Last updated: May 2026
Panchangam (తెలుగు పంచాంగం) is a Sanskrit word meaning "five limbs" — from pancha (five) and anga (limb). It refers to the traditional Hindu almanac that tracks five fundamental elements of time. The Telugu Panchangam is the regional variant used by the Telugu-speaking communities of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and the global Telugu diaspora.
For centuries, the Panchangam has served as the foundation for determining auspicious dates for ceremonies, identifying festival timings, and guiding daily spiritual practices. It is a living astronomical document that connects celestial movements to everyday life.
A Tithi is determined by the angular distance between the Sun and the Moon. Each Tithi spans exactly 12 degrees of this angular separation, and there are 30 Tithis in a complete lunar month. The bright fortnight (Shukla Paksha) runs from Padyami (1st) to Pournami (full moon), and the dark fortnight (Krishna Paksha) runs from Padyami (1st) to Amavasya (new moon). Unlike solar days, Tithis can be shorter or longer than 24 hours because the Moon's orbital speed varies.
The seven days of the week are named after celestial bodies in the Vedic tradition:
Each day carries its own significance for worship and activities. For example, Guruvaram is considered especially favorable for starting educational pursuits.
The 27 Nakshatras are divisions of the sidereal zodiac, each spanning 13 degrees and 20 minutes of arc. They are determined by the Moon's position against the backdrop of fixed stars. The sequence runs from Ashwini to Revati. A person's birth Nakshatra (Janma Nakshatra) plays a central role in horoscope matching, name selection, and ceremony timing throughout their life.
There are 27 Yogams, determined by the combined sidereal longitude of the Sun and Moon. When their total longitude crosses multiples of 13 degrees and 20 minutes, a new Yogam begins. Yogams range from highly auspicious (such as Siddha and Amrita) to inauspicious (such as Vyatipata and Vaidhriti), and they influence the overall favorability of any given time period.
Each Tithi is divided into two Karanams, giving 60 Karanams per lunar month. There are 11 distinct Karanams in total — 4 fixed (Shakuni, Chatushpada, Nagava, Kimstughna) and 7 repeating (Bava, Balava, Kaulava, Taitila, Garija, Vanija, Vishti). The Vishti (also called Bhadra) Karanam is considered inauspicious and is avoided for starting new activities.
Western astronomy uses the tropical zodiac (based on the equinoxes), while Vedic astronomy uses the sidereal zodiac (based on fixed star positions). The difference between these two systems is called the ayanamsa. Over centuries, the Earth's axial precession causes the two systems to drift apart by roughly 1 degree every 72 years.
The Lahiri ayanamsa (also called Chitrapaksha ayanamsa) was officially adopted by the Indian Government's Calendar Reform Committee in 1957 for use in the official Rashtriya Panchang. It is the most widely used ayanamsa system in Telugu Panchangam calculations, and it is the system used by Telugu Panchangam Daily.
Sunrise and sunset times differ from city to city. Since many Panchangam elements — particularly Tithi boundaries and Muhurtham windows — are defined relative to local sunrise, the same calendar date can have different Panchangam values in different locations. For example, a Tithi that begins before sunrise in Hyderabad may begin after sunrise in New York, placing the two cities in different Tithis for that calendar date.
This is why location-specific Panchangam calculation matters, especially for the Telugu diaspora living across multiple time zones.
Use our Telugu Panchangam Daily calculator to view all five Panchangam elements for today, computed for your city using VSOP87 astronomical models with Lahiri ayanamsa. Popular city pages:
Related guides: Telugu Calendar 2026 explains how to read the Telugu monthly calendar, and Rahu Kalam Today covers inauspicious timing calculations.