Mother Nature knows best. Look at the natural body clock. We live in a biological hormonal system. The body is stimulated by light, this is how the melatonin gets switched on and off, taking us into different states of sleep and wakefulness. That’s why people who are connected to the land, like the traditional farmers and indigenous peoples, know how much healing the soul and body receive when they are in harmony with Nature, when we are earthed so to speak.
These people are naturally working with the energy frequencies of the soul and nature. We have a natural relationship with matter, we are soul and body combined. The soul is eternal, matter is temporary and changing. By practising early morning meditation and silence this can help us to come back into alignment, to reset our inner balance. When we wake up early to meditate, we are syncing our body clock with the clock of nature.
The birds naturally awaken around 4:00-5:00 am and begin “singing”. The roosters are cock-a-doodle-doodling first thing in the morning. So, we can visibly see and hear nature awakening. It is only we humans that are irritated by these noises, simply because we are the ones out of step with nature’s rhythm. If we slept early and awoke early, we would indeed be fascinated by all the beauty and sounds of nature around us.
The ancient people could track their journey according to the stars! By the position of the Sun, they would know what time of day it was. Here we are in our high-tech world, and without our gadgets or timepieces, we are totally lost, disconnected from nature because we have forgotten how to use our internal sat-nav!
It is so important to keep the waking state and sleep time in balance, when we do not do this then the body falls sick. The ancient yogis and mystics knew the value of rising with the sun and sleeping when the sun went down. In fact, they knew that when we harmonised our natural rhythms, it was more efficient for the maintenance and repair of the body.
Everything in nature is subject to the powerful energy changes from light to darkness. From the rising and setting of the sun and the magnetic pull of the moon. The perfect yin and yang of health depends on the fine balance of nature, between soul and body, which we call perfect health. Any imbalance within the soul will manifest as an illness in the body.
The yogis and ancient mystics, our wise elders had a greater sense of the bigger picture of the universe. There were definite reasons why the yogis would meditate and pray between 2:00-5:00 am. This actually has something to do with the earth’s alignment to the planets and stars. Every planet has its place in the constellation.
Of course, the yogis and mystics would not call what they did a science, but there was really a good reason for the specific timing of those rituals. Hatha yogis greeted the day with their postures starting with the beautiful: “Salutations to the Sun…” Clearly, the best time to say good morning to God, the universe and nature would be first thing in the morning; when the vibrations are high and that pure golden globe rises on the horizon to grace us with another day. As they folded their palms, they pressed on all pressure points triggering new blood around the body.
We underestimate nature at a cost. She will always be here and find a way to survive even when we have long gone because nature works holistically and in unison with the five elements, with the earth, air, water, fire and ether. Our very name is humankind. What happened to the “kind” part? When we are merely human and disconnected from each other and nature, but we are not kind, then we will be damned by our own foolish thinking.
“If you only say one prayer in a day, make it: Thank you.” – Rumi
Aruna Ladva is an author and Rajyoga meditation teacher based at the Global Retreat Centre,
Oxford, UK.