Panchang in Diffa, Niger Wed 24 May 2017

Shiva’s worship centres on nishitha, the midnight muhurta. Chaturdashi runs from 04:18 on Wed 24 May to 00:38 on Thu 25 May, so only Wednesday night’s nishitha (23:44–00:28 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: 336°–348° is the 29th, Krishna Chaturdashi. A day takes the tithi in force at its sunrise, 05:42 here. Trayodashi ended at 04:18, before it. Chaturdashi ends at 00:38 Thu, when the lead reaches 348°. The lead passed 180° at the full moon of 10 May, so the Moon is waning: Krishna paksha.

A day takes the tithi in force at its sunrise.

New Delhi · IST

Sunrise here, 05:26, came before Trayodashi ended at 08:48: this day reads Trayodashi. Chaturdashi ends at 05:08 Thu, before the next sunrise, so no day here reads Chaturdashi: it is kshaya.

Diffa · UTC+1

Sunrise here, 05:42, came after Trayodashi ended at 04:18: this day reads Chaturdashi.

The night of Tue 23 May ran from sunset 18:30 Tue to sunrise 05:42, 11 h 12 m. Cut into 15 muhurtas of 44 m, its 14th is Brahma Muhurta, the one before the last.

Daylight here, 05:42 to 18:30, splits into 8 choghadiyas of 1 h 36 m. Their names follow a fixed order that starts from the weekday, and each name is counted good, neutral or bad.

The night here, 18:30 to 05:42 Thu, splits into 8 choghadiyas of 1 h 24 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′. Bharani spans 13°20′–26°40′; the Moon entered its pada 1 at 13°20′. It leaves at 22:43, for Krittika.

Add the Sun's and the Moon's places among the stars: 39.1° + 15.9° = 55°. The sum, cut into 27 parts of 13°20′, gives the yoga: 53°20′–66°40′ is the 5th, Shobhana. It ends at 23:01, then Atiganda.

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 14:30, when the lead reaches 342°; Shakuni until 00:38 Thu.

A Hindu day runs from one sunrise to the next, not midnight to midnight. This one runs 05:42 to 05:42 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: Mesha gives Vaishakha. The Sun enters Vrishabha on 14 May, inside the month. The next new moon, 25 May, finds it in Vrishabha and begins Jyeshtha.

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 25 May, with the Sun in Vrishabha, begins Jyeshtha. Until then this Krishna paksha reads Jyeshtha here, and Vaishakha in the amanta count.

A samvat year begins with Chaitra, the month whose new moon finds the Sun in Meena: 28 Mar 2017, 03:57 Tue. Since then the Sun has moved 55.6° round the stars. Vikram Samvat numbers that year 2074; Shaka Samvat numbers it 1939.