The problem
You look up Gowri Panchangam and find a good window. Then you check Rahu Kalam, and it falls right on top. Which one wins?
This is one of the most asked questions in Tamil time planning. And the answer is clear: Rahu Kalam wins. A good Gowri segment that falls within Rahu Kalam is considered compromised. You should choose a different good segment instead.
This does not mean the whole day is ruined. There are five good Gowri segments during the day, and even on the hardest weekday at least three of them are untouched by all three avoid-windows.
Why it happens, and why it is not random
Gowri Panchangam and Rahu Kalam share the same basic structure: daylight is divided into eight equal parts. Rahu Kalam is one of the eight parts. Gowri lays eight names across the same parts. Therefore each avoid-window always corresponds to exactly one Gowri segment.
Which Gowri segment Rahu hits depends only on the weekday, it is a fixed mathematical property of the rotations. It applies to all cities, all seasons, all years. The clock times change, but the overlap never does.
The overlap chart, all seven days
The table shows which Gowri quality each avoid-window lands on. A red mark (✗ Good) means a good segment is compromised.
| Weekday | Rahu Kalam | Yamagandam | Kuligai |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday | Soram, Bad | Laabam Good | Sugam Good |
| Monday | Rogam, Bad | Dhanam Good | Soram, Bad |
| Tuesday | Visham, Bad | Dhanam Good | Soram, Bad |
| Wednesday | Uthi Good | Dhanam Good | Soram, Bad |
| Thursday | Amirdham Good | Dhanam Good | Soram, Bad |
| Friday | Visham, Bad | Laabam Good | Soram, Bad |
| Saturday | Visham, Bad | Laabam Good | Soram, Bad |
The best and worst days
Yamagandam is the persistent one: it takes a good segment on all seven weekdays. Rahu kalam only does so on Wednesday and Thursday, and kuligai only on Sunday, so no day loses more than two.
| Weekday | Good segments compromised | Untouched good segments |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | 1 of 5 (Yama) | 4 of 5 |
| Tuesday | 1 of 5 (Yama) | 4 of 5 |
| Friday | 1 of 5 (Yama) | 4 of 5 |
| Saturday | 1 of 5 (Yama) | 4 of 5 |
| Sunday | 2 of 5 (Yama + Kuligai) | 3 of 5 |
| Wednesday | 2 of 5 (Rahu + Yama) | 3 of 5 |
| Thursday | 2 of 5 (Rahu + Yama) | 3 of 5 |
Even on the hardest days, three untouched good Gowri segments remain. No day is entirely without a good window.
Worked example, Thursday 15 January 2026
Thursday is one of the three hardest days. Let us see what happens.
Worked example
Thursday 15 January 2026, Chennai
Sunrise: 06:35. Sunset: 18:01. We show all eight Gowri segments and the three avoid-windows.
- Segment 1
- Dhanam (good) 06:35–08:01
- Segment 2
- Sugam (good) 08:01–09:27
- Segment 3
- Soram (bad) 09:27–10:53
- Segment 4
- Uthi (good) 10:53–12:18
- Segment 5
- Visham (bad) 12:18–13:44
- Segment 6
- Amirdham (good) 13:44–15:10
- Segment 7
- Rogam (bad) 15:10–16:36
- Segment 8
- Laabam (good) 16:36–18:01
Hit by Yamagandam.
UNTOUCHED
Hit by Kuligai.
UNTOUCHED
Hit by Rahu Kalam.
UNTOUCHED
Three untouched good windows: Sugam 08:01–09:27, Uthi 10:53–12:18 and Laabam 16:36–18:01. Yamagandam takes Dhanam and rahu kalam takes Amirdham; kuligai falls on Soram, which was a bad segment anyway, so it costs nothing.
What to do in practice
- Always check the Gowri table and Rahu Kalam together, not separately.
- Choose a good Gowri segment that is not hit by any avoid-window.
- If you have free choice of day, prefer Monday, Tuesday, Friday or Saturday, where only one good segment is lost.
- If you are stuck on a Thursday, use the mid-morning segment (Sugam) or the last one of the day (Laabam).
- Remember: Rahu Kalam only applies to new beginnings. Ongoing routine is not affected, regardless of overlap.