How Water Affects The Mind
By Sanjib Mukherjee,
One of the fundamental aspects of yoga is the ability to silence the mind and detoxify our bodily system on a daily basis. At a subtle level, the food and drinks we consume have a direct impact on our mental well-being, with perhaps the least understood component being how much water to drink and when we should drink it.
First thing in the morning, drinking two glasses of water replenishes our bodily system after a night’s sleep and helps to awaken us to our daily consciousness. Drinking before eating any breakfast also helps to alleviate any toxins, as there will be very little food to block its passage through the body. Be careful only to sip the water when you have just woken up, as the kidneys will still be in a state of rest. By drinking too quickly you may cause them unfavourable tension by forcing them to work quicker and harder than necessary.
Throughout the day, drink at least eight glasses of water as a bare minimum, (this number should be increased depending on the weather and the level of dehydration you experience during the day; for instance, work, exercise etc). Water oxygenates our blood cells, and stimulates the thought process by activating our dormant energies. Thus, the Ayurvedic scriptures dictate it beneficial only to drink water during the morning, afternoon and no later than say, 7pm.
Any fluids taken after this time will result in an overactive brain, and give rise to sleepless nights through enhanced dreams. By having your last drink before 7pm, your mind will have enough time to exhaust its mental capacity before resting itself whilst you sleep.
An interesting point to note is that our physical body is made up of 80% water. During the night, when the moon is at its strongest, it has a strong gravitational pull towards any kind of water (imagine the strength of this pull if it can move the tides in an ocean), and thus, by filling our body with water before sleep, we allow the subtle gravitational effects of the moon to play havoc on our mind/body system.
When we sit down to think about the rationale behind the lifestyle advice given to us by Ayurveda, we realise that a great deal of thought and intelligence goes behind each simple suggestion. By following the above guidelines, you can be assured that you will be drinking water in the manner most conducive for a healthy yogic lifestyle.
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Interesting insight about suitable timing for water consumption.
In addition to maintaining this, a glass of warm milk is said to alleviate insomnia and helpful for a good night’s rest.
Another small bit to add would be that the first two glasses of water in the morning should ideally be warm.
Cheers!
Amrita
Note : This are moi personal views, they are just views and not Knowledge
Our dearest Ramdevbabaji says, if you want to look beautiful/handsome drink lots and lots of water, this is beauty secret of all actors and actress, and we all who are practicing Pranayama and Yoga should dring atleast 6-7 litres of water daily, this will surely purify your (Prakriti) and within a 1 month, there will be sparkling glow on your face. lol…,
Jay Gurudeva
Madhav
Awesome article about water consumption…
Interesting and useful information. Thanks for posting it.
Cheers!
Siva
Intresting and a useful information, thnx sanjib
Very Very Nice Info.
Suddenly Flashed in to my Mind…!!!
great sir…..
good info on consuming water,this system keeps us healthy. thnx sanjib.
thank you Sanjib for the valuable info….
very informative …
Sanjib,
Useful info but not convinced about not to drink water after 7 pm…
Doesnt it depend on bodys need to quench ones thirst..
There are times, when I drink 2-3 litres quiet late…and not felt any discomfort….perhaps you can throw more light on this !!!
Hi Jaishree
Thanks for your reply…yah you know with all the knowledge yoga and ayurveda gives us, its important that we also listen to our bodies at the same time. Everyone has a different body, and each day new cells are constantly being regenerated, so in essence we also have a new body everytime we wake up.
Thus no one set of rules can really apply to every single person. The information in this post was taken from a conversation I had with an Ayurvedic guru in an ashram a while back. From my own personal experience I have adopted everything written here, and found amazing benefits to my health and bodily system, hence why I shared the information.
However, you are absolutely right to listen to your body first and do whatever feels most comfortable and natural for you. In yoga, there is no right or wrong, its simply a matter of helping us move towards a higher state of living. There are many different paths and many different doctrines. You will find numerous contradictions as you go along………ultimately, we all must become our own guru, and make our own choices as to how we should live our lives..
Hope this response helped!!..take care..:)
Dear Sanijeeb Sir,
The post of “Drinking Water” is very nice. This information will be very useful for all of us. Thanks for this information and waiting for more like this…..
Amit Vithlani.
Thanks again !!!Sanjib,
Yes …you are right.Though , there may be general views and viewpoints,you need to listen to your body and then adapt and adopt what is best suited to you.
Any discussion on these matters always help…Sanjib. It definitely enhances your knowledge and gives you different perspective of things.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts……….
hey sanjib
agreed now. I use to drink pleanty of water before sleep
I can definitely reduce it.
thanks a lot
This would make a useful addition to the Bretah Water Sound manual
Thanks so much for the valuable information. But I get up twice at night and drink water. But will definitely try and adopt this ….
hey sanjiv
very relevant discussion u hv launched here….. even modern day nutritionists r reiterating these age old fundas.
sure a lot depends on individuals. moreover we also have to keep in mind that ayurveda is an ancient science. but these mantras r time honored n r being revived n widely practiced for thier immense n magical benefits.
hence i wud recommend them enthusiastically as i am a gr8 believer n follower of ayurveda n alternative medicine…..
nita
Thanks Sanjib Ji for sharing such a wonderful article …… Very Informative
Thanks a lot Sanjib for sharing this beautiful knowledge on Vital and Important Ingredient of not only body but whole universe that is WATER , some of tips you explained are totally new and different ,
I Really loved how Ancient Ayurveda gives us deep insight into so many amazing facts about Life and each one is so effective and undoubtedly makes a better and Healthy life !! Knowledge and Tips shared are awesome though not so easy to follow as we are so addicted and drink water even whenever wake up in between of sleep , but this tip of drinking water early morning can be followed and it is always beneficial for all as you explained nicely its benefits ..Some time we cant follow everything yet knowing about facts we can surely make us conscious and careful !Keep sharing and really love Ayurveda and love to know more and learn more of Ayurvedic great useful knowledge!!
Dear Sanjib
As always very insightful and helpful information and thoughts, particularly about how the moon and the strength of its gravitational pull plays a part. I thank you for sharing this with us.
Always with appreciation
Sangeeta
thanks for sharing this wonderful practice on water. Although, I had heard drinking 2 glasses upon waking up at a good pace would cleanse the system, as opposed to sipping. Is that true? Any further information would be much appreciated.
Thanks
6-7 Liters water is a lot for me to drink. I will do my best.
I like the additional info from Madhav. Good work Sanjib.
Thanks Sanjib….for very informative” topic” water is the vital and essential part of our life, though I take liquids after 7pm but also sips in between my sleep(at least twice) can you please touch on it if it has negative effect though I take two glasses in the morning too. Thanks Sanjib…..I always look for very interesting and informative wisdom from you. Bless you!!
hi sanjib i drink about500-600ml.water as soon as i wakeup before brushing my teeth.but i drink green tea at night,sometimes at 9-10pm.i think i have to change that habit u know i have to go with my family everyone does n’t eat early .i think i will hyave to stick to my own shedule thanx.
WOW!!! Thanks for sharing such valuable information
I have been drinking water in the morning..but I came to know the good effect of it!! Very nice Sanjib!
I never knew this fact that we shouldn’t have water after 7 pm and only now I realize how this could lead to one not sleeping deeply enough. Also it was interesting to note the fact about the kidneys recovering from a state of rest and so we should only sip water in the morning rather than gulping it in a hurry. I’m gonna be incorporating these changes in my routine–now that I’ve learnt about them from this really cool article!
Would love to have more such Ayurvedic knowledge from you!:):)
Jai Gurudev!
Thanks Sanjib! Well said. I liked your article & reply to Jayashree
I remember reading about water therepy which advises drinking of as much water as you can drink comfortably and as warm as you can sip without any discomfort, soon after getting up BEFORE brushing your teeth. Though I didn’t explore the funda behind it and wasn’t too comfortable drinking any water before brushing teeth, I did try it and pursue it as far as possible. It’s a sure shot remedy for constipation and for a smooth morning motion.
Though I did not know the implications, during exam times, I did practise drinking lot of water before going to bed, as a natural Wake up alarm and it worked. Getting up becomes mandatory and once I was up and relieved, freshening up to get back to studies was an easy task.
All said & done, our each individuals body is a brilliant piece of creation of the divine and the requirements can be generalise only broadly.
Anything in excess is bad….. too much rain causes flood & too little causes draught. But between these two extremes there is a wide fluctuation and the extent of rain or lack of it to cause these condition varies from place to place. We should bear in mind the diversity.
thanks Sanjib again ,for sharing an important issue,,,,,and very informative…specially the moon effect on the body at night …:):)
Well written! I have the habit of having water atleast 3-4 times in the nignt while I sleep and thats how i have realised my body need is . Perhaps i was an aquatic creature in the past
. And guess what while i am writing this comment I am already thirsty!!
Jai Gurudev
I don’t get a sound sleep and I will try this not to drink water after 7 p.m. (approx.) and see its effect on the quality of my sleep.
As it has to be part of the daily routine,its important that we stick to this habit of drinking water on regular intervals as our body craves/cries for water for its various functions….Thanks for reminding and sticking this on our heads once again…..To drink water or not ,post 7 o’clock ,well ,that depends how you keep yourself hydrated during the day ,probably…Very Useful read..!
Good tips.Thanks for sharing such useful information n looking forward for more.But I have one question.We Indians have different lifestyle and don’t retire to bed until late.Do you advise not to drink water while staying awake late night?your opinion…..
Simple but very useful information. Thanks for sharing. At times I do get up at night, thirsty. Now I will drink more water during the day!
thanks for sharing this information.always we start our morning by drinking little warm water.
useful info…..as always:-)
Thanks a lot Sanjib for sharing this beautiful knowledge on Vital and Important Ingredient of not only body but whole universe that is WATER , some of tips you explained are totally new and different.
thanks for share it,like it
Thanks Sanjib……
Thank you, I will do it !
thanks
!
great info ..Thnx
thanks………..