Reference

Glossary

Every term we use, in one sentence of plain English. The same definitions appear as tap-for-meaning underlines throughout the app.

Chart basics

AscendantLagna: The sign rising on the eastern horizon when you were born — it anchors all twelve houses of your chart.
CombustAsta: A planet too close to the Sun to act freely — its significations are weakened.Within orb of the Sun; severity graded mild/moderate/deep.
DashaDaśā: A planetary period — the chapters of your life, each ruled by a planet whose themes colour those years.
Gulika: A shadow point of Saturn marking areas of life that need extra care.An upagraha (non-physical point) computed from Saturn's portion of the day.
KundliKuṇḍalī: Your birth chart — a map of the sky at the exact moment and place you were born.
MandiMāndi: A second Saturnine shadow point, read alongside Gulika.
Moon SignRāśi: The sign the Moon occupied at your birth — the basis of Vedic horoscopes, and often different from the sun sign newspapers use.
PanchangPañcāṅga: The Vedic almanac — five daily measures of the Moon and Sun that describe the quality of each day.The five limbs: tithi, nakshatra, yoga, karana, vara.
RasiRāśi: Your Moon sign — the sign the Moon occupied at your birth, which Vedic astrology reads first.
RetrogradeVakrī: A planet appearing to move backwards from Earth — its results turn inward and often arrive late.Apparent motion only; marked R in charts.
Sun Sign: The sign the Sun occupied at your birth — what Western newspaper horoscopes use.Vedic (sidereal) sun signs shift ~24° from Western tropical ones, so the two systems often disagree.
Varga: A divisional chart — the birth chart re-divided to zoom into one life area, like career (D10) or marriage (D9).

Panchang

Abhijit MuhurtaAbhijit muhūrta: A short auspicious window around solar noon — good for starting anything.
Brahma MuhurtaBrahma muhūrta: The pre-dawn window — best for meditation and spiritual practice.
KaranaKaraṇa: Half of a tithi — a fine timing layer for activities.
NakshatraNakṣatra: The lunar mansion the Moon is in — one of 27 archetypes shaping the day.
Rahu KaalRāhu kāla: The inauspicious 90-minute window each day — avoid starting important things.
TaraTārā: How today's star relates to your birth star — a quick favourable/unfavourable compass for the day.Tara Bala: the 9-fold count from janma nakshatra.
Tithi: The lunar 'day' — one of 30 phases of the moon.
VaraVāra: The weekday — each day is ruled by a planet that colours everything begun on it.
Yoga: A daily quality formed by Sun + Moon — colours the mood of the day.

Timing windows

Gand MoolGaṇḍa-mūla: Birth in certain junction stars, traditionally softened with a small ritual — not a flaw, a note for care.The six nakshatras ruled by Mercury and Ketu at sign junctions.
Gulika KaalGulika kāla: The daily period ruled by Gulika — traditionally avoided for auspicious beginnings.
MuhuratMuhūrta: An auspicious time window — choosing when to begin something so the sky supports it.
PanchakPañcaka: A five-day window each month treated with caution for certain activities, especially construction and travel south.Moon transiting Dhanishta (2nd half) through Revati.
YamagandaYamagaṇḍa: A daily window considered inauspicious for beginnings — avoid starting new work in it.

Divisional charts (vargas)

D1Rāśi: Your main birth chart — the foundation of every other reading.Rasi chart, the principal divisional in Vedic astrology.
D10Daśāṁśa: Career, profession, and how you make your mark in the world.Dasamsa chart (10th harmonic).
D12Dwādaśāṁśa: Parents and ancestral roots.Dwadasamsa chart (12th harmonic).
D16Ṣoḍaśāṁśa: Vehicles, luxuries, and comforts.Shodasamsa chart (16th harmonic).
D2Horā: What your chart says about wealth and earning power.Hora chart (2nd harmonic).
D20Viṁśāṁśa: Spiritual practice and inner growth.Vimsamsa chart (20th harmonic).
D24Chaturviṁśāṁśa: Education, learning, and intellectual depth.Chaturvimsamsa chart (24th harmonic).
D27Bhāṁśa: Inner strength and weakness — what holds you up or holds you back.Bhamsa / Nakshatramsa chart (27th harmonic).
D3Drekkāṇa: Siblings, courage, and the people around you.Drekkana chart (3rd harmonic).
D30Triṁśāṁśa: Hidden challenges and life's harder lessons.Trimsamsa chart (30th harmonic).
D4Chaturthāṁśa: Home, comfort, property, and emotional foundation.Chaturthamsa chart (4th harmonic).
D40Khavedāṁśa: What you inherit from your mother's line.Khavedamsa chart (40th harmonic).
D45Akṣavedāṁśa: What you inherit from your father's line.Akshavedamsa chart (45th harmonic).
D60Ṣaṣṭiāṁśa: Past-life karma — the deepest layer of your chart.Shashtiamsa chart (60th harmonic).
D7Saptāṁśa: Children and creative legacy.Saptamsa chart (7th harmonic).
D9Navāṁśa: Marriage, partner, and the soul's dharma — your inner blueprint.Navamsa chart (9th harmonic). The most important divisional after D1.

Dashas (time periods)

AntardashaAntar-daśā: The sub-period inside your main period — finer tuning on the year-to-year story.
Ashtam ShaniAṣṭama Śani: Saturn transiting your 8th from Moon — a deep transformation period.Saturn in 8th house from natal Moon. The harder dhaiyya phase.
DhaiyyaDhaiyyā: A 2.5-year Saturn phase from the 4th or 8th house of your Moon — slower, more reflective work.
Kantaka ShaniKaṇṭaka Śani: Saturn transiting your 4th from Moon — pressure on home, peace of mind, inner foundations.Saturn in 4th house from natal Moon. One of the two dhaiyya phases.
MahadashaMahā-daśā: The main planetary period you're living through — sets the overall theme.
Sade SatiSāḍesātī: Saturn's 7.5-year transit through and around your Moon sign — a maturity phase.Saturn in 12th, 1st, or 2nd from natal Moon.
Saturn DhaiyyaDhaiyyā: A 2.5-year Saturn phase across the 4th or 8th from your Moon — quieter than Sade Sati but still a heads-down period.Saturn in 4th (Kantaka) or 8th (Ashtam) from natal Moon.
UpachayaUpacaya: The 'growing' houses (3rd, 6th, 10th, 11th) — where slow, steady effort pays off over time.Upachaya houses: 3, 6, 10, 11. Malefics here often produce results over time.
Vimshottari DashaViṁśottarī daśā: Your personal life timeline — which planet is steering your life right now.120-year nakshatra-based progression. The standard timing system.

Houses

DusthanaDuḥsthāna: The challenging houses (6th, 8th, 12th) — where you struggle and grow.
Kendra: The four 'angles' of your chart (1st, 4th, 7th, 10th) — your visible life.
Lagna: Your rising sign — the lens through which life looks at you.
TrikonaTrikoṇa: The three trine houses (1st, 5th, 9th) — your dharma and good fortune.

Strength and structure

AshtakavargaAṣṭakavarga: A bindu-scoring system that tells you which houses are well-supported.8-point benefic dot system per planet across 12 houses.
ShadbalaṢaḍbala: How strong each planet is in your chart, across six dimensions.Six-fold strength: positional, directional, temporal, motional, natural, aspectual.
Vargottama: When a planet is doubly strong — same sign in birth chart and D9.Planet in identical sign in D1 and D9. A powerful indicator.

Yogas (chart patterns)

Gajakesari Yoga: Mind and wisdom support each other — strong learning and judgement.Jupiter in kendra (1/4/7/10) from Moon.
Neecha Bhanga Raja Yoga: A weakness in your chart that becomes a surprising strength.Cancellation of debilitation that produces a Raja Yoga.
Pancha Mahapurusha Yoga: One of the five great personality types — exceptional gifts in a specific area.Mars/Mercury/Jupiter/Venus/Saturn in own or exalted sign in a kendra.
Raja Yoga: A pattern that lifts your status, authority, and visibility.Kendra lord + trikona lord conjunction or exchange.
Vipreet Raja Yoga: Hardship that paradoxically lifts you up later in life.Mutual placement of 6/8/12 lords.

Doshas (compatibility blockers)

Bhakoot DoshaBhakūṭa doṣa: Emotional and material alignment between partners.Moon sign relationship — 6-8 or 2-12 between partners is flagged.
Kaal Sarp DoshaKāla-sarpa doṣa: All seven planets hemmed between Rahu and Ketu — a pattern read as karmic pressure that concentrates life's lessons.Classified by the axis (Anant, Kulik, etc.); cancelled by several conditions.
Mangal DoshaMaṅgala doṣa: Whether Mars's martial energy is balanced between partners.Mars in 1/2/4/7/8/12 from lagna or Moon — classical placement check.
Nadi DoshaNāḍī doṣa: Health and progeny harmony — energy compatibility between partners.Same nadi (Adi/Madhya/Antya) between partners' Moon nakshatras.
Rajju Dosha: A traditional check on the longevity of the relationship.Nakshatra-group check based on body parts (head/throat/heart/etc).
Vedha Dosha: Whether each partner's nakshatra obstructs the other's.

Matching

AshtakootaAṣṭakūṭa: The classical 8-fold marriage compatibility test, scored out of 36.Eight koota tests: Varna, Vashya, Tara, Yoni, Graha Maitri, Gana, Bhakoot, Nadi.
Ashtapadi MilanAṣṭapadī milana: The eight steps of marriage matching — beyond the basic Ashtakoota.
Guna MilanGuṇa milana: The score-based compatibility check between two charts.
NavamsaNavāṁśa: Your marriage and dharma chart — the deep blueprint of your relationships.D9 chart — the most important divisional after D1.

Karakas (planetary roles)

Atma KarakaĀtma kāraka: Your soul's lead actor — the planet driving your deepest purpose.Planet with highest degree in any sign.
KarakaKāraka: The planet that 'stands for' a topic in your chart (e.g. Venus = relationships).
Karakamsha: Where your soul's lead planet sits in your marriage chart — your dharma.Atma Karaka's navamsa position projected onto D1.

Purusharthas (life's four aims)

Artha: Your work, wealth, and material foundations.Houses 2, 6, 10 (earth trine).
Cardinal Orientation: Where your chart's center of gravity points — the life-area that dominates your karmic project.
Dharma: Your purpose and principles — the path you're meant to walk.Houses 1, 5, 9 (fire trine).
KamaKāma: Your desires, relationships, and lived enjoyment.Houses 3, 7, 11 (air trine).
MokshaMokṣa: Inner work, liberation, and the dissolving of the self.Houses 4, 8, 12 (water trine).
PurusharthaPuruṣārtha: The four aims of human life — dharma, artha, kama, moksha. Together they describe a complete life.
Shiva ShaktiŚiva–Śakti: Two complementary poles in the chart — Shiva (withdrawal, consciousness) and Shakti (manifestation, engagement).Tantric function-axis. Shiva-side planets withdraw; Shakti-side planets express.

Past-life karma

Central Planet Of Previous Life: The planet your soul brought karmic themes from in the previous birth.Computed by walking +6 in the Vimshottari sequence from the Moon nakshatra's ruling planet.
CPPL: Central Planet of Previous Life — the karmic theme your soul carried into this body.

Reference systems

Ayanamsa: The offset that aligns the zodiac with the actual sky.Difference between tropical and sidereal zodiac.
Jaimini: An older school of Jyotish that reads the chart through Chara Karakas.Sage Jaimini's sutra-based system. Karakamsha + Chara Dasha.
KP System: A precise yes/no timing method — answers to the minute, not the hour.Krishnamurti Paddhati — 249 sub-divisions of the zodiac.
Lahiri AyanamsaLāhirī ayanāṁśa: The sidereal zero-point used in mainstream Vedic astrology in India.Default ayanamsa for most North Indian and South Indian Jyotish.
Nadi: Granular archetypal readings based on tiny chart fractions.150 nadi amsas — 12'/arc each.
SiderealNirayana: The zodiac measured against the actual stars — the system Vedic astrology uses.Differs from the Western tropical zodiac by the ayanamsa (~24° today).
Swiss Ephemeris: The astronomical engine that computes planet positions — the same data professional astronomers use.Compressed JPL ephemeris by Astrodienst; accuracy far beyond a printed panchang.