Acerca de la astrología védica

¿Qué es la astrología védica? Una guía sencilla del Jyotish.

Por R. Sivadas · Fundador, AstroPal · Última actualización June 2026

La astrología védica — llamada Jyotish en sánscrito — es el sistema astrológico tradicional del subcontinente indio. Es una de las tradiciones astrológicas practicadas de forma continua más antiguas del mundo, con textos fundamentales compuestos aproximadamente entre los siglos VI y XV d.C. y que aún hoy en día son estudiados por practicantes de todo el mundo. Esta página explica qué es la astrología védica, en qué se diferencia del sistema occidental que la mayoría de los lectores conocen y los componentes que conforman una carta natal védica.

If you are looking for how AstroPal computes and interprets charts specifically, see the methodology page. For the list of classical texts the AI is grounded in, see sources.

The Sanskrit word “Jyotish”

Jyotish (ज्योतिष) is the formal Sanskrit name for the discipline. The word combines jyoti (light) with isha (lord, or in this context “science of”) — literally, “the science of light.” The name reflects the discipline’s origin as the study of celestial luminaries: the Sun, Moon, planets, and stars as observed from Earth. The English term “Vedic astrology” came into common use in the late twentieth century to distinguish it from the dominant Western astrological tradition; both names refer to the same body of practice.

De dónde proviene la astrología védica: los textos clásicos

La astrología védica es una tradición documental. Sus reglas — cómo calcular posiciones planetarias, cómo derivar cartas divisionales, cómo identificar yogas (combinaciones planetarias), cómo asignar períodos planetarios — provienen de un cuerpo de textos clásicos que los practicantes consideran como referencia técnica. Los más citados incluyen:

• Brihat Parashara Hora Shastra — atribuido al sabio Parashara, generalmente considerado el texto fundacional. Cubre la construcción de cartas, diagramas divisionales, yogas y dashas en aproximadamente 100 capítulos.
• Phaladeepika — por Mantreshwara, c. siglo XIV. Compacto, ampliamente utilizado, especialmente para resultados de colocaciones planetarias y yogas.
• Saravali — por Kalyana Varma, c. siglo IX. Tratamiento detallado de las configuraciones planetarias y sus interpretaciones clásicas.
• Jataka Parijata — por Vaidyanatha, c. siglo XV. Síntesis enciclopédica basada en fuentes anteriores.
• Brihat Samhita — por Varahamihira, c. siglo VI. De gran alcance, incluyendo astrología mundana y presagios naturales junto con la horoscopia personal.
• Uttara Kalamrita — por Kalidasa, c. siglo XI. Importante para entender los karakas (significadores planetarios) y los significados de las casas.

AstroPal indexes sixteen such texts and surfaces the relevant verse when answering any interpretive question. The full list is on the sources page.

Astrología védica vs occidental: el zodiaco sideral

The single largest technical difference between Vedic and Western astrology is the zodiac. Vedic astrology uses the sidereal zodiac, which measures planetary positions against the fixed background of stars. Western astrology uses the tropical zodiac, which is anchored to the seasons — specifically, to the vernal equinox.

The two zodiacs were aligned roughly two thousand years ago, but because of the Earth’s slow axial wobble (the precession of the equinoxes), they have drifted apart at about one degree every seventy-two years. They are currently offset by approximately twenty-four degrees. The offset is called the ayanamsa, and there are several formulations of it in use. The most common in modern Vedic practice is the Lahiri ayanamsa (sometimes called Chitrapaksha), adopted as the Indian government standard in 1955. Goravani Jyotish Studio — and therefore AstroPal — defaults to Lahiri, with Raman, Krishnamurti, Yukteshwar, and Fagan–Bradley selectable as alternatives.

The practical consequence: a person whose Sun is in Taurus in a Western chart will often be in Aries in a Vedic chart. Neither system is “more correct” in any absolute sense — they are different reference frames built on different assumptions, and each has its own internal logic.

Los componentes de una carta natal védica (kundli)

A Vedic birth chart, called a kundli in common Indian usage and janma kundali in formal Sanskrit, records the sky at the exact moment and place of birth. The standard chart contains:

• El Lagna (Ascendente) — el grado del zodiaco que sube en el horizonte este en el momento del nacimiento. El Lagna determina cómo se distribuyen las doce casas.
• Los nueve grahas (planetas) — Sol (Surya), Luna (Chandra), Marte (Mangala), Mercurio (Budha), Júpiter (Guru), Venus (Shukra), Saturno (Shani) y los dos nodos lunares Rahu y Ketu. La astrología védica trata a Rahu y Ketu como equivalentes a los graha y no utiliza Urano, Neptuno ni Plutón.
• Las doce casas (bhavas) — doce divisiones por área de vida, cada una gobernando un conjunto definido de materias. La primera casa se relaciona con el yo y el cuerpo; el segundo por la riqueza y la familia; el cuarto al hogar y a la madre; el 7º a sociedad; el décimo en carrera; el 12º a gastos y liberación. Los significados de la casa completa provienen de los textos clásicos (Phaladeepika y BPHS en particular).
• Los 27 nakshatras (mansiones lunares) — a division of the ecliptic into twenty-seven equal segments of 13°20′ each, named after fixed stars. The nakshatra in which the Moon falls at birth is the Janma Nakshatra and is one of the most consulted single placements in Vedic practice.
• Las cartas divisionales (vargas) — dieciséis cartas subsidiarias derivadas de la carta principal mediante subdivisión matemática. Navamsha (D9) y Dashamsha (D10) son las dos más consultadas; el Shastiamsha (D60) es la división más fina y se utiliza para análisis granular.

Los 27 nakshatras

The nakshatras are perhaps Vedic astrology’s most distinctive feature. The 360-degree ecliptic is divided into 27 equal segments, each named after a constellation or fixed star and assigned to one of the nine grahas as ruler. The Moon, which traverses the entire zodiac in roughly 27.3 days, occupies one nakshatra per day — hence the connection to lunar timing. The nakshatra in which a person’s Moon falls at birth determines their Vimshottari Dasha sequence, sets their compatibility profile under the Ashtakoota system, and is consulted in muhurtha (electional astrology) for choosing auspicious times.

Periodos planetarios: los Vimshottari Dasha

Western astrology emphasises ongoing transits as its primary timing tool. Vedic astrology has transits too, but its principal timing system is the dasha — a sequence of planetary periods, each lasting a fixed number of years, that together cover a span of 120 years. The most widely used system is the Vimshottari Dasha, in which each of the nine grahas rules for a set duration: Ketu 7 years, Venus 20, Sun 6, Moon 10, Mars 7, Rahu 18, Jupiter 16, Saturn 19, Mercury 17. The starting point of the sequence is determined by which nakshatra the Moon occupies at birth. Within each major period (mahadasha), there are sub-periods (antardasha) and sub-sub-periods (pratyantardasha), forming a layered timing scaffold that practitioners use to identify when specific themes are most active in a person’s life.

Cartas divisionales (vargas)

Un varga es una carta subsidiaria derivada de la carta principal (Rashi o D1) mediante división matemática. Los dieciséis vargas estándar, llamados Shodashavarga, son:

• D1 Rashi — the main chart; the foundation for everything else.
• D2 Hora — wealth.
• D3 Drekkana — siblings and short journeys.
• D4 Chaturthamsha — fortune, property.
• D7 Saptamamsha — children and progeny.
• D9 Navamsha — spouse, dharma, the fine print of every other chart.
• D10 Dashamsha — career and profession.
• D12 Dwadashamsha — parents.
• D16 Shodashamsha — vehicles and comforts.
• D20 Vimshamsha — spiritual practice.
• D24 Chaturvimshamsha — education and learning.
• D27 Bhamsha — strength and weakness.
• D30 Trimshamsha — misfortune and challenges.
• D40 Khavedamsha — maternal lineage indications.
• D45 Akshavedamsha — paternal lineage indications.
• D60 Shastiamsha — the finest division; considered the deepest by Parashara himself.

Los vargas no son extras opcionales — en la práctica védica seria, rara vez se responde una pregunta solo con el D1. Una pregunta de carrera se comprueba tanto con D1 como con D10; una cuestión matrimonial contra D1 y D9; una pregunta de finanzas contra D1 y D2. El principio es la convergencia: una configuración solo se considera fiable cuando múltiples cartas coinciden.

Yogas (combinaciones planetarias)

A yoga in Vedic astrology is a specific configuration of two or more planets (or planets and houses) that the classical texts treat as a unit. There are hundreds of named yogas across the literature; a few well-known examples include the Pancha Mahapurusha Yogas (formed when Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, or Saturn occupy their own or exaltation signs in an angular house), Gaja Kesari Yoga (Jupiter in an angle from the Moon), and Neecha Bhanga Raja Yoga (a yoga of debility-cancellation). Yogas are computational facts — either present in a chart or not — and their meanings come from the texts that name them.

Fortalezas planetarias: Shadbala, Bhavabala, Ashtakavarga

Más allá de la ubicación, la astrología védica asigna puntuaciones numéricas de fuerza a cada planeta y casa. Los tres sistemas principales son:

• Shadbala — Fuerza planetaria de seis veces: posicional, direccional, temporal, movicional, natural y aspectual. Cada planeta se puntua contra un umbral requerido (por ejemplo, Júpiter necesita 6,5 rupias para ser considerado fuerte según los estándares clásicos).
• Bhavabala — Fortaleza triple de la casa: posicional, ocupacional y aspectual.
• Ashtakavarga — a points-allocation system from the Parashari literature in which every house in every planet’s individual chart receives benefic points (bindus), used to read transit timing and house strength.

No son inventos modernos: los procedimientos de cálculo provienen directamente de los textos clásicos, principalmente del BPHS. AstroPal calcula los tres para cada carta y los muestra en el panel de fuerza.

Cómo AstroPal aborda la astrología védica

AstroPal’s philosophy is twofold. First, the computation must be professional-grade — the same Goravani Engine that has been the reference for serious Vedic astrologers since 1993 produces every chart, divisional chart, dasha sequence, yoga list, and strength score on AstroPal. Second, every interpretive sentence the AI produces is grounded: it is either a direct computed fact from the engine, or a retrieved citation from one of the sixteen indexed classical texts. The AI is not permitted to generate “astrology-flavoured” text on its own; if no classical reference applies, the answer says so plainly.

The full technical description is on the methodology page. The complete list of indexed texts is on the sources page. If you want to see your own chart, the Lagna calculation, the dasha currently active for you, and your computed yogas, you can generate a free chart — no card required.

Preguntas frecuentes

Continue reading: how AstroPal computes and interprets charts · the 16 classical texts AstroPal cites · general FAQ.

How to use astrology responsibly — our Declaración de orientación covers what AstroPal will and will not answer, the Five Foundations, and the anti-fatalism principle.