath awareness, body scanning, visualization, and positive reinforcement—to achieve a state of deep relaxation. In our high-stress society, this benefit in itself is worth the price of admission.

You're also guided to explore the hidden recesses of your psyche in order to deconstruct false assumptions about yourself and about your relationship with the world, which, ideally, will reveal your authentic nature.

Miller, a psychologist, yoga teacher, and the founder of the Center of Timeless Being in Sebastopol, California, has refined the practice and made it accessible to all.