Nature works through rhythms in time. Our bodies thrive when we synchronize them with the seasonal, lunar, daily and time of life rhythms.
Researchers and ancient medical systems like Ayurveda have long described biological clocks and Nobel Prize-winning researchers into circadian medicine now understand exactly how they work.
The Ayurvedic clock takes us through 4 hour intervals throughout the day, with digestive strength being greater at midday and detox activity being greater at night. When we pay attention to these rhythm changes and organize our activities to flow with them, we invite more potential and more ease into our lives.
For example, waking up before sunrise to meditate taps into the uncluttered, pure vata energy that is experienced between 2am and 6am. In Ayurveda this time of day is called Brahma Muhurta and is considered sacred. When we meditate during these hours we access deeper intuition and greater mental clarity since the mind has had relatively few experiences at that point in the day.The next time vata energy is predominant is between 2pm and 6pm making this an optimal time to plan work that requires intuitive thinking, concentration, creative work or problem solving.
Pitta energy predominates between 10am and 2pm and 10pm and 2am. During the daytime, pitta energy offers up the power of productivity, mobility and transformation. A great example of the this would be digestion, which is at its strongest in the middle of the day. Between 10am and 2pm is a good time to get ‘busy’ work done like chores, shopping or manual labour in the house or garden. And at night, Pitta energy gets to work on the alchemy of transforming our days thoughts, emotional experiences and food, into nourishment.
Kapha energy is available between 6am and 10am and again from 6pm to 10pm. Notice how at the end of the day your body starts to slow down, your eyelids begin to feel heavy and you feel less like getting deep into conversation or difficult discussions, this is your body naturally tapping into kapha energy. Slow, sticky and delicious! This is your body signaling that it wants to wind down and get ready for deep rest. We can experience the same slow, sticky kapha energy in the morning when we wake up, particularly if we sleep too long or too late. The energies of vata, pitta and kapha are constantly fluctuating throughout the day and there is mounting evidence that we may be more sensitive to these timing cues than scientists ever imagined. Ayurveda is founded on this very principle.
