Dawn Rituals of The Ancient World
Ritual of waking up
It’s a psychological reaction, where whenever your body wakes up it goes through a cycle called Cortisol Awakening Response (CAR).
Shortly after awakening, a sharp 38–75% increase occurs in cortisol levels in about 77% of healthy people.
The reason for this sudden increase is attributed to the fact that the body prepares the organism for the upcoming challenges for the day by shooting up the cortisol level.
Checking your phone or having coffee as the first thing in the morning artificially spikes your cortisol beyond its natural peak. Done daily, this chronic pattern of elevated cortisol has been directly linked to abdominal fat accumulation and insulin resistance.
A calm waking up schedule helps in lowering down the cortisol levels.
A good morning begins the night before. Read how ancient cultures prepared for sleep to understand the full picture.
Sources:
Stalder T, Oster H, Abelson JL, Huthsteiner K, Klucken T, Clow A. The Cortisol Awakening Response: Regulation and Functional Significance. Endocr Rev. 2025 Jan 10;46(1):43-59. doi: 10.1210/endrev/bnae024. PMID: 39177247.
StatPearls — Physiology, Cortisol. NCBI/NIH. 2025. 🔗 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK538239/
Van Rossum. "Obesity and Cortisol: New Perspectives." Obesity Journal, Wiley. 2017. 🔗 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/oby.21774
Exposure to direct sun via a short walk
A small 5-10mins of walk exposing yourself to direct sunlight can set your Circadian Rhytm right.
In Japanese culture, Asa Sanpo is the quiet act of stepping outside at first light — ideally between 6:00 and 8:00 AM — to greet the day with a short walk. Japanese culture emphasizes asa sanpo (morning strolls) to cultivate mindfulness, connect with nature, and foster community harmony, often acting as a form of moving meditation.
Dr. Satchidananda Panda, Professor at the Salk Institute, identifies morning daylight as one of the six foundational pillars of circadian health. His lab discovered that a light-sensitive protein called melanopsin — present in your eyes — reads morning sunlight as the master signal to set your body clock for the entire day. Without this signal, cortisol peaks at the wrong time, melatonin lingers too long, and the entire hormonal cascade falls out of rhythm.
The Japanese knew this intuitively. They called it Asa Sanpo — a morning stroll at first light. Science now calls it circadian entrainment. The wisdom was always the same.
Dr. Andrew Huberman, Professor of Neurobiology at Stanford School of Medicine, calls morning sunlight "perhaps the most important thing any of us can do" for mental and physical health.
Here is the mechanism — when sunlight enters your eyes within the first hour of waking, it triggers a neural circuit that times the release of cortisol and melatonin for the entire day. Cortisol peaks correctly in the morning, giving you focus and energy. Melatonin's timer starts, ensuring it rises at the right time at night for deep sleep.
A morning walk delivers both — sunlight sets your hormonal clock, while the movement itself creates what Huberman calls "optic flow" — a calming of the nervous system as the environment moves through your visual field.
10 minutes on a sunny day. 30 minutes on a cloudy day. No sunglasses. No looking through windows. Just you, the morning light, and a walk.
Sources:
Panda S, Sato TK, Castrucci AM, Rollag MD, DeGrip WJ, Hogenesch JB, Provencio I, Kay SA. Melanopsin (Opn4) requirement for normal light-induced circadian phase shifting. Science. 2002 Dec 13;298(5601):2213-6. doi: 10.1126/science.1076848. PMID: 12481141.
Huberman Lab Newsletter — Using Light for Health
Morning Drink
In Indian temples, you will often find tulsi alongwith water is given as “prasad”. Although devotees took that as a blessing from god, there was a subtle health benefit because of this. In Indian temples, you will often find holy water with Tulsi which is called as charnaamrit.
"Your body already knows how to heal. Tulsi just reminds it how."
For thousands of years, no Indian household was complete without a Tulsi plant in its courtyard. It wasn't just a plant — it was a presence. Worshipped every morning, offered to deities, and consumed as the first thing at dawn.
Our ancestors didn't need a study to tell them Tulsi worked. They observed it across generations — in the grandmother who never fell sick, in the child whose fever broke overnight, in the elder whose mind stayed sharp well into old age.
In the Charaka Samhita, one of the oldest surviving texts on Ayurvedic medicine, Tulsi is classified as a Rasayana — a rare category of herbs believed to rejuvenate the body, extend life, and sharpen the mind. Not a remedy for one disease. A foundation for lifelong vitality.
The practice of consuming Tulsi water at dawn — before food, before chai, before anything — is rooted in this same wisdom. An empty stomach absorbs everything fully. And Tulsi, given that window, goes to work completely.
⚠️ Important: Tulsi in therapeutic doses — as water, tea, or supplements — is not recommended during pregnancy, breastfeeding, or when trying to conceive. Always consult your doctor before use.
Sources: Cohen MM, NIH/PubMed (2014) — Mount Sinai Health Library
Modern science is only now beginning to understand what our ancestors practiced intuitively for 3,500 years.
Even Japanese ancient culture emphasizes on Warm water as the first thing in the morning-
Two civilisations. Thousands of miles apart. The same morning ritual.
In India, Ayurveda prescribed Ushapan — warm water on an empty stomach at dawn, often infused with Tulsi. In Japan, the same practice exists as Sayu — plain boiled warm water consumed first thing every morning. Neither culture knew of the other. Both arrived at the same wisdom independently.
Bath
Having cold shower refreshes you more and keep you more energetic throughout the day.
Unlike the "spike and crash" you get from caffeine or sugar, cold exposure triggers a massive, sustained release of dopamine.
The "cold shock" response immediately triggers the release of norepinephrine (adrenaline for the brain).
It improves mitochondria functions. Mitochondria are the "power plants" of your cells. Cold exposure is a form of hormetic stress—a "good" stress that makes your body stronger.
What Ayurveda says about snana?
As per Ayurveda, never put hot water on your head.
Ayurveda teaches that hot water on the head weakens the eyes (Chakshushya) and can lead to premature graying or hair loss.
“उष्णाम्बुनाधःकायस्य परिषेको बलावहः ।
तेनैव तूत्तमाङ्गस्य बलहृत्केशचक्षुषाम् ॥ १७ ॥”
The Translation:
First Line: Washing the body (below the neck) with warm/hot water contributes to strength (Bala).
Second Line: Pouring hot water over the head results in the loss of strength of the hair (Kesha) and the eyes (Chakshushya).
