Dinacharya (daily routines)
Dr. M. Jayaraman is a respected scholar, author and teacher who we look forward to having at Mysore Yoga Conference each year.
Dinācaryā — Dr. M. Jayaraman
Dr. M. Jayaraman holds a PhD in Sanskrit from the University of Madras (2006–2010) on the topic The Doctrine of Tantrayukti: A Study. He completed his undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in Sanskrit with gold medals and first rank in both. Prior to that, he underwent traditional gurukula education in Vedas, Vedānta, and yoga-śāstra (1998–2005) at Veda Vijñāna Gurukulam, Bangalore, under Prachārya Kottamane Ramachandra Bhatt.
He is Professor and Dean in the Division of Yoga and Spirituality at SVYASA Deemed University. Previously, he served as Director of the Research Department at Kṛṣṇamācārya Yoga Mandiram, Chennai (2010–2021), and as Director of the Division of Textual Research in Yoga at the Indic Academy (2021–2022). His work includes editing, translating, and disseminating insights from traditional Sanskrit literature on yoga; developing immersive learning methods; and building digital repositories for yoga texts. He conducts international workshops on tantrayukti, text construction, and research methodology. His expertise is recognized by various academic bodies and government councils. He received the Saṃskṛta Grantha Puraskāra (2021) from Karnataka Sanskrit University for his book Mantrārtha-cintanam.
Namaste to one and all. I am happy to return to the Mysore Yoga Tradition Conference. My thanks to Mr. Andrew of the Ashtanga Yoga Institution and to the Saṃskṛti Foundation for the opportunity to speak on a subject I care about deeply. Though I can present academically, this topic resonates with me, and I will share thoughts drawn from traditional literature with sincerity and focus.
Today’s topic is Dinācaryā: dina means “day,” and caryā means “conduct” or “activities”—the structuring of a day. In a retreat or conference we keep a strict timetable, yet in ordinary life our schedule often becomes fluid and irregular. From the perspectives of Yoga and Āyurveda, a steady routine helps practice take deeper effect, because the body–mind system can anticipate and align with regular rhythms. Consider, as you review these ten days, what you can realistically incorporate into your own life. I will not propose a minute-by-minute plan, but offer principled pointers for progressive implementation. Use viveka—discrimination—to choose what suits you.
Why should yoga concern itself with the day’s structure? Many assume yoga ends when the class ends. The Bhagavad Gītā views it otherwise. In 6.16–17, Kṛṣṇa teaches that yoga mitigates suffering at multiple levels when practice is conjoined with four regulations: yukta-āhāra (balanced diet), yukta-vihāra (regulated activity/recreation), yukta-ceṣṭā karmasu (right engagement in action), and yukta-svapnāvabodha (balanced sleep and waking). If we ignore these and expect āsana or prāṇāyāma alone to compensate for late nights or unsuitable food, we blunt yoga’s therapeutic power. Lifestyle alignment is not optional; it is constitutive of the path. This integrated regimen is Dinācaryā—the weaving together of āhāra, vihāra, karma, and sleep–wake hygiene so that mat-practice becomes a true force of transformation.
Our primary textual lens will be the Haṭha Yoga Pradīpikā, read with the lucid 18th–19th century commentary Jyotsnā, which sketches the daily schedule of a full-time haṭha-yogī. Such prescriptions were framed for practitioners wholly devoted to yoga and sustained by society—one still sees this ideal at the Kumbha-melā. While most of us are not full-time renunciants, the underlying principles can be adapted responsibly for contemporary life. We will supplement these with concordant guidance from Āyurveda and Dharmaśāstra, especially the Yājñavalkya Smṛti.
A first anchor of Dinācaryā is waking time. The Jyotsnā, commenting on Haṭha Yoga Pradīpikā 2.48 (on prāṇāyāma), recommends two windows:
• uṣaḥ-kāla: a 48-minute period ending 48 minutes before sunrise. If sunrise is at 6:00 a.m., uṣaḥ-kāla runs approximately 4:24–5:12 a.m.
• prātaḥ-kāla: the broader span of three muhūrtas (144 minutes) before sunrise.
These periods—especially the brahma-muhūrta—are praised as most conducive to knowledge, stillness, and contemplation. Immediately upon waking, one should remember the teacher and one’s chosen divinity: guruṃ saṃsmṛtya śirasi, hṛdaye iṣṭa-devatām.
Āyurveda concurs: brahme muhūrte uttiṣṭhet svastho rakṣārtham āyuṣaḥ—let the healthy person rise in the brahma-muhūrta to safeguard vitality and longevity. Even for householders not engaged in intensive haṭha-sādhana, waking roughly 30–40 minutes before sunrise is beneficial.
Dharmaśāstra then speaks to sleep duration. The Yājñavalkya Smṛti recommends two yāmas of sleep (one yāma ≈ three hours), i.e., about six hours, as conducive to well-being and brahmānanda (the bliss of Brahman). Other texts allow seven to eight hours; individual constitution, season, and age rightly inform one’s baseline.
Drawing these strands together, an ideal day is not a rigid script but a coherent arc: rise during uṣaḥ-kāla or prātaḥ-kāla; begin with remembrance and quietude; sustain the day with yukta-āhāra, yukta-vihāra, and yukta-ceṣṭā in one’s duties; and keep sleep and waking in balance as yukta-svapnāvabodha. Practiced together, these supports allow āsana, prāṇāyāma, and allied techniques to do their deeper work, making yoga not an isolated hour on the mat but a way of life ordered toward sustained happiness.
Here’s a compressed, practical dinācaryā you can hand to students. It follows the Haṭha Yoga Pradīpikā (Jyotsnā), with concordant notes from Āyurveda and Dharmaśāstra. Example clock times assume sunrise at 6:00 a.m.; adjust to your local sunrise. Aim for 6–8 hours of sleep so you can rise in uṣaḥ-kāla or prātaḥkāla.
Dinācaryā (householder-friendly)
• 4:24–5:12 a.m. (uṣaḥ-kāla; brahma-muhūrta)
– Wake quietly. Remember the teacher and hold one’s iṣṭa-devatā in the heart (guruṃ saṃsmṛtya śirasi, hṛdaye iṣṭa-devatām).
– Hydrate; elimination; basic hygiene.
– 10–20 min śānta-sitting: japa, dhyāna, or brief svādhyāya to set intention.
• 5:15–6:00 a.m. (prātaḥkāla)
– Āsana 25–40 min, steady and unhurried.
– Prāṇāyāma 8–15 min (e.g., nāḍī-śodhana; add sūrya-bhedana only if appropriate).
– Śavāsana 3–5 min; short prārthanā.
• 6:30–7:00 a.m.
– Light, sāttvic breakfast (yukta-āhāra): simple, digestible, portioned to constitution and season.
• 7:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m.
– Day’s duties (yukta-ceṣṭā karmasu): focused work blocks; mindful speech and conduct.
– Brief vihāra between blocks: 5–10 min walk, gentle mobility, or breath awareness.
• 12:30–1:30 p.m.
– Main meal (yukta-āhāra): warm, freshly prepared; avoid heaviness and excess stimulants.
– Optional 10–20 min viśrānti; avoid long day-sleep unless season/constitution requires.
• 1:30–5:00 p.m.
– Continue duties with short movement breaks.
– 10–20 min svādhyāya (texts, notes) before wrapping the workday.
• 5:30–6:00 p.m.
– Light vihāra: unhurried walk, stretching, or playful time with family; keep the nervous system calm.
• 6:30–7:00 p.m.
– Light supper, earlier rather than late; leave 2–3 hours before sleep.
• 8:00–8:30 p.m.
– Quieting practices: 5–10 min nāḍī-śodhana or bhrāmarī; journal gratitude and next-day intention; reduce screens and stimulation.
• 9:30–10:00 p.m.
– Sleep (yukta-svapnāvabodha): retire in time to secure 6–8 hours and enable rising in uṣaḥ-kāla.
Notes and options
• If mornings are tight, split practice: āsana a.m., prāṇāyāma + brief sitting p.m.
• Choose foods and meal sizes by doṣa and season; favor regular mealtimes.
• Keep the spirit of yukta-āhāra, yukta-vihāra, yukta-ceṣṭā, and yukta-svapnāvabodha throughout the day: regulate inputs, activity, action, and sleep–wake.
• Serious practitioners may extend prātaḥkāla practice (āsana 60–90 min; prāṇāyāma 20–30 min; seated japa/dhyāna 20–30 min) while keeping the same daily arc.
This arc preserves the textual anchors (waking in uṣaḥ-kāla/prātaḥkāla, remembrance, regulated diet and activity, balanced sleep) so mat-practice and lifestyle reinforce each other toward sustained well-being.
