Panchang in Diffa, Niger Tue 27 Dec 2016

Shiva’s worship centres on nishitha, the midnight muhurta. Chaturdashi runs from 04:00 on Tue 27 Dec to 06:06 on Wed 28 Dec, so only Tuesday night’s nishitha (23:45–00:36 Wed) 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: 336°–348° is the 29th, Krishna Chaturdashi. A day takes the tithi in force at its sunrise, 06:30 here. Trayodashi ended at 04:00, before it. Chaturdashi ends at 06:06 Wed, when the lead reaches 348°. The lead passed 180° at the full moon of 14 Dec, so the Moon is waning: Krishna paksha.

A day takes the tithi in force at its sunrise.

New Delhi · IST

Sunrise here, 07:12, came before Trayodashi ended at 08:30: this day reads Trayodashi.

Diffa · UTC+1

Sunrise here, 06:30, came after Trayodashi ended at 04:00: this day reads Chaturdashi.

The night of Mon 26 Dec ran from sunset 17:50 Mon to sunrise 06:30, 12 h 40 m. Cut into 15 muhurtas of 50 m, its 14th is Brahma Muhurta, the one before the last.

Daylight here, 06:30 to 17:51, 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 night here, 17:51 to 06:30 Wed, 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 fixed stars divide the Moon's path into 27 nakshatras of 13°20′, each in 4 padas of 3°20′. Jyeshtha spans 226°40′–240°00′; the Moon entered its pada 1 at 226°40′. It leaves at 04:31 Wed, for Mula.

Add the Sun's and the Moon's places among the stars: 251.8° + 228.9° = 480.7°, one full turn and 120.7°. Past the turn, cut into 27 parts of 13°20′, it gives the yoga: 120°00′–133°20′ is the 10th, Ganda. It ends at 05:37 Wed, then Vriddhi.

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 17:05, when the lead reaches 342°; Shakuni until 06:06 Wed.

A Hindu day runs from one sunrise to the next, not midnight to midnight. This one runs 06:30 to 06:30 Wed, so the hours after midnight still belong to Mangalawara.

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: Vrishchika gives Margashirsha. The Sun enters Dhanu on 15 Dec, inside the month. The next new moon, 29 Dec, finds it in Dhanu and begins Pausha.

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 29 Dec, with the Sun in Dhanu, begins Pausha. Until then this Krishna paksha reads Pausha here, and Margashirsha 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 257.8° round the stars. Vikram Samvat numbers that year 2073; Shaka Samvat numbers it 1938.