The lunar eclipse falling on 19th October 2013, is Prachchaya Chandra Grahan (Penumbral lunar eclipse) and it is the last Chandra Grahan of this year. The duration of this Chandra graham is 239 minutes i.e. 3 hours and 59 minutes and it will occur in Ashwini Nakshatra and Mesha Rashi.
Chandra Grahan 2013
This lunar eclipse or Chandra Grahan would be completely visible from eastern Canada, Europe and Africa, while eastern Asia will miss it. In western region of Philippines the grahan will be seen at the moonset.
Keeping the Hindu customs in consideration, activities like eating, drinking, sleeping and entertaining should not be done by the people (excluding the elder people and sick children) as this grahan will not be visible to the naked eyes.
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Science Behind Chandra Grahan
From scientific point of view, lunar eclipse or Chandra Grahan is a celestial event in which the earth comes in between the Sun and Moon. Earth covers the Moon completely, due to which the Moon does not have any light resulting in complete darkness.
Astrological Reasoning For Chandra Grahan
According to Astrology, Chandra grahan takes place whenever Rahu or Ketu are in conjunction with Sun or Moon. On this day, people with Chandra grahan or Kaal-sarp yog in their horoscope can get rid of all the evil effects of these malefic combination with the help of a good astrologer.
Lunar Eclipse time in India = 3.20 am - 7:19 am
Moon Set Timings For India
| City | Time |
| Mumbai | 6:36 am |
| Kolkata | 5:35 am |
| Chennai | 6:00 am |
New Delhi
| 6:27 am |
| Nagpur | 6:12 am |
| Bangalore | 6:11 am |
| Hyderabad | 6:11 am |
| Thiruvananthapuram | 6:10 am |
Do’s And Don’ts During Chandra Grahan
Do’s
- Take bath in the early morning and chant Gayatri Mantra or Gauri Mantra as they are believed to be fruitful.
- Place Tulsi leaves on eatables to protect them from the malefic effects of the grahan.
- Keep pieces of Kusha grass in a pot filled with water, eatables and flour.
- Take bath after the grahan and exchange the Janey (holy threads).
- Pregnant women should chant Santana Gopala Stotra.
Dont’s
- Auspicious activities should not be performed during Chandra grahan.
- Activities like eating, drinking and sleeping should be avoided.
- Use of knife and wearing or tightening of hair clips or any clip should be seriously avoided.
- Avoid going anywhere and try staying at home during grahan.
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Why Are Temples Closed During Chandra Grahan?
Matsya Purana says that during the battle between Devas (Gods) and Asuras (Demons), the Asuras made an agreement with the Devas according to which they had to churn the Ocean of Milk to attain Amrit which had the magical properties of making them immortal. On the command of Lord Vishnu, the Devas agreed. While churning the Ocean of Milk many valuable things came out, which were taken by the Devas. Along with those valuable things came out halal poison also which was drunk by Lord Shiva in order to save the universe. After the churning was over, the accumulated Amrit was collected in a pot. The Asuras then asked for the share of Amrit to make themselves immortal. Seeing this, Lord Vishnu felt the danger and to prevent it he descended on Earth in the Mohini avatar. The Devas and the Asuras were mesmerized by the beauty of Mohini and they handed over the pot of Amrit. She promised to distribute it equally between the devas and asuras. However, this was exactly not her plan and whenever came the turn of an Asura she would turn the Amrit into ordinary water. Rahu sensed something fishy and turned himself into a Deva to have the Amrit. Just when Rahu was about to swallow the amrit, Sun and Moon Gods saw his play and informed Mohini about it. Mohini cut off Rahu’s head before he could swallow the Amrit. Rahu’s head by that time had tasted the Amrit and had become immortal. This is the reason why Rahu devours the Sun and Moon causing the Solar and Lunar eclipse.
For this reason, the temples are closed during grahan so as to avoid any evil to affect the purity of the deities.
