Kundali matching (Guna Milan)
Guna Milan scores the compatibility of two birth charts out of thirty-six points across eight categories, or kootas. It is computed almost entirely from the Moon's nakshatra and sign in each chart, which is why it needs accurate birth times on both sides.
The eight kootas
Varna 1 point — temperament. Vashya 2 — mutual influence. Tara 3 — fortune, from the nakshatra count. Yoni 4 — physical compatibility. Graha Maitri 5 — friendship between the Moon sign lords. Gana 6 — temperament class. Bhakoot 7 — the Moon sign relationship. Nadi 8 — constitution. Thirty-six in total.
How the score is usually read
Eighteen and above is conventionally treated as acceptable, twenty-four and above as good. But the total alone is misleading, because the points are not equally weighted in practice. Nadi carries eight points and Bhakoot seven, so failing either drops fifteen points at once — which is why two charts can score in the low twenties and still be considered problematic, while another pair at the same total is not.
Mangal dosha
Assessed separately from the 36 points. Mars occupying the 1st, 2nd, 4th, 7th, 8th or 12th house is the usual definition, with variations by tradition about which houses count and whether the reference is the lagna, the Moon or Venus. It is conventionally read as cancelled when both charts carry it, and there are many other classical cancellation rules.
What this does not do
Guna Milan is a screening tool, not a verdict. It looks almost entirely at the Moon, which means two charts can score thirty and still have difficult seventh houses, or score fourteen and have none of the problems the number implies. Any astrologer working seriously will read both full charts, the seventh house and its lord, the D9, and the running dashas before saying anything about a match.
Questions
- Is a score below 18 a rejection?
- By the convention, yes; in practice it is a prompt for a closer look. The total compresses eight quite different tests into one number, and which points were lost matters more than how many.
- Does Guna Milan need exact birth times?
- It needs the Moon's nakshatra, which changes roughly every day, so it is more forgiving than a lagna calculation. A birth near a nakshatra boundary still needs an accurate time for the result to mean anything.
Cast this on a real chart
Enter a birth date, time and place and every calculation described here is available on the chart page.
Related
- Navamsha — the D9 chart — The navamsha divides each sign into nine parts of 3°20'. What D9 shows about marriage, inner strength and whether a promising placement actually delivers.
- Panchanga — Tithi, vara, nakshatra, yoga and karana — what each of the five limbs measures and how they are calculated from the Sun and Moon.
- The kundali (birth chart) — A janam kundali is a map of the sky at a birth moment. How the rashi chart is built, why birth time matters to the minute, and how sidereal positions are computed.