Avoid these things after sunset

Whether it is a time of wedding, time for a prayer or any other time, in vedic philosophy time is considered very important to do any work. Scriptures says that work done at the appropriate time will result in better outcomes.

If you want your life to be full of happiness and prosperity, avoid doing following things mentioned here in the evening. Temples and other religious places perform worship during evening time. Some tasks are considered not auspicious if performed during these hours. The belief is that it creates permanent poverty in person’s life. Even if you have high earning, there is shortage in savings. Let us see what kind of tasks should be avoided

Sleeping: Do not lie down or sleep after sunset, during evening hours. This time is most suitable for prayer or worship. Scriptures guide us that if you are not sick or not having any unavoidable situation, you should not sleep after sunset. Sleeping at this time upsets Goddess Lakshmi. Scientifically person loses health and becomes lazy. They start housing body sickness if they continue sleeping during these hours.

Learning: Time after sunset is not good for any kind of education. Reading or writing has adverse effect on eyes during this period. Instead of reading or writing, students can meditate. Meditation will keep their brain healthy and active.

Cleaning: Avoid cleaning after sunset. It is not considered good. Cleaning should be a morning task. Cleaning during evening hours increases expenses and destabilizes personal wealth. The scientific reasoning behind is that the germs that have entered after evening cleaning are hard to eliminate however germs that have entered after morning cleaning are destroyed by sunlight. It is believed that cleaning should be done while the sunlight is strong.

Hair or Nail cut: If you were busy during the day time and could not find time and decided to cut your nails or hair in the evening. Avoid this practice as well. Even taking shower after cutting nails should be avoided. Shower after cutting nails is done when there is a death in the family. Getting a haircut or cutting your nails in the night displeases goddess Lakshmi and invites her sister poverty instead. It is not considered healthy also.

Meal: Avoid evening meals. Scriptures says that eating meal at this time disturbs the digestive system and causes constipation, gas and heart burn. Continuing such practice can create permanent problems in the body.

Fragrance: Avoid applying fragrance and fragrant oils in the evening hours. It increases negative energy around you. It causes mental distraction and creates several mental disorders. If at all you have to apply fragrance, apply before evening.

Surya Grahan (Solar Eclipse) on Diwali (Deepawali)

Lakshmi Puja on Diwali is done during Amavasya due to the religious significance of the day. It is scientific fact that Surya Grahan (Solar Eclipse) occurs only during Amavasya i.e. on the new moon day. Hence it is not unusual that often Surya Grahan falls on Diwali Puja day. However Surya Grahan is restricted to limited geographical area on the earth.

In many years Surya Grahan is not visible in India during Diwali but it is visible in other countries e.g. United States, United Kingdom, Australia, South Africa and Canada. All these countries have significant population of Indian diaspora who perform Diwali Puja but hardly get any information on Grahan during Diwali Puja. In India also whenever Surya Grahan occurs on Diwali there is utter confusion on the timings of Diwali Puja.

Hence the team of Drik Panchang have looked into religious texts and tried to throw some light on the topic of Diwali Puja during Solar Eclipse.


Surya Grahan is limited to its GeographyMajority of Pundits and astrologers in India agree that none of the rituals which are prescribed during Surya Grahan should be followed if Grahan is not visible at the area of residence. For example, if Surya Grahan is visible only in the United States of America then none of the rituals should be followed in India and vice-versa. The authorities are Nirnay Sindhu and Dharma Sindhu. According to these books, if Surya Grahan is during night time and Chandra Grahan is during day time then there is no need of taking purification bath and doing any charity activities. Dharma Sindhu clearly mentions that Punya Kala during Grahan ends as soon as it becomes invisible through eyes even though it is visible in some other parts of the country.

Even after clearly mentioned in these religious books, who are widely accepted authorities in deciding festivals and rituals, many astrologers, probably due to their ignorance, suggest following Grahan rituals and avoid doing Lakshmi Puja even if Grahan is not visible at the place of dwelling.


Puja is not restricted during GrahanMany articles published in popular newspapers and blogs mention that Puja is prohibited during Grahan. However, as per Nirnay Sindhu and Dharma Sindhu, Deva Puja, chanting of Mantra and performing Homa are must rituals during Grahan. It is believed that the benefits of Puja and Homa during Grahan multiply manifolds.

Many religious books on Hinduism suggest taking bath before beginning of Grahan, performing Puja and Homa during Grahan, taking bath and doing charity after Grahan. The activities which are prohibited during Grahan are sleeping, urinating, Mal-Tyag (easing oneself), copulation, Ubatana (massaging) and having food. None of the religious books say that Lakshmi Puja or any other Puja is prohibited during Grahan.

Further the most auspicious time to perform Lakshmi Puja falls after sunset during Pradosh. Hence it is not even possible to perform Lakshmi Puja during Grahan as the Surya Deva is already set.


Sutak and Lakshmi PujaSutak is the time window of four Prahar before Surya Grahan which is prohibited time for all sorts of activities which are related to sensual gratification. As per Vedic astrology, there are total eight Prahar from sunrise to sunrise and four Prahar approximately equals to 12 hours. It should be noted that Sutak is considered before Grahan starts and it lasts as soon as Grahan ends. Further, Sutak time window for children, aged and diseased people is considered for three Muhurat(s) only which approximately equal to 2 hours and 24 minutes.

Even if we consider that Lakshmi Puja is prohibited during Grahan including Sutak period, Sutak is not applicable for Lakshmi Puja during Pradosh due to its timings. There are only two possibilities or scenarios which we have to consider while considering Sutak window during Surya Grahan on Diwali. The first possibility is that the Surya Grahan occurs on the day of Lakshmi Puja itself. If this is the case then Sutak can prevail up to the sunset and after it one can take purification bath and perform Lakshmi Puja. The second possibility is that the Surya Grahan would fall on the next day of Lakshmi Puja. As Lakshmi Puja is done after sunset during Pradosh, in most cases it can be performed before Sutak begins as for most places there would be approximately twelve hours gap between Pradosh and the beginning time to Surya Grahan on the next day after sunrise.

After going through above information one can understand that Surya Grahan on the day of Diwali is not a big issue. There is unnecessary hype and misinformation about it. We hope that after reading this article you can perform Lakshmi Puja on Diwali confidently even if Puja day coincides with Surya Grahan in your city or country.

Vastu remediation for tenants in a rental property

In today's time because of rising inflation and lack of money most people live in rented home. People work hard enough throughout the life, but find they are unable to build a home.

Here are some ways, which would eliminate the lack of wealth and increase the well-being of your home. According to Vastu Shastra If a home is not exactly architecture, people living there have to face a lot of difficulties.

If you own the house, then there is no problem in removing architectural defects, however If the house is rented then you can face considerable challenges. Without the permission of the landlord of the house, no architectural changes can be done. Here are some general measures described, that can mitigate architectural defects and can address lack of funds.

• Always keep in mind the north-eastern part of the house should be clutter clear and light. Keeping stuff in this portion of house generates architectural defects.
• Unnecessary items or heavy items should be kept in south-west part of the house. Keeping the heavy stuff at other sections of the house is considered inauspicious according to Vastu.
• Bathroom or kitchen water supply should come from north-east direction.
• The head of the bed in the bedroom should be in south. Remember that your head should be in South and feet should be in North direction is preferable. If this is not possible because of some reason, then keep your head in West direction.
• Remember to face South East while eating food. By doing this you derive absolute nourishment from your meal and eliminate Vastu defects.
• According to Vastu most important thing is that place of worship should be in north-east direction of the house. If it is not possible to locate the place of worship, then it is recommended to face North East, towards Ishaan Kone while drinking water.
• If the surface height of the North-East corner is higher than the South-West corner then elevate the South-West corner. If that is not possible then create a platform like a structure in South-West corner.
• Place picture of beautiful flower in front of the entrance. Picture of bright sunflower is considered auspicious and pious for the front door.
• Do not keep the South-West corner (Naitratya Kone) dark and avoid bright light in North West corner (Vanavya Kone) of the house.
• Maintain peace in the house at all cost. Shouting and yelling disrupts the halo of the house.
• If there is a dead tree or dry stub around the house, remove it.
• Keep the entrance clean all the time. There should be appropriate amount of light on the front door. This maintains the flow of positive energy in the house.
• If possible create a wooden threshold at the front door that can prevent sweeping of dirt inside the house. Dirt also increases the Vastu defect.
• Place a picture or a sticker of Lord Ganesha on the front door. If that is not possible you can write Om (ऊँ) also. A positive symbol of any sort establishes the grace of gods.

Hopefully tenants will find this article useful.

Why it is essential to match natal charts before Marriage?

In this modern era, less and less people match natal charts before marriage. Chart matching can provide detail knowledge about person’s life. So it is essential to match the charts to obtain level of clarity.

According to astrology, planetary positions and some conditions, in the horoscope of a person last for the entire life of the individual. It is good idea to evaluate the horoscope of bride and groom before marriage.

Things to assess in groom’s natal chart

Following conditions should be assessed while evaluating natal chart

1.       More than one marriage

2.       Factors of wandering – This is about falling in bad company or wrong doing.

3.       Possibility of becoming a widower or early demise of bride.

Marriage with a groom can create possibility of difficult situation in bride’s life. Similar factors should be assessed in bride’s natal chart also.

One other factor to evaluate is malefic behavior of planet Mars. If either bride or groom has malefic position of Mars, it may cause marital issues. Proper remedies should be done in such case including marriage with somebody whose natal chart breaks the malefic effect.

Sometime match making is done merely by name. This practice is not effective and incomplete. Bottom line is that martial issues are not trivial and cannot be ignored. The best remedy is match natal chart prior to the marriage. 

Vastu remedy for increasing concentration in studies

Do you think your child is not able to concentrate and appears distracted?
There is a possibility that there is inflow of negative energy from somewhere. To increase focus, concentration and memory retention follow these simple Vastu Remedies. It is quite possible that it will resolve the issues you are facing.

Shape of Study Table
Shape of study table should be regular. Table can be square, rectangular or circular in shape. Any other shape or any unusual shape will reduce the concentration of your child and may only increase confusion in their mind. You should avoid the table with corner's cut.

Direction of Study Table
Energy inflow from North direction is positive. Face North while studying. By facing North energy does not drain and concentration remains. Do not block this direction. Ensure inflow of energy from this direction in your house.

Solid back
When you study, ensure you have a wall behind your back. There should not be any window or any other opening. While an opening is good to support energy it is not good to maintain concentration.

No interruption
There should not be any interruption of energy flow while studying. There should be about 7 to 8 feet of space. Study table should not be immediately next to the all. There should not be large size book shelf on top of the study table.

Clean
Keep your study room clean. Old books, notes, mail, stationery etc should be outside the study room. Establish habit to clean study room and table on regular basis.

Color
Lemon yellow or violet color support memory retention. Wall, study table and chair should have these color or their combinations.