The classical texts split the year into six seasons, or ritus, of about two months each. Charaka Samhita gives the seasonal routine in Sutra Sthana chapter 6, and the Ashtanga Hridaya in Sutra Sthana chapter 3. For each season they say what to eat, what to keep away from and how to live.[1][2]

In broad strokes, the cold months call for richer food and warmth, summer for cool liquids and rest, and the rains for old grains, soups and boiled water.

Hemantaहेमन्तEarly winter ShishiraशिशिरLate winter, cold and dry Vasantaवसन्तSpring Grishmaग्रीष्मSummer Varshaवर्षाThe rains Sharadशरद्Autumn, after the rains

The dates are the modern calendar table printed with the Charak Samhita Online edition, a rough fit for the Indian plains. Weather differs by region, and outside India the seasons will not line up.[1]

Season by season

Hemanta हेमन्त

Early winter · Margashirsha and Pausha · mid-November to mid-January

Eat: Unctuous (oily), sour and salty food, milk and milk products, fats, new rice, warm water. The Ashtanga Hridaya adds sweet tastes and nourishing meals.
Avoid: Eating too little, and strong cold wind.
Daily life: Oil massage, warm clothes, warm bedding and a sheltered room.

ato hime 'smin seveta svādv-amla-lavaṇān rasān

So in this cold season one should take sweet, sour and salty tastes. Ashtanga Hridaya Sutra 3.7-16

Charaka Sutra 6.9-18 · Ashtanga Hridaya Sutra 3.7-16[1][2]

Shishira शिशिर

Late winter, cold and dry · Magha and Phalguna · mid-January to mid-March

Eat: The same food as Hemanta.
Avoid: Food that is mainly pungent, bitter or astringent, and food that is cold and light.
Daily life: The Hemanta routine, with even more shelter from wind and cold.

तस्माद्धैमन्तिकः सर्वः शिशिरे विधिरिष्यते

So the whole Hemanta routine is followed in Shishira. Charaka Sutra 6.20

Charaka Sutra 6.19-21 · Ashtanga Hridaya Sutra 3.17[1][2]

Vasanta वसन्त

Spring · Chaitra and Vaishakha · mid-March to mid-May

Eat: Barley and wheat. The Ashtanga Hridaya says old barley and wheat, and light, dry food.
Avoid: Heavy, sour, unctuous and sweet food, and sleeping in the day.
Daily life: Exercise and dry massage.

Charaka also describes treatments for spring that a physician gives. They are not listed here.

गुर्वम्लस्निग्धमधुरं दिवास्वप्नं च वर्जयेत्

Avoid heavy, sour, unctuous and sweet food, and sleep in the daytime. Charaka Sutra 6.23

Charaka Sutra 6.22-26 · Ashtanga Hridaya Sutra 3.18-26[1][2]

Grishma ग्रीष्म

Summer · Jyeshtha and Ashadha · mid-May to mid-July

Eat: Sweet, cool, liquid and unctuous food and drink: milk, ghee, rice. The Ashtanga Hridaya adds that food should be light.
Avoid: Hard exercise, too much sun and heat, and salty, sour and pungent food.
Daily life: Cool rooms and rest in the day.

स्वादु शीतं द्रवं स्निग्धमन्नपानं तदा हितम्

Sweet, cool, liquid and unctuous food and drink are good at this time. Charaka Sutra 6.27

Charaka Sutra 6.27-32 · Ashtanga Hridaya Sutra 3.26-41[1][2]

Varsha वर्षा

The rains · Shravana and Bhadrapada · mid-July to mid-September

Eat: Old barley, wheat and rice, and prepared soups. Sour, salty and unctuous food on days that are especially cold and wet. Water that has been boiled and cooled.
Avoid: River water, dew, sleeping in the day, and (in the Ashtanga Hridaya) heavy exertion and sun.
Daily life: A dry place to live and sleep.

अग्निसंरक्षणवता यवगोधूमशालयः

Barley, wheat and rice, for one who takes care of the digestive fire (agni). Charaka Sutra 6.38

Charaka Sutra 6.33-40 · Ashtanga Hridaya Sutra 3.42-48[1][2]

Sharad शरद्

Autumn, after the rains · Ashvina and Kartika · mid-September to mid-November

Eat: Sweet, light, cool and slightly bitter food, eaten when hungry: rice, barley, wheat. The Ashtanga Hridaya adds astringent tastes.
Avoid: Heat and sun, curd, and sleeping in the day.
Daily life: Clean clothes, and moonlight in the evening.

The Ashtanga Hridaya also describes treatments for this season that a physician gives. They are not listed here.

तत्रान्नपानं मधुरं लघु शीतं सतिक्तकम्

Food and drink then should be sweet, light, cool and a little bitter. Charaka Sutra 6.42

Charaka Sutra 6.41-48 · Ashtanga Hridaya Sutra 3.49-55[1][2]

Between seasons

The last seven days of one season and the first seven days of the next form a junction, ritusandhi. The Ashtanga Hridaya says the old routine should be let go and the new one taken up step by step in these two weeks, not all at once. The WHO's standard Ayurveda terminology defines ritusandhi the same way.[2][3]

ṛtvor antyādi-saptāhāv ṛtu-saṃdhir iti smṛtaḥ / tatra pūrvo vidhis tyājyaḥ sevanīyo 'paraḥ kramāt

The last and first seven days of two seasons are called the junction. In it, the earlier routine is given up and the next one taken up gradually. Ashtanga Hridaya Sutra 3.58

The modern view

Randomised trial, Kerala, during the rains

Sixty healthy volunteers in Kerala were randomly split into two groups of 30 for 60 days during the monsoon. One group took haritaki tablets each morning with rock salt and warm water, a seasonal way of taking haritaki called rituharitaki. The other group took nothing. The haritaki group reported fewer and milder colds, coughs and fevers, and better scores on two areas of a standard quality-of-life questionnaire (WHOQOL-BREF).[4]

The trial was small and open-label, so everyone knew which group they were in, and the controls had no placebo. It tested one seasonal medicine in one place and one season, not the whole routine.

RCT

We found no study of following the whole seasonal routine through the year.

These are the classical descriptions. If you have diabetes, kidney disease or any illness with its own diet, ask your doctor or vaidya before changing what you eat.

Sources

Updated 4 November 2026

Suggest a correction Changelog How we write these pagesNot a diagnosis or prescription. In an emergency, call 112.

Six seasons, six routines.