Divisional charts (varga) — D1 to D60 explained
A divisional or varga chart is made by dividing each 30° rashi into equal parts and mapping those parts onto a new set of twelve signs. Every varga comes from the same planetary longitudes as the birth chart — no new astronomy is involved — and each one is traditionally read for one specific area of life.
Written and reviewed by the team that builds the Jyotish Sarathi calculation engine.
Key takeaways
- A Dn chart divides each rashi into n parts. D9 divides each sign into nine 3°20′ portions, D10 into ten 3° portions, and so on.
- All vargas are derived from the same longitudes as D1. Nothing is recalculated astronomically.
- Read the varga that matches the question: D9 for marriage, D10 for career, D4 for property, D7 for children, D30 for difficulty.
- The higher the division, the narrower each portion — so a small longitude error changes the placement. D60 divides a sign into 30′ portions.
- That makes accurate birth time, siddhanta and ayanamsha non-negotiable for high vargas.
How a varga chart is built
Take a planet at, say, 17° of a rashi. For the D9 (Navamsha) chart, divide the 30° sign into nine parts of 3°20′ each; 17° falls in the sixth part. A rule then maps "sixth navamsha of that sign" onto a rashi in the new chart, and the planet is placed there. Repeat for all nine grahas and you have the D9.
The mechanism is the same for every varga; only the divisor and the mapping rule change. This is why a varga chart cannot be more accurate than the D1 it came from — and why it can be less forgiving, since it magnifies whatever error the D1 carries.
The main vargas and what they are read for
| Chart | Name | Portion width | Traditionally read for |
|---|---|---|---|
| D1 | Rashi / Lagna | 30° | The whole life; everything else refines this |
| D2 | Hora | 15° | Wealth |
| D3 | Drekkana | 10° | Siblings |
| D4 | Chaturthamsha | 7°30′ | Property, home, fixed assets |
| D7 | Saptamsha | 4°17′ | Children, progeny |
| D9 | Navamsha | 3°20′ | Marriage, dharma, and the deeper strength of any planet |
| D10 | Dashamsha | 3° | Occupation, professional standing |
| D12 | Dwadashamsha | 2°30′ | Parents |
| D16 | Shodashamsha | 1°52′ | Vehicles, comforts |
| D20 | Vimshamsha | 1°30′ | Spiritual practice |
| D24 | Siddhamsha | 1°15′ | Learning, education |
| D27 | Bhamsha | 1°07′ | Strengths and weaknesses |
| D30 | Trimshamsha | 1° | Difficulty, affliction |
| D40 | Khavedamsha | 45′ | Maternal legacy |
| D45 | Akshavedamsha | 40′ | Paternal legacy |
| D60 | Shashtiamsha | 30′ | Fine karmic detail |
Why D9 is the one everyone mentions
Navamsha has two jobs. It is the varga read for marriage, which is the common reason people ask for it. But it is also used as a general strength test for any planet: a planet that is well placed in D1 and also well placed in D9 is treated as genuinely strong, while one that looks good in D1 and poor in D9 is treated as promising more than it delivers. That second use is why D9 appears in almost every serious reading, regardless of the question.
The accuracy problem with high vargas
Look at the portion widths in the table. A D60 portion is 30 arc-minutes — half a degree. That has a direct consequence:
- A 1° error in a planet's longitude can move it two D60 portions, one D40 portion, and possibly one D30 portion. It will usually not move its D1 rashi at all.
- A birth time off by ten minutes moves the lagna by about 2.5°, which reshuffles the high vargas thoroughly while leaving the D1 largely intact.
- Switching ayanamsha from Lahiri to Raman moves every planet by roughly 1.5° — again, invisible in D1 and decisive in D60. See what is ayanamsha.
The honest conclusion is that the higher vargas are only as trustworthy as the birth data and the settings behind them. Reading a D60 from a birth time recorded to the nearest hour is reading noise. A practitioner who states this is more reliable than one who does not.
How to use vargas without getting lost
- 1Start and finish in D1. The varga refines a judgement made in the birth chart; it does not replace it.
- 2Go to one varga for one question. D10 for a career question, D4 for a property question. Reading all sixteen looking for something is how contradictions get manufactured.
- 3Use D9 as a strength check on the planet you already care about from D1.
- 4Weight the high vargas by your data quality. With a rectified birth time, D30 and D60 are worth reading; with a rounded one, say so and stay lower.
- 5Keep the settings fixed. A varga comparison across two different ayanamsha values is not a comparison.
In Jyotish Sarathi
Every varga from D1 to D60 is generated from one set of birth details, in North or South Indian style, and all of them go into the printable cheena. See the kundali charts feature, and the methodology for how the underlying longitudes are computed.
Frequently asked questions
What is a divisional chart in astrology?
A chart made by dividing each 30° rashi of the birth chart into equal parts and mapping those parts onto a new set of twelve signs. D9 divides each sign into nine parts, D10 into ten, and so on. All of them derive from the same planetary longitudes as the birth chart.
Which divisional chart is used for marriage?
D9, the Navamsha. It is also used more generally as a strength test for any planet, which is why it appears in most readings even when marriage is not the question.
Why do high divisional charts need an accurate birth time?
Because each portion is very narrow. A D60 portion is only 30 arc-minutes wide, so a one-degree error in a planet's position — from a rounded birth time, or from a different ayanamsha — can move it to a different portion while leaving the D1 chart unchanged.
How many divisional charts does Jyotish Sarathi generate?
All of them from D1 through D60, from a single set of birth details, and all are included in the printable cheena.
In the app
Related guides
- How to read a Nepali janma kundaliA first-principles walkthrough of a janma kundali: lagna, the twelve bhava, the nine grahas, and the order to read them in — both chart styles explained.
- What is ayanamsha, and which one should you use?Ayanamsha is the offset between the tropical and sidereal zodiacs. What it is, why it grows every year, and how Lahiri, Raman and Krishnamurti differ.