Most time divisions are arbitrary in some ways, which is a trait that can be seen in numerous aspects of traditional Indian day divisions.
The twenty-four hours of the solar day may be split using a variety of time measurements, some of which do not perfectly correlate to one another, and these different times can also be subject to symbolic value judgements.
The day is split into eight equal segments (prahars) of three hours each in one system.
The first of these prahars ends with dawn, while the rest of the prahars record the overall progress throughout the day and night.
Ghatikas, or twenty-four-minute intervals, are used to count time in smaller increments.
There are sixty ghatikas in every twenty-four hours.
The ghatika is said to be named from the clay pots (ghata) used to manufacture water clocks, which calculated time by the quantity of water poured through a tiny hole.
A muhurta is made up of two ghatikas, and there are thirty of them every twenty-four hours.
Because each prahar contains 7.5 ghatikas, the day's reckonings in prahars and ghatikas do not perfectly correlate to one another.
According to this, the former denotes the more broad divisions of each day, while the later denotes more particular time intervals.
Another approach to look at the times of day is in terms of their symbolic significance.
The "Time of Brahma" (Brahma muhurta), the hour just before dawn, is the most auspicious time of day.
This is said to be the ideal hour of the day for worship, meditation, or any other religious activity.
The Brahma muhurta is commonly assumed to include the full three hours of the day's first prahar, despite the fact that it is called a muhurta and should be confined to 48 minutes.
As a result, it's not uncommon for ardent religious folks to get up at 3 a.m.
to take advantage of this time.
In contrast, the prahar before it (roughly midnight to 3 a.m.) is the most inauspicious of the day, a time when spirits and demons are at large.
The most appropriate activity for this time is sleep; other activities should only be done if absolutely necessary.
Religious practices are only performed during this time if they are part of an all-night ceremony (jagaran) or a continuous reading of a religious text (akhand path).
The day's (and year's) cycle mirrors the cosmos, whose gradual and continuing degeneration is abruptly replaced with complete renewal and regeneration.
See also Cosmic Time and Cosmology.
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