This planner takes a city and a dosha type and shows today’s sunrise and sunset, the parts of the day the tradition links with each dosha, and a gentle suggested routine with times. It follows the idea of dinacharya, the Ayurvedic daily routine, in which the day is arranged around the Sun.
It is an educational planner and not medical advice. The times are suggestions for general wellbeing habits, and you should keep any times that your doctor has given you for medicines or meals.
What dinacharya is
Dinacharya means daily conduct. The classical texts, including the Charaka Samhita and the Ashtanga Hridayam, describe a day that begins before sunrise with rising, cleansing the mouth and tongue, and some exercise, followed by meals at regular times, work, an early and lighter evening meal and sleep. The tradition says that living in step with the day supports health, and it presents the routine as a way to cultivate regularity.
Some of this fits comfortably with modern advice about regular sleep and meals, and some of it is specific to the tradition and has not been tested in trials. Where the planner gives a time, it is because the tradition gives a rule that can be measured against the Sun, such as eating the main meal around midday.
How the times are worked out
Sunrise and sunset are calculated in your browser for today’s date in the city you choose, using the same sun routine as the rest of the Nidarshana Vedh sites. They are accurate to within a few minutes and are shown in the local time of the city.
The planner then splits the daytime, from sunrise to sunset, into three equal parts, and the night, from sunset to the next sunrise, into three equal parts. In each, the first part is taken as Kapha, the middle as Pitta and the last as Vata. This follows the Ashtanga Hridayam’s description of the doshas as strongest at the beginning, middle and end of the day, of the night and of digestion.
Texts and teachers differ on this point. Many modern teachers prefer fixed clock blocks: Kapha from 6 to 10, Pitta from 10 to 2 and Vata from 2 to 6, in the morning and again in the evening. The two ways agree closely near the equinoxes in India, and drift apart in high latitudes and in the long days of summer. We use the sunrise version because it follows the Sun in your city, and for that reason the times change every day.
The routine it suggests
The suggested routine covers waking, morning care, movement, breakfast, the main meal, the afternoon, the evening meal, winding down and bed. The wake time follows the tradition’s advice to rise in brahma muhurta, the period before sunrise, which many teachers take to be about 96 minutes before it. The planner offers a window and moves it closer to sunrise for vata types, who are described as needing steady rest, and earlier for kapha types, who are described as benefiting from an earlier start. If you sleep badly, do not cut your sleep short to match a time.
The main meal is placed around the middle of the day, because the tradition describes digestion as strongest then. The evening meal is placed about three hours before bed and is lighter, and bedtime is set within the early, kapha part of the night, with limits so that the time stays sensible in the long days and short nights of high latitudes. Each dosha type adds a few notes, such as warmth and regularity for vata, cooler exercise and no long gaps between meals for pitta, and brisk movement and a light breakfast for kapha. If you choose “not sure” or the balanced type, you get a general routine.
Safety and good sense
This is a general wellbeing routine and not a treatment. If you have diabetes, take medicines at set times, work shifts, are pregnant or breastfeeding, or are looking after a young child, keep the schedule your doctor has given you and talk to them before changing meal times, fasting or exercise. Do not use a warm water habit if a doctor has limited your fluids. If any part of the routine makes you feel unwell, stop and see a doctor.
To go further, read the daily routine guides, the doshas section and the seasons guides. The prakriti quiz gives a rough guide to your type, and the seasonal routine tool shows which season you are in. The method and sources page explains how we use the texts. Please also read the medical disclaimer, and see a doctor for any health concern and a registered Ayurvedic practitioner for Ayurvedic treatment.
Frequently asked questions
↳ What is the best time to wake up in Ayurveda?
The classical texts advise rising in brahma muhurta, the period before sunrise, which many teachers take as about 96 minutes before it. The tradition also says the routine should suit the person, so sleep and health come first.
↳ What are the times of vata, pitta and kapha?
Many teachers give Kapha 6 to 10, Pitta 10 to 2 and Vata 2 to 6, morning and evening. The Ashtanga Hridayam describes the doshas as strongest at the beginning, middle and end of the day and night, so this planner divides the daytime and night into thirds from sunrise and sunset.
↳ Why does the routine change from day to day?
Sunrise and sunset move through the year, and the day and night get longer or shorter. Because the planner measures the dosha periods and meal times from the Sun, the clock times shift with them.
↳ Why is the main meal at midday?
The tradition describes digestion as strongest when the Sun is highest and Pitta is said to be at its peak. This is a traditional idea, and modern research on meal timing is mixed and still developing.
↳ Can I use this if I work night shifts or take regular medicines?
Use it only as general reading. Keep the meal and medicine times your doctor has given you, and speak to your doctor before changing any of them.