Raga Clock / Ragas & the Hours
The time theory of ragasHow North Indian classical music came to give its ragas a time of day, how the system works, and where musicians and books disagree.
General information, not medical advice. Talk to a doctor about any health concern.
A raga is not just a scale. It is a set of notes plus a grammar: the shape of the ascent (aroha) and descent (avaroha), which notes are stressed and which are only touched, characteristic turns of phrase, and ornaments such as slow oscillations and glides. A performer improvises inside that grammar. Two ragas can use exactly the same notes and still be different ragas: Bhupali, an evening raga, and Deshkar, a morning raga, share all five of their notes.
The notes are named Sa, Re, Ga, Ma, Pa, Dha and Ni. Sa is the home note, set wherever suits the performer rather than at a fixed pitch, and a drone instrument, the tanpura, sounds it continuously. Re, Ga, Dha and Ni can also be komal (flat), and Ma can be tivra (sharp).
The traditional day has eight prahars, or watches: four of the day and four of the night, each about three hours long. On the raga clock they are counted from about 6 am, but in tradition they run from sunrise and sunset, which shift with the season and the place. Clock times on this site are approximations.
Within that frame, musicians and textbooks give each raga a home: Bhairav in the first watch of the day, Todi in the second, the Sarang ragas at midday, Yaman in the first watch of the night, Darbari around midnight, Lalit at the end of the night.
Dawn and dusk are called sandhi, junctions. Many ragas of these hours share a family resemblance: komal (flat) Re with shuddh (natural) Ga and Ni. Bhairav belongs to dawn; Marwa, Puriya Dhanashree and Shree to sunset. Writers from the early 20th century, above all V. N. Bhatkhande, used patterns like this to explain the time links, along with rules about whether a raga's stressed notes sit in the lower or upper half of the octave.
Some ragas are tied to a season rather than an hour. The Malhar ragas, such as Miyan ki Malhar and Megh, belong to the monsoon, and during the rains they may be sung at any hour. Basant and Bahar belong to spring. Legends tell of singers who could bring rain with Malhar; they are stories, not history. See the monsoon room and the spring room.
Placings vary. Different schools (gharanas), teachers and books put some ragas in different watches. Bageshri, Desh and Kedar are placed variously in the evening or later night; Lalit's parent scale is disputed; Ahir Bhairav fits none of the ten parent scales exactly.
The explanations are later than the practice. The systematic rules were set out in the early 20th century, chiefly by Bhatkhande, to describe a practice that is much older and was never uniform. The rules have many exceptions.
Practice is loose. Concerts often respect the hour, but recordings, radio, teaching and film music do not, and some musicians say the mood matters more than the clock.
South India is different. Carnatic music links a few ragas to times (and some, like Neelambari, to lullabies), but it mostly does not follow time rules.
Tradition, not medicine. In tradition, some ragas are associated with healing or with easing particular conditions, and books and videos repeat these links. They are beliefs, not tested treatments: good evidence is lacking, and this site makes no such claims. Talk to a doctor about any health concern.
This is the version the raga clock uses. One raga is featured for each hour; others commonly heard at that time are listed beside it. Hour placements follow common teaching practice, and sources differ by an hour or more for several ragas: Multani, for example, is placed anywhere from noon to late afternoon.
| Hour | Featured raga | Also heard | Room |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12 am–1 am | Darbari Kanada | Bageshri, Malkauns | Night |
| 1 am–2 am | Malkauns | Darbari Kanada | Night |
| 2 am–3 am | Malkauns | – | Night |
| 3 am–4 am | Sohini | Lalit | Night |
| 4 am–5 am | Lalit | – | Dawn |
| 5 am–6 am | Lalit | Bhairav | Dawn |
| 6 am–7 am | Bhairav | Ahir Bhairav, Lalit | Dawn |
| 7 am–8 am | Ahir Bhairav | Bhairav, Bilaval | Morning |
| 8 am–9 am | Bilaval | – | Morning |
| 9 am–10 am | Todi | Jaunpuri | Morning |
| 10 am–11 am | Todi | Jaunpuri | Morning |
| 11 am–12 pm | Jaunpuri | Todi | Midday & Afternoon |
| 12 pm–1 pm | Brindavani Sarang | – | Midday & Afternoon |
| 1 pm–2 pm | Brindavani Sarang | Bhimpalasi | Midday & Afternoon |
| 2 pm–3 pm | Bhimpalasi | – | Midday & Afternoon |
| 3 pm–4 pm | Bhimpalasi | – | Midday & Afternoon |
| 4 pm–5 pm | Multani | Bhimpalasi | Dusk |
| 5 pm–6 pm | Marwa | Puriya Dhanashree, Multani | Dusk |
| 6 pm–7 pm | Puriya Dhanashree | Marwa, Yaman | Dusk |
| 7 pm–8 pm | Yaman | Bhupali, Puriya Dhanashree | Evening |
| 8 pm–9 pm | Yaman | Bhupali, Hamsadhwani | Evening |
| 9 pm–10 pm | Bhupali | Hamsadhwani, Yaman, Desh | Evening |
| 10 pm–11 pm | Bageshri | Desh, Darbari Kanada | Night |
| 11 pm–12 am | Bageshri | Darbari Kanada, Desh | Night |
Each card gives the notes going up and coming down in their plainest form. Real performances add ornaments, skipped notes and turns that a list can't show.
Going upNi Re Ga Ma Ma Dha Ni SaComing downSa Ni Dha Ma Ma Ga Re Sa
A raga of the last hour of night, unusual for using both forms of Ma side by side and for leaving out Pa altogether. Writers disagree about its parent scale: some file it under Marwa, others under Purvi.
Going upSa Re Ga Ma Pa Dha Ni SaComing downSa Ni Dha Pa Ma Ga Re Sa
One of the oldest and most important morning ragas, named after a fierce form of Shiva. Komal Re and komal Dha are sung with a slow, heavy oscillation (andolan) that gives it a grave, prayerful character.
Going upSa Re Ga Ma Pa Dha Ni SaComing downSa Ni Dha Pa Ma Ga Re Sa
Bhairav's lower half joined to an upper half like Kafi's, with shuddh Dha and komal Ni. It fits none of the ten parent scales exactly, so books file it under Bhairav for convenience.
Going upSa Re Ga Ma Pa Dha Ni SaComing downSa Ni Dha Pa Ma Ga Re Sa
The reference scale of the parent-scale (thaat) system, with the same notes as the Western major scale, and a bright morning raga. The version most often heard, Alhaiya Bilaval, adds a touch of komal Ni coming down; the clock uses the plain scale.
Going upSa Re Ga Ma Dha Ni SaComing downSa Ni Dha Pa Ma Ga Re Sa
Miyan ki Todi, the Todi most people mean, is a late-morning raga of tender, plaintive phrases. Pa is usually skipped going up; how it is used coming down varies by lineage, from a light touch to a resting note. Ragamala paintings often show Todi as a woman playing a veena in a forest, with deer drawn to the music.
Going upSa Re Ma Pa Dha Ni SaComing downSa Ni Dha Pa Ma Ga Re Sa
A late-morning raga that tradition links, by name, to Jaunpur, a court city of the 15th century. Komal Ga, Dha and Ni give it a serious, devotional feel, and it skips Ga going up.
Going upNi Sa Re Ma Pa Ni SaComing downSa Ni Pa Ma Re Sa
The best-known of the Sarang family of midday ragas: five notes, open and bright, with shuddh Ni going up and komal Ni coming down. Its name points to Vrindavan, the land of Krishna's youth.
Going upNi Sa Ga Ma Pa Ni SaComing downSa Ni Dha Pa Ma Ga Re Sa
An afternoon raga that skips Re and Dha going up, with a yearning, unhurried feel. Komal Ga and komal Ni give it its warmth.
Going upNi Sa Ga Ma Pa Ni SaComing downSa Ni Dha Pa Ma Ga Re Sa
A late-afternoon raga of the Todi family, with komal Re, komal Ga, tivra Ma and komal Dha, and with Re and Dha skipped going up. It is sung as the heat of the day begins to break.
Going upDha Ni Re Ga Ma Dha Ni SaComing downSa Ni Dha Ma Ga Re Sa
A sunset raga with no Pa, in which even Sa is touched only lightly. The pull between komal Re and shuddh Dha gives it a restless, searching mood that musicians link to the moment the light goes.
Going upNi Re Ga Ma Pa Dha Ni SaComing downSa Ni Dha Pa Ma Ga Re Sa
Another sunset raga, close to Marwa in colour but warmer, with Pa restored. It sits right at the junction of day and night, when lamps are lit.
Going upNi Re Ga Ma Dha Ni SaComing downSa Ni Dha Pa Ma Ga Re Sa
Often among the first ragas a student learns, and one of the most performed. The sharp (tivra) Ma gives it a bright, serene glow. It belongs to the first part of the night, just after dusk.
Going upSa Re Ga Pa Dha SaComing downSa Dha Pa Ga Re Sa
Five notes, Sa Re Ga Pa Dha, and nothing else: the same shape as the major pentatonic heard all over the world. Raga Deshkar uses the very same five notes but stresses different ones and is sung in the morning, which is a good reminder that a raga is more than its scale.
Going upSa Re Ga Pa Ni SaComing downSa Ni Pa Ga Re Sa
A five-note raga from South India's Carnatic tradition, traditionally credited to the 18th-century composer Ramaswami Dikshitar. Hindustani musicians took it up in the 20th century and sing it in the evening.
Going upNi Dha Sa Ga Ma Dha Ni SaComing downSa Ni Dha Ma Ga Re Sa
A late-night raga of longing built around komal Ga and komal Ni. Pa is used sparingly or not at all, depending on the school, so the tanpura is often tuned to Ma.
Going upSa Re Ga Ma Pa Dha Ni SaComing downSa Ni Dha Pa Ma Ga Re Sa
Named after the royal court (darbar), and linked by tradition to Tansen at Akbar's court. It is sung around midnight, slowly and low, with a wide oscillation on komal Ga and komal Dha.
Going upSa Ga Ma Dha Ni SaComing downSa Ni Dha Ma Ga Sa
Five notes, with no Re and no Pa, sung deep in the night. Malkauns is usually given a grave, meditative character. Because it has no Pa, the tanpura is tuned to Ma instead.
Going upSa Ga Ma Dha Ni SaComing downSa Re Sa Ni Dha Ma Ga Re Sa
A raga of the very end of the night, from the Marwa family, sung mostly in the upper octave with a sharp, bright beauty. Like Marwa, it leaves out Pa.
Going upSa Re Ma Pa Ni SaComing downSa Ni Pa Ma Re Sa
Megh means cloud. A five-note raga of the monsoon, with a heavy swaying on Re, and one of several ragas that legend says can call the rain.
Going upSa Re Pa Ma Pa Ni Dha Ni SaComing downSa Ni Pa Ma Pa Ga Ma Re Sa
The best-known raga of the Malhar family of rain ragas, traditionally credited to Tansen, the 'Miyan' of its name. It uses komal and shuddh Ni side by side, often in the same phrase.
Going upSa Re Ma Pa Ni SaComing downSa Ni Dha Pa Ma Ga Re Sa
A popular late-evening raga that many musicians also associate with the rainy season. It climbs with shuddh Ni and comes down through komal Ni.
Going upSa Ga Ma Dha Ni SaComing downSa Ni Dha Pa Ma Ga Re Sa
Basant means spring. Strictly a raga of the late night, but in spring, around the Basant Panchami festival, it may be sung at any hour.
Going upSa Ma Pa Ga Ma Ni Dha Ni SaComing downSa Ni Pa Ma Pa Ga Ma Re Sa
Bahar means spring, or bloom. A lively raga of zig-zag phrases that uses both forms of Ni, and is often paired with other ragas, as in Basant-Bahar.
Going upSa Ga Ma Dha Ni SaComing downSa Ni Dha Ma Ga Sa
Named after the swing (hindola), which ragamala paintings of Hindol often show. It leaves out Re and Pa and uses tivra Ma.
How to read the notes: an underlined note is komal (flat), Ma with a mark (Ma) is tivra (sharp), and a dot below or above means the octave below or above.