Rahu KaalGulika Kaal and Yamaganda
What Gulika Kaal and Yamaganda are, how they differ from Rahu Kaal, which part of the day each weekday uses, and how people treat them.
South Indian panchangs list three inauspicious periods every day: Rahu Kaal, Yamaganda (Yamagandam) and Gulika Kaal (Gulikai, Kuligai). They are all worked out in the same way, by taking one of the eight parts of the daylight, but they are different in character.
Yamaganda
Yamaganda is linked to Yama, the lord of death, and is treated as a period to avoid for beginning new work, much like Rahu Kaal. It is the fourth part on Monday, the third on Tuesday, the second on Wednesday, the first on Thursday, the seventh on Friday, the sixth on Saturday and the fifth on Sunday.
Gulika Kaal
Gulika is said to be a son of Saturn. Gulika Kaal is read a little differently: it is considered a poor time for things you would not want to happen again, such as a funeral rite or a loan, and a useful time for things you hope will be repeated, but views differ and many calendars simply group it with the other two. It is the sixth part on Monday, the fifth on Tuesday, the fourth on Wednesday, the third on Thursday, the second on Friday, the first on Saturday and the seventh on Sunday.
Using the three together
People who follow these periods usually pick a time that avoids all three, and prefer a favourable period such as Abhijit muhurat or an Amrit, Shubh or Labh Choghadiya. In an ordinary day the three together cover about three eighths of the daylight, so there is nearly always a free window. North Indian panchangs commonly list only Rahu Kaal, and some give Gulika and Yamaganda under the names Gulik and Yamghant.
Our tool shows all three for any city and date. See how they are calculated and Choghadiya for the other system.
Questions people ask
Are Gulika and Yamaganda as important as Rahu Kaal?
In South Indian practice they are listed with it and avoided in the same way; in the north they are less commonly used.
Can two of them overlap?
No. They use different parts of the day on the same weekday, so they never fall on top of each other.