Pancha-Pakshi Shastra is based on ancient literature in Tamil language. Pancha means five and Pakshi means Bird. The Pancha-Pakshi system has some resemblance to the Pancha-Bhuta (Five elements) system of Vedic Astrology. It is believed that the Five Elements represented by five birds, influence and control all the actions of human beings. These five birds take their turns in a special sequence and radiate their powers during day and night.
The power that takes effect first on a day or night and the sequence that follows depends on the day of the week and the Paksha (waxing half or waning half cycles) of the Moon.
One of the five birds is assigned to every human being as the controlling power based on the Birth Star of the person and the Paksha of the Moon at the time of birth. The activity of this Main Bird at a given point of time and the activity of the Sub-Bird at that time and the relationship between them indicates whether the time will be beneficial and lucky for the person or not. Pacha-Pakshi Shasta is very popular in south India especially Tamil Nadu. It helps selection of auspicious time and also for answering queries (Prasna)
The five birds in the Pancha-Pakshi Shastra are:
Vulture
Owl
Crow
Cock
Peacock