What is the Panchangam?

The word Panchangam (பஞ்சாங்கம்) means "five limbs" — from pancha (five) and anga (limb). Every day in the Tamil calendar is described by five simultaneous astronomical values. Together they map the quality of every moment in time and govern the timing of every ceremony, festival, and auspicious act in Tamil life.

The Panchangam is not superstition — it is an astronomical almanac. Each of the five elements corresponds to a real, measurable celestial condition. Understanding them means understanding how the ancient Tamil world organised time using the actual positions of the Sun, Moon, and planets.

Open the Panchangam Calculator → to compute all five elements for any date and city at local sunrise.

Element 1 — Tithi (திதி) — The Lunar Day

The Tithi is the most fundamental element of the Panchangam. It measures the angular distance between the Sun and the Moon, advancing one Tithi for every 12° of separation. A lunar month contains 30 Tithis — 15 in the waxing phase (Shukla Paksha, bright fortnight) and 15 in the waning phase (Krishna Paksha, dark fortnight).

A Tithi is approximately 23.5–26 hours long — shorter or longer than a civil day depending on the Moon's speed in its elliptical orbit. This means a Tithi can "skip" a solar day (two Tithis in one civil day) or span two civil days. The Panchangam records this precisely — which is why Tamil festival dates shift against the Gregorian calendar each year.

#	Tithi Name	Tamil	Phase	Character
1 / 16	Prathama	பிரதமை	Waxing / Waning	Beginning; suitable for new ventures
2 / 17	Dvitiya	துவிதியை	Waxing / Waning	Growth; auspicious for most acts
5 / 20	Panchami	பஞ்சமி	Waxing / Waning	Mixed; good for travel
11 / 26	Ekadashi	ஏகாதசி	Waxing / Waning	Sacred fast day; highly auspicious
14 / 29	Chaturdashi	சதுர்த்தசி	Waxing / Waning	Shiva's Tithi; sacred but intense
15	Pournami	பௌர்ணமி	Full Moon	Most auspicious; festival day
30	Amavasai	அமாவாசை	New Moon	Ancestral rites; powerful, solemn

Element 2 — Vara (வார) — The Day of the Week

The Vara is simply the day of the week — but in Tamil astronomy each day is ruled by a planet, and the planet's qualities infuse the entire day. The Tamil weekday names directly encode the planetary rulers:

Vara (Day)	Tamil Name	Ruling Planet	Tamil Planet	Character
Sunday	Nyayiru (ஞாயிறு)	Sun	Suryan	Authority, vitality, father
Monday	Thingal (திங்கள்)	Moon	Chandran	Emotion, mind, mother, nurturing
Tuesday	Sevvai (செவ்வாய்)	Mars	Chevvai	Energy, courage, conflict, blood
Wednesday	Budhan (புதன்)	Mercury	Budhan	Intellect, communication, trade
Thursday	Viyazhan (வியாழன்)	Jupiter	Guru	Wisdom, learning, abundance, dharma
Friday	Velli (வெள்ளி)	Venus	Shukran	Love, beauty, arts, pleasure
Saturday	Sani (சனி)	Saturn	Sani	Discipline, karma, delay, endurance

Notice that the Tamil name for Wednesday is Budhan — literally "Mercury." Thursday is Viyazhan, meaning Jupiter (Brihaspati / Guru). Friday is Velli, meaning Venus (Shukra). The same system appears in English (Saturn-day, Sun-day, Moon-day) and in French (Vendredi = Venus, Mercredi = Mercury). All derive from the same ancient planetary week transmitted through Roman and Indian astronomy.

Element 3 — Nakshatra (நட்சத்திரம்) — Lunar Mansion

The Nakshatra of the day is which of the 27 lunar mansions the Moon currently occupies. Since the Moon moves through one full mansion (13°20′) in approximately 24–26 hours, the Nakshatra changes daily. This is the most watched element in the Tamil Panchangam — the Nakshatra governs which activities are auspicious, which are to be avoided, and which festivals can be celebrated.

See our complete guide: All 27 Nakshatras — Complete Reference

Element 4 — Yoga (யோகம்) — Sun-Moon Harmony

The Yoga is calculated by adding the longitudes of the Sun and Moon and dividing the result into 27 equal parts of 13°20′ each. This gives 27 Yogas, each named and carrying a distinct quality — ranging from highly auspicious to inauspicious.

Unlike Tithi (which measures only the Moon's position relative to the Sun) and Nakshatra (which measures only the Moon's position), Yoga uniquely incorporates both the Sun and Moon simultaneously — making it the "combined quality" element of the Panchangam.

#	Yoga Name	Quality	#	Yoga Name	Quality
1	Vishkambha	Obstructing	15	Vajra	Thunderbolt / intense
2	Priti	Love / affection	16	Siddhi	Accomplishment ★
3	Ayushman	Long life	17	Vyatipata	Calamity (avoid)
4	Saubhagya	Good fortune ★	18	Variyan	Superior
5	Shobhana	Splendour	19	Parigha	Obstacle (avoid)
6	Atiganda	Danger (avoid)	20	Shiva	Auspicious ★
7	Sukarma	Good deeds	21	Siddha	Perfected ★
8	Dhriti	Holding firm	22	Sadhya	Achievement
9	Shula	Pain (avoid)	23	Shubha	Auspicious ★
10	Ganda	Danger (avoid)	24	Shukla	Bright
11	Vriddhi	Growth ★	25	Brahma	Creator energy ★
12	Dhruva	Fixed, stable ★	26	Indra	Kingly ★
13	Vyaghata	Strike (avoid)	27	Vaidhriti	Separation (avoid)
14	Harshana	Joy

Element 5 — Karanam (கரணம்) — The Half-Tithi

The Karanam is exactly half a Tithi — the time the Moon takes to travel 6° relative to the Sun. Each Tithi contains two Karanas. There are 11 types of Karanam, cycling through the lunar month — 4 "fixed" ones (occurring once only) and 7 "movable" ones (repeating 8 times each).

Karanas are used for precise Muhurta (electional astrology) — finding the exact auspicious moment within a day for weddings, business launches, or ceremonies. While most families track only Tithi and Nakshatra daily, Panchangam experts use Karanam for the finest-grained timing.

Type	Karanam Names	Occurrence
Fixed (4)	Shakuni, Chatushpada, Nagava, Kintughna	Once each per lunar month
Movable (7)	Bava, Balava, Kaulava, Taitila, Garaja, Vanija, Vishti	8 times each per lunar month

Vishti Karanam (also called Bhadra) is particularly important — it is considered inauspicious and Tamil families typically avoid starting major events during this period.

Reading a Panchangam — A Practical Example

On any given day, the five Panchangam values together create a complete picture. For example, a day described as: Tithi: Panchami (5th waxing), Vara: Thursday, Nakshatra: Rohini, Yoga: Saubhagya, Karanam: Bava — would be considered highly auspicious for weddings, ceremonies, and new ventures, because:

• Panchami is acceptable; not peak but not avoided
• Thursday (Guru's day) is excellent for education, ceremonies, and wisdom-related acts
• Rohini is the Moon's favourite Nakshatra — most auspicious of all 27
• Saubhagya Yoga means "good fortune"
• Bava Karanam is a movable, generally auspicious Karanam

Try this in the Panchangam Calculator →