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In addition to gaining knowledge about Hinduism, we are also expected to live according to that knowledge.

There are verses:

acharah prabhavo dharmah

and

suna: puccham iva vyartham pANDityam dharma varjitam

Dharma lies in achara.
And
The knowledge of a Pundit who does not follow its tenets, is useless like a dog's tail (neither covers the private parts nor able to drive away flies).

I'm curious to find out how users here try to mold their lifestyle according to tenets of shastras.

For example, getting up before sunrise (brahma-muhurta) daily, avoiding garlic/onion in diet, avoiding sensual temptations, doing sandhya-vandana, chanting sahasranama, japa, fasting, visiting temples/kshetras etc. (not that I do all these, just listing some stuff)

What practices have you been doing for a long time?

Did learning something through this site affect your mind enough to bring a major change in daily life?

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  • What do you mean by "person who has Gnana but does not follow its tenets"? You mean a self realized person who don't follow dharma sastras?
    – Spark Sunshine
    Commented Nov 25, 2018 at 16:00
  • @NaveenKick, no I mean a person who has knowledge of dharma shastras but doesn't follow them
    – ram
    Commented Nov 25, 2018 at 23:02
  • I think you should remove the part "person who has knowledge of....."
    – user6981
    Commented Nov 26, 2018 at 16:24
  • @KrishnaShweta, which part exactly, and why ?
    – ram
    Commented Nov 26, 2018 at 18:16
  • "useless like a dog's tail" point. Because reason for not following daily rituals could be some personal work like college or office. So I think we shouldn't call someone "useless"
    – user6981
    Commented Nov 27, 2018 at 10:49
  • @KrishnaShweta, calling the knowledge useless, not the person. knowledge without action corresponding to it is like dog's tail - it exists but it doesn't serve purpose. it says pandityam, not panditah. also, this is not opinion that I came up with. I edited question from person to knowledge.
    – ram
    Commented Nov 27, 2018 at 19:24

2 Answers 2

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There is lot of contribution due to this site in my knowledge & lifestyle. Following points are mix of inspiration from here as well as something being followed even before:

  • Waking up at 4:30 am and get ready for work by 7:00 am
  • PrAnAyAma (breathing exercise) & VyAyama (mix of stretching & what's referred as "Yoga" in popular culture) early morning; Also added Surya namaskara
  • Bathing at least twice, morning and evening; followed by quick pray to an idol, lighting Agarbatti & tilak on forehead
  • Eating at regular time and avoiding anything except breakfast, lunch, dinner (tried 2 meals but failed)
  • At least 1 day skipping a meal (usually Sundays)
  • Visiting a nearby Hanuman temple at least once in a week/fortnight
  • Being considerate & respectful towards other religions & beliefs
  • Due to above, I have succeeded in developing natural dislike for spicy food; However, onion + garlic are used occasionally (though my family members strictly don't)
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  • the first one you listed is almost impossible for me due to bad habits from college.. why you choose Sundays for skipping.. maybe shift to ekadashi ? i still need spicy food otherwise i'll just sleep all day :) but the smell of onion is repulsive now (i used to enjoy it in college)
    – ram
    Commented Nov 19, 2018 at 4:03
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    Last second point: Very commendable. Many people on the site don't have that respect at all and abuse other beliefs. They also make personal attacks on other users having agenda. Nice to see someone learn something from this site.
    – User9125
    Commented Nov 19, 2018 at 9:00
  • 1
    @User9125, what does having an agenda mean ? If I personally attack rishis/scriptures, it would be silly of me to expect that others should not personally attack me. Most users on this site are like India - no-first-strike-policy.
    – ram
    Commented Nov 20, 2018 at 6:57
  • @ram I don't know what you are talking about. I was referring to some other comment from my own experience on the site. I posted a comment about acceptance and OP, then I was said I am running political campaign. hinduism.meta.stackexchange.com/q/1495/9125 This would give you some context on what I was saying about.
    – User9125
    Commented Nov 20, 2018 at 17:20
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Namaskar,

I'm new to this site and thought I should list my daily practice. The daily obligations for nimbArkis are listed here and here.

I believe these are both this and the agnihotra are necessary for all initiated Hindus (dvijas) according to dharmasUtras, although SandhyAvandanam is much more commonly practiced. The agnihotra is detailed in the Satapatha brAhmaNa (2.2.4-2.4.1) and shuklayajurvedA (3). I am currently not entitled to practice it.

Here's what I try to do in the morning:

  • First I brush my teeth and take a bath after waking very early in the morning. This is an important purification practice for Vaishnavas.
  • I wear yajNopavIta and tulasimAlA, and tilaks on the twelve parts of my body.
  • A long series of nyAsas for purification, involves reciting sacred syllables according to the tradition of my sampradAya.
  • 108 mantra japa (various mantras), and 108 nAma japa (names of rAdhA and kRRiShNa)
  • 10 and occasionally 16 upachara pUjA of my shAligrAma using puruShasUkta. shAligrAma is the form of kRRiShNa worshipped by those who do not have a larger mUrti.
  • Recite various stotras: prAtaHsmaraNam text, vedAntadashashlokI text, audio, rAdhAvarAShTakaM text, audio, chatuHshlokIbhAgavatam (S.B. 2.9.33-36), chatuHshlokIgIta (B.G. 10.8-11) and saMsAra-sAgarAn prayers (sanatkumAra saMhitA 129-133). The first three were written by nimbArkAchArya, and the last three are key scripture verses.
  • Take prasAdam and tirtham from the pUjA. This is a great blessing. Sometimes I have time for kIrtan after this.

In the evening I do the following:

  • Sing five sAmaveda verses (entire veda is completed in about a year): I am a sAmaveda brAhmaNa.
  • Study of: all four parts of all four vedas, gIta (with keshava kAshmIrI commentary from this site), vedAnta (with this commentary) and bhAgavata purANa, and some minor works; viShNusahasranAma, sanatkumAra saMhitA, nArada bhakti sUtra and my gauTama dharmasUtra.
  • ShaTkarma to prepare for yoga
  • prANAyAma, breath control, eight different types
  • Asanas, seating positions and mudrAs, hand signs. I usually do twelve Asanas and ten mudrAs.
  • dhyAna, meditation, contemplating the scriptures that I have read and obviously rAdhAkRRiShNa.

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