Ayurveda states that the health of a woman depends mainly on three things: optimum sleep, optimum diet and regulated sex. In my opinion, these are equally important for men too.

  Although sleep is considered ignorance, it is still necessary for the proper functioning of our body. But the more a person is influenced by ignorance, the more he wants to sleep unnecessarily. People in sattva require less time for sleeping – medical research suggests that only four hours sleep is sufficient for most people. Although it is widely believed that we need to sleep at least eight hours daily, people with an interesting life and exciting goals often find they don’t need as much – especially if the sleep is properly regulated.

  Sleep between 9 p.m. and 1 a.m. is the most valuable, since at this time the nervous system is resting and the long-term memory is not working. Therefore, a person in sattva tries to sleep at this time for optimum rest. We may note that in nature most species of life also sleep at this time; only modern tamasic-rajasic people are awake…
Take heed! The concept of “night owls” and “early birds” has developed only recently because in the past practically everyone was an early bird. Scientists in Canada –where perhaps the largest percentage of a country’s population suffer from insomnia – assert that all problems with insomnia began when people started to go to bed late.
                              

6.1. Preparing for Sleep.

To derive the greatest benefit from sleeping, there are several recommendations.

  1. Ayurveda recommends not taking a shower up to two hours before sleeping – showering weakens the energy field of the body and aggravates the nervous system, especially if the water is cold. If it is necessary to shower, then the water should be warm.

   2. Avoid eating prior to sleeping because the food will not be digested and will turn to toxins and fat. It is excellent to drink slightly sweetened warm milk at this time – it calms the nervous system and strengthens the intellect. The first rule for those who want a big belly – eat after 6 p.m.! And if the food is in ignorance or passion (white bread or meat, for example), after only a few weeks you will be able to make all your friends happy by showing your huge jelly belly. And you will want to sleep more and more. However, if you are hungry, a small quantity of steamed vegetables, nuts or bananas may be eaten.
 
  3. Whatever we do or hear before sleeping enters our sub-consciousness, therefore, it is not a good idea to watch or read anything disturbing. Better to read something spiritual (but not overly philosophical), or meditate, or chant some prayers. It is also better not to sleep just after counting money, which intensifies greed. If you lend some money at this time, be prepared to not get it back, and that the borrower may become your enemy.
 
    4. The room where you sleep should be clean and well ventilated. Be especially vigilant in choosing the various pictures and books which are in your bedroom – whatever they represent leaves an imprint in your consciousness and enters the sub-consciousness during sleep. Pictures should be of pleasant, peaceful landscapes, and books should be in sattva, or, better, keep holy books near your head. The TV must be in another room or, even better, in another house!

6.2. Practical Recommendations for Sleeping
 

  In Ayurveda it is said that the duration of human life is determined by the  number of breaths we take – the quicker the breath, the shorter the life. Therefore, Ayurveda recommends leading a sattvic lifestyle, which strengthens immunity. Rajas and tamas, however, destroy immunity and increase incorrect breathing. Breathing increases when negative emotions are experienced (such as fear, anger or mental anxiety), and also from excessive physical activity, or sex, and, as strangely as it sounds, during sleeping. The length of exhales is 10800 centimetres (108 meters) during a half-hour period of tranquil wakefulness and 27000 centimetres (270 meters) during the same period of sleeping.  In this way, an extra 30 minutes of sleep results in the loss of three-quarters of an hour of life. One’s breathing also increases while suffering from many types of disease.

   Throughout life we are all subjected to the influence of different varieties of energies and fields, such as solar energy, as well as the magnetic storms on the Sun, the magnetic field of the Earth, the gravitational pull of the Moon.
The human body possesses magnetic characteristics similar to the Earth planet, therefore, one should not sleep with his head pointing north or north-east.   

  The Earth’s magnetic field runs from north to south, as does the human magnetic field from head to feet. In this way, if one sleeps with his head toward the north then his magnetic field is overcome by the magnetic field of the Earth which can generate problems with the circulatory system, rapidly increase the heartbeat and worsen general state of health. As two magnets react when their north-poles are pushed together, so the aura of one who sleeps with his head pointing north is disturbed. After waking up, such a person will not feel rested or cheerful. But one who sleeps pointing south has his magnetic field interact correctly with the magnetic field of the Earth, and thus he wakes up feeling jolly and full of energy.

 6.3. Early to Bed, Early to Rise, Makes a Man Happy, Healthy and Wise

  In order to get rid of the mode of ignorance upon waking, it is important to immediately have a shower and brush your teeth. It is desirable to evacuate the bowels before taking a shower. During the night the body produces toxins, and if you do not go to the toilet or take a shower before 9 a.m., then the toxins are again absorbed by the body.  
A.S. Pushkin said, “Blessed is one who passes stool every morning without any force.” One famous ayurvedic doctor confirmed: “One of the main rules of good health – evacuate the bowels in the morning; if that does not happen, then soon there will be disease.”

  The guna of goodness is symptomised by knowledge of the purpose of life, and by our life being stimulating and filled with integrity. Conversely, ignorance is destructive from beginning to end – the more our consciousness is absorbed in ignorance, the more we want to sleep, watch TV serials, and associate with the modes of ignorance and passion.

  The time of sattva  is roughly 4 a.m. to 9 a.m.  Many people ask, “But what would we do if we got up so early?” At this time there is very little desire (at least for most people) to drink alcohol, swear, watch movies or such like. This time is actually assigned for prayer, meditation, study, planning for the future – the long-term memory works at full power during this time. Taking advantage of these hours gives one a positive charge for the whole day.  In America there is a club for millionaires, or materially successful people, and all the members have to get up before 5 a.m. – not to speak of the spiritual benefits of rising early.

  “Early to bed and early to rise, makes a man happy, healthy and wise,” says one famous proverb. The energy of sattva, of happiness and tranquility, can saturate our life if we allow it.

  Just as I was ready to send this book for printing, I received an anonymous article from an internet-forum. Because the article contains many quotations which can be found on easily available ayurvedic sites and in books, I decided to include it in the book.

Brahma-muhurta

    Masters of Ayurveda consider a suitable daily routine to be a powerful therapy for improving health, and many have devoted the initial chapters of their authorised manuscripts to this field. Dinachary, or constantly following a standard daily routine, is one of the best forms of conduct because it allows one to remain in harmony, and to prevent (and cure) diseases.

Vagbhata, in “Ashtanga Hridayam”, begins describing a daily routine with the following words:

brahme muhurta uttisthet svastho raksartham ayusah

  “Get up from sleeping during the Brahma-muhurta for preservation of your health and life itself.”

  brahma – corresponds to Brahman, saint, sacred, or divine; sacred knowledge prescribed by the Vedas; and sacred science, study of sacred texts, or study of the Vedas.

  muhūrta – a moment, instant, or any short interval of time; a defined period of time, 1/3 part of a day, the 48 minutes period.  

  The time for receiving spiritual knowledge and happiness is known as Brahma-muhurta. According to the Vedic calculation, a twenty-four hour day is divided into eight yamas (three hours). Day and night lasts three yamas (nine hours). Each of the two yamas that are left consists of two sandhyas (ninety minutes) – the time of the ascent and setting of the Sun. When day and night are equal, they consist of fifteen muhurtas. Therefore, a muhurta is forty-eight minutes long. The Brahma-muhurta is the penultimate, the fourteenth muhurta of the dark time of a twenty-four hour day.                                                  

  According to Ayurveda, a person wanting to be healthy needs to get up two muhurtas before the sunrise. For the tropical latitude of South India this is 4.30 a.m.

  According to the place or season of the year, the time of sunrise changes, but the duration of a sandhya always remains the same. Therefore, the Brahma-muhurta always begins one and a half hours before dawn.

  Waking from sleep in the Brahma-muhurta allows the whole day to begin and progress calmly and cheerfully. This is the time when sattva-guna predominates and all energies harmonise. Rajas starts with sunrise. From sunset tamas prevails. Before sunrise the atmosphere is pervaded by sattva. There is no other time specified for sattva. At this time there is a flow of positive energy which  creates  the best conditions for meditation, and this is the most beneficial time of the day. Getting up at this time, we can synchronise our rhythm with the rhythm of the Sun. Awakening in the Brahma-muhurta increases and sustains the best qualities of our nature – svabhava – and allows us to become established in it: this condition is called svastha. Svastha is veritable health, the achievement of which is possible only when one becomes established in virtue and goodness.

  The Brahma-muhurta is the best time for paying respect to elders and gurus, offering prayers, and for meditation, reading scriptures and chanting holy names. The goddess of fortune turns away from one who does not perform these morning rituals.    

   Sri Chanakya-niti-sastra (15.4) states:

  “For one who dresses himself in dirty clothes, does not clean his teeth, eats as a glutton, speaks malevolently and swears, and who also sees dreams after the ascent of the Sun, the goddess of fortune Sri Laksmi abandons him, be him Narayana Himself.” 

  Thus prosperity, health, beauty and freshness leave even a very important person, if he gets up after the sunrise.  

  Question:  What time of the day is more suitable for activity – morning or evening?

  Answer:  Morning, of course. You may notice that in the morning the atmosphere is filled with tranquillity and bliss, in such a state the desire to create arises. If one is influenced by tamas (ignorance), he becomes more active at night but in the mornings he is sleepy. Most crimes are committed at night. Darkness and shadows are the characteristics of tamas. Therefore, night is for sleeping. Almost everything in nature is submerged into sleep with the sunset and awakens with the rising Sun. You will never see a bird or animal covering their eyes with a wing or paw from the light of the rising Sun. The nervous system rests from approximately 9 p.m. to 1 a.m., and if you do not sleep at this time, you will not be able to properly benefit no matter how much you sleep. Ayurveda considers that staying awake at night, particularly for night-work, is one of the main causes of damage to health.             

  The research department of the World Health Organization has now included night-time work on the list of probable carcinogens – the factors which cause cancer.   

  Morning is the time of goodness (sattva), and the most conducive time for creativity and access to our intuitive ability. There is a saying: “Morning is wiser than evening.” Following this advice, never make important decisions in the evening – wait until the morning. If you follow this rule, there will be no need for wasted energy fixing mistakes.  

This article is taken from the book

 “Three Energies. Forgotten Canons of Health and Harmony” by Rami Bleckt.