Vedic Birth Chart Calculator
Your natal chart in the sidereal zodiac — the one Indian astrology has always used. For most people, the Sun sign moves back one.
Why your Vedic sign is different
Western astrology ties the zodiac to the seasons: 0° Aries is wherever the Sun stands at the March equinox. Vedic astrology ties it to the stars. The two lined up about seventeen centuries ago. Since then the equinox has slipped backward against the stars by roughly one degree every 72 years, and the gap between the two zodiacs — the ayanamsha — is now about 24°.
So a Sun at 10° Leo in a Western chart sits at about 16° Cancer in a Vedic one. Anything in the first 24° of a Western sign falls back a sign; only the last six degrees stay where they were. That is why about four in five people meet a different Sun sign here — and the same shift moves the Moon, the rising sign and every planet. The chart above shows you exactly which of yours moved.
What a Vedic chart reads first
- The rising sign (lagna)
- The anchor of the whole chart. The twelve houses are counted from it, so it decides which area of life each planet speaks to. It changes about every two hours.
- The Moon and its nakshatra
- Vedic astrology gives the Moon more weight than the Sun. Its nakshatra — one of 27 lunar mansions — describes the mind and sets the order of your planetary periods.
- The planetary periods (dashas)
- A fixed sequence of periods ruled by the nine planets. The one you are in now decides which promises in the chart are switching on — the core of Vedic timing.
- The navamsa (D9)
- A divisional chart that splits each sign into nine. It is read beside the birth chart for marriage, and for how strong each planet really is.
How the chart is calculated
Planetary positions are computed astronomically for your moment and place of birth, then set in the sidereal zodiac with the Lahiri (Chitrapaksha) ayanamsha — the standard of India's national calendar and the one most Vedic astrologers use. Your birthplace supplies the coordinates and the time zone that applied on the day you were born, daylight saving included.
Questions
What is the difference between a Vedic and a Western birth chart?
The planets are in the same places in the sky; the two systems measure them against different zodiacs. Western astrology uses the tropical zodiac, tied to the seasons. Vedic astrology uses the sidereal zodiac, tied to the stars. The Vedic chart also reads things the Western one does not: the Moon's nakshatra, planetary periods (dashas) that time events, and divisional charts such as the navamsa.
Why is my Vedic Sun sign different from my Western one?
Because the two zodiacs are about 24° apart today. A planet in the first 24° or so of a Western sign sits in the sign before it in the Vedic chart — which is why roughly four in five people find their Sun sign moves back one. The same shift applies to the Moon, the rising sign and every planet.
Are Vedic, Indian and Hindu astrology the same thing? What is Jyotish?
Yes. Jyotish (Jyotiṣa, 'the science of light') is the Sanskrit name of the astrology practised in India for over two thousand years. In English it is usually called Vedic astrology, and sometimes Indian or Hindu astrology.
What is a nakshatra?
The zodiac divided into 27 lunar mansions of 13°20′ each, one for roughly each day of the Moon's monthly circuit. The nakshatra your Moon was in at birth — your birth star — describes the texture of your mind and sets the order of your planetary periods. Each nakshatra has four quarters, called padas.
What is a dasha?
A planetary period. Vedic astrology divides a life into a fixed sequence of periods ruled by the nine planets — the Vimshottari system spans 120 years — and the period you are in shapes what the whole chart delivers at that time. Each major period (mahadasha) is divided into sub-periods (antardashas). There is no equivalent in Western astrology.
Do I need my exact birth time?
Yes, as close as you can get it. The rising sign changes roughly every two hours, and the navamsa rising sign about every thirteen minutes, so a time from a birth certificate or hospital record matters. If you are unsure, the birth-time correction tool tests candidate times against events in your own life.
Is this free?
The chart is free — no account needed. If you want the chart read, a written Vedic astrology reading answers one question from your whole chart for a flat fee, priced for your country.