Vedic astrology · Daily almanac
Today's Panchang for Your City
The Hindu almanac for any day and any city: the five limbs of the day, sunrise and moonrise, and the auspicious and inauspicious periods, all in local time. It opens on your own city and today's date.
Times are shown in the local time of the city you choose.
Finding your city…
The five limbs of the day
Tithi is the lunar day: each time the Moon moves 12° ahead of the Sun, a new tithi begins, giving 30 in a lunar month, 15 in the bright half (Shukla paksha, ending at Purnima, the full moon) and 15 in the dark half (Krishna paksha, ending at Amavasya, the new moon). Nakshatra is the star the Moon is passing through, one of 27. Yoga comes from the combined motion of the Sun and Moon, and karana is half a tithi. Vara is the weekday, which in the Hindu calendar begins at sunrise rather than midnight.
Choosing a good time
Abhijit muhurta, the period around local noon, is traditionally auspicious for most undertakings, while Rahu Kaal, Yamaganda and Gulika Kaal are avoided for new beginnings. Many families also choose days by tithi and nakshatra; for your own chart, see the Vedic birth chart or your number for today.
FAQ
Panchang FAQs
What is a panchang?
A panchang (panchanga, 'five limbs') is the Hindu almanac for a day. Its five limbs are the tithi (lunar day), vara (weekday), nakshatra (the Moon's star), yoga and karana. Together with sunrise and the day's good and difficult periods, it is used to choose times for ceremonies, journeys and new beginnings.
Why does the panchang change from city to city?
The panchang is read at local sunrise, and sunrise, sunset and the day's periods like Rahu Kaal depend on where you are. The tithi and nakshatra change at the same moment everywhere, but the local clock time of that moment differs.
How is Rahu Kaal calculated?
The time from sunrise to sunset is divided into eight equal parts. Rahu Kaal is a fixed part for each weekday: the 2nd on Monday, 7th on Tuesday, 5th on Wednesday, 6th on Thursday, 4th on Friday, 3rd on Saturday and 8th on Sunday. Because daylight changes through the year, so does Rahu Kaal.
How accurate is this panchang?
Positions are calculated with the Lahiri ayanamsa and checked against established panchang software; tithi, nakshatra, yoga and karana end times agree to within about a minute. Moonrise and moonset can differ by a few minutes between almanacs because of different conventions for the Moon's edge.