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Glossary

Shukla Paksha defined: the bright, waxing fortnight from new Moon to full Moon, how this app detects it from the tithi and where it adds weight in muhurat scoring.

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In short

Shukla Paksha is the bright half of the lunar month, the fortnight in which the Moon waxes from new to full. This app marks a moment as Shukla when its tithi is 1 to 15, and its muhurat scoring gives such a window extra points as a support for new beginnings.

What the term means

Shukla means bright, and Shukla Paksha is the bright paksha: the fortnight that begins just after the new Moon and ends at the full Moon. Through it the Moon draws away from the Sun and its lit portion grows each night. It holds the first fifteen tithis of the lunar month, ending with Purnima.

Where the term comes from

Jyotisha Siddhanta Sara (Ch. II) divides each lunar month into two halves and names the waxing one Shukla. BPHS uses the bright half in its strength and dasha rules. Ch. 27 Sl. 10-11 build Paksha Bala from the Moon's distance from the Sun, so benefics gain strength as the Moon fills. Ch. 46 Sl. 23-26 tie the Shodshottari dasha to a night birth in the bright half, or to an Ascendant in the Sun's Hora with a Shukla birth. The Bhrigu Sutras commentary rates the full Moon "a first class benefic", which is where the bright half culminates.

How this app uses it

  • The engine measures the Moon's sidereal distance ahead of the Sun, cuts it into thirty tithis of 12 degrees, and labels tithis 1 to 15 Shukla.
  • In muhurat scoring a Shukla window gains 7 points with the stated reason that the waxing Moon supports new beginnings. It is one factor among several, not a verdict on its own.
  • The alternate-dasha check reads the birth paksha, with day or night and the Ascendant's Hora, to decide whether Shodshottari applies to a chart.

Pages that use this term

Related terms

Krishna Paksha, Amavasya, Panchang and Chandra.

Now on yourself

Moon Phase and Tithi

The tithi, the paksha and how much of the Moon was lit on your birth date.

A birth time is optional. Without one this is read at local noon on your birth date - and the Moon moves about 13 degrees in a day, so add the time if you know it.

No place is asked for on this page, so the time is read as Indian Standard Time (IST). Born outside India? Run it on its own page, where you can add the place.

This date is sent only to compute the answer. Nothing is stored, no account is created, and no email is asked for.

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