How TryJyotish Calculates
Ashtakavarga & Shadbala
This page documents the calculation pipeline behind the Ashtakavarga & Planetary Strength page. The goal is transparency: what is calculated, which traditional rules are represented, how the numbers are combined, and which parts are still under validation.
Ashtakavarga and Shadbala are calculated deterministically in the backend. The AI reading model does not create these values. It can interpret them later, but the numerical tables themselves come from fixed algorithms applied to the generated chart.
On this page
1. Inputs and units
The strength engine receives the same deterministic birth-chart data used elsewhere in TryJyotish: planetary longitudes, Ascendant, sign positions, birth time and geographic coordinates, plus the calculated divisional charts. Planetary astronomy is supplied through Swiss Ephemeris. Strength calculations use the sidereal positions produced by the chart being analyzed. The current implementation is labeled TryJyotish Shadbala Raman/JHora-alignment v9 (Stage 8).
The traditional unit used throughout Shadbala is the Shashtiamsa (virupa). TryJyotish converts the final total to rupas using:
2. Bhinna Ashtakavarga (BAV)
TryJyotish computes a separate Bhinna Ashtakavarga for each of the seven classical planets: Sun, Moon, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus and Saturn.
For each target planet, eight contributors are considered: Sun, Moon, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, Saturn and the Ascendant. Each contributor has a traditional list of favorable relative houses for that target planet.
The algorithm is deliberately simple once those classical tables are encoded:
Step A. Take the contributor's natal sign as the starting point.
Step B. For every favorable relative house in the target planet's contribution table, add one bindu to the corresponding zodiac sign.
Step C. Repeat for all eight contributors.
Step D. The resulting value for each sign is the target planet's BAV score for that sign, from 0 to 8.
This produces a 7 × 12 matrix: seven planetary BAVs across the twelve signs.
3. Sarvashtakavarga (SAV)
Sarvashtakavarga is obtained by summing the seven planetary BAV values sign by sign:
The Ascendant participates as a contributor inside each BAV; it is not added as an eighth BAV in SAV.
For display by house, TryJyotish maps the sign-based SAV values back to Houses 1–12 starting from the natal Lagna. This is why the Strength page can show both the zodiac-sign matrix and a house-oriented SAV table.
4. Shadbala overview
Shadbala combines six distinct sources of planetary strength:
| Component | What it measures |
|---|---|
| Sthana Bala | Strength arising from positional status and varga placement. |
| Dig Bala | Directional strength relative to the appropriate angular Bhavamadhya. |
| Kala Bala | Temporal strength arising from day/night, lunar phase, weekday, hora, season and related factors. |
| Cheshta Bala | Motional strength, using the Raman/Sripathi Chesta Kendra approach. |
| Naisargika Bala | Fixed natural strength assigned to each classical planet. |
| Drik Bala | Net strength added or subtracted by planetary aspects. |
Drik Bala may be positive or negative, so it can either increase or decrease the total.
5. Sthana Bala — positional strength
TryJyotish adds five sub-components.
5.1 Uccha Bala
The planet's angular distance from its debilitation/exaltation axis is converted to a 0–60 strength. Maximum strength occurs at the exact exaltation point; minimum at the exact debilitation point.
5.2 Saptavargaja Bala
The seven vargas used are D1, D2, D3, D7, D9, D12 and D30. For each varga, the planet's relationship with the lord of the occupied sign is evaluated. Natural and temporary friendship are compounded into the traditional five-level relationship scale.
| Status | Virupas |
|---|---|
| Moolatrikona in D1 | 45 |
| Own varga | 30 |
| Adhi Mitra / intimate friend | 22.5 |
| Mitra / friend | 15 |
| Sama / neutral | 7.5 |
| Satru / enemy | 3.75 |
| Adhi Satru / bitter enemy | 1.875 |
The seven scores are added, not averaged.
5.3 Ojayugmarasyamsa Bala
TryJyotish evaluates both D1 sign parity and D9 Navamsa parity. Sun, Mars, Jupiter, Mercury and Saturn receive 15 virupas for each qualifying odd sign/Navamsa. Moon and Venus receive 15 for each qualifying even sign/Navamsa. Maximum = 30.
5.4 Kendradi Bala
In the Rasi chart: Kendra = 60, Panapara = 30, Apoklima = 15 virupas.
5.5 Drekkana Bala
Masculine planets (Sun, Mars, Jupiter) receive 15 in the first third of a sign; Mercury and Saturn receive 15 in the middle third; Moon and Venus receive 15 in the final third.
6. Dig Bala — directional strength
Directional strength is measured from the planet's powerless angular point. For the current JHora-aligned implementation, TryJyotish uses the exact sidereal Lagna degree and equal 30° house offsets to locate the relevant directional points. This convention reproduced the JHora reference values more closely than using MC/IC-derived unequal house midpoints for this calculation.
| Planet | Maximum direction | Powerless point used |
|---|---|---|
| Sun, Mars | 10th | 4th Bhavamadhya |
| Moon, Venus | 4th | 10th Bhavamadhya |
| Jupiter, Mercury | 1st | 7th Bhavamadhya |
| Saturn | 7th | 1st Bhavamadhya |
7. Kala Bala — temporal strength
The current engine represents the classical nine-part Kala Bala structure described by B.V. Raman:
| Sub-component | TryJyotish implementation |
|---|---|
| Nathonnatha / Divaratri | Uses local apparent solar time. Equation of time is obtained astronomically; Sun/Jupiter/Venus gain toward midday, Moon/Mars/Saturn toward midnight, while Mercury receives 60. |
| Paksha | Uses Sun–Moon elongation. Moon's Paksha value is doubled. Mercury is classified as benefic or malefic from a deterministic association model: nearby natural malefics increase affliction, while nearby benefics and a strong Moon increase benefic association. This same Mercury state is used consistently in Paksha and Drik Bala. |
| Thribhaga | Uses calculated sunrise/sunset and divides day or night into thirds. The ruling planet receives 60; Jupiter also receives the constant strength specified in the method. |
| Abda | Year-lord strength from the Raman-style Ahargana sequence; ruler receives 15. |
| Masa | Month-lord strength; ruler receives 30. |
| Vara | Weekday-lord strength; ruler receives 45. |
| Hora | Planetary hour counted from sunrise; the Hora lord receives 60. |
| Ayana | Computed from tropical declination; the Sun's value is doubled. |
| Yuddha | Planetary-war redistribution is the remaining incomplete sub-component; see Validation below. |
Sunrise/sunset, equation of time and declination are obtained through Swiss Ephemeris rather than approximated from a fixed civil clock.
8. Cheshta Bala — motional strength
For the Sun and Moon, TryJyotish follows the direct formulas given by Raman. These special values are displayed as diagnostic Chesta Rashmi, but—matching the JHora aggregate convention used in validation—they are not added to the final Shadbala total:
For Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus and Saturn, the engine follows the Raman/Sripathi Chesta Kendra structure using the planet's mean longitude, true longitude and Seeghrochcha:
The angle is normalized and reduced to the shorter arc; dividing by 3 gives Cheshta Bala. The mean-motion and apogee calculations are based on the epoch and tables described in Raman's treatment.
9. Naisargika Bala — natural strength
This component is fixed for every chart:
| Planet | Virupas |
|---|---|
| Sun | 60.00 |
| Moon | 51.43 |
| Venus | 42.86 |
| Jupiter | 34.29 |
| Mercury | 25.71 |
| Mars | 17.14 |
| Saturn | 8.57 |
10. Drik Bala — aspect strength
TryJyotish computes aspect strength from the actual degree separation between the aspecting planet and the target planet. The base Drishti value changes continuously with angle rather than using only whole-sign aspects.
The implementation follows the classical piecewise Drishti curve and adds the special aspect strength of Mars, Jupiter and Saturn in their prescribed angular ranges. Benefic aspects are added and malefic aspects subtracted. Mercury's state and the waxing/waning Moon are handled when classifying benefic versus malefic influence.
The resulting net Drishti Pinda is converted to Drik Bala using:
11. Final total and planetary ranking
After calculating all six groups, TryJyotish adds them in virupas, converts to rupas, and compares the result with the traditional planet-specific reference minimum.
| Planet | Reference minimum (rupas) |
|---|---|
| Sun | 5.0 |
| Moon | 6.0 |
| Mars | 5.0 |
| Mercury | 7.0 |
| Jupiter | 6.5 |
| Venus | 5.5 |
| Saturn | 5.0 |
The Strength page ranks planets by this ratio. A ratio above 100% means the calculated Shadbala exceeds the traditional reference minimum; it does not by itself mean that every result associated with that planet will be favorable.
12. Validation status and limitations
| Planet | JHora strength | TryJyotish Stage 8 | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sun | 196% | 196% | 0 |
| Moon | 134% | 133% | -1 |
| Mars | 141% | 142% | +1 |
| Mercury | 110% | 111% | +1 |
| Jupiter | 110% | 108% | -2 |
| Venus | 141% | 141% | 0 |
| Saturn | 52% | 53% | +1 |
The component comparison was also close: Sthana, Dig, Cheshta and Naisargika Bala aligned strongly; Mercury's remaining earlier discrepancy was traced specifically to Paksha Bala classification and corrected by replacing a combustion-only test with a broader deterministic association rule.
Small differences between Jyotish programs can arise from ayanamsha, timezone and daylight-saving handling, astronomical ephemerides, sunrise conventions, house conventions, rounding, and the exact traditional school implemented. For the reference chart, the timezone itself materially changed Kala and Dig Bala, so comparison is only meaningful when both programs use the same historical time basis.
These strength values should be treated as inputs to interpretation, not stand-alone predictions. A high SAV house or high-Shadbala planet still needs to be interpreted with lordship, occupants, aspects, yogas, dashas and the broader chart.
Primary references
B. V. Raman, Graha and Bhava Balas: A Numerical Assessment of the Strengths of Planets and Houses. The Shadbala implementation is being aligned to Raman's presentation, which states that his general scheme mainly follows Sripathi.
Jagannatha Hora (JHora). Used as an external numerical regression reference during development; it is not used to generate TryJyotish values.
Swiss Ephemeris. Used for underlying astronomical calculations such as planetary positions, equation of time, sunrise/sunset, declination and angular house axes.
Reproducibility principle
Given the same chart inputs—including timezone/daylight-saving interpretation—and the same methodology version, the strength engine is designed to produce the same numerical output every time. No language model is involved in calculating BAV, SAV or the six Shadbala groups.