Panchang in Diffa, Niger Thu 5 May 2016

Shiva’s worship centres on nishitha, the midnight muhurta. Chaturdashi runs from 03:59 on Thu 5 May to 00:17 on Fri 6 May, so it touches only Thursday night’s nishitha (23:43–00:28 Fri). 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: 336°–348° is the 29th, Krishna Chaturdashi. A day takes the tithi in force at its sunrise, 05:46 here. Trayodashi ended at 03:59, before it. Chaturdashi ends at 00:17 Fri, when the lead reaches 348°. The lead passed 180° at the full moon of 22 Apr, so the Moon is waning: Krishna paksha.

A day takes the tithi in force at its sunrise.

New Delhi · IST

Sunrise here, 05:37, came before Trayodashi ended at 08:29: this day reads Trayodashi. Chaturdashi ends at 04:47 Fri, before the next sunrise, so no day here reads Chaturdashi: it is kshaya.

Diffa · UTC+1

Sunrise here, 05:46, came after Trayodashi ended at 03:59: this day reads Chaturdashi.

The night of Wed 4 May ran from sunset 18:25 Wed to sunrise 05:46, 11 h 21 m. Cut into 15 muhurtas of 45 m, its 14th is Brahma Muhurta, the one before the last.

Daylight here, 05:46 to 18:25, splits into 8 choghadiyas of 1 h 34 m. Their names follow a fixed order that starts from the weekday, and each name is counted good, neutral or bad.

The night here, 18:25 to 05:46 Fri, splits into 8 choghadiyas of 1 h 25 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′. Revati spans 346°40′–360°00′; the Moon entered its pada 4 at 356°40′. It leaves at 08:48, for Ashwini.

Add the Sun's and the Moon's places among the stars: 21° + 358.1° = 379.1°, one full turn and 19.1°. Past the turn, cut into 27 parts of 13°20′, it gives the yoga: 13°20′–26°40′ is the 2nd, Priti. It ends at 16:59, then Ayushmana.

A karana is half a tithi: 6° of the Moon's lead, so the first half of Chaturdashi is Vishti and the second Shakuni. Vishti runs until 14:09, when the lead reaches 342°; Shakuni until 00:17 Fri.

A Hindu day runs from one sunrise to the next, not midnight to midnight. This one runs 05:46 to 05:46 Fri, so the hours after midnight still belong to Guruwara.

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: Meena gives Chaitra. The Sun enters Mesha on 13 Apr, inside the month. The next new moon, 6 May, finds it in Mesha and begins Vaishakha.

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 6 May, with the Sun in Mesha, begins Vaishakha. Until then this Krishna paksha reads Vaishakha here, and Chaitra in the amanta count.

A samvat year begins with Chaitra, the month whose new moon finds the Sun in Meena: 7 Apr 2016, 12:23 Thu. Since then the Sun has moved 27° round the stars. Vikram Samvat numbers that year 2073; Shaka Samvat numbers it 1938.