Ritucharya

Ritucharya is the Ayurvedic approach to seasonal living - adjusting diet, lifestyle, and practices according to the changing seasons. Each season has a dominant dosha influence, and ritucharya provides guidelines for maintaining balance through these transitions.

The classical six-season model includes: late winter (shishira), spring (vasanta), summer (grishma), monsoon (varsha), autumn (sharad), and early winter (hemanta). In most climates, this adapts to four seasons with transitional periods between them.

Key principles: eat warming, building foods in cold seasons; lighter, cooling foods in hot seasons. Adjust exercise intensity, sleep duration, and daily practices accordingly. Pay special attention to seasonal junctions (ritu sandhi) when immunity is naturally lower and transitions must be managed carefully.