BPHS Ch.35 Nabhasa Yogas (32 Sky-Pattern Yogas): Asraya=Raju(All Chara)+Musala(All Sthira)+Nala(All Dvisva); Dala=Mala(Benefics in 3 Kendras)+Sarpa(Malefics in 3 Kendras); Akriti=20 Shape Yogas (Gada/Sakata/Vihanga/Sringataka/Hala/Vajra/Yava/Kamala/Vapi+11 more); Sankhya=7 Number Yogas (Vallaki=7H to Gola=1H); Priority: Asraya>Dala>Akriti>Sankhya

BPHS Ch.35 — Nabhasa Yogas: Overview

"Nabhasa" = "in the sky" (Nabha = sky/atmosphere)

Definition: Yogas formed purely by the zodiacal placement (sign positions) of planets — not by dignity, exaltation, friendship, or other quality. Pure pattern/configuration in the sky.

Key distinctions:

• Applicable only in Rasi chart (D1) — based on physical planetary positions
• NOT applied in divisional charts
• Do not depend on strength, dignity, or functional nature
• Simply: "where are all the planets placed?"

Total: 32 Nabhasa Yogas (but PVNR notes Parashara says there are 1,800 variations when accounting for which planets occupy positions)

PVNR:

"Ch.34 closes by saying there are other yogas that can override benefic/malefic determinations — Ch.35 delivers on that promise. These are Nabhasa Yogas — sky-patterns that can strengthen or modify the results of any chart."

Classification (4 main types):

1. Asraya Yogas (3) — based on sign modality (movable/fixed/dual)
2. Dala/Tala Yogas (2) — based on benefics vs. malefics in Kendra houses
3. Akriti Yogas (20) — based on geometric shapes/patterns of all planets
4. Sankhya Yogas (7) — based on number of occupied houses

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Asraya Yogas (3) — Sign Modality Yogas

Condition: All 7 classical planets occupy a single modality class

Raju Yoga

• All planets in Chara (movable) signs: Aries, Cancer, Libra, Capricorn
• "Raju" = rope, noose, thread
• Result: Person always moving, traveling; never stays in one place; life is like a rope — stretched, always going somewhere
• Restlessness, constant movement, frequent relocations
• If negative emphasis: like a noose — pulled by circumstances from place to place

Musala Yoga

• All planets in Sthira (fixed) signs: Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, Aquarius
• "Musala" = pestle (grinding tool); also "fortress"
• Result: Firmly established; great perseverance; will not move even under pressure
• Stays put; loyal; determined; can be stubborn
• Positive: great endurance, deep roots, long career in one field

Nala Yoga

• All planets in Dvisva (dual/mutable) signs: Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, Pisces
• "Nala" = pipe, tube, hollow reed (things that transmit/flow through)
• Result: Adaptable; good communicator; transmits ideas/teachings; person serves as a channel
• Versatile; can shift between roles; good mediators
• PVNR note: "Dual signs = the priest-scholar-administrator of the zodiac; dual yoga = life as transmitter"

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Dala/Tala Yogas (2) — Benefic/Malefic in Kendras

Condition: Natural benefics OR natural malefics in the 3 angular (Kendra) houses other than lagna (i.e., 4th, 7th, 10th)

Note: 3 Kendras because lagna is always occupied by at least the lagna-point; so 3 available

Mala Yoga

• Natural benefics (Jupiter, Venus, waxing Moon, unafflicted Mercury) occupy 3 Kendra houses (4th, 7th, 10th)
• "Mala" = garland of flowers
• Result: Auspicious; blessed life; good fortune; things come garlanded with benefits
• Person surrounded by supportive people; gracious outcomes; beauty in circumstances

Sarpa Yoga (Bhujanga Yoga)

• Natural malefics (Sun, Mars, Saturn, waning Moon, Rahu, Ketu) occupy the 3 Kendra houses
• "Sarpa" = snake; "Bhujanga" = great serpent
• Result: Difficult; circumstances bite; hardship in environments; surrounded by challenging energies in key life areas (home, marriage, career)
• PVNR: "Sarpa yoga doesn't mean destruction — it means life bites back. There are struggles in exactly those houses. But a strong lagna lord can still navigate."

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Akriti Yogas (20) — Shape/Configuration Yogas

"Akriti" = form, shape, geometric pattern

All 7 planets must be within the specified houses to form the yoga. Counted from lagna.

Gada Yoga

• All planets in 2 consecutive Kendra houses (e.g., 1st+4th, or 4th+7th, or 7th+10th, or 10th+1st)
• "Gada" = mace (Vishnu's weapon); heavy, powerful, focused force
• Result: Person has concentrated strength; can strike hard in the area those two Kendras represent; powerful but narrow focus

Sakata Yoga

• All planets in 1st and 7th houses (axis of self vs. others)
• "Sakata" = cart, vehicle; also = wheel
• Result: Life revolves around the 1-7 axis; self and partners; relationships and desires dominate
• Can go back and forth between self-interest and other-interest like a wheel
• Also suggests communication (cart = conveying/transporting ideas)

Vihanga Yoga

• All planets in 4th and 10th houses (the vertical axis)
• "Vihanga" = bird (one who flies in the sky; free)
• Result: Person has a bird's-eye view; soars between home/private life and career/public life
• Strong in both home and profession; can see both worlds
• 10th = midheaven (sky/noon sun); 4th = Patala (underground/midnight) → the full vertical span

PVNR note on 10th/4th symbolism:

"10th house = the sky at midday; the highest point the sun reaches. 4th house = Patala, the underworld, midnight sun. Vihanga yoga = bird who traverses from sky to underworld — the full vertical axis of existence."

Sringataka Yoga

• All planets in trine houses (1st, 5th, 9th)
• "Sringataka" = three peaks; also triangular military formation
• Result: Strongly Trikona emphasis; person works through blessings, purva punya, fortune, divine grace
• Life shaped by past karma (positive); things come without proportional effort
• Highly spiritual configuration

Hala Yoga

• All planets in trine houses from 11th house (= 11th, 3rd, 7th; the Upachaya/struggle trikonas)
• "Hala" = plow
• Result: Life like plowing — must work hard to achieve; person digs through obstacles; persistent labor
• The 3/7/11 axis: houses of desire, struggle, and gain → life centered on striving

Vajra Yoga

• Natural benefics in 1st and 7th + natural malefics in 4th and 10th
• "Vajra" = thunderbolt (Indra's weapon); diamond
• Result: Beginnings and ends blessed (birth/death, self/partners) but middle life has hardships; career and home present challenges
• Positive beginning and end of life; struggles in the middle career/domestic period

Yava Yoga

• Natural malefics in 1st and 7th + natural benefics in 4th and 10th
• "Yava" = barley grain (oval shape; middle is fat, ends are thin)
• Result: Opposite of Vajra — middle life blessed but beginning and end difficult; career and home flourish while self and relationships struggle

Remaining Akriti Yogas (listed by name)

PVNR provides names and brief definitions for the remaining 13:

PVNR:

"These 20 Akriti yogas are named for objects because the shape the planets make in the horoscope resembles that object. The object's symbolism gives the life result. A Nauka (boat) person's life is like a boat on the sea — always in motion on a vast medium."

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Sankhya Yogas (7) — Number-of-Occupied-Houses Yogas

Sankhya = number, count

Condition: Count how many of the 12 houses are occupied by at least one planet

Key teaching:

"The fewer houses occupied, the more concentrated the energy — but also less versatility. Gola = one point: all energy in one area, extremely intense but no breadth. Vallaki = 7 houses occupied = life like a veena, with many strings making music. More spread = more harmony and range."

PVNR note:

• Most charts have 5-7 houses occupied (planets are never evenly spread because some move fast)
• Pasha and Yuga/Gola are rare; indicate unusual concentration
• In practice: identify which Sankhya yoga applies and use it as background color for the chart interpretation

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Using Nabhasa Yogas in Practice

PVNR rules:

1. Identify which Nabhasa yogas are present (a chart can have more than one type simultaneously — e.g., Musala + Mala)
2. Multiple yogas = combine results
3. Stronger yoga overrides weaker: Asraya > Dala > Akriti > Sankhya in priority
4. Nabhasa yogas give the "background texture" — the overall flavor of life
5. They do NOT override house-based functional benefic/malefic rules from Ch.34 — they MODIFY or add context

Example (PVNR):

"A person with Sarpa yoga (malefics in 3 Kendras) will have difficult environments in home, marriage, career. But if their Vimshottari dasha lord is very strong and yogakaraka, they can navigate it. The Nabhasa yoga is the sea — the dasha lord is the boat."

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