The dosha clock shows which part of the day and night Ayurveda gives to kapha, to pitta and to vata, for your city and date. It takes sunrise and sunset in that city, splits the daytime into three equal parts and the night into three equal parts, and names each one. Leave the date blank and it also tells you which part you are in now. The popular fixed clock blocks are shown beside it, so that you can see where the two agree and where they do not.
It describes a traditional rhythm. It is not a medical schedule, and no hour is good or bad for your health.
How it works
The rule comes from the Ashtanga Hridayam, Sutrasthana 1.8. The verse says that the doshas lead at the end, the middle and the beginning of three things: life, the day and night, and the digestion of a meal. Vata leads at the end, pitta in the middle and kapha at the beginning. It gives no clock hours.
The tool reads that as follows. The daytime runs from sunrise to sunset, and the night from sunset to the next sunrise. Each is split into three equal parts: the first is kapha, the middle is pitta and the last is vata. Sunrise and sunset are worked out in your browser, with the same sun routine as the daily routine planner and the dinner time tool, for the upper edge of the Sun with standard refraction. We checked the routine against the Swiss Ephemeris for 35 dates and places, including daylight saving changes, the southern hemisphere, Manchester at both solstices and dates in 1950 and 2075, and it agreed to within 9 seconds at every one.
Because the parts follow the Sun, they change through the year. In New Delhi on 21 June 2026, sunrise is at 05:23 and sunset at 19:22, so kapha runs from 05:23 to 10:03, pitta from 10:03 to 14:42 and vata from 14:42 to 19:22. On 21 December 2026, sunrise is at 07:09 and sunset at 17:28, so kapha runs from 07:09 to 10:35, pitta from 10:35 to 14:02 and vata from 14:02 to 17:28.
Reading the result
The result opens with the part of the day or night you are in now, if you left the date blank, and when it ends. Below that are two strips for the whole date, from midnight to midnight: the first by sunrise and sunset, the second by the fixed clock blocks. The table lists every part with its times. Its first rows belong to the night before, which runs past midnight into your date. Usually these are its pitta and vata parts. On some summer dates its kapha part runs past midnight too, in cities where the night is short or the clock runs well ahead of the Sun, such as Amsterdam, Calgary and Atlanta in June and July, and then the table starts with three rows from the night before. Its last rows end after midnight, on the next date, and a line under the table says how many rows of each kind there are.
All times are local clock time in the city you chose, including daylight saving time where the city keeps it. If your phone is set to another time zone, the result says so.
Where traditions differ
Many teachers use 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. That is a later teaching convention and not a passage from a text, though it is convenient. This tool follows the sunrise reading, as the daily routine planner does, because the verse speaks of the beginning, middle and end of the day, and the day runs from sunrise to sunset.
The two readings agree best near the equinoxes in India. They drift apart in summer and winter, in the far north and south, and wherever the clock runs well ahead of or behind the Sun. In London on 21 June 2026 each third of the day lasts 5 h 33 min and each third of the night 2 h 27 min, far from the even four hours of the clock version. The page on the doshas through the day explains both readings.
What it does not do
It does not tell you when to eat, sleep or take medicines, and it does not say that any hour is good or bad for your health. In places where the Sun does not rise or set on a date, as in the far north in midsummer and midwinter, it gives no times at all. It does not use your location: you choose the city, and your choice is not sent to us.
If you take medicines at set times, have diabetes, work shifts, are pregnant or breastfeeding, or care for a young child, keep the times your doctor has given you. Please read the medical disclaimer, and see a doctor for any health concern and a registered Ayurvedic practitioner (BAMS in India) for Ayurvedic advice.
Frequently asked questions
↳ What is the dosha clock in Ayurveda?
It is the idea that kapha, pitta and vata lead in turn through the day and again through the night. The Ashtanga Hridayam, Sutrasthana 1.8, places kapha at the beginning, pitta in the middle and vata at the end of the day and of the night.
↳ Why are the times different from 6 to 10, 10 to 2 and 2 to 6?
Those fixed blocks are a teaching convention. This tool divides the real daytime and night of your city into thirds, so the times move with sunrise and sunset and with the seasons. Both versions are shown so that you can compare them.
↳ Which dosha is it now?
Choose your city and leave the date blank. The result opens with the part of the day or night you are in now, by sunrise and sunset, and also says which clock block the time falls in.
↳ Does the dosha clock work outside India?
Yes, for any city in the list, in its local time. Far from the equator the parts of the day become very long in summer and very short in winter, and where the Sun does not rise or set on a date the tool gives no times.
↳ How accurate are the sunrise and sunset times?
We compared the sun routine with the Swiss Ephemeris for 35 dates and places, and the largest difference was under 9 seconds. Hills, buildings and the weather can change what you see by a few minutes.
↳ Should I plan my meals and sleep around it?
Only as a gentle guide. The tradition links midday with digestion and the early night with sleep, but the clock is not a medical schedule. Keep any times your doctor has given you, and see the daily routine planner for a full day.