Guides / Panchang
What is Karana?
A Karana is half of a Tithi. There are eleven named Karanas; the sequence fills the lunar month.
Half a lunar day
Each Tithi of 12° splits into two Karanas of 6°. Four Karanas appear only once in a month (the “fixed” ones). Seven others rotate through the rest of the month (the “movable” ones): Bava, Balava, Kaulava, Taitila, Garaja, Vanija, and Vishti.
When the Panchang names a Karana, that is the half-Tithi in force at sunrise, with an end time when the calculation returns one.
Common questions
- What is Vishti Karana?
- Vishti, also called Bhadra, is one of the eleven Karanas. It is a poor window for beginning auspicious work. Inner Light names the Karana in force; it does not block the rest of the day’s calculation.