The table above lists today's Subha Hora - the twelve daylight and twelve night planetary hours for your selected city. Each row shows when a hora begins and ends, which planet rules that interval, and whether it is generally favourable for new beginnings. Timings are computed from the exact local sunrise and sunset at that location. Select Use current location (𖦏) to load horas for your precise position; the table updates automatically. Because each hora is one-twelfth of actual daylight or night, boundaries shift with season, latitude, and daylight length rather than following a fixed 60-minute clock.
What is Subha Hora?
Subha Hora (also written shubha hora, shubha horai, or simply planetary hours) is a Vedic timekeeping method that divides each day and night into twelve equal parts. The Sanskrit word hora comes from ahoratra (अहोरात्र), meaning the full cycle of day and night. Half of ahoratra gives hora - and this is the same root from which the English word hour derives. In everyday Hindu practice, a shubha hora is an auspicious planetary hour: a window when the ruling graha's qualities are considered supportive for the activity at hand. The table on this page shows all twenty-four hora for the date and city you selected, so you can see which interval is active now and plan accordingly.
How the 24 Hora are calculated
Calculation begins at local sunrise. The first hora of the day is always ruled by the planet that governs the weekday - the Sun on Sunday, the Moon on Monday, Mars on Tuesday, Mercury on Wednesday, Jupiter on Thursday, Venus on Friday, and Saturn on Saturday. Each following hora advances through the Chaldean sequence: Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Sun, Venus, Mercury, Moon, then back to Saturn. This pattern repeats through all twelve day hora until sunset, and again through twelve night hora until the next sunrise. Because day and night are each split into twelve equal spans, a hora near midsummer lasts longer than one in midwinter at the same location. Boundaries here use your city's astronomical sunrise and sunset, so they reflect real daylight rather than a uniform clock hour.
The seven Hora and what each favours
Each of the seven classical planets lends a distinct tone to its hora. Choosing an interval whose character matches your task is the practical heart of Subha Hora. The summaries below describe traditional associations used across much of South Asian Jyotish; local custom may vary.
Surya (Sun)
The Sun hora is authoritative, visible, and leadership-oriented. It suits government filings, public announcements, meetings with senior figures, health-related appointments, and honouring one's father or elders. Sunday naturally strengthens this hora; Saturday, ruled by Saturn, is traditionally considered less supportive for Sun-ruled work. Ruby is the gemstone linked to Surya in classical texts.
Chandra (Moon)
The Moon hora is receptive, emotional, and changeable. Travel, domestic arrangements, care for mothers or children, meditation, and water-related activities are commonly placed here. Monday amplifies lunar themes. Tuesday's martial tone is often treated as less comfortable for Moon-ruled tasks. Pearl is the traditional gemstone of Chandra.
Mangal (Mars)
Mars brings energy, courage, and decisive action. Physical exercise, competitive sport, property matters, engineering work, and situations requiring firm boundaries fit this hora. Tuesday is Mars's own day. Friday's Venusian softness is traditionally viewed as a weaker match for Martian work. Red coral is associated with Mangal.
Budha (Mercury)
Mercury governs intellect, speech, commerce, and detail. Writing, trading, accounting, short journeys, study, and negotiations are well suited to a Budha hora. Wednesday strengthens Mercury's influence. Thursday's Jupiterian breadth is sometimes considered less precise for Mercury's quick, analytical tasks. Emerald is Mercury's classical gemstone.
Shukra (Venus)
Venus hora favours harmony, beauty, and connection. Marriage discussions, artistic work, music, decoration, romance, and luxury purchases are traditional choices. Friday is Venus's day. Sunday's solar assertiveness is often treated as less aligned with Venusian ease. Diamond (or white sapphire in some traditions) is linked to Shukra.
Guru (Jupiter)
Jupiter is expansive, wise, and dharmic. Teaching, religious ceremonies, legal consultations, charitable giving, and long-term planning belong here. Thursday is Jupiter's own weekday. Wednesday's Mercurial speed is sometimes seen as less ideal for Jupiter's measured, principled work. Yellow sapphire is Guru's traditional gemstone.
Shani (Saturn)
Saturn hora emphasises discipline, patience, and structure. Hard labour, agricultural work, iron or stone crafts, settling debts, and sustained effort without hurry are appropriate. Saturday belongs to Shani. Sunday's solar brilliance is traditionally considered a weaker backdrop for Saturn's slow, methodical tone. Blue sapphire is associated with Shani in many lineages.
Subha Hora vs Choghadiya vs Gowri Panchangam
These three tools all divide the day into auspicious segments, but they answer different questions. Subha Hora assigns each interval to one of the seven planets in Chaldean order from sunrise - useful when you want to match an activity to planetary character. Subha Choghadiya uses a separate eight-fold day/night scheme with labels such as Amrit and Labh; it is widely used in North and West India for quick good/bad windows. Gowri Panchangam is the Tamil Nadu variant of the same choghadiya family, often consulted alongside Nalla Neram. Use the hora table when planetary theme matters; use choghadiya or Gowri when you need a simple auspicious/inauspicious label for a fixed activity type.
Nalla Neram and regional names
In Tamil Nadu and among Tamil-speaking communities worldwide, auspicious daily windows are often called Nalla Neram (good time) or Shubha Horai - horai being the Tamil form of hora. A priest, calendar publisher, or family elder may refer to the same planetary-hour sequence you see here under a regional name. Those labels describe the same underlying calculation: twelve day and twelve night divisions from local sunrise, ruled in Chaldean order from the weekday lord.
How these timings are computed
Subha Hora is calculated with the Swiss Ephemeris for precise solar positions, Lahiri ayanamsa for sidereal conventions used in Indian panchangam, and your city's geographic coordinates for local sunrise and sunset. Daylight-saving transitions are handled through the IANA timezone database, so a hora boundary in New York or London shifts correctly when clocks change. The result is a location-accurate hora table you can trust for today's date without manual lookup in a printed panchangam.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the Subha Hora right now?
- The active hora is the row in the table whose time range includes the current clock time in your selected city. Switch to your city and today's date above; the highlighted or current interval shows which planet rules this moment and whether practitioners treat it as generally favourable.
- How is Subha Hora calculated?
- From local sunrise, the first hora belongs to the weekday's ruling planet. Each subsequent hora follows the Chaldean order - Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Sun, Venus, Mercury, Moon - through twelve day hora until sunset, then twelve more through the night until the next sunrise. Day and night lengths are divided equally within each half, so hora duration changes with the seasons.
- Is Subha Hora the same as planetary hours?
- Yes. Subha Hora is the Vedic and Hindu naming for the same seven-planet hour system used in Hellenistic and medieval Western astrology. The calculation from sunrise, the Chaldean sequence, and the seasonal stretching of each hour are shared across traditions; only terminology and cultural emphasis differ.
- Which hora is best for starting new work?
- Traditionally, hora ruled by Jupiter, Venus, Mercury, or the Sun are preferred for beginnings, depending on the nature of the work - Jupiter for learning and ceremony, Venus for relationships and arts, Mercury for business, Sun for leadership tasks. Avoid starting major ventures during a Saturn or Mars hora unless the activity specifically suits those planets.
- What is the difference between Hora and Choghadiya?
- Hora assigns each time slice to one of seven planets in fixed Chaldean rotation from sunrise. Choghadiya uses eight repeating labels (such as Amrit, Shubh, Labh) with a different day and night sequence. Both divide daylight and night into equal parts, but hora is planet-centred while choghadiya is auspiciousness-centred.
- Why does each hora not last exactly 60 minutes?
- A hora is one-twelfth of the actual daylight or one-twelfth of the actual night, not one twenty-fourth of a calendar day. In summer the day hora are longer and the night hora shorter; in winter the reverse. Only at the equinoxes do day and night hora approximate equal length.
- What is Nalla Neram?
- Nalla Neram means good time in Tamil. It often refers to auspicious windows within the daily panchangam - including planetary hours (Shubha Horai), Gowri periods, and other favourable slots. The exact label depends on regional calendar tradition.
- Does Subha Hora change by city?
- Yes. Sunrise and sunset times differ by longitude, latitude, and timezone, so hora boundaries shift from city to city even on the same calendar date. Always use timings computed for your actual location rather than a generic national table.
