Hindu prayer and meditation

thumb|Two sadhus near Pashupatinath temple in Kathmandu

thumb|Bhajan in Coimbatore, [[Tamil Nadu, during Navratri Golu.]]

thumb|Painting of Gaudiya Vaishnavism|Gaudiya Vaishnava Hindus performing kirtan in [[Bengal. Some traditions practice public kirtan.]] thumb|Sikhs|Sikh kirtan with [[Indian harmoniums and tabla drums (a common and popular pairing), in Kenya (1960s)]]

thumb|A Bhutanese Buddhist woman doing Japa, with [[Japamala]] Japa () is the meditative repetition of a mantra or a divine name. It is a practice found in Hinduism, Jainism, Sikhism, and Buddhism, with parallels found in other religions.

thumb|Prayagraj Junction railway station at 05:52am in December, one and one quarter hours before sunrise Brahmamuhurta () is a 48-minute period (muhurta) that begins one hour and 36 minutes before sunrise, and ends 48 minutes before sunrise. It is traditionally the penultimate phase or muhurta of the night, and is considered an auspicious time for all practices of yoga and most appropriate for meditation, worship or any other religious practice. Spiritual activities performed early in the morning are said to have a greater effect than in any other part of the day.

Shaktipata () or Shaktipat refers in Hinduism to the transmission (or conferring) of spiritual energy upon one person by another or directly from the deity. Shaktipata can be transmitted with a sacred word or mantra, or by a look, thought or touch – the last usually to the ajna chakra or agya chakra or third eye of the recipient.

thumb|Veda pathashala students doing sandhyavandanam at Nachiyar Kovil, Kumbakonam, [[Tamil Nadu.]] Sandhyavandanam (, or 'salutation during the twilight') is a mandatory religious ritual centring around the recitation of the Gayatri mantra, traditionally supposed to be performed three times a day by Dvija communities of Hindus, particularly those initiated through the sacred thread ceremony referred to as the Upanayanam and instructed in its execution by a Guru, in this case one qualified to teach Vedic ritual. Sandhyopasana is considered as a path to attain liberation (moksha).

The art of Hindu meditation

Suprabhatam () is a Sanskrit prayer of the Suprabhātakāvya genre. It is a collection of hymns or verses recited early morning to awaken the deity in Hinduism. The metre chosen for a Suprabhātam poem is usually Vasantatilaka.