What a Kalnirnay page holds
Each day of the month sits in its own small box with the date of the Gregorian calendar, the Hindu tithi, the nakshatra and the festival or vrat of the day. The month page names the Hindu lunar month and the Samvatsara, shows the phases of the Moon, and marks the days on which a fast such as Sankashti Chaturthi or Ekadashi is kept. The rest of the book adds the Sankranti moments, the eclipses of the year, and the muhurtas that families look for: marriage, griha pravesha, the naming of a child and the purchase of a vehicle or a home.
Many editions also carry material beyond the panchang, such as recipes, household and health advice, and the notes of the year ahead. These are the reason the almanac is kept in the kitchen and not only in the prayer room.
How the Maharashtrian reckoning reads
Maharashtra follows the Amanta month, which ends on the new moon, and the new year begins on Gudi Padwa, the first day of Chaitra. A festival of the dark half is therefore placed one month later than in the Purnimanta calendars of the north. A reader who uses Kalnirnay next to a north Indian almanac will often find the month names differing for the same day; the day itself is the same.
The panchang gives the tithi that is present at sunrise, and a tithi can end in the middle of a day, so the almanac also lists the hour at which it ends. A festival that depends on a particular time of the day, such as the midnight of Janmashtami, follows the rule of its own, which the almanac states beside the day.
Using it next to this site
The dates on this site are worked out from the positions of the Sun and Moon for the place chosen, using Drik Ganita. A printed almanac is made for one region and its customs, and its makers settle a doubtful day by the practice of their readers. When the two differ by a day, which happens only when a tithi begins or ends near sunrise, follow the almanac of your own tradition for the ceremony and use this site to see the exact times of the tithi.