Panchanga
The Five Limbs of the Indian Calendar - understand your calendar through astronomy.
Today's traditional Indian calendar, computed directly from the positions of the Sun and Moon.
Moon Illumination
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Visual confirmation of the current tithi. Compare with the actual Moon in the sky.
Tithi
Lunar Day
How to verify
Go outside and look at the Moon. A Full Moon (Purnima) means the Sun and Moon are exactly 180 degrees apart - on opposite sides of the Earth. A New Moon (Amavasya) means they are at 0 degrees - the same side. Every 12 degrees the Moon moves away from the Sun marks one Tithi. You can literally watch the Moon's phase change night to night and count the Tithis yourself.
Nakshatra
Lunar Mansion
How to verify
If you look at the Moon tonight, it is physically sitting in front of a specific constellation. Ancient Indian astronomers divided the Moon's path into 27 slices - each named after the brightest star in that area. Find the Moon, find the star near it, and you have identified the Nakshatra.
Yoga
Luni-Solar Checksum
How to verify
This is the most purely mathematical limb. Add the Sun's exact longitude to the Moon's exact longitude, then divide the sum into 27 segments. It was essentially an ancient mathematical checksum - astronomers used it to verify their calculations for the Sun and Moon were perfectly accurate before predicting an eclipse. There are 27 Yogas in total.
Karana
Half Lunar Day
How to verify
Exactly half of a Tithi. A new Karana ticks over every time the Moon moves just 6 degrees away from the Sun. Ancient astronomers used it for higher-precision timekeeping during the day. Unlike Tithi or Nakshatra, you cannot easily verify a Karana by just looking at the sky - you would need a basic altitude-measuring instrument like a Yashti Yantra. There are 11 Karanas: 4 fixed (occurring once per lunar month) and 7 repeating ones.
Vara
Weekday
How to verify
The standard seven-day solar week. It has no complex orbital math - it is simply our shared human convention to keep track of days. Each day is named after the graha that rules it: Ravi (Sun) for Sunday, Soma (Moon) for Monday, Mangala (Mars) for Tuesday, Budha (Mercury) for Wednesday, Guru (Jupiter) for Thursday, Shukra (Venus) for Friday, Shani (Saturn) for Saturday. This naming convention is shared across many ancient civilizations.
Computation note: Computed using VSOP87 via astronomy-engine.js. DE441 precision coming soon. Lahiri ayanamsha is approximated using the standard linear formula. Results are for the selected date at local noon (or midnight UTC if no location is set). For traditional panchanga usage, consult a published almanac.