Amanta and Purnimanta months
Amanta months end on Amavasya (Gujarat, Maharashtra, South India) and Purnimanta months end on Purnima (North India). The Krishna paksha has different names in the two.
Two ways to end a month
Amanta = ending on the new Moon (amavasya). Purnimanta = ending on the full Moon (purnima). They are two ways of drawing the line between one lunar month and the next. The sky is the same, and only the naming differs.
A lunar month from one new Moon to the next has two halves. In the Amanta system the month is a single block from Amavasya to Amavasya. In the Purnimanta system the month runs from Purnima to Purnima.
Who uses which
- Purnimanta: North India, including Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana and Delhi. The site shows this name first.
- Amanta: Gujarat, Maharashtra and the southern states. The site shows this name beside the Purnimanta one.
Gujarat is a historic exception. Records show that Purnimanta was the older system there, and Amanta later became the general practice. Today Gujarati calendars use Amanta months.
The rule that matters
The bright half, the Shukla paksha, is the same in both systems. It has the same month name everywhere.
The dark half, the Krishna paksha, has a different month name. In the Purnimanta system the dark half already belongs to the next month. In the Amanta system it belongs to the month that is ending. So for each Krishna paksha, the Purnimanta name is one month ahead of the Amanta name.
An example in words
Take the dark half that follows the full Moon of Ashwin. In the Amanta system it is Ashwin Krishna paksha, the end of the month of Ashwin. In the Purnimanta system the month of Ashwin is already over, so the same fortnight is Kartika Krishna paksha.
| Fortnight | Purnimanta name | Amanta name |
|---|---|---|
| Bright half | Same | Same |
| Dark half | Next month | Current month |
The same tithi, nights and Moon phase are called by two names. This is why Maha Shivaratri is Magha Krishna Chaturdashi in Amanta calendars and Phalguna Krishna Chaturdashi in Purnimanta ones. It is the same night, and the observance is not different.
Diwali shows the same thing. The new Moon of Diwali is Ashwin Amavasya in the Amanta system and Kartika Amavasya in the Purnimanta system.
Does the festival date change?
No. Both systems agree on the day, because the day is set by the tithi and by the Moon. Only the month name is different. If a Gujarati friend and a friend from Uttar Pradesh give a different month for a Krishna paksha festival, they usually mean the same day.
What about the Shukla paksha festivals?
Festivals in the bright half, such as Ram Navami, Ganesh Chaturthi and Navratri, have the same month name in all regions. That is one reason they are easy to talk about across communities.
The new year
The month system and the new year are separate choices. Chaitra Shukla Pratipada begins the year in most of India, and Gujarat's Kartikadi year begins on Kartika Shukla Pratipada. Both fall in the bright half, so they have the same name in either system.
How the site shows it
Each date shows the Purnimanta name first, then the Amanta name beside it, along with the paksha and tithi. For example, a Krishna paksha date may read "Kartika Krishna Chaturthi (Ashwin in Amanta)". In the bright half only one name is needed.
Which should you follow
Follow the system of your community or temple. Families that moved to the USA from Gujarat, Maharashtra or the south will usually be used to Amanta names. Families from the north will usually be used to Purnimanta. If you attend events organised by a different community, expect the other name.