Panchang reference
What is a lunar month in Panchang?
A lunar month, or masa (मास), follows a cycle of the Moon's phases and contains 30 tithis.
It lasts about 29.5 calendar days. The 30 tithis are unequal periods, so a lunar month is not a block of 30 midnight-to-midnight days. Its two halves are the waxing and waning pakshas.
Two ways to name the month
Amanta months begin when Amavasya tithi ends, at the new Moon, and end at the next new Moon. Purnimanta months begin when Purnima tithi ends, at the full Moon, and end at the next full Moon. Their boundaries are half a lunar cycle apart.
In an ordinary month, their names agree during Shukla Paksha. During Krishna Paksha, the Purnimanta name is one month ahead of the Amanta name. A different name need not mean a different tithi or a calculation error.
How to read the dashboard
The main Lunar month value is labelled Amanta. When the Purnimanta name differs, a smaller note gives that name too. When the note is absent, the two names agree.
For Delhi on 2 October 2026, the row reads Bhadrapada (Amanta), with Purnimanta: Ashwin underneath. Both describe the same Krishna Paksha date.
Follow the month boundary
The following sequence shows three consecutive fortnights in an ordinary year, without an intervening Adhika month. Read from top to bottom:
- Waxing fortnight
- Bhadrapada in both systemsShukla Paksha ends at the full Moon. The Amanta month is halfway through; the Purnimanta month ends.
- Waning fortnight
- Amanta: Bhadrapada
Purnimanta: AshwinKrishna Paksha ends at the new Moon. The Amanta month now ends; the Purnimanta month is halfway through. - Next waxing fortnight
- Ashwin in both systemsThe new Amanta month begins with Shukla Paksha. The Purnimanta month continues to the next full Moon.
The 12 lunar month names
The usual sequence below starts with Chaitra. Regional New Year conventions can start the year at a different point in this cycle.
| Order | Month |
|---|---|
| 1 | Chaitra (चैत्र) |
| 2 | Vaishakha (वैशाख) |
| 3 | Jyeshtha (ज्येष्ठ) |
| 4 | Ashadha (आषाढ) |
| 5 | Shravana (श्रावण) |
| 6 | Bhadrapada (भाद्रपद) |
| 7 | Ashwin (आश्विन) |
| 8 | Kartika (कार्तिक) |
| 9 | Margashirsha (मार्गशीर्ष) |
| 10 | Pausha (पौष) |
| 11 | Magha (माघ) |
| 12 | Phalguna (फाल्गुन) |
These names do not correspond to fixed Gregorian date ranges. Bhadrapada is a month name; Purva Bhadrapada and Uttara Bhadrapada are nakshatras. The shared word does not make them the same calendar concept.
What Adhika means
Adhika (अधिक) marks an extra lunar month in the lunisolar calendar. It keeps lunar months aligned with the solar year. The dashboard includes the prefix when it applies; the following ordinary month can carry the same base name.
The ordinary fortnight comparison above should not be used to infer an Adhika month's name. Read the displayed month and prefix together.
The Panchang reading guide places this row alongside the five parts. See the lunar month on today's Delhi Panchang, or select a city on the home page.