What it means
A karana is half a tithi. Since a tithi spans twelve degrees of separation between the Moon and the Sun, a karana spans six, and a lunar month therefore holds thirty of them. It is the fourth of the panchang's five limbs, after tithi, vara and nakshatra, and before yoga.
How it is read
There are only eleven names for those thirty slots. Four are fixed - Shakuni, Chatushpada, Naga and Kimstughna - and occur once each at the turn of the month. The other seven, Bava through Vishti, repeat in order eight times to fill the rest. This is why the same karana name recurs several times in one month while the fixed four appear once.
What to watch for
The one that matters for timing is Vishti, better known as Bhadra. A muhurat is not taken during Bhadra, and it is the reason a day that looks clean by tithi and nakshatra can still be refused - Holika Dahan is traditionally kept outside it, which narrows the evening window. So a panchang that lists only tithi and nakshatra has left out a limb that can veto the day.
Astroniq AI astrologer
Ask about your own chart, in plain words
Pages like this one explain the general rules. Your chart is specific. Astroniq computes your real Vedic birth chart - planetary positions, dashas, yogas - and its AI astrologer answers your questions about it in chat, like a consultation. First reading free, no signup.
Try asking: