Varshaphala Part 4: The 12 Vargas — Zodiacal Subdivisions and Dwadasavargeeyabala

Varshaphala — The Hindu Progressed Horoscope (Complete Guide)

In Part 3, we covered Tajaka aspects and planetary friendships. Now we learn how to measure whether each planet sits in a friendly, own, or hostile subdivision — across twelve different division schemes.

Part 4 of 21 • Technical Framework • Covers: Chapter 3 — Articles 21–36 (Dwadasavargas and Dwadasavargeeyabala)

Section: Varshaphala Part 4 The 12 Vargas

A planet's power isn't determined by its sign alone. In the Tajaka system, each sign is divided into 12 different subdivision schemes — and whether a planet is benefic or malefic depends on how many of these subdivisions are friendly versus hostile.

These subdivisions are called Vargas (literally, "divisions"). The 12 Vargas together form the Dwadasavarga ("twelve-fold division"). By checking each planet's position in all 12 Vargas, you can determine the Dwadasavargeeyabala — the 12-source strength that tells you whether a planet is inclined to do good or evil during the year.

Two Distinct Strength Systems in Tajaka:

1. Dwadasavargeeyabala (12 sources) — Covered in this article. Determines if a planet is benefic or malefic for prediction. More good vargas = benefic tendency. More evil vargas = malefic tendency.

2. Panchavargeeyabala (5 sources) — Covered in Part 5. Determines the Year Lord and measures relative planetary power.

Section: Varshaphala Part 4 The 12 Vargas Section 1

The 12 Vargas at a Glance

Each of the 12 Vargas divides every zodiac sign into a specific number of equal parts, with each part governed by a planetary lord. Here's the complete overview:

# Varga Name Division Arc per Part Total in Zodiac Lordship Rule
1 Rasi 1 (whole sign) 30° 12 Standard sign lord
2 Hora 2 halves 15° 24 Odd signs: 1st = Sun, 2nd = Moon. Even signs: reverse.
3 Drekkana 3 parts 10° 36 Lords of the sign, 5th from it, and 9th from it (trinal lords).
4 Padamsa 4 parts 7° 30' 48 Lords of the sign, 4th, 7th, and 10th from it (kendral lords).
5 Panchamsa 5 parts 6° 60 Odd signs: Mars, Saturn, Jupiter, Mercury, Venus. Even signs: reverse.
6 Shashtamsa 6 parts 5° 72 Odd signs: lords of 6 signs from Aries. Even signs: lords from Libra.
7 Saptamsa 7 parts 4° 17' 84 Odd signs: lords of 7 signs from the sign itself. Even signs: from the 7th.
8 Ashtamsa 8 parts 3° 45' 96 Movable signs: from Aries. Fixed: from Leo. Common: from Sagittarius.
9 Navamsa MOST IMPORTANT 9 parts 3° 20' 108 Fire signs: from Aries. Earth: from Capricorn. Air: from Libra. Water: from Cancer.
10 Dasamsa 10 parts 3° 120 Odd signs: from sign itself. Even signs: from the 9th.
11 Ekadasamsa 11 parts 2° 43' 132 Lords of 11 signs from the 12th counted backwards from the sign.
12 Dwadasamsa 12 parts 2° 30' 144 Lords of the 12 signs from the sign itself.

Complete varga lookup tables for all 12 divisions across all 12 signs are provided in Part 21 (Reference Guide), reproduced from Appendix II of the original text. You can use those tables to quickly determine any planet's varga lord without manual calculation.

Each Varga Explained

Below is a detailed explanation of each varga's calculation method. For most practical work, you'll use lookup tables (in Part 21), but understanding the logic helps you verify results and handle edge cases.

The simplest varga. Each sign of the zodiac is one Rasi. The lord is the standard ruler of that sign: Aries = Mars, Taurus = Venus, Gemini = Mercury, Cancer = Moon, Leo = Sun, Virgo = Mercury, Libra = Venus, Scorpio = Mars, Sagittarius = Jupiter, Capricorn = Saturn, Aquarius = Saturn, Pisces = Jupiter.

Each sign is divided into two Horas of 15° each — governed by the Sun and Moon only. In odd signs (Aries, Gemini, Leo, Libra, Sagittarius, Aquarius): the first Hora (0°–15°) belongs to the Sun and the second (15°–30°) to the Moon. In even signs (Taurus, Cancer, Virgo, Scorpio, Capricorn, Pisces): reverse — first Moon, second Sun.

Each sign contains three Drekkanas of 10° each. The first Drekkana (0°–10°) is governed by the lord of the sign itself. The second (10°–20°) is governed by the lord of the 5th from it. The third (20°–30°) is governed by the lord of the 9th from it. These are the trinal lords.

Example: For Aries — 1st Drekkana: Mars (lord of Aries), 2nd: Sun (lord of Leo, 5th from Aries), 3rd: Jupiter (lord of Sagittarius, 9th from Aries).

Each sign is divided into four Padamsas of 7°30' each. The lords are the kendral lords: lord of the sign itself, lord of the 4th, lord of the 7th, and lord of the 10th from it.

Example: For Aries — 1st: Mars (Aries), 2nd: Moon (Cancer, 4th), 3rd: Venus (Libra, 7th), 4th: Saturn (Capricorn, 10th).

Each sign contains five Panchamsas of 6° each. In odd signs, the five lords are Mars, Saturn, Jupiter, Mercury, Venus (in that order). In even signs, the order is reversed: Venus, Mercury, Jupiter, Saturn, Mars.

Each sign has six Shashtamsas of 5° each. In odd signs, the lords are the rulers of six consecutive signs starting from Aries (Mars, Venus, Mercury, Moon, Sun, Mercury). In even signs, the lords start from Libra (Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Saturn, Jupiter).

In odd signs, the lords of the seven Saptamsas are the rulers of the seven signs starting from the sign itself. In even signs, they begin from the 7th sign. Example: For Aries (odd): Mars, Venus, Mercury, Moon, Sun, Mercury, Venus. For Taurus (even): start from Scorpio: Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Venus.

The starting point depends on sign type: Movable signs (Aries, Cancer, Libra, Capricorn): lords of 8 signs from Aries. Fixed signs (Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, Aquarius): from Leo. Common signs (Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, Pisces): from Sagittarius.

The Navamsa is the most important subdivision in Hindu astrology — most predictions rely on thorough scrutiny of planets' Navamsa positions. The starting point depends on the element of the sign:

Fire signs (Aries, Leo, Sagittarius): 9 Navamsas starting from Aries.
Earth signs (Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn): from Capricorn.
Air signs (Gemini, Libra, Aquarius): from Libra.
Water signs (Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces): from Cancer.

Worked Example: A planet at 20°10' Libra. Divide by 3°20': 20°10' / 3°20' = 6 complete Navamsas + remainder. The planet is in the 7th Navamsa. For Libra (Air sign), counting from Libra: the 7th sign from Libra is Aries, ruled by Mars. So the Navamsa lord is Mars.

In odd signs, the lords of the 10 Dasamsas are the rulers of 10 consecutive signs starting from the sign itself. In even signs, they start from the 9th sign.

The 11 Ekadasamsas are governed by the lords of 11 signs starting from the 12th sign counted backwards from the sign in question. For Aries, the first Ekadasamsa is ruled by Jupiter (lord of Pisces, 12th from Aries), and so on.

The simplest pattern after Rasi: the lords of the 12 Dwadasamsas are the rulers of the 12 signs starting from the sign in question. For Aries: Mars, Venus, Mercury, Moon, Sun, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Saturn, Jupiter.

Good vs Bad Vargas: Determining Benefic or Malefic Nature

For each planet, check all 12 vargas and classify each as:

Swa

Own Varga

Planet in its own division

= GOOD

M

Mitra Varga

Planet in a friend's division

= GOOD

S

Satru Varga

Planet in an enemy's division

= BAD

The Dwadasavargeeyabala Rule

Count the good vargas (Swa + Mitra) and bad vargas (Satru) across all 12 divisions. If a planet has more good vargas, it becomes a benefic for the year. If it has more evil vargas, it becomes a malefic. Equal = neutral.

Worked Example: Standard Horoscope Dwadasavargeeyabala

Here are the good and bad varga counts for each planet in the Standard Horoscope's 24th-year chart:

Planet Good Vargas Evil Vargas Verdict
Sun 6 6 Neutral
Moon 8 4 Good (Benefic)
Mars 5 7 Bad (Malefic)
Mercury 8 4 Good (Benefic)
Jupiter 7 5 Good (Benefic)
Venus 7 5 Good (Benefic)
Saturn 3 9 Bad (Malefic)
Rahu 6 6 Neutral

Key Takeaway for the Standard Horoscope:

Moon, Mercury, Jupiter, and Venus are benefically inclined this year. Mars and Saturn are malefically inclined. Sun and Rahu are neutral. These tendencies inform how we interpret each planet's effects throughout the year — a benefic planet tends to do good in its Dasa and aspects, while a malefic planet tends to cause difficulty.

Practical Notes

"The working of the Dwadasavargeeyabala and Panchavargeeyabala is no doubt cumbersome involving considerable time, but it is worth doing the calculations. As one gains experience, and predictive ability, judgment of the chart becomes less complicated and one can do away with finding the Dwadasavargeeya strengths of planets."

B.V. Raman

In other words: compute the Dwadasavargeeyabala when you're learning or when precision matters. As your experience grows, you'll develop an intuition for which planets are well-placed and which are struggling — but the rigorous calculation provides the foundation for that intuition.

Source: Varshaphala or The Hindu Progressed Horoscope (13th Edition) by B.V. Raman, Chapter 3 — Articles 21–36 (Dwadasavargas and Dwadasavargeeyabala).

What's Next?

You now understand the 12 Vargas and how to use them to determine whether a planet is benefically or malefically inclined. In the next article, we tackle the second strength system — the Panchavargeeyabala — the five-fold strength that directly determines the Year Lord.

Coming Up: Part 5 — Panchavargeeyabala

The five strength components (Kshetrabala, Ochchabala, Haddabala, Drekkanabala, Navamsabala) that determine who rules your year.

Read Part 5

Based on

Varshaphala or The Hindu Progressed Horoscope

by B.V. Raman | 13th Edition (1992) | UBS Publishers' Distributors Ltd., New Delhi