Bahula Amavasya

Bahula is the term used to refer to waning phase or dark phase of moon. Thus Bahula Amavasya is the term used to refer to no moon day. The term is widely used in certain regions in India to refer to the no moon day. The popular term used to refer to the dark phase of moon is Krishna Paksha.

At the Puri Jagannath Temple, the Amavasi in Paush month is referred to as Baula Amavasya. On the day special offerings are made to Jagannath which includes Gaintha Cake, mango blossoms, powdered rice fried in ghee and nadi mixed with ghee.

The term Bahula is widely used in parts of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Orissa and Karnataka.

It is used as a prefix for the 15 tithis during the waning phase of moon. Thus we have Bahula Pratipada, Bahula Dwitiya,…Bahula Ashtami etc.