GURUKUL is a form of residential educational system where the teachers and the students stay as a community in one place. A single batch of students undergo the learning process from pre-primary to secondary level of education.

The idea behind gurukal as a sundial is to design the layout of Gurukul on the basis of the position of the sun. The position of the shadow cast by the gnomon is used as a basis for organising the daily activities of this community.

In a gurukul, the students have to perform a number of time bound activities.The layout is done such that the ground space allocated to each activity falls under the shadow cast by the gnomon . The span of this ground space is as much as the time required for this activity. For example, conducting theory classes would require more time and hence the rooms/spaces required for this purpose are spread over a large span, such that the shadow remains in that span for the desired amount of time.

The areas are arranged in the order of the activities that take place over the day;
prayer, breakfast, theory classes, unch, laboratory/practical activities, play.

The working of the sundial from sunrise to sunset corresponds to the working of the gurukul in which the activities start with sunrise and end with the setting of the sun. At noon the shadow is exactly below the gnomon. This is when the children have lunch. Hence this space is incorporated beneath the gnomon. The residential area , which is an integral part of any gurukul, should be near the dining area and hence it is also a part of the gnomon. The form of the gnomon symbolises the process of learning.