Amāvāsyāअमावास्या(Amavasya)
The fifteenth tithi of Kṛṣṇa-pakṣa (new moon); devatā the Pitṛs (class-plural), classical register of ancestral observance and inner-darkness.
Amāvāsyā
Amāvāsyā (अमावास्या, also written Amavasya) is the fifteenth and final tithi of the Kṛṣṇa-pakṣa — the new-moon day that closes the waning fortnight and transitions into the next month's Śukla- Pratipadā. Unlike the first fourteen tithis which recur in both pakṣas, Amāvāsyā is unique to Kṛṣṇa-pakṣa; its structural opposite is Pūrṇimā at the close of the bright fortnight. The name parses as amā-vās — "dwelling together" — naming the moment when Sun and Moon share the same zodiacal degree and the Moon is invisible. Its devatā is the class-plural Pitṛs — the ancestors, received in classical Vedic ritual as recipients of śrāddha and tarpaṇa offerings.
Classical grounding
Muhūrta Cintāmaṇi and the Nirṇaya Sindhu identify the Pitṛs as Amāvāsyā's devatā class. The Taittirīya Āraṇyaka and Manusmṛti treat the Pitṛ-yajña (ancestral offering) tradition that converges specifically on Amāvāsyā, with the Bhādrapada- Amāvāsyā (Mahālayā Amāvāsyā, closing the Pitṛ-pakṣa fortnight) being the most significant annual ancestral observance. The class- plural devatā attribution places Amāvāsyā alongside the four prior class-plural devatā tithis in the Tithi corpus (Āpas on Pūrva Āṣāḍha nakshatra-side, Viśvedevāḥ on Uttara Āṣāḍha, Aṣṭa Vasus on Dhaniṣṭhā, and the Pitṛs on Maghā nakshatra — which shares the Pitṛ devatā with Amāvāsyā across the two concept systems). The auspiciousness classification of Amāvāsyā is nuanced: it sits structurally as the closing of Pūrṇā-class (5, 10, 15) but carries a distinct ancestral-rite register that differentiates it from Pūrṇimā's celebratory fullness.
Significations
What Amāvāsyā classically governs:
- Śrāddha and tarpaṇa — monthly offerings to ancestors, classically performed on Amāvāsyā in the named ancestral register
- Mahālayā Amāvāsyā (Bhādrapada-Amāvāsyā) — the closing day of the fifteen-day Pitṛ-pakṣa and the most significant annual ancestral observance
- Dīpāvali-Amāvāsyā (Kārtika-Amāvāsyā) — the new-moon at the heart of the Dīpāvali five-day cycle, classically observed for Lakṣmī-pūjā
- Mauni-Amāvāsyā (Māgha-Amāvāsyā) — classically observed with silence (mauna) and ritual bathing
- Meditation and inward-facing practice; the moonless night classically favours introspection and release-oriented work
- Completion-oriented work, closing of phases, and the marking of endings before new-month beginnings
- Classical avoidance of marriage ceremonies, travel, and most formal auspicious undertakings outside the ancestral register
Classical register
Because Amāvāsyā is unique to Kṛṣṇa-pakṣa, the Pakṣa-level reading convention of other tithi pages does not apply. Instead, the classical register distinguishes between the general monthly Amāvāsyā observance (fortnightly new-moon śrāddha, performed by those whose ancestral observance requires it) and the named Amāvāsyā days — the major annual observances listed above. The Amāvāsyā half-tithis carry the fixed karaṇas Catuṣpada (first half) and Nāga (second half) — two of the four fixed karaṇas that occupy the pakṣa-boundary positions. No movable karaṇas fall within Amāvāsyā, a structural feature unique to this tithi and to Pūrṇimā's complement position.
Muhūrta-relevance
Classical muhūrta treats Amāvāsyā as the tithi specifically reserved for ancestral observance and for release-oriented practice. General auspicious undertakings — marriage, travel, formal inauguration — are classically avoided on Amāvāsyā, with the specific exception of certain tantric and Śakti-oriented observances where the moonless night is precisely the required register. Dīpāvali-Amāvāsyā is the specific exception within the avoidance register where Lakṣmī-oriented observance is not only permitted but classically required, because the five-day Dīpāvali cycle treats the Amāvāsyā darkness as the backdrop against which the lamps of Lakṣmī-pūjā are lit.