Samvatsara

Today
(at UTC+00)
Sunday, 13 September 2026
HinduHasta・Śukla
Solar: 28 Bhādrapada, 1948 SE
Lunisolar: Dvitīyā, Śukla pakṣa of Bhādrapada, 2083 VE
Rāudra・5127 KY・1,872,831
Other calendars
Akan Monokwasi
Armenian 25 Hoṙi 1476
Aztec Tititl 6, 13 Ocēlōtl
Babylonian 30 Abu, 2337 SE
Balinese pawukon Menga, Kajeng, Menala, Pon, Maulu, Redite of Parangbakat, Uma, Erangan, Suka
Bengali 29 Bhadro, BS 1433
Chinese Yang Metal Tiger・Star Mansion
3 Bāyuè, Bǐngwǔnián
(Bailu, 10 days until Qiufen)
Common Era 13 September 2026 CE
Coptic 3 Thout, AM 1743
Egyptian 30 Tybi, 2775 NE
Ethiopian 3 Maskaram, 2019 Amätä Məhrät
French Republican Décade III, Septidi de Fructidor de l'Année 234 de la République
Gregorian 13 September, AD 2026
Hebrew 2 Tishrei, AM 5787
Hindu Hasta・Śukla
Solar: 28 Bhādrapada, 1948 SE
Lunisolar: Dvitīyā, Śukla pakṣa of Bhādrapada, 2083 VE
Rāudra・5127 KY・1,872,831
Icelandic Sunnudagur, 20 Tvímánuður 2026
Islamic 30 Rabi' al-awwal, AH 1448
(using tabular method)
ISO week date 2026-W37-7
Japanese 3 Hazuki, Reiwa 8
(Hakuro, 10 days until Shūbun)
Julian 31 August, AD 2026 (AM 7534)
Julian day 2461297
Maya 13.0.13.16.14
7 Chen, 13 Ix
Roman Pridie Kalendas Septembres, MMDCCLXXIX AUC
Solar Hijri 22 Shahrivar, SH 1405
Tibetan 2 khrums, me pho rta
2153 or 1772 or 1000

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Samvatsara (संवत्सर) is a Sanskrit term for a "year" in Vedic literature such as the Rigveda and other ancient texts. In the medieval era literature, a samvatsara refers to the "Jovian year", that is a year based on the relative position of the planet Jupiter, while the solar year is called varsha. A jovian year is not equal to a solar year based on the relative position of Earth and Sun.

A samvatsara is defined in Indian calendars as the time Brihaspati (Jupiter) takes to transit from one sign of the Hindu zodiac (i.e. rashi) to the next relative to its mean motion. The ancient text Surya Siddhanta calculates a samvatsara to be about 361 days, marginally short of a solar year. Hence, one complete orbit of Jupiter through all the twelve signs of the zodiac will approximately equal twelve solar years. Five such orbits of Jupiter (i.e. 12 times 5 = 60 samvatsara) are referred to as a samvatsara chakra. Each samvatsara within this cycle has been given a name. Once all 60 samvatsara are over, the cycle starts over again.

This cycle of 60 samvatsara is based on the relative positions of Jupiter and Saturn in the sky. The orbital periods of Jupiter and Saturn are approximately 12 and 30 solar years respectively. The least common multiple of these two orbital periods is ~60 solar years. Every sixty years, both planets will be positioned at nearly the same sidereal coordinates where they started off sixty years before, thus forming a sixty year cycle.