What is a Panchang?
Panchang (पञ्चाङ्ग) literally means "five limbs". It is the Hindu calendar-almanac that describes the quality of each day using five elements calculated from the positions of the Sun and Moon. Families use it to choose good times for prayers, travel, new beginnings, weddings and festivals.
The five limbs, in simple words
Tithi (तिथि) — the lunar day. It is based on how far the Moon has moved away from the Sun. There are 30 tithis in a lunar month: 15 in the bright half (Shukla Paksha, moon growing towards Purnima/full moon) and 15 in the dark half (Krishna Paksha, moon shrinking towards Amavasya/new moon). Festivals are fixed by tithi — e.g. Janmashtami is Krishna Ashtami.
Nakshatra (नक्षत्र) — the lunar mansion: the star-group the Moon is passing through. The sky is divided into 27 nakshatras of 13°20′ each. Each nakshatra has 4 quarters called padas. Your birth nakshatra decides the traditional first letter of your name.
Yoga (योग) — one of 27 combinations from the added longitudes of Sun and Moon. Some yogas are considered auspicious (e.g. Siddha), a few adverse (e.g. Vyatipata).
Karana (करण) — half of a tithi. There are 11 karana names; "Vishti (Bhadra)" is generally avoided for auspicious work.
Vaar (वार) — the weekday, each ruled by a planet (Sunday–Sun, Monday–Moon…).
Other terms you will see
Rahu Kaal — a roughly 90-minute window each day considered inauspicious for starting new work. Its position depends on the weekday and is calculated from sunrise and sunset.
Yamaganda & Gulika Kaal — two more daily periods traditionally avoided for auspicious beginnings.
Choghadiya — the day and the night are each divided into 8 slots of about 90 minutes; each slot is labelled good (Amrit, Shubh, Labh), neutral (Chal) or avoidable (Udveg, Kaal, Rog). Popular for choosing travel/business timings.
Abhijit Muhurat — about 48 minutes around local solar noon, considered good for almost any work.
Brahma Muhurta — the serene period ending 48 minutes before sunrise, ideal for meditation and study.
Rashi (राशि) — your Moon sign: which of the 12 zodiac signs the Moon occupied at your birth (Vedic astrology uses the Moon sign, not the Sun sign).
How to use each tab
Panchang tab — pick a date and your city; see sunrise, sunset, tithi, nakshatra, yoga, karana and when each ends.
Muhurat & Kaal tab — for the same date/city, see the good and bad time windows of the day, colour-coded.
Your Rashi tab — enter your date, time and place of birth to find your Moon sign, birth nakshatra, pada, name syllable and classical attributes.
Kundli Match tab — enter the boy's and girl's nakshatra & rashi to see the traditional 36-point Ashtakoota (Gun Milan) compatibility score.
All values on this site are computed astronomically on your device (Lahiri ayanamsa) or taken from standard classical Jyotish tables. Nothing is made up — but panchang traditions vary slightly by region, so for major ceremonies please confirm with your family panchang or purohit.