How to read your map and your Kundli.
Every line, planet, house and dasha explained in plain words. Read it once and you can read your own chart.
Yeh guide ek baar padh lo, apna map khud padhna aa jayega.
What astrocartography is
Your birth chart, projected onto the Earth.
At the moment you were born, every planet stood at an exact point in the sky. A normal birth chart records that moment as seen from your birthplace: which planets were rising, overhead, setting or below the horizon.
Astrocartography asks a further question. At that same moment, where on Earth was each planet directly overhead, directly underfoot, rising or setting? Join those places and each planet leaves four lines. Your map shows twelve bodies (the Sun, Moon, eight planets, Rahu and Ketu), so 48 lines cross the globe.
A line marks where that planet's themes are strongest for you. Live within a few hundred kilometres of a Jupiter line and growth, learning and luck come forward. Near a Saturn line you meet discipline, delay and slowly earned mastery.
Yeh jaadu nahi, geometry hai. Aapke janm ke samay har grah ki sthiti ko Prithvi ke naqshe par utaara jaata hai. Kuchh shehar aapke liye khulte hain, kuchh kam saath dete hain.
The four kinds of line
Every planet has one line for each angle of the sky. The angle decides which part of life that planet affects.
Career, reputation, public role
Living near a planet's MC line brings that planet into your work. Jupiter MC: growth and recognition. Saturn MC: authority built slowly. Mars MC: ambition and competition.
Home, family, roots, later life
The most private point of the chart. Moon IC: emotional safety at home. Venus IC: a harmonious home. Saturn IC: family duties that weigh on you.
Personality, body, first impressions, fresh starts
How you come across in that place. Sun AC: confidence and vitality. Venus AC: charm. Rahu AC: you are seen as unusual or foreign.
Marriage, partners, contracts, open rivals
Who you attract in that place. Venus DC: loving partnerships. Saturn DC: serious bonds, sometimes delayed. Mars DC: passionate but argumentative relationships.
The planets on your map
What each planet rules, and how it plays out on each of its four lines.
Sun
SuryaSoul, vitality, father, authority, ego
- MC
- Recognition as a leader, government work, being the public face.
- IC
- Strong family roots and a father's influence at home.
- AC
- Confident presence and good vitality.
- DC
- Attracts strong, authoritative partners.
Moon
ChandraMind, emotions, mother, home, care
- MC
- Careers that care for the public: health, food, hospitality, media.
- IC
- Deep peace at home and a close bond with mother and land.
- AC
- A warm presence. People feel safe around you.
- DC
- Emotionally close partnerships and caring marriages.
Mercury
BudhaIntellect, communication, trade, learning
- MC
- Careers in technology, writing, media, sales and teaching.
- IC
- A busy, talkative household, often with siblings around.
- AC
- Quick-witted, curious and youthful.
- DC
- Talkative partners. Contracts and negotiation matter.
Venus
ShukraLove, beauty, art, harmony, comfort
- MC
- Careers in art, fashion, hospitality and luxury goods.
- IC
- A beautiful, harmonious home.
- AC
- Attractive and graceful. A strong first impression.
- DC
- A good place to meet a loving partner.
Mars
MangalAction, energy, courage, drive, conflict
- MC
- Ambition and competition: armed forces, sport, engineering, surgery.
- IC
- Tension at home or with family. Good for renovation.
- AC
- Bold and athletic, with a short fuse when provoked.
- DC
- Passionate but combative partnerships. Rivals show themselves.
Jupiter
GuruGrowth, wisdom, fortune, faith, wealth
- MC
- Career growth and recognition in teaching, law and finance.
- IC
- A prosperous home that feels fortunate.
- AC
- Optimistic, generous and larger than life.
- DC
- Wise, well-off or foreign-born partners. A happy marriage.
Saturn
ShaniDiscipline, delay, karma, patience, structure
- MC
- Lasting authority built slowly, with heavy responsibility.
- IC
- Duties to family and property that can feel restrictive.
- AC
- A serious, mature manner. Respected, but often tired.
- DC
- Older or duty-bound partners. Commitment is tested.
Rahu
North NodeThe foreign, the unconventional, sudden change, technology
- MC
- Fame through unusual paths: technology, foreign markets, going viral.
- IC
- A home abroad, restlessness, a non-traditional family setup.
- AC
- Seen as foreign, disruptive or ahead of the trend.
- DC
- Foreign or unconventional partners. Sudden marriages.
Ketu
South NodeSpirituality, detachment, past-life gifts, moksha
- MC
- Work feels karmic. You drop what does not serve you and look for meaning.
- IC
- Detachment from family. A place for retreat.
- AC
- A private, mystical presence.
- DC
- Partners who feel karmic. Endings that free you.
Uranus
Western onlySudden change, innovation, freedom
- MC
- Disruptive career changes: startups, science, activism.
- IC
- Unusual living arrangements and frequent moves.
- AC
- An original, unconventional personality.
- DC
- Unconventional or unpredictable partners.
Neptune
Western onlyDreams, illusion, art, spirituality, escape
- MC
- Creative or spiritual work, with a risk of unclear direction.
- IC
- A dreamy home, with a risk of confusion or escapism.
- AC
- An artistic, hard-to-read presence.
- DC
- Soulmate feelings, or projection and deception.
Pluto
Western onlyTransformation, power, hidden depths
- MC
- Intense power at work, often behind the scenes.
- IC
- Deep change at home and hidden family dynamics.
- AC
- An intense presence that is hard to ignore.
- DC
- All-consuming, transforming partnerships.
Reading your map, step by step
A routine you can repeat for any city.
- 01
Find your birth place.
The marker on the map is where you were born. Your natal chart already describes life there. The lines show what changes if you live, work or travel somewhere else.
- 02
Look for supportive lines near the cities you care about.
Jupiter, Venus, Sun and Moon lines are usually the most welcoming. If a Jupiter MC line runs close to a city where you want to build a career, that is a real point in its favour.
- 03
Notice difficult lines, especially when they stack up.
Saturn and Mars lines crossing near the same city make a demanding place. It is not cursed, but you will be tested. Go there on purpose, for discipline, hard training or long-term building.
- 04
Read the angle, not only the planet.
The planet says what kind of influence. The angle says which part of life. Jupiter MC affects career, Jupiter IC affects home. Same planet, different outcome.
- 05
Check the timing in your Kundli.
A line is strongest while its planet's dasha is running. If you are in a Rahu major period (Mahadasha), Rahu lines are louder. Use the map and the Kundli together.
The 12 houses (bhavas) of the Kundli
A Kundli is divided into twelve houses (bhavas). Each one covers an area of life. We count them whole-sign, starting from your ascendant (Lagna).
| No. | House (bhava) | Covers |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Self · Tanu | Body, health, personality, direction in life |
| 2 | Wealth · Dhana | Money, family, speech, food, values |
| 3 | Courage · Sahaja | Siblings, effort, short journeys, skills |
| 4 | Home · Sukha | Mother, home, land, vehicles, inner comfort |
| 5 | Children · Putra | Children, romance, intellect, past-life merit |
| 6 | Obstacles · Ari | Enemies, debts, illness, service, daily work |
| 7 | Marriage · Yuvati | Spouse, partnerships, contracts |
| 8 | Change · Randhra | Longevity, hidden matters, sudden change, inheritance |
| 9 | Fortune · Dharma | Father, luck, higher learning, guru, long journeys |
| 10 | Career · Karma | Career, status, action, authority |
| 11 | Gains · Labha | Income, elder siblings, network, wishes fulfilled |
| 12 | Release · Vyaya | Expenses, foreign lands, sleep, moksha, losses |
The 12 signs (rashis)
Each planet sits in one of twelve signs (rashis). The sign colours how the planet behaves. The sign your Moon is in is your Moon sign (Rashi).
Bold, starts things, competitive
Steady, patient, enjoys comfort
Curious, versatile, talkative
Caring, emotional, protective
Proud, expressive, generous
Analytical, precise, helpful
Diplomatic, fair, values beauty
Intense, private, transforming
Philosophical, optimistic, likes travel
Ambitious, disciplined, patient
Independent, idealistic, contrarian
Compassionate, imaginative, spiritual
Nakshatras and padas
The finer divisions of the Vedic sky: 27 lunar mansions, each split into four padas.
Signs (rashis) divide the 360° zodiac into twelve parts of 30°. Nakshatras divide it into 27 parts of 13°20′. Each has its own ruling deity, symbol and character. Ashwini is the healer, Rohini the queen, Magha the throne of the ancestors, Revati the guide at journey's end.
Each nakshatra splits into four padas of 3°20′, which makes 108 padas in all, the same number as the beads on a mala. The nakshatra your Moon was in at birth is your birth nakshatra. It shapes your instinctive emotional nature more than any other single factor.
Your birth nakshatra also sets your Vimshottari dasha: its ruling planet rules the first major period (Mahadasha) of your life, and how far the Moon had travelled through it decides how much of that period was left.
Vimshottari dasha
Which planet is shaping this part of your life? The dasha system answers that.
Vimshottari is a 120-year cycle shared among nine planets in a fixed order. During Jupiter's major period (Mahadasha), Jupiter's themes (wisdom, family, wealth, teaching) lead. During Saturn's major period, expect patience, delay, structure and settling of old accounts.
Each major period divides into sub-periods (Antardashas), and each sub-period into smaller periods (Pratyantardashas): a planet within a planet within a planet. That is why one year of a Saturn period can feel like a slog and the next like relief. The sub-period changed.
| Planet | Major period (Mahadasha) |
|---|---|
| Ketu | 7 years |
| Venus | 20 years |
| Sun | 6 years |
| Moon | 10 years |
| Mars | 7 years |
| Rahu | 18 years |
| Jupiter | 16 years |
| Saturn | 19 years |
| Mercury | 17 years |
| Full cycle | 120 years |
Reading honestly
Four rules to keep in mind before you believe any reading, including ours.
Tendencies, not fixed fate.
A Jupiter line opens a door. You still have to walk through it.
A hard line is not a curse.
It points to a theme you will have to work with. Sometimes a Saturn city is exactly where you build your best work.
Test the chart against your life.
If a reading says career growth began in a year that was your worst, your birth time may be off by a few minutes. Try the Accuracy check.
Be wary of fear.
Nobody can read your date of death from a chart. If a reading leaves you scared and dependent on the next costly ritual, walk away.
Try it on your own chart.
Draw your 48 lines and click any city.
Open the mapSee your houses (bhavas), signs (rashis) and dashas.
Free PDF in Hindi or English.
Make my KundliKundli: sidereal zodiac, Lahiri ayanamsa, whole-sign houses. Positions from precise astronomical calculations.