Paksha

Paska}}Paksha () refers to a fortnight or a lunar phase in a month of the Hindu lunar calendar.

Literally meaning "side", a paksha is the period either side of the ''purnima'' (full moon day). A lunar month in the Hindu calendar has two fortnights, and begins with the ''amavasya'' (new moon). The lunar days are called ''tithis;'' each month has 30 ''tithi''s, which may vary from 20 – 27 hours. A paksha has 15 ''tithi''s, which are calculated by a 12 degree motion of the moon. The first fortnight between the new moon day and the full moon day is called the Gaura Paksha or Shukla Paksha (), the period of the brightening moon (waxing moon), and the second fortnight of the month is called the Vadhya Paksha or Krishna Paksha (), the period of the fading moon (waning moon). The Neemuch calendar begin a new lunar month from first day of Krishna Paksha, while the Gujarat calendar begins a new lunar month from the first day of Shukla Paksha. Provided by Wikipedia