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Navamsa chart (D9): how to read it, and how it is calculated

What the navamsa chart is, how each planet's navamsa is worked out (with a free calculator), and how astrologers read the D9 for marriage and for a planet's strength.

By · Published · Updated · Checked against BPHS and K. S. Charak

In short

The navamsa chart (D9) divides each sign of the birth chart into nine parts of 3°20′ and places every planet in the sign that rules its part. For movable signs the count starts from the sign itself, for fixed signs from the 9th sign, and for dual signs from the 5th (BPHS ch. 6 sl. 12). BPHS reads the spouse from the navamsa, and astrologers use it to confirm what the birth chart promises (K. S. Charak, p. 156).

How is the navamsa calculated?

Each sign is split into nine navamsas of 3°20′. For a movable sign (Aries, Cancer, Libra, Capricorn) the first navamsa is the sign itself; for a fixed sign (Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, Aquarius) it is the 9th sign from it; for a dual sign (Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, Pisces) the 5th. The rest follow in order. That makes the four elements start at Aries, Capricorn, Libra and Cancer, as the table shows. Use the sidereal degrees from your kundli, not a Western (tropical) chart.

Navamsa Degrees in the sign Fire: Aries, Leo, Sagittarius Earth: Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn Air: Gemini, Libra, Aquarius Water: Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces
1 0°00′ to 3°20′ Aries Capricorn Libra Cancer
2 3°20′ to 6°40′ Taurus Aquarius Scorpio Leo
3 6°40′ to 10°00′ Gemini Pisces Sagittarius Virgo
4 10°00′ to 13°20′ Cancer Aries Capricorn Libra
5 13°20′ to 16°40′ Leo Taurus Aquarius Scorpio
6 16°40′ to 20°00′ Virgo Gemini Pisces Sagittarius
7 20°00′ to 23°20′ Libra Cancer Aries Capricorn
8 23°20′ to 26°40′ Scorpio Leo Taurus Aquarius
9 26°40′ to 30°00′ Sagittarius Virgo Gemini Pisces

BPHS ch. 6 sl. 12; K. S. Charak, Elements of Vedic Astrology, p. 137 and Table X-5 (p. 138).

How to read a navamsa chart, step by step

  1. 1

    Find the navamsa Lagna and its lord

    The sign rising in the navamsa is the navamsa Lagna. Its lord, and where that lord sits, set the tone of the chart, as the Lagna does in the birth chart. BPHS counts houses "from the navamsa Lagna" in several rules (for example ch. 20 sl. 5).

  2. 2

    See how strong each planet is in the navamsa

    A planet in its own or its exaltation sign in the navamsa gains strength; in its debilitation sign or an enemy's sign it loses some. BPHS uses this in many house results, such as the 10th lord "in its own Rashi or Navamsh" (ch. 21 sl. 2) or the 12th lord in a debilitation navamsa (ch. 23 sl. 5-6).

  3. 3

    Note the vargottama planets

    A planet in the same sign in both charts is vargottama (BPHS ch. 36 sl. 38-39). Charak calls it a highly beneficial situation (p. 137); BPHS says a vargottama Lagna lord gives freedom from disease.

  4. 4

    Read the 7th house of the navamsa for marriage

    BPHS reads the spouse from the navamsa (ch. 7 sl. 1-8). Look at the navamsa's 7th house, its lord and Venus, then compare them with the 7th house of the birth chart.

  5. 5

    Confirm the birth chart's promise

    Charak: "The promise in the Rashi chart must be confirmed in the Navamsha chart before making any prediction" (p. 156). A strong house in the D1 whose lord is weak in the D9 is read with caution.

What is vargottama, and at which degrees does it happen?

A planet (or the Lagna) is vargottama when its navamsa is the same sign as its birth-chart sign. Because of the counting rule, that happens in only one navamsa of each sign:

Sign type Signs Vargottama part
Movable signs Aries, Cancer, Libra, Capricorn 1st navamsa: 0°00′ to 3°20′
Fixed signs Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, Aquarius 5th navamsa: 13°20′ to 16°40′
Dual signs Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, Pisces 9th navamsa: 26°40′ to 30°00′

BPHS ch. 36 sl. 38-39 (definition); Charak, p. 137.

D1 and D9: what is the difference?

Birth chart (D1, rashi) Navamsa (D9)
What it divides The zodiac into 12 signs of 30° Each sign into 9 parts of 3°20′ (108 in all)
Read for The physique (BPHS ch. 7 sl. 1-8), and the whole chart The spouse (BPHS ch. 7 sl. 1-8); the strength of every planet
How it is used Shows what the chart promises Confirms or qualifies that promise (Charak, p. 156)
Birth time needed The Lagna changes sign about every 2 hours The navamsa Lagna changes about every 13 minutes

How does Astrojar use the navamsa?

Astrojar's engine builds the navamsa for every chart with the rule above, and records each planet's navamsa sign, its house from the navamsa Lagna, its dignity there and whether it is vargottama. 158 rules in its rule tables read the navamsa, most of them from BPHS. When you ask about marriage or love, the answer says where the navamsa's 7th lord sits and how strong it is there; for luck or peace of mind, the navamsa Lagna lord. For work or study it uses the lord of the navamsa that your 10th lord occupies (Karmajiva, Brihat Jataka ch. 10). Every Astrojar report shows your D1 and D9 charts side by side.

Questions about the navamsa chart

What is a navamsa chart?

The navamsa (D9) chart divides each sign into nine equal parts of 3°20′ and places every planet, and the Lagna, in the sign that rules its part. BPHS reads the spouse from the navamsa (ch. 7 sl. 1-8), and K. S. Charak calls it the most important of the divisional charts (p. 137).

How is the navamsa calculated?

For a movable sign the nine navamsas start from the sign itself, for a fixed sign from the 9th sign from it, and for a dual sign from the 5th (BPHS ch. 6 sl. 12). So the navamsas of fire signs start at Aries, earth signs at Capricorn, air signs at Libra and water signs at Cancer.

Is the D9 chart the same as the navamsa chart?

Yes. D9 means the ninth division: the navamsa. The birth chart (rashi chart) is the D1.

How do I read the navamsa chart for marriage?

Start with the 7th house of the navamsa and its lord, and Venus, the karaka of marriage, then compare them with the 7th house of the birth chart. BPHS takes the spouse from the navamsa (ch. 7 sl. 1-8), and Charak says a promise in the birth chart should be confirmed in the navamsa before a prediction is made (p. 156).

What does vargottama mean?

A planet is vargottama when it is in the same sign in the birth chart and the navamsa (BPHS ch. 36 sl. 38-39). Charak calls it a highly beneficial placement (p. 137). It happens in the 1st navamsa of a movable sign, the 5th of a fixed sign and the 9th of a dual sign.

Is the navamsa more important than the birth chart?

Neither replaces the other. The birth chart shows what is promised; the navamsa is read to confirm it, and the texts say a planet gives its results more according to its navamsa (Charak, pp. 137 and 156).

Why does the navamsa need an exact birth time?

The Lagna passes through a whole sign in about two hours, so it changes navamsa roughly every 13 minutes. The Moon changes navamsa about every six hours. A birth time that is off by a quarter of an hour can change the navamsa Lagna.

Keep learning

Sources

  • BPHS ch. 6 sl. 12 (how the navamsa is counted).
  • BPHS ch. 7 sl. 1-8 (the spouse from the navamsa).
  • BPHS ch. 36 sl. 38-39 (vargottama).
  • BPHS ch. 20 sl. 5, ch. 21 sl. 2, ch. 23 sl. 5-6 (examples of navamsa rules).
  • K. S. Charak, Elements of Vedic Astrology, p. 137 (the navamsa, vargottama), Table X-5 p. 138, p. 156 (confirming the promise).
  • Varahamihira, Brihat Jataka ch. 10 (Karmajiva).

Chapter and verse numbers follow R. Santhanam's English translation of BPHS (Ranjan Publications). About the text. Page numbers for K. S. Charak's Elements of Vedic Astrology follow the edition Astrojar's engine was built from.

This is the traditional reading of the classical texts, given for learning and reflection. It is not a prediction for you, and not medical, legal or financial advice.

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