How to read a birth chart

Start with the frame

A birth chart (kundali) is a map of the sky at the moment and place of birth. Before reading anything, check that the date, time and place are right, because the time decides the rising sign and the houses. This site shows the chart in the whole-sign system: each of the twelve zodiac signs is one house.

1. Find the lagna

The lagna is the sign rising on the eastern horizon at birth. It becomes the first house, and the signs that follow become the second to twelfth houses in order. The first house is read as the body and the person; the seventh as partnership; the tenth as work and standing; the fourth as home. A longer list is in any standard text.

2. Place the nine grahas

Next, note which sign and house each of the nine grahas occupies. A planet in its own or exalted sign is said to be strong; in its debilitated sign, weaker. Planets close to the Sun are called combust and are read as overshadowed. A retrograde planet gets extra emphasis. The pages on each graha list their own signs.

3. Look at the Moon

The Moon's sign and nakshatra matter more than anything except the lagna. They describe the mind and temperament, and they set the starting point of the dasha. The nakshatra pages show the ruler and quarter (pada) of each star.

4. Read the house lords

Each house has a lord: the planet that rules its sign. Where the lord sits shows where the energy of that house goes. For example, the lord of the tenth house sitting in the seventh is traditionally connected with work that involves partners or the public.

5. Notice the combinations

Planets that share a house, or look at one another, form combinations called yogas. Some are considered supportive, some difficult, and many are cancelled by other conditions. A good reading explains why a yoga applies instead of listing names.

6. Add time with the dasha

Finally, the dasha tells which planet's season is running now. The Vimshottari cycle runs from birth in a fixed order, and the nature and position of the running planets colour the period. Reading the chart without the dasha tells you who someone is; adding the dasha gives timing.

What a chart cannot do

A chart is a set of traditional symbols, not a forecast of events. It cannot replace advice from a doctor, a lawyer or a financial adviser. Use it for reflection, and check any specific claim against your own judgement.