“Sadhguru: Sleep means servicing time for the body. That means this is a time when the body gets rid of impurities. It is a maintenance and repair time for the damage that happens to the body because of daily living – on the cellular level, on the energy level, and in many other different ways.
#1 The 24×24 Technique
How keenly you manage your energies is what decides your alertness. For people on the Yogic path, it is said you should eat only 24 mouthfuls, and you must chew every mouthful at least 24 times. This will ensure food is pre-digested in your mouth before it goes in, and it will not cause dullness.
If you do this during your evening meal, you will easily wake up at 3:30 AM. In the Yogic system, this period is called Brahma Muhurtam. It is an ideal time to do Yogic practices because there is an extra support from nature at that time for your sadhana.
#2 The 90-Minute Rule
In Yogic culture, the simple understanding is that if you cook something, you must consume it within a maximum of 90 minutes. After that, inertia will start setting in. If you eat food with high inertia, the body becomes lethargic. That means your maintenance downtime increases because the fuel you put into the system is low-grade.
#3 Keep Body, Mind & Emotion in a Joyful State
How much maintenance downtime your body needs also depends on how much repair needs to be done. In the course of living, how much damage do you cause to yourself – that is the question. If your system is well-aligned and well-lubricated, there is least amount of friction. If you keep yourself joyful, if there is no friction in your body, energy system, mind and emotion, your sleep quota will just drop.
#4 Avoiding Chemicals & Plastics
If you eat food which has the least amount of complex memory in it, it will become part of your system within 2 to 4 hours of consumption and lowers sleep quota considerably. But in today’s world, it is becoming increasingly difficult to eat good quality food. Even if there is less than 1% of chemicals and plastics in your food, your ability to absorb that into the system drops drastically, which also increases your sleep quota.”
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