When, how much, and how should one drink water?

1. Hardworking people should not drink water for one muhurta (48 minutes) after taking a meal, and intellectuals for two muhurtas (one hour and 36 minutes). Drinking water during this period dilutes the digestive juices, which prevents proper digestion of food.

2. After bathing, one should consume food immediately without drinking water. Drinking water at that time weakens the intestines and makes them diseased. The first meal of the day for intellectuals should be fruit. There is no such compulsion for hardworking people.

3. One should not drink water during the fast of Bhimseni Ekadashi.

The secret behind these three prohibitions will be revealed at the end.

When should one drink water?

The answer to this is very simple –
As soon as one feels thirsty!

Upon waking up in the morning, relieve yourself, lie down again and set an alarm for 10 minutes. When the alarm rings, sit in a squatting position (ukadoo) and drink water very slowly. Sending the overnight saliva into the stomach and intestines is essential for health. Do not commit the sectarian foolishness of spitting it out. Drink water throughout the day to urinate, not the other way around. If there is an intense urge to urinate, relieve yourself, set a 10-minute alarm, and drink water when the alarm rings. Failing to follow this rule harms the urinary bladder and the prostate.

How much water should one drink?

The answer is –
Experiencing the touch and taste of water, one should drink to satisfaction without greed for quantity.

How should water be drunk?

Generally, water should be drunk slowly so that saliva keeps mixing with it. Even a small amount of water drunk in this manner is more beneficial than a large amount of water drunk quickly. To induce vomiting, one sits in a squatting position and drinks water at a slightly faster pace, but this is an exception and not the general rule.

Now the secret of the above three prohibitions is revealed.

The implication of these three prohibitions is that drinking water in the normal manner is forbidden at those times, but if one experiences a dry mouth, there is a prescription to drink water in a special way. That prescription is – achamana (ritual sipping of water).

For achamana, taking water in the cupped palm (anjali), bending forward slightly, and sipping a little water by applying the mouth from the wrist side. The remaining water in the palm should be discarded. One should not perform more than 3 achamanas at a time. After the final achamana, the palms should be washed.

 - Shri Prachanda Pradyota

आसान नहीं है ‘तीर्थ’ शब्द का अर्थ समझना. क्यों है प्रयाग तीर्थराज?