Hindu Calendar

The date time keeping system of the Hindu Society dates back to thousands of years, much before the word “Calendar” even came into existence. It was predominantly known as “Panchang”. With every turn of the bifurcation of this religion, the original system changed as well. The calendar became more regional and hence now there is existence of more than one version of this epic notifier. Now the south Indian Tamil society more profusely use “Panchangam” as their primary Calendar whereas the North Indian Gujrati / Marwari Society use a different version of “Panchang”, which both are basically a modified version of the original Hindu Calendar.

Hindu Calendar History

“Lagadha” laid down the initial framing architecture of the primitive Calendar, from the Indian text Vedanga Jyotish. This text describes the motion tracking of the planets, the sun and the moon and combines them to procure the fruitful, highly accurate Hindu calendar. It has always been a matter of controversy of whether the Greeks were the one who invented the ancient astronomical conceptualization or the Indians were the one who already had this predominant knowledge but hid it from the masses and limited it to their highest level of priests and mathematicians.  Let this not be discussed here for now.

The rigid yet intellectual Jyotishashastra, Langadha has its principles laid down on the basis of two Vedas. These are forty-five verse excerpt related to Yajur-Veda and thirty-six verses related to Rig-Veda.

With the wheel of time, many crucial modifications were carried out and hence it reformed the earlier ancient design to the modern Hindu calendar system. Notably standardization was carried out during Surya sidhant (III rd Century Common Era), passed onto for reformation from Aryabhata (499 Common Era) later Varaamihira around sixth century and finalized structure was prepared by Bhaskar during twelfth century. Whatever modification was done, the basic calculation settings still remained the same which still follows the transition of sun and other associated planets.

Overview of Hindu Calendar

The main aspect of Hindu calendar is founded by five “Angas”. These “Angas” lay the basic foundation for the birth of Hindu calendar. They are:

1. “Tithi” – Explained below
2. “Vaar” – English translation weekdays (Monday, Tuesday … Sunday)
3. “Nakshatra”: The Moon’s Position in the celestial ecliptic (There are 27 variance in total)
4. “Yog” or “Yoga” – The alignment of the Moon and Sun during Sunrise (There are 27 variance in total)
5.  ”Karana” – In simple words it is just half of “Tithi”

These Five “Angas” are called Panchangam which in Sanskrit means five (pancha).  Complete explanation to these five angas is provided below:

TITHI

It can be termed as Vedic Hour glass but here the calculations are considered way ahead of nano seconds. It is more detailed and more specific than any other civilization has ever devised or seen. In terms of mathematics, it can be said as the longitudinal angle formed between Sun and Moon.
1 Tithi = time taken for the angle to step-up by twelve degrees (12°) between the sun and the moon. They start from variant time lines of the day and can differ as 19 to 26 hours approximately.
The Naming system of the 30 different tithes is stated below:

Sl No	Paksha		Ruling Deity	Suitable Works and Ceremonies
	Shukla Paksha(Shining FortNight)	Krishna Paksha(Fading FortNight)
1	Pratipad	Pratipad	Agni	This time is good for all types for ceremonies.
2	Dvitiyah	Dvitiyah	Brahma	Lay foundations for long term engagements.
3	Tritiyah	Tritiyah	Gauri	Cutting Hair, Manicures and Pedicures.
4	Chaturthi	Chaturthi	Ganesh	Take down enemies and remove obstacles.
5	Panchami	Panchami	Naag	Medicine & Surgererical engagements
6	Shashthi	Shashthi	Kartik	Socializing and making merry
7	Saptami	Saptami	Surya	Start journey or Buying New vehicles
8	Asthami	Asthami	Rudra	Buying Arms and building Defense
9	Navami	Navami	Ambika	Killing Enemies and Destructing Anything
10	Dashami	Dashami	Dharmraaj	Religious Functions and Spiritual lounge
11	Ekadashi	Ekadashi	Rudra	Best time for fasting and paying tributes
12	Dvadashi	Dvadashi	Vishnu	Best time for carrying out yagyas and bhajans
13	Treyodashi	Treyodashi	kaamDev	Friendship and sensual pleasures
14	Chaturdashi	Chaturdashi	Kaali	Alchemy and poison and spirit call
15	Poornima(The Full Moon)	Amavashya(The New Moon)	Moon // Pitru	Fire Sacrifices // Repent wrongdoings by offering peace and apologies

VAAR

“Vaar” or “Vaasara” signifies the different days in the week. The greatest irony of the names is that, they resemble drastically similar in pronunciation with respect to many other cultures across the globe.

Sl No	Sanskrit Name	Solar System Body Related to: English / Sanskrit	Names of the days
			English	Latin
1	Somvaar	Moon / Shom	Monday	Dies Lunae
2	Magalvaar	Mars / Mangal	Tuesday	Dies Martis
3	Budhvaar	Mercury / Budh	Wednesday	Dies Mercurii
4	Brishaspativaar	Jupiter / Guru	Thursday	Dies Lovis
5	Shukravaar	Venus / Shukra	Friday	Dies Vaneris
6	Shanivaar	Saturn / Shani	Saturday	Dies Saturnis
7	Ravivaar	Sun /Ravi	Sunday	Dies Solic

NAKSHATRA

Before you start with Nakshatra, you should know what Asterism is. Asterism is the pattern of stars visible in the night sky. It may comprise of one or more constellations or may be a combination of stars bundled together to form a distinctive pattern. So now we can say that there are 27 Nakshatra that comprises the Ecliptic. These are calculated as moon circles against a fixed star [….which is 27 days 7.75 hours].  These calculations are mentioned profusely in Rig-Veda and they are very advanced in compare to what we know now, with Modern Day Science.

The Eclectic is divided into 27 Nakshatra moving on from east to west in the sky. The Nakshatra can be a single start or a collection of stars. To be more specific these are lines quoted from internet open site:

Source: Internet Free Search

After great effort, the following information has been put together for your complete reference of Nakshatra and their symbol, deity, Sanskrit Names and Niche Zodiac Division of both Indian and western systems.

Complete detailed information about Nakshatra is available here.

Sl No	Sanskrit Name	Deity Name	Symbol	Presiding Lord	RaashiZodiacDivision( Indian System )	Zodiac Degree of Occupancy For Each Nakshatra				RaashiZodiacDivision( Western System )
						Indian		Western
						From	Till	From	Till
1	Ashvini	Aswins	Horse head	Ketu	Mesh	0°	13°20′	26°	9°20′	Aries / Taurus
2	Bharani	Yamraaj		Shukra	Mesh	13° 20’	26°40′	9°20′	22° 40′	Taurus
3	Krittika	Agni	Knife/ Spear	Ravi	Mesh / Vrishabh	26°40′	10°	22° 40′	6°	Taurus / Gemini
4	Rohini	Brahma	Temple	Chandra	Vrishabh	10°	23°20′	6°	19°20′	Gemini
5	Mrigashirsha	Chandra	Head of Dear	Mangal	Vrishabh / Mithuna	23° 20′	6° 40′	19°20′	2°40′	Gemini /  Cancer
6	Aardra	Rudra	Head of human	Rahu	Mithuna	6° 40′	20°	2° 40′	16°	Cancer
7	Punarvasu	Aditi	Quiver & Bow	Brihaspati	Mithuna / karka	20°	3°20′	16°	29°20′	Cancer
8	Pushya	Brihaspati	Lotus	Shani	karka	3°20′	16°40′	29°20′	12°40′	Cancer / Leo
9	Ashlesha	Sarpa	A Serpent	Budh	karka	16°40′	30°	12°40′	26°	Leo
10	Magha	Pitri	Throne	Ketu	Simha	0°	13°20′	26°	9°20′	Leo / Virgo
11	Purva Falguni	Shiva	Four Bed legs	Shukra	Simha	13° 20’	26°40′	9°20′	22° 40′	Virgo
12	Uttar Falguni	Aryaman	Four Bed legs	Ravi	Simha /  Kanya	26°40′	10°	22° 40′	6°	Virgo /  Libra
13	Hasta	Surya	Hand	Chandra	Kanya	10°	23°20′	6°	19°20′	Libra
14	Chitra	Vishwakarma	Pearl	Mangal	Kanya / Tula	23° 20′	6° 40′	19°20′	2°40′	Libra /  Scorpio
15	Swati	Vaayu	Coral	Rahu	Tula	6° 40′	20°	2° 40′	16°	Scorpio
16	Vishakha	Indra	Wheel of Potter	Brihaspati	Tula/  Vrishchik	20°	3°20′	16°	29°20′	Scorpio
17	Anuradha	Mitra	Lotus	Shani	Vrishchik	3°20′	16°40′	29°20′	12°40′	Scorpio /  Sagittarius
18	Jyestha	Indra	Umbrella	Budh	Vrishchik	16°40′	30°	12°40′	26°	Sagittarius
19	Moola	Nirriti	Roots clinched together	Ketu	Dhanu	0°	13°20′	26°	9°20′	Sagittarius /  Capricorn
20	Purva Ashadha	Varun	Tusk of an Elephant	Shukra	Dhanu	13° 20’	26°40′	9°20′	22° 40′	Capricorn
21	Uttara Ashadha	ViswaDevas	Tusk of an Elephant	Ravi	Dhanu /  Makara	26°40′	10°	22° 40′	6°	Capricorn /  Aquarius
22	Shravana	Vishnu	Human Ear	Chandra	Makara	10°	23°20′	6°	19°20′	Aquarius
23	Dhanistha	Vaasus	Drum / Flute	Mangal	Makara /  Kumbha	23° 20′	6° 40′	19°20′	2°40′	Aquarius /  Pisces
24	Shatabhisha	Varun	Blank Circle	Rahu	Kumbha	6° 40′	20°	2° 40′	16°	Pisces
25	Purva Bhadrapda	Ajikapada	Man with Dual Face	Brihaspati	Kumbha /  Meena	20°	3°20′	16°	29°20′	Pisces
26	Uttara Bhadrapada	Ahirbudhyana	Twins	Shani	Meena	3°20′	16°40′	29°20′	12°40′	Pisces /  Aries
27	Revathi	Pushan	Pair of Fish	Budh	Meena	16°40′	30°	12°40′	26°	Aries

YOG OR YOGA

“Yog” and “Yoga” should not be confused with “Meditation Yoga”. The later one means Exercise and the previous one means conjunction or relationship with respect to each other. This is calculated by considering the “Mesh” / “Aries” to be the starting points of the eclectic and thereby it is considered as the longitude of that object. Also the longitude of both the Sun and the Moon is added after normalization to the above said (Zero to 360 degree). This total sum is thereby divided into 27 segments which individually accounts for 800′ m each (where ‘ means “arc minute” and is precisely one sixty part of a degree). These Segments are known as “Yog” or “Yoga”. They are listed in alphabetical order below:

• Atiganda
• Aayushmaan
• Brahma
• Dhriti
• Dhruva
• Ganda
• Harshana
• Mahendra
• Parigha
• Preeti
• Saadhya
• Saubhaagya
• Shobhana
• Shiva
• Shubha
• Shukla
• Siddha
• Siddhi
• Sukarman
• Shoola
• Vaidhriti
• Vajra
• Varigha
• Vishkumbha
• Vriddhi
• Vyaaghata
• Vyatipaata

There may be little or very minor differences during the transition from one Yog to another but apart from that it’s effective during the dawn and is known as the “Yog” for that day.

KARANA

In Simple words this is just half of “Tithi”. It is the total amount of time take by the sun to make an angular distance of 6 degrees from the moon in the ascending steps. Since there are thirty “tithis” a simple assumption would be that there should be sixty karans, but they are not.
In total there are eleven (11) karanas out of which four (4) are fixed and seven (7) are repeating.  There names are mentioned below:

Fixed Karans:

• Catushpada
• Kinstughna
• Nagava
• Shakuni

Repeating Karans:

• Balava
• Bhaava
• Bhadra
• Garajaa
• Kaulava
• Taitula
• Vaanijya

The Initial first half segment of the first Tithi is always kimstughana karan and is fixed.  The repeating seven karanas iterate a total of eight times after kimstughana and hence cover up a total of fifty six (8 x 7) half Tithi. Now there are total three half tithis remaining and these occurrences are divided under the remaining three karanas respectively, which are fixed as well.
Here as well the Karana of the day is the one which is active during the dawn.

Hindu Calendar Names of Month

The complete skeleton of the calendar system is very complex and would have been very hard for an average person to remember. Hence, for the ease of understanding the total year is divided into twelve months. They start from the new moon day to the next simultaneous new moon occurrence. The names are:

• Chaitra
• Baisakh
• Jyestha
• Aashardha
• Shrawan
• Bhadra
• Aashwin
• Kaartik
• Maarghshish
• Paush
• Maagh
• Faalgun

Again these 30/31 days (Though here the number of days in here is not always fixed) are divided into two parts. The first half is the Rise of the moon to the Full moon day (Also called Poornima) and the second half is the decline of the shine to the No moon day (Also called Amavashya). The names of the “tithis” and their significance are mentioned above.

Though many variants and different versions of this calendar have evolved since the last few eras, the main calculation and signification of these days are still all the same. The regional calendars may have some additional input of the regional festivals and add-on dates now but they still follow the ancestral calendar for all rituals starting from the day of birth of a child till the death bed he/she begets.

Reference: I wrote this article way back in 2010-11 while blogging about Hindu Brahmin. It is rewritten and brought up here in reference to Astrological understanding about planetary movements, nakshatras and their influence on our daya to day life as well as to have an indepth understanding about how Vedic Astrology helped shape up the Hindu Calendar.