Ayurvedic Clock: Season of the Year
Ayurveda is a practice and lifestyle of living in sync with the rhythms of nature. It’s matching our daily activities to the time of day, our annual routines to the season of the year, and our overall lifestyle to our stage of life using the Ayurvedic Clock. The Ayurvedic Clock combines the biological clock with mother nature’s clock and serves as a guide for structuring our daily routines.
In today’s post we’ll take a look at the Ayurvedic Clock as it pertains to the season of the year.
In the United States we split the calendar into 4 season - winter, spring, summer, and fall. In India there are 6 seasons - spring, summer, monsoon season, autumn, prewinter (cool season), and winter (dewey season). In Ayurveda we simplify these 6 seasons by their elemental make up and relationship to the doshas.
Understanding the qualities of each seasonal cycle can help us take right action toward maintaining balance throughout the year. As the seasons cycle through the year, so should our daily activities, meals, and habits. The exact timing of these seasonal shifts will be dependent upon where in the world you live, and what the average climate is like for you.
VATA: Vata is a combination of the ether and air elements and her qualities (gunas) are light, subtle, cold, dry, clear, rough, mobile, hard, and irregular. The qualities of vata are most present in the late fall and early winter, as the leaves begin to dry up and fall from the trees, blustery winds prevail, and the air becomes much cooler and more dry. In order to counter these cool, dry, and mobile tendencies, this is the time of year to begin including some grounding practices to your routine, like restorative yoga and meditation. Nourishing your body and soul with abhyanga is a lovely vata season ritual. And don’t forget your grounding, calming foods like pumpkin, root vegetables, and warm masala chai!
KAPHA: Kapha is combination of the water and earth elements and her qualities are heavy, slow, dull, cold, moist, dense, and hard. These qualities are most present in the late winter and early spring, when the air is cold, the snow is heavy, and the ground is solid and dense. This is the time to bundle up to protect yourself from the cold, and MOVE your body to prevent stagnation - flow style yoga is perfect for kapha time of year! Continuing abhyanga and consuming warm foods and beverages is recommended.
PITTA: Pitta is fire and water, and her qualities are sharp, hot, oily, intense, and light. Late spring through early fall is our Pitta time of year. This is when the sun is hot and intense, and the air is moist with humidity. During pitta time of year we need less intensity in our physical activity, slow and gentle asana practice, swimming, and hiking are all good pitta season activities. Ayurveda doesn’t recommended eating raw foods, but instead foods with cooling properties like cucumber, cilantro, and mint.
With our busy, modern lifestyles so many of us have a set routine, and a set menu that doesn’t change much throughout the year. We have our “go-to” meals, our “go-to” yoga practices, and our “go-to” exercise routine. An Ayurvedic lifestyle is really about getting in tune with the rhythms of nature and cycling as she cycles. Making these small seasonal adjustments can have a BIG impact on your overall health and wellbeing.
