Sunset Today in Mumbai मुंबई में सूर्यास्त

Sunset time today depends on your city and the season — typically between 5:30 PM and 7:30 PM in India. The exact time for your city is shown at the top of this page. India follows a single time zone (IST, UTC+5:30) but actual sunset varies significantly between East (Kolkata) and West (Mumbai/Dwarka).

Pradosh Kaal is the 90-minute twilight window straddling sunset (45 minutes before to 45 minutes after). It is the most sacred time of the day for Lord Shiva worship. Pradosh Vrat — observed on every Trayodashi (13th tithi of both Pakshas, 24 times a year) — centers on this window.

Lighting a lamp (diya) at sunset before the family deity is one of the most universally observed Hindu practices. It symbolically welcomes the divine into the home as outer light fades, marks the transition from active to contemplative time, and is believed to drive away negative energies that emerge with darkness. The practice is observed across all sects, regions, and traditions.

Vedic tradition advises avoiding *initiating* major activities after sunset — signing contracts, starting journeys to far places, beginning new ventures, weddings (other than specifically prescribed evening muhurats like Godhuli Lagna). Routine work, family time, and spiritual practice are encouraged. The reasoning is both practical (visibility, fatigue) and astrological (the Sun's energy supports outward action; the Moon's energy after sunset supports inward reflection).

Godhuli (गोधूलि — 'cow-dust') Lagna is the auspicious window at sunset when cattle traditionally returned home raising dust. Considered an extremely auspicious time for muhurats, especially marriages. Modern Godhuli muhurat is approximately the 24-minute window centered on sunset. Many traditional Hindu weddings are scheduled in Godhuli for its inherent auspiciousness.

Earth's axial tilt (~23.5°) and elliptical orbit cause the Sun's apparent path to shift seasonally. From the summer solstice (June 21) sunsets get progressively earlier; from the winter solstice (December 21) sunsets get progressively later. The total seasonal variation can exceed 90 minutes between June and December.

Sunset is the moment the Sun's upper edge disappears below the horizon. Twilight is the period after sunset when the sky is still illuminated: Civil Twilight ends when the Sun is 6° below horizon (street lamps come on), Nautical Twilight at 12° (sailors lose horizon reference), Astronomical Twilight at 18° (sky becomes fully dark for astronomy). Pradosh Kaal in shastra corresponds approximately to Civil Twilight.