Aaj Ka Panchang

What is “aaj ka panchang”?

“Aaj ka panchang” means today’s Hindu almanac — the table that tells you which tithi it is today, which weekday and nakshatra, and which hours of the day are auspicious or inauspicious. The word “panchang” comes from the Sanskrit pancha (five) and anga (limb), the “five limbs” of the day — tithi, vaar, nakshatra, yoga and karana. Around these five, the sunrise and sunset, the lunar month and season, and the choghadiya, Rahu Kaal and Abhijit Muhurat combine into a complete daily panchang. Panchang Daily presents all of this for your city, on today’s date, from established astronomical calculation — not from a generic printed table.

How to read today’s five limbs

Pick your city above and its panchang for today appears on a live timeline. The five limbs are read like this:

• Tithi — today’s lunar day (for example Shukla Paksha Panchami). A tithi is based on the Moon’s distance from the Sun, and the tithi running at sunrise is the one applied to the whole day.
• Vaar — today’s weekday and its ruling planet (for example Thursday–Jupiter). The ruling planet colours the day’s character.
• Nakshatra — which of the 27 lunar mansions the Moon is in today. This is central to naming, matchmaking and muhurat.
• Yoga — one of 27 combinations from the sum of the Sun’s and Moon’s longitudes.
• Karana — half a tithi; one of eleven karanas.

Reading the five together gives the overall character of the day — what it favours and what it does not. For each limb in depth, see the tithi, vaar and nakshatra pages.

Sunrise, sunset and the day’s auspicious windows

The practical heart of the panchang is its time-windows. The day begins at sunrise and ends at sunset, and all the day’s muhurats are derived from these. The roughly 96 minutes before sunrise, the Brahma Muhurat, is considered best for worship, meditation and study. The Abhijit Muhurat around midday is auspicious for almost any task. In contrast, Rahu Kaal, Yamaganda and Gulika are the parts of the day in which starting new auspicious work is avoided. On the timeline these are all colour-marked, so it is clear at a glance when to act and when to pause.

Today’s choghadiya, Rahu Kaal and Abhijit

To choose the best hour within the day, choghadiya is the simplest method — day and night are each divided into eight parts, each classed as Amrit, Shubh, Labh (auspicious), Char (neutral) or Udveg, Rog, Kaal (avoided). For any important task choose Amrit/Shubh/Labh, Char is also good for travel, and avoid Rahu Kaal. See today’s exact choghadiya and Rahu Kaal for your city, and plan another date with the muhurat planner.

Masa, paksha, ritu and samvat

Alongside the five limbs, the panchang tells you which lunar month (Chaitra, Vaishakha … Phalguna) and paksha (Shukla or Krishna) is running today, which season (ritu) it is, and which era (samvat, usually the Vikram Samvat). Shukla Paksha is the waxing fortnight from Amavasya to Purnima, and Krishna Paksha the waning fortnight from Purnima to Amavasya. This helps in understanding vrats, festivals and monthly tithis — Ekadashi, Pradosh and Sankashti fall in every paksha.

How to use this page for your city

Type your city into the search box above or pick it from the list. On the city page you get today’s tithi, nakshatra, yoga, karana, vaar and masa, all the day and night choghadiya, Rahu Kaal, Yamaganda, Gulika, Abhijit and Brahma Muhurat, and sunrise and sunset, on a live timeline. For any task you plan, look at the choghadiya running at that time and choose accordingly. This is the simplest way to use it day to day.

Vrat, festivals and special days

The panchang is not limited to today — it also helps plan upcoming vrats and festivals. Monthly tithis such as Ekadashi (Vishnu’s fasting day), Purnima, Amavasya, Pradosh and Sankashti, and major festivals such as Diwali, Holi and Navratri, are all based on the lunar calendar. To see upcoming dates, view the festival calendar and Ekadashi dates, and for auspicious gold-buying days see gold-buying days.

Why the panchang is computed for each city

Sunrise, sunset and the Moon’s position depend on latitude and longitude. So on the same day, the sunrise tithi, nakshatra, choghadiya and Rahu Kaal can differ a little between two cities — eastern cities see sunrise earlier, so their Rahu Kaal comes earlier too. If a tithi is changing near sunrise, the day’s tithi can differ by a day between eastern and western cities. This is why Panchang Daily computes it from each city’s coordinates.

How we calculate the panchang

Every value is derived with drik ganita (observational calculation) — the true positions of the Sun and Moon are computed for a city’s latitude and longitude to obtain the tithi, nakshatra, yoga and karana, and the sunrise-based windows (choghadiya, Rahu Kaal) come from the day’s real sunrise and sunset. This is more accurate than older tabular (vakya) methods. Some panchangs use a slightly different sunrise convention or ayanamsha, which can shift times by a few minutes; so for religious observance, also confirm with your local panchang. We never hand-edit or fabricate a value.

Making the panchang a daily habit

You get the most from the panchang by making it a small daily habit — each morning, glance at today’s tithi, nakshatra, choghadiya and Rahu Kaal, and keep important tasks in an auspicious window and outside Rahu Kaal. This is neither superstition nor fear — it is a millennia-old cultural tradition of doing every important beginning thoughtfully and with an auspicious intention. New to this? Read the complete panchang guide.

The tithi and its five natures

The tithi is the most changeable limb of the panchang, and understanding it is the key to reading a day. A lunar month has thirty tithis — fifteen in the Shukla Paksha (Amavasya to Purnima, the waxing Moon) and fifteen in the Krishna Paksha (Purnima to Amavasya, the waning Moon). Each tithi has a presiding deity and falls into one of five natures that repeat through the fortnight: Nanda (Pratipada, Shashthi, Ekadashi) for celebration and pleasure; Bhadra (Dwitiya, Saptami, Dwadashi) for business and foundations; Jaya (Tritiya, Ashtami, Trayodashi) for bold acts and victory; Rikta (Chaturthi, Navami, Chaturdashi) generally avoided; and Purna (Panchami, Dashami, Purnima) for completions and journeys. This is why people check the tithi and its nature before auspicious work. Learn each tithi in depth on the tithi pages.

The Moon through the nakshatras

The Moon crosses one nakshatra in roughly a day and a quarter, completing the cycle of 27 nakshatras in about a lunar month. The nakshatra the Moon occupies at sunrise is the day’s nakshatra, used for muhurat. Each nakshatra has a presiding deity, a symbol, a ruling planet and three classifications — gana (deva/manushya/rakshasa temperament), nadi (ayurvedic: vata/pitta/kapha) and yoni (animal symbol) — which are central to marriage matching (guna milan). Each nakshatra is divided into four padas, and the pada at birth sets a child’s naming syllable. Use the birth nakshatra calculator to find yours, or see all 27 nakshatras.

The weekday, its planet and character

Each day of the week is dedicated to a planet and deity, which sets its character: Sunday–Sun (health, authority), Monday–Moon (mind, water, travel), Tuesday–Mars (courage, energy), Wednesday–Mercury (study, trade), Thursday–Jupiter (education, ceremonies), Friday–Venus (marriage, arts), Saturday–Saturn (discipline, service). This is why Thursday is considered good for starting education, Friday for marriage and the arts, and Monday for travel. The weekday also fixes the day’s Rahu Kaal, Yamaganda and Gulika. See each weekday in depth on the weekday pages.

Special periods: Panchak, Bhadra and more

Beyond the five limbs, some special periods are also weighed in a muhurat. Bhadra (the Vishti karana) is avoided for certain auspicious rites. Panchak is a group of five nakshatras (Dhanishta to Revati) in which specific tasks — such as roofing, southward travel or gathering fuel — are avoided. Birth under a Gandmool nakshatra (Ashwini, Ashlesha, Magha, Jyeshtha, Mula, Revati) traditionally calls for a special shanti puja. These are finer considerations; for daily tasks a good choghadiya and avoiding Rahu Kaal are enough, but for major sanskaras they too are weighed.

Regional panchang traditions across India

Although the principle is one, the regional styles of the panchang differ. North India generally uses purnimanta months (ending at Purnima), while the South and West use amanta (ending at Amavasya) — the tithis are the same, only the Krishna-paksha month name shifts. Tamil Nadu uses a solar calendar (the month set by the Sun’s entry into a sign); Bengal and Kerala have their own solar reckonings. Years are counted in the Vikram Samvat (about 57 years ahead) and the Shaka Samvat. Because of these differences, some festival dates can shift by a day between regions — which is why confirming with a local panchang is advised.

A worked example: reading a full day

Suppose today is Thursday, Shukla Paksha Panchami, with Pushya nakshatra. The order of reading would be: tithi Panchami (a Purna nature — auspicious, good for starting study); vaar Thursday (Jupiter’s day — good for education and ceremonies); nakshatra Pushya (among the most auspicious nakshatras, especially for purchases and new work). This combination is especially auspicious for beginning study, business or buying gold. Now, within the day, choose an Amrit/Shubh/Labh choghadiya, take the Abhijit Muhurat, and avoid Rahu Kaal (the sixth part on a Thursday). Any day can be read this way — combining the five limbs with the time-windows.