Why It Is Important to Know the Energy of the Day
Introducing Blogs from the Sanctuary
Every month, we will share a new blog born from life here at The Yoga Sanctuary. Sometimes the words will come from me, Jo the founder of the Yoga Sanctuary. Other times, they may come from someone who is currently staying with us or who has recently spent time here. Each reflection will offer a glimpse into what we are learning, practicing, remembering, and living within this space.
On to the first blog.
Why It Is Important to Know the Energy of the Day
There was a time when I approached each day by looking first at what needed to be done. I would wake up already thinking about the schedule, the responsibilities, the people who needed me, and the many things I hoped to accomplish. As a mother, a teacher, and the steward of a sanctuary, there is almost always something asking for my attention.
But over time, I began to understand that not every day is asking the same thing from us.
The days contain primordial sacred energy.
Some days carry an energy that supports movement, communication, and decisive action. Other days invite us to slow down, listen, clean, forgive, complete something, or begin again. There are days when the path feels open and days when the wisest choice is to pause before moving forward.
Knowing the energy of the day does not necessarily mean allowing a calendar, a planet, or a spiritual system to control your life. It means becoming more attentive to the life that is already moving within and around you. It gives you another way to ask: What is this day inviting me to practice? How am I being asked to show up?
Listening Through the Mayan Calendar
The 20 nawales of the maya calendar
My studies of the sacred Mayan calendar have deepened this understanding. Within the Cholq’ij, the 260-day sacred calendar of the Maya, each day carries the relationship between one of twenty day energies, often called Nawales, and a number from one to thirteen. Together, they give the day its particular character, strength, and teaching.
The Nawales are living forces connected with nature, human experience, community, and the spiritual world. A day may draw our attention toward relationships, gratitude, justice, creativity, healing, ancestral wisdom, death and transformation, or the roads we walk in life.
When I know the Nawal and number of the day, I can meet the day more consciously. I may choose a prayer, a journal prompt, a conversation, or a practical task that works with its energy. Sometimes the teaching confirms what I am already feeling. Other times, it reveals something I have been avoiding.
For me, this practice is not about predicting exactly what will happen. It is about learning how to be in relationship with time. Instead of treating every day as an empty container to fill, I begin to experience time as sacred, alive, and more of a co creating experience.
The Yogic Practice of Paying Attention
Yoga teaches us something similar through a different language. If you are here , you may already know that Yoga is not only what happens on the mat. It is the practice of becoming present enough to notice what is happening within us, so that we can respond with awareness rather than react from habit.
The yogic principle of svadhyaya, or self-study, asks us to observe our thoughts, patterns, emotions, and choices. Ahimsa, or non-harming, asks us to meet what we discover with care. When we know the energy of the day and also take time to notice our own inner state, we can move with greater discernment.
Perhaps the day carries strong forward-moving energy, but your body is asking for rest. The practice is not to override yourself in the name of spirituality. The practice is to listen to both. External guidance and inner wisdom are meant to be in conversation.
Sometimes knowing the energy of the day helps me choose a stronger physical practice. Sometimes it leads me toward meditation, mantra, silence, or more conscious speech. The purpose is not to perform the “perfect” practice. It is to become more intimate with what is true.
Astrology and the Sky Above Us
Astrology offers another way of observing the quality of time. The movement of the Sun, Moon, and planets can help us reflect on the larger cycles influencing our emotions, relationships, communication, energy, and growth.
The Moon, for example, reminds us that life moves in phases. There are times to initiate, times to build, times to illuminate, and times to release. Astrology does not remove our free will. At its best, it gives us a cosmic weather report. If rain is likely, we can carry an umbrella,but we still decide where we are going.
Moving With the Day, Not Against It
The Mayan calendar, yoga, and astrology come from distinct traditions, and I believe it is important to honor each one on its own terms. Yet all three have taught me to pay attention. They remind me that I am not separate from nature, time, my body, or the sacred rhythms of life.
Knowing the energy of the day helps me move with more intention. It helps me understand when to act, when to wait, when to speak, when to listen, and when to offer myself grace. It does not make every day easy, but it gives the day meaning. Even a difficult day can become a teacher when I am willing to ask what it has come to show me.
Before reaching for your phone or your list tomorrow morning, pause for a moment. Notice your breath. Notice the sky. Notice what is moving through your heart. If you follow a sacred calendar or astrology, learn what energy is present. Then ask yourself:
How can I work with this day instead of rushing through it?
This my friends is true co creating with the Divine Creator.
— Yogini Jo
The Yoga Sanctuary, Costa Rica
