Karanas

Citation Formats

General Reference

Divinity Atlas. "Karanas." Accessed August 30, 2026. https://dev-divinity.interactiveatlas.org/categories/karanas.

APA Style

Divinity Atlas. (n.d.). Karanas. Retrieved August 30, 2026, from https://dev-divinity.interactiveatlas.org/categories/karanas

BibTeX

@misc{divinityatlas-karanas,
  author = {Divinity Atlas},
  title = {Karanas},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://dev-divinity.interactiveatlas.org/categories/karanas},
  note = {Accessed August 30, 2026}
}

A karana is half a tithi, the unit of the Hindu lunar calendar covering half of the twelve-degree separation between Sun and Moon. There are eleven: four fixed karanas, Shakuni, Chatushpada, Naga and Kimstughna, that occur once per lunar month, and seven movable ones, Bava, Balava, Kaulava, Taitila, Garija, Vanija and Vishti, that repeat in rotation across the month. They are used in muhurta, the selection of auspicious times, alongside tithi, nakshatra and yoga in the panchanga, the traditional almanac; Vishti in particular is widely held inauspicious and avoided for beginning new undertakings.

Facts

Overview

What Defines This Grouping

Half a tithi, and one of the five limbs (anga) of the pancanga almanac: eleven in all, four fixed and seven movable. 1

Size of the Traditional Set

11 karanas 1

Learn More

The half-tithi

A karana is half a tithi, the unit covering half of the twelve-degree separation between Sun and Moon, so that there are two karanas to each tithi and sixty in a lunar month. There are eleven karanas in all: four fixed ones (the sthira karanas) that occur only once each per lunar month, around the new moon, and seven movable ones (the chara karanas) that repeat in rotation through the month.

The karana is one of the five limbs of the panchanga, the Hindu almanac, and is consulted in electional astrology for the suitability of a moment for particular undertakings.

Use in the almanac

Each karana has a name and a character, favouring or disfavouring certain kinds of action, and the karana of a given moment is read alongside the tithi, nakshatra, yoga and weekday in choosing an auspicious time (muhurta). The fixed karanas around the new moon carry special significance.

The atlas gives each karana its place in the cycle and its traditional associations. The tithis the karanas divide, and the nitya yogas they accompany in the panchanga, are treated in their own categories.

Cross-Tradition Connections