The Paradox of Rest and Awakening – The Philosophy of Yoga Nidra
- Brainz Magazine
- Nov 5
- 7 min read
Updated: 4 days ago
Written by Ayla Nova, Trauma-Informed Yoga Nidra Educator
Ayla Nova is a Yoga Nidra guide and founder of the Peace in Rest program, supporting thousands to restore their nervous systems through deep rest, radical self-acceptance, and trauma-informed practice.
I first came to Yoga Nidra out of fascination. Something about it captured me. The way it wove between waking and dreaming, how it could open doorways into lucid states of consciousness, and how effortless it seemed compared to the rigid discipline of other meditation practices. For me, it began as curiosity, as a play with awareness.
But then, in 2018, everything changed. I was diagnosed with a rare form of leukemia and told my prognosis was terminal. Suddenly, my playful curiosity met the raw edge of survival. Rest was no longer a mystical experiment. It became medicine.
Yoga Nidra shifted from being a practice I enjoyed to a practice I needed. It became the space where I could surrender to something larger than my pain. A practice where my nervous system could soften, and where I could have a touchpoint of steadiness beyond fear. No longer about lucid dreams or altered states, it became a lifeline, a transformative tool that allowed me to remember wholeness, even in the midst of illness.
And this is where the paradox of Yoga Nidra reveals itself. It is both the most effortless practice I know and one of the most profound paths of awakening. It is lying down and letting go, and at the same time, it is rooted in a philosophy that dares to ask the oldest questions of the human spirit.
Who am I?
What is my purpose?
What does it mean to awaken?
The paradox of seeking and resting
We live in a culture that worships the seeker, always chasing productivity, achievement, and even spiritual growth. We are taught that the way forward is through striving. But what if the deepest transformation does not come from effort at all?
Yoga Nidra reveals a contradiction I have had to learn again and again. To rest in the deepest 'Self', one must first seek. Yet to seek too hard is to miss the rest.
This paradox is not unique to Yoga Nidra. It echoes across the world’s philosophies. In Advaita Vedanta, the 'Self' is untouched by phenomena. In Buddhism, the insight is emptiness. In Taoism, it is the Dao, the effortless way of things. In Kashmir Shaivism, it is Shiva, pure awareness, vibrating as Shakti, the pulse of creation itself.
When I lie down to practice, I feel it all, nothing and everything. Shiva as the silent witness. In the context of Yoga Nidra, Shiva represents pure awareness, the unchanging aspect of our being that observes all experiences without getting involved. Shakti is the rise and fall of breath, the warmth in my palms, the thought that insists on knocking at my door. Rest, in this sense, is not absence but remembering.
Try: Yoga Nidra for Calming the Mind
Mythic roots, gods who rest
Long before Spotify playlists and neuroscience labs, Yoga Nidra was alive in myth.
In the Mahabharata, Vishnu is described as resting in Yoga Nidra on the cosmic ocean, floating on the serpent Ananta. From this slumber, entire worlds are born and dissolved. His sleep is not idleness but creation itself.
And in the Vedas, rest is spoken of as a sacred principle woven into the dance of creation and dissolution. It is the pause through which life restores itself.
Centuries later, in the 20th century, Swami Satyananda Saraswati offered Yoga Nidra as a systematic practice for modern people. His scripts for relaxation and subconscious healing gained widespread popularity, spreading the practice into classrooms, hospitals, and homes. Today, neuroscientists like Andrew Huberman call it NSDR, Non Sleep Deep Rest, while trauma therapists weave it into recovery work. Yet beneath the new names, the root remains unchanged. Yoga Nidra was never just about sleep. It has always been about remembering.
Kashmir Shaivism, Shiva, Shakti, and Spanda
The philosophy most resonant with Yoga Nidra is Kashmir Shaivism, a nondual tradition of Tantra. At its heart is a simple, daring vision. Everything is an expression of one supreme consciousness.
Shiva is awareness itself. Shakti is the creative force, ever in motion. Their union is spanda, the subtle throb of existence, the vibration that births galaxies and beats in every heart.
Yoga Nidra echoes this vision. To rest as awareness is to rest as Shiva. To welcome every sensation, thought, or memory is to honour Shakti. Instead of pushing the world away, as some traditions emphasize, Yoga Nidra embraces the world as consciousness unfolding.
This means that even the distractions, the itch in the leg, the hum of traffic, the thought about tomorrow’s meeting, are not intrusions. They are part of the dance. Shakti, the dynamic aspect of consciousness, is moving across the field of awareness, constantly creating new experiences and sensations.
The layers of being, duality and nonduality
The Upanishads describe five koshas, or sheaths of being.
Annamaya, the physical body
Pranāmaya, the energy body
Manomaya, the mental and emotional body
Vijnanamaya, the inner wisdom body
Anandamaya, the bliss body
Yoga Nidra guides us gently through these layers. We notice the weight of the body, the tide of the breath, the swirl of thought, the subtle taste of bliss. And then, something else emerges, the unwavering witness.
Here lies another paradox. We speak of peeling away layers to find the 'Self'. Yet the 'Self' was never hidden. It is present in every sensation, every breath, every passing thought.
Traditions describe this recognition differently.
Advaita Vedanta, liberation is dissolving individuality into pure consciousness
Buddhism, awakening is release into emptiness
Taoism, freedom is effortless alignment with the Dao
Kashmir Shaivism, liberation is recognition, pratyabhijna, knowing oneself as Shiva while still delighting in Shakti’s play
Yoga Nidra becomes a living metaphor. Each practice is a microcosm of enlightenment, a cycle of identification, dissolution, and resting as awareness.
Try: The Ultimate Yoga Nidra, Yogic Sleep, 50 Minutes
What is unchanging?
All traditions point to an underlying constancy.
Vedanta, the eternal Self
Buddhism, the law of impermanence
Shaivism, the eternal vibration of consciousness
Taoism, the Dao, flowing without end
Different names, same ground.
For me, lying on the mat after chemo is when the ground became my heartbeat beneath the fear. It was the steady witness that remained when everything else felt shattered. Rest became recognition of what could not be taken from me.
Practice as lived philosophy
On the surface, Yoga Nidra seems simple. Lie down. Notice the body. Follow the breath. Witness the story. Welcome the dream. Rest as awareness.
But each stage embodies philosophy.
Body scan, honouring Shakti in form
Breath awareness, Dao in motion
Visualization, mind shaping reality
Awareness of awareness, Shiva, the unchanging witness
It is relaxation, yes, but also a living enactment of nonduality.
Try: Yoga Nidra for Letting Go, 45 Minutes
Why this matters now
We are a society of seekers, seeking productivity, seeking better sleep, seeking meaning. But endless seeking without rest leaves us anxious, depleted, estranged from ourselves.
Yoga Nidra offers another way, transformation through letting be. For professionals, it is about resetting the nervous system. For trauma survivors, it becomes a safe window or doorway. For spiritual seekers, a glimpse of awakening.
Twenty minutes can calm the body, ease the mind, and bring sleep. But perhaps more importantly, it reminds us. We are not our exhaustion, our stories, or our fears. We are the awareness that holds them all.
Rest as revolution
In a culture that glorifies hustle or you are hopeless, rest becomes a radical act of defiance. Yoga Nidra teaches us that stopping is not weakness but strength. Yet it does not promise only love and light. When we slow down enough to listen, the parts of ourselves buried under striving often rise to the surface. Grief, anger, loneliness, exhaustion. Rest strips away the masks we wear to keep moving.
This is why embodiment is a doorway into peace and a shadow into it. To lie still is to meet the fullness of being, the raw and the radiant. And it is in holding both that awakening becomes possible, in the simple act of lying down and letting be.
For me, Yoga Nidra began as a fascination, evolved into a form of medicine, and has grown into a lifelong companion. A practice that continues to reveal, rest is beyond recovery. It is a revelation. And sometimes that revelation is tender and luminous. Other times, it is uncomfortable and dark. Both are necessary. Both are true.
That is the essence of enlightenment, not escape into light, nor denial of shadow, but recognition of the whole.
To rest is Shiva. To seek is Shakti. And their union, the play of light and dark, silence and pulse, is Yoga Nidra itself.
Rest well. Be well
If this exploration resonates, I invite you to experience Yoga Nidra for yourself. You can find free practices on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcast, and more, or join us inside the Nova Nidra Community, where rest is not just a practice but a way of life. Together, we learn to embrace both the light and the shadow, remembering the wholeness that was always there.
Read more from Ayla Nova
Ayla Nova, Trauma-Informed Yoga Nidra Educator
Ayla Nova is a Yoga Nidra educator, podcast host, and founder of Nova Nidra. After overcoming a rare form of leukemia in 2018, she dedicated her life to sharing the healing power of rest. Her signature Peace in Rest program helps individuals and professionals transform stress, anxiety, and burnout into resilience and calm. Ayla’s trauma-informed approach blends yogic wisdom, neuroscience, and storytelling to meet people exactly where they are. She also certifies Yoga Nidra teachers through the Nova Nidra Teacher Training. Ayla shares guided practices and education through YouTube, Spotify, and her online community.
