Agrahayana
Overview
Hindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
: अगहन agahan, मार्गशीर्ष ) is a month
Month
A month is a unit of time, used with calendars, which was first used and invented in Mesopotamia, as a natural period related to the motion of the Moon; month and Moon are cognates. The traditional concept arose with the cycle of moon phases; such months are synodic months and last approximately...
of the Hindu calendar
Hindu calendar
The hindu calendar used in ancient times has undergone many changes in the process of regionalization, and today there are several regional Indian calendars, as well as an Indian national calendar. Nepali calendar, Bengali calendar, Malayalam calendar, Tamil calendar, Telugu calendar, Kannada...
and Tamil calendar
Tamil calendar
The Tamil calendar is a solar and sidereal Hindu calendar used in Tamil Nadu. It is also used in Pondicherry , and by the Tamil population in Malaysia, Singapore, Mauritius and Sri Lanka. It is also used by Telugu speaking people in Tamil Nadu...
. In India's national civil calendar
Indian national calendar
The Indian national calendar is the official civil calendar in use in India. It is used, alongside the Gregorian calendar, by The Gazette of India, news broadcasts by All India Radio, and calendars and communications issued by the Government of India.The term may also ambiguously refer to the...
, Agrahayana is the ninth month of the year, beginning on 22 November and ending on 21 December. Since Vedic times
Vedic period
The Vedic period was a period in history during which the Vedas, the oldest scriptures of Hinduism, were composed. The time span of the period is uncertain. Philological and linguistic evidence indicates that the Rigveda, the oldest of the Vedas, was composed roughly between 1700–1100 BCE, also...
, this month is known as Maargashirsha after the Nakshatra
Nakshatra
Nakshatra is the term for lunar mansion in Hindu astrology. A nakshatra is one of 27 sectors along the ecliptic...
(asterisms
Asterism (astronomy)
In astronomy, an asterism is a pattern of stars recognized on Earth's night sky. It may form part of an official constellation, or be composed of stars from more than one. Like constellations, asterisms are in most cases composed of stars which, while they are visible in the same general direction,...
) Mrigashirsha
Mrigashirsha
Sanskrit mr̥gáśiras the 5th nakshatra or lunar mansion as used in Hindu astronomy and astrology is the constellation Orion. Its position is described in the Surya Siddhanta....
. In Tamil, the month is known as Maarkazhi.
The word agrahayan means the month of ayan or equinox (agra=first + ayan = travel of the sun, equinox).
