Panchang in Diffa, Niger Wed 5 Mar 2008

Shiva’s worship centres on nishitha, the midnight muhurta. Chaturdashi runs from 21:01 on Wed 5 Mar to 19:54 on Thu 6 Mar, so only Wednesday night’s nishitha (23:56–00:44 Thu) falls within it.

Maha Shivratri: every date in Diffa

Shiva’s Pradosh puja is done in pradosha, the 3 muhurtas after sunset. Trayodashi runs from 21:27 on Tue 4 Mar to 21:01 on Wed 5 Mar, so only Wednesday’s pradosha (18:19–20:43) falls within it. No text giving Pradosh Vrat’s time was found; pradosha is Tithika’s convention.

Pradosh Vrat: every date in Diffa

Shiva’s worship centres on nishitha, the midnight muhurta. Chaturdashi runs from 21:01 on Wed 5 Mar to 19:54 on Thu 6 Mar, so only Wednesday night’s nishitha (23:56–00:44 Thu) falls within it. No text giving Masik Shivratri’s time was found; nishitha is Tithika’s convention.

Masik Shivratri: every date in Diffa

The Moon gains on the Sun about 12° a day. Each 12° of lead is one tithi: 324°–336° is the 28th, Krishna Trayodashi. A day takes the tithi in force at its sunrise, 06:23 here. Dwadashi ended at 21:27 Tue, before it. Trayodashi ends at 21:01, when the lead reaches 336°. The lead passed 180° at the full moon of 21 Feb, so the Moon is waning: Krishna paksha.

The night of Tue 4 Mar ran from sunset 18:18 Tue to sunrise 06:23, 12 h 5 m. Cut into 15 muhurtas of 48 m, its 14th is Brahma Muhurta, the one before the last.

Daylight here, 06:23 to 18:19, splits into 8 choghadiyas of 1 h 29 m. Their names follow a fixed order that starts from the weekday, and each name is counted good, neutral or bad.

The night here, 18:19 to 06:22 Thu, splits into 8 choghadiyas of 1 h 30 m. Their names follow a fixed order that starts from the weekday, and each name is counted good, neutral or bad.

The fixed stars divide the Moon's path into 27 nakshatras of 13°20′, each in 4 padas of 3°20′. Shravana spans 280°00′–293°20′; the Moon entered its pada 3 at 286°40′. It leaves at 13:14, for Dhanishtha.

Add the Sun's and the Moon's places among the stars: 321° + 289.5° = 610.5°, one full turn and 250.5°. Past the turn, cut into 27 parts of 13°20′, it gives the yoga: 240°00′–253°20′ is the 19th, Parigha. It ends at 11:00, then Shiva.

A karana is half a tithi: 6° of the Moon's lead, so the first half of Trayodashi is Garaja and the second Vanija. Garaja runs until 09:19, when the lead reaches 330°; Vanija until 21:01.

A Hindu day runs from one sunrise to the next, not midnight to midnight. This one runs 06:23 to 06:22 Thu, so the hours after midnight still belong to Budhawara.

An amanta month runs from new moon to new moon and takes its name from the rashi the Sun is in at the new moon that begins it: Makara gives Magha. The Sun enters Kumbha on 13 Feb, inside the month. The next new moon, 7 Mar, finds it in Kumbha and begins Phalguna.

A purnimanta month runs from full moon to full moon, so its waning half comes first. It shares its name with the amanta month that its second half falls in: the new moon of 7 Mar, with the Sun in Kumbha, begins Phalguna. Until then this Krishna paksha reads Phalguna here, and Magha in the amanta count.

A samvat year begins with Chaitra, the month whose new moon finds the Sun in Meena: 19 Mar 2007, 03:42 Mon. Since then the Sun has moved 346.8° round the stars. Vikram Samvat numbers that year 2064; Shaka Samvat numbers it 1929.