Rahu Kaal on 18 October 2026
On Sunday, 18 October 2026, Rahu Kaal runs from 16:23 to 17:48 — a window of 85 minutes, measured at New Delhi, India (IST). It is the part of the day traditionally left alone for beginnings: signing, buying, travelling, or opening something new. Work already under way is not usually paused for it.
What Rahu Kaal is
Rahu Kaal is one-eighth of the daylight span, from sunrise to sunset, assigned to the shadow planet Rahu. Which eighth it falls in depends on the weekday, so the window moves every day rather than sitting at a fixed clock time. Because it is a fraction of daylight rather than a fixed 90 minutes, it also stretches in summer and contracts in winter.
Yamaganda and Gulika Kaal
Two more windows are derived the same way and are usually read alongside Rahu Kaal. Yamaganda runs 12:06 to 13:31. Gulika Kaal runs 14:57 to 16:23. Of the three, Rahu Kaal is the one most widely observed; Gulika is treated more leniently, and some traditions consider it favourable for acts meant to endure.
Does it apply to your city?
These timings are computed for New Delhi, India (IST). Every window is a division of LOCAL daylight, so Rahu Kaal in Chennai or Kolkata does not begin at the same clock time as in Delhi — the gap runs to well over half an hour across India. For anything you are timing precisely, compute it for your own coordinates rather than reading a national figure.
See it in your own chart
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Frequently asked
- What time is Rahu Kaal on 18 October 2026?
- Rahu Kaal runs 16:23 to 17:48 on Sunday, 18 October 2026, computed for New Delhi, India (IST). It shifts with your location, because the window is a division of local daylight.
- How is Rahu Kaal calculated?
- The span from sunrise to sunset is divided into eight equal parts. One of those eight is Rahu Kaal, and which one depends on the day of the week — so the window lands at a different clock time each day and changes length through the year as daylight does.
- What should be avoided during Rahu Kaal?
- Traditionally it is avoided for anything being STARTED — travel, purchases, signing, ceremonies, or launching a venture. Ongoing work, daily routine and emergencies are not paused for it, and most practitioners treat it as a scheduling preference rather than a prohibition.
- Is Rahu Kaal the same across India?
- No. It is derived from local sunrise and sunset, so it varies by city. The times here are for New Delhi, India (IST); use the free panchang calculator to compute the window for your own city.