Do you practice at midnight?

[Antares]

Ayurveda stands for going to bed 2 hours prior to astronomical midnight. As only this time our mental state of mind rests. And to wake at 4-5 a.m. for practice yoga and meditation.

 

At the same time according to taoist perspective this is one of the best time to practice.

 

Any clever thoughts on it? What time are you going to bed?

 

I am striving for going to bed at 11 pm but it is real challenge as another people in my house not sleeping till very late. But I noticed it is better to go to bed earlier. But might be practicing at midnight has it's benefits?

[Mal]

It's probably more beneficial than surfing ttb at 12:50am :-(

I also went to bed at 11pm and ok I've been on Facebook too.

At least I know my partner is sleeping well... from the snoring

 

Anyhow currently I usually get to sleep between 10 and 11 and I will usually wake up around 4 (and go back to sleep) While I have practiced then (KAP classes) and it's a good time for practice but then I'm left with a few hours to try to sleep or do something with before work. So I feel better practicing at or around dawn (currently 6am here) or before going to bed( that can be midnight, and wicca sorts of rituals are always fun at midnight, but I prefer to "Play" at night having "practiced" earlier)

 

I also find when I'm up at 1 am I won't want to sleep till around 2

Edited May 19, 2013 by Mal Stainkey

[suninmyeyes]

Midnight has been reccomended as a great meditation time by a Sufi (!) teacher I had a chat with , some of them meditate all the way till first morning prayer and sleep much less .

Helpful time to dive deep within due to natural calmness in the nature at midnight .

 

I used to get up at 4 am for quite a few years and go sleep around 10pm without fail like a good cultivation solider , did at least 2 hours cultivation before going about regular day and honestly I had so much energy , it was fantastic . Looking back I wonder how I did it .. :D On second thought-- maybe becouse it was a begging of a love affair with spiritual practise ...

Edited May 19, 2013 by suninmyeyes

[skydog]

hmm on the one hand I would kind of like too, have done this intermittenly....like im usually awake at midnight and usually engaged in some sort of cultivation..with the waking up thing, for some resason it makes me feel tense, structured, too routined, like life is a mission to get somewhere else instead of free and playful, plus these days sleep isnt instantaneous for me...

[ChiForce]

Ayurveda stands for going to bed 2 hours prior to astronomical midnight. As only this time our mental state of mind rests. And to wake at 4-5 a.m. for practice yoga and meditation.

 

At the same time according to taoist perspective this is one of the best time to practice.

 

Any clever thoughts on it? What time are you going to bed?

 

I am striving for going to bed at 11 pm but it is real challenge as another people in my house not sleeping till very late. But I noticed it is better to go to bed earlier. But might be practicing at midnight has it's benefits?

Most of the times, I go to bed late, around 11 pm or 12 am. The problem is usually that I would be busy with the computer and message boards. And my mind won't be mindful enough to meditate. I meditate before I go to bed but it is usually not as productive. Now, however, I wake up around 4 am to 5 am every morning, either because I have to go to the bathroom or from a dream. Usually, at this time, my dream is ridiculously lucid. My chi channels would become extremely active, hot feeling in body from the head to toes, intense chakras vibrations which I could hear internally, and seeing the chi pearl with my third eye.

Edited May 19, 2013 by ChiForce

[Friend]

Edited August 17, 2013 by Friend

[Antares]

I think that practicing till midnight is still good and beneficial but it is desirable to fall asleep at least at 12.30 and wake up at 7-8 am. I don't like to wake up early. I feel lazy for anything at 4-5-6 am.

 

Astronomical midnight is at 1 a.m. in my region now. I think it is vitally important to sleep at least 1 hour prior astr. midnight. It is good for the nervous system to rest. As to be awake at this time imbalances vata - dosha.

 

If you are awake at vata dosha time - from 10 til 2 of astronomical time (from 11 pm in my case) then it is more difficult to fall asleep as vata is wind. So it is desirable to fall asleep before 11 pm for the doshas balance.

 

But this is Ayrveda' point of view. Taoists might have another perspective on it.

 

I am somewhere in the middle. Will be trying to go to bed at 12 in order to give mind to rest for at least 1 hour before midnight

[Fu_doggy]

I practice qigong at midnight quite often, since I usually work 13 hours per day.

 

That said, what I can considering adding (when possible) is a practice at 12 noon also. When not traveling on business I work from my home office I am thinking of doing a qigong practice rather than taking the usual 45 minutes to an hour for lunch break.

 

Both of those times (noon and midnight) are when our world changes from yin-to-yang or yang-to-yin, and are powerful times to do a practice or mediation.

[Antares]

Astronomical 2 hours would be : sun rising minus sun going down. This results in the amount of time for the night divided to 2 then one has the real midnight. Which where rest is best because of the yin nature and activity would eat more energy and going before into bed ensure to be already in deep sleep phase. Else Something that is Yin is also good to practise.

 

Friend, is it important to sleep hour or two prior to astr. midnight or it is okey to rest at midnight time (1 am)?

Yin time is before 1 am, and after Yang is born.How much time to sleep at Yin time?

[Antares]

I practice qigong at midnight quite often, since I usually work 13 hours per day.

 

Both of those times (noon and midnight) are when our world changes from yin-to-yang or yang-to-yin, and are powerful times to do a practice or mediation.

Okey, if A.M. is at 1 a.m. does it mean okey to practice at 1 a.m.? And going for the rest at Yang time?

[Friend]

Edited August 17, 2013 by Friend

[ChiDragon]

Zazen or static Chi Kung is not a strenuous exercise which is good for midnight practice. It is equivalent to a good night rest or few hours anyways.

Edited May 19, 2013 by ChiDragon

[Gemstone]

Static Chi Kung is not a strenuous exercise?

Then why does my floor get wet?

[ChiDragon]

Static Chi Kung is not a strenuous exercise?

Then why does my floor get wet?

 

Please give more details about your floor gets wet.

[Gemstone]

Long sessions of Zhan Zhuang can, for me, produce lots of sweat.

Soaking my clothes, dripping from my arms and elbows, running down the legs making the floor around me wet.

strenuous? Yes!

[ChiDragon]

Long sessions of Zhan Zhuang can, for me, produce lots of sweat.

Soaking my clothes, dripping from my arms and elbows, running down the legs making the floor around me wet.

strenuous? Yes!

 

Good, that's what I thought the case might be. Let me ask you some more questions before I answer you.

 

You said long sessions of Zhan Zhuang.

1. How long is one session....???

2. Did you get tire after one long session......???

3. Did you tight up your muscles....???

4. How much do you weight....???

Edited May 20, 2013 by ChiDragon

[Gemstone]

1. 45-60 min is long for me.

2. Yes

3. periodically. To relax tension is part of the practice.

4. 73kg

[Bum Grasshopper]

Being an insomniac, I practice after midnight quite often. It's 2:00 am now, I am wide awake and will be doing an hour of Kunlun + before going to bed. If I can't get to sleep, I will get up and do some emptiness meditation. It is not uncommon for me not to get to sleep until after 6:00 am. I work sort of an afternoon shift (1:00pm- whenever) so it works for me.

[hydrogen]

Due to various reasons, I mostly practice at night from 9pm to 12pm. It works well for me. For a beginner, it's easier to calm down my mind during night time. The night sky, the moon and the starts have different effects on me than sun.

 

My Qi seem to easily become stagnant. If I soak up the sun or work out a sweat during the day, I feel better during my nightly practice.

 

After two years of night time practice, I think I should do more day time practice as suppliments.

[Antares]

I like night time practicing too. I think the best time for practice is early morning an late before midnight (9-12 pm) when there is more calmness around. I dont like practice when sun is high. And I think it is important to be in deep sleep before astronom. midnight. So I am trying to practice 9-11 pm and at 11 to fall asleep. Then wake up earlier and practice. But I feel lazy early, I have some blood (qi) stagnation and feel sluggishly straight after wake up.May be that is what I need to move gently after wake up. I am thinking to practice 8 brocades straight after wake up.

[ChiDragon]

Long sessions of Zhan Zhuang can, for me, produce lots of sweat.

Soaking my clothes, dripping from my arms and elbows, running down the legs making the floor around me wet.

strenuous? Yes!

 

 

Good, that's what I thought the case might be. Let me ask you some more questions before I answer you.

 

You said long sessions of Zhan Zhuang.

1. How long is one session....???

2. Did you get tire after one long session......???

3. Did you tight up your muscles....???

4. How much do you weight....???

 

Gemstone:

1. 45-60 min is long for me.

2. Yes

3. periodically. To relax tension is part of the practice.

4. 73kg

 

First of all, Zhan Zhuang is not Static Chi Kung. It is because you are putting stress on your leg muscles by supporting your own body weight of 73kg(160lb). Especially, when you tighten up your muscles, you are making your muscles to work harder and dissipating lots of body heat. Your body has to be cooled down by given off water. Thus this is why you were sweating.

 

Zazen is static Chi Kung because it requires the practitioner to sit in anyone form of lotus positions. Even though the legs were bent, but they do not have as much stress as doing the stance in Zhan Zhuang.

 

PS....

If you can do Zhan Zhuang in 45-60 mins, then your legs are very strong. It is fine to contract your muscles at that level. However, since you have a good amount of body weight, it is equivalent to that your legs were doing some weight lifting. It is better off for you to just do the Zhan Zhuang stance without the additional muscle contraction but just let your body weight doing the work. Indeed, this can prevent you from sweating and you must breathe deeply and slowly to compensate for the heavy consumption of oxygen.

 

Keeping in mind that, when you inhale that your are inhaling. When you exhale that you are exhaling. Another words, your concentration is straightly on your breathing and your mind is not anywhere else. For what is worth, you are actually cultivating the body, breathing and mind.

Edited May 22, 2013 by ChiDragon

[gentlewind]

Ayurveda stands for going to bed 2 hours prior to astronomical midnight. As only this time our mental state of mind rests. And to wake at 4-5 a.m. for practice yoga and meditation.

 

At the same time according to taoist perspective this is one of the best time to practice.

 

Any clever thoughts on it? What time are you going to bed?

 

I am striving for going to bed at 11 pm but it is real challenge as another people in my house not sleeping till very late. But I noticed it is better to go to bed earlier. But might be practicing at midnight has it's benefits?

 

I meditate when it feels right for me. Never been one for structure or discipline, although both do have there place. If you listen to your body and go within you will find the right time for everything.

 

Namaste,

 

gentlewind

[dogson]

In an ideal world I go to bed arond 7 or 8PM and get up at 1AM, and train for 10 hours.

 

This isn't always possible. I've been living in Brooklyn for a year and my circadian rhythm is completely whacked out due to a total lack of anything natural. So if I'm up at midnight, yeah! I love meditating. 11pm-1am is said to be a great time for meditation, the psychic "dust" begins to settle. I also really like 4AM. If you talk to any famous writers they almost always either stay up very late, or get up very early, for the same reason. It's easier to think at this time of day. There isn't as much interference. It's very logical that the "airwaves" are more open; when I wake up very early I lock in a much higher consciousness that I take with me the whole day.

[Neophyte]

Example Sunrise 8AM. Sundown8PM = 12hours. Rest= 12hours

12 hours / 2 = 6 . Midnight is at 6. So 8PM + 6 = 14 hours or 12 + 2hours = 2 A.M

 

2.A.M is real Midnight arcording to the day. <- Real absolute max of Yin Time based on the Sun. The time change with season and day. The sleeping time should cover 2. A.M , because a deep sleep phase is around 2 hours then one should be a bit before 1.A.M in bed because after one hour one is Phase4 of Deep Sleep and one is Yin in a Yin State and not spend Yang. In Yin State in Yin Time one actually charge Yang with the help of Yin in the enviroment one has help in more Yang Time one is depend on oneself.

Spending Yang in Pure Yin cost several times more than at other time. But if one exercise to spend less Yang then this Max of Yin

is the time to exercise, also doing exercise to loose less Yang . This time is excellent for Stillness Sitting and emptiness meditation but not to circulate and build energy or use energy.

 

http://sunrise-sunset.dusk-dawn.com/?month=5&year=2013&longitude=7&latitude=52&zenith=90.833333333333&view=month

 

Wow, this is a really great thread. Friend's posts here are of immense importance to me, I wish I had known about this sooner, because I strongly emphasize practicing at midnight in my practice and now I understand it better, midnight and noon change according to length of day!

 

So, tell me if I understand this correctly. Where I live, tomorrow, sunrise is a 5:59 A.M. (Let's round to 6 a.m.); sunset is at 9:01 p.m. (let's round to 9 p.m.). So, roughly 9 hours of dark. 9/2 = 4.5.

 

9 p.m. + 4.5 = 13.5. So, 1:30 a.m. is true midnight. Correct?

 

(And to be even more precise--I just want to make sure I understand this--when we take minutes into account, because dawn is at 5:59 am. and sunset is at 9:01 pm., this gives two more minutes to DAY; which means two fewer minutes to dark.

 

2/2 = 1.

 

So, true midnight is 1:30 am. + 1 minute = 1:31 am.)

 

Here is my confusion:

 

What is meant by "astronomical" midnight?

 

Where I live, it's currently Daylight Saving Time. So, does this calculation mean that my midnight practice should begin at 1:31 am or 2:31 am (to take into account Daylight Saving Time)?

 

What adds further confusion, is that the book Taoist Yoga says that the positive half of the day begins at 11:00 pm, (not 12:00 am). It says to practice the Swallowing saliva technique after 12:00 am. Swallowing saliva technique is the BEST and FASTEST way to restore our generative force, and must be done during the positive half of day, otherwise, it's useless.

 

So, does Taoist Yoga throw ALL of OUR calculations off, by stating that Yin half of day ends at 11:00 pm.( thus yang begins at 11:00 pm. and not midnight)?

And how can Taoist Yoga's intervals of Yin/Yang periods of day be reconciled with the info given by Friend (Friend's being based on lengths of daylight and darkness)?

 

I'm not just sending these questions out to Friend, but to whoever can clarify this for me.

[Friend]

Edited August 17, 2013 by Friend