Rahu Kaal Today: What It Is, Timings by Weekday & How to Check

Rahu Kaal (Rahu Kalam) is a roughly 90-minute window each day when new beginnings are traditionally avoided — no launches, no signings, no first journeys, no weddings. It is not "bad luck o'clock" for everything: routine work continues. What matters is starting something important inside it.

Rahu Kaal by weekday — the segment table

Divide the time from sunrise to sunset into 8 equal parts. Rahu Kaal is one part, fixed by weekday:

Memory aid used across South India: "Mother Saw Father Wearing The Turban Slowly" — Monday 2nd, Tuesday 7th, Wednesday 5th, Thursday 6th, Friday 4th, Saturday 3rd, Sunday 8th (segments 2-7-5-6-4-3-8).

How to calculate today's Rahu Kaal yourself

1. Note your city's sunrise and sunset (not 6-to-6 — use actual times).
2. Divide the duration by 8. (12 hours → 90 minutes per segment; in winter the segments shrink.)
3. Count to your weekday's segment from the table.
4. That window is Rahu Kaal. Our muhurta finder does this automatically for your city.

Worked example: today's Rahu Kaal in 60 seconds

Delhi, Monday. Sunrise 6:23 AM, sunset 5:50 PM → daytime = 11h 27m = 687 minutes. Divide by 8 → 85.9 minutes per segment (≈1h 26m).

Monday = 2nd segment: 6:23 AM + 85.9 min → starts 7:49 AM, ends 9:15 AM. That's Monday's Rahu Kaal in Delhi — no app needed, just arithmetic. (Published Delhi timings for such a day: 9:15 AM end — the method matches.)

The pattern to memorize: the segment number per weekday (Mon 2, Tue 7, Wed 5, Thu 6, Fri 4, Sat 3, Sun 8). Everything else is your city's sunrise and sunset.

Why the segments move: in summer, daytime is longer, so each eighth stretches past 90 minutes; in winter they shrink below it. That's why a fixed "9:00–10:30" Rahu Kaal chart is always approximate — the weekday segment is exact, the clock time breathes with the seasons. Any source giving you one fixed time year-round is cutting corners.

Rahu Kaal and muhurta dates: even on a perfect muhurta date (say, a shubh vivah date from our 2027 wedding list), the ceremony itself must dodge the day's Rahu Kaal. Date-level muhurta and hour-level avoidance stack — one doesn't replace the other. Make this a habit and you'll never accidentally schedule a housewarming entry or a contract signing inside the week's worst ninety minutes.

What to avoid — and what you can still do

Avoid beginning: new business, job joining, signing contracts, starting travel, weddings and samskaras, buying vehicles, housewarming entry.

Fine to continue: ongoing work, meals, rest, worship and mantra (many consider Rahu Kaal acceptable for spiritual practice), routine chores.

Rahu Kaal vs Yamagandam vs Gulika Kaal

All three are weekday-based inauspicious segments, often listed together in panchangas:

(Segments of daytime, sunrise to sunset. Gulika Kaal is considered inauspicious for beginnings but auspicious for some tantric/protective rites.)

Frequently asked questions

Does Rahu Kaal apply to online activities?

Traditionalists say the principle (avoid beginnings) applies to anything important — including launching a website or sending a job application. Pragmatists limit it to physical ceremonies. Decide by your family's strictness.

I accidentally started something in Rahu Kaal. What now?

Don't panic. The texts treat muhurta as supportive, not deterministic (see our honest take on whether muhurta is necessary). A small Ganapati prayer is the traditional corrective.

Why is it called Rahu "Kaal"?

Kaal = time. The period is associated with Rahu, the shadow planet — symbolically, a time when clarity (light) is dimmed, hence poor for clear beginnings.

Is there a Rahu Kaal equivalent in the night?

Some regional panchangas compute night segments, but the standard published Rahu Kaal is daytime only. Night muhurta selection uses tara-bala and lagna instead.

Segment tables per standard panchanga convention. For today's exact city-wise Rahu Kaal, Yamagandam, and shubh windows, use our free muhurta finder.