Ashtanga Hridaya , one of the principle texts of Ayurveda states,
“Brahme muhurte uttishtet swastho raksharthamaayushaha |”(A.H.Su.2/1)
That is, waking up in Brahma Muhoortha is the key to maintain a healthy life.
Dinacharya, aka, daily routine is one of Ayurveda’s fine contribution to human kind. And Dinacharya begins with waking up early.
What is Brahma Muhoortha?
Brahma Muhoortha is the second last muhoortha before sunrise, which is one hour thirty six minutes before sunrise. Brahma means knowledge. The time apt for perceiving knowledge is known as Brahma Muhoortha.
The modern scientific approach to Brahma Muhoortha.
A pacemaker-like mechanism in the brain regulates the circadian rhythm of sleeping and waking. (“Circadian” means “about a day.”) This internal clock, which gradually becomes established during the first months of life, controls the daily ups and downs of biological patterns, including body temperature, blood pressure, and the release of hormones.
The classic phase markers for measuring the timing of a mammal’s circadian rhythm are:
👉Melatonin secretion by the pineal gland
👉Core body temperature
👉Plasma level of cortisol.
The average human adult’s temperature reaches its minimum at about two hours before habitual wake time. Melatonin is absent from the system or undetectably low during daytime. It is secreted more in darkness. Its major metabolite can also be measured in morning urine. A third marker of the human pacemaker is the timing of the maximum plasma cortisol level (life protecting hormone). It helps to withstand the stress and trauma in life. This is secreted from adrenal cortex under the influence of ACTH from hypothalamus. The rate of secretion of ACTH is high in the morning and low in the evening.
Benefits.
👉Early morning is Vata Kaala according to Ayurveda.
👉Vata, the primary Dosha is responsible for movements in our body. In regard with this theory, mornings are the best time to carry out your exercises.
👉The brain us said to be most active in the morning, so one can utilize this to learn and acknowledge new things ( especially students).
👉Since the ACTH levels are high in morning, one’s mental health is at its peak and helps the person to analyze difficult situations in a more calm way( like work pressure, or any other personal stress).
So in short, early morning or Brahma Muhoortha is hailed as the best time to learn, especially realize subtler aspects of philosophy and spiritual growth. If one tries to find out the secret underlying this then one can realize that there are probably several changes in physical chemical andbiological atmosphere at around this time, which probably catalyzes spiritual blossoming of an individual. This is indeed a rejuvenating time as the whole universe begins to wake up at around this time.
