JyotiSoftJyotiSoftJyotiSoftJyotiSoft
Menu
Open the app

Schools of Jyotisha

Tajaka and Ashtakavarga: the chart of the year

Tajaka is the school of the annual chart, cast for the moment the Sun returns to its birth position. In JyotiSoft it is joined by Ashtakavarga, a count of the strength of transits through each sign.

Ask the Council of schools

Four schools answer your question independently, and a moderator shows where they agree and where they differ.

Open the Council in the bot

What it is

Tajaka came to India in the Middle Ages and was set out by Nilakantha in the Tajika Nilakanthi in the sixteenth century. Its main tool is varshaphala, the chart of the year that begins on the day of the Sun's return. In it one finds the lord of the year, the muntha (the progressed ascendant) and Tajaka's own aspects and yogas, such as ithasala. Ashtakavarga, an old Parashari method of counting points of strength in each sign, shows which transits will support this year and which will weigh on it. Together they answer the question of what this particular year brings.

Main techniques

The varshaphala chart for the Sun's return; the lord of the year (varsheshvara) chosen from five candidates; the muntha moving one sign a year; Tajaka aspects and the sixteen Tajaka yogas (ithasala, ishrafa and others); sahams, sensitive points; mudda dasha for the year; Ashtakavarga bindus for transits.

Classic texts

Tajika Nilakanthi of Nilakantha; Varshaphala texts; Brihat Parashara Hora Shastra for Ashtakavarga.

Questions

What is varshaphala?
The annual chart, cast for the exact moment the Sun returns to its position at birth. It describes the themes of the coming year.
What is the muntha?
A point that starts at the ascendant at birth and moves one sign each year; the house it reaches shows a focus of that year.
Why add Ashtakavarga?
It counts how much support each sign gives to each planet, so it shows which transits of the year will help and which will strain.

See also

Positions and tables: sidereal zodiac, Lahiri ayanamsha — the same as professional Jyotish astrologers use, and the same calculation as the charts in JyotiSoft. Updated 2026-10-21.

What you can do next with your chart

Free

Chart calculator

Lagna, planets by sign and house, nakshatras and dashas — in a minute, no sign-up.

Calculate my chart — free

PDF · pay at once

Complete Natal Chart

Your whole chart in one document of 60–100 pages — to read, reread and share with people close to you.

  • Character, work, relationships, health, money
  • A Vedic interpretation of current and coming periods
  • An audio edition if you like

1499 ⭐

Buy

You pay with Telegram Stars right after the form; the PDF arrives in the chat.

Free

JyotiSoft bot in Telegram

  • A question about your own chart: work, relationships, a move
  • Your day: what supports you and what to avoid
  • Periods (dashas): what runs now and what comes next
  • Compatibility with someone close

Paid answers from 22 ⭐

Open the Telegram bot

⭐ are Telegram Stars: you pay with them inside Telegram, and the price is shown before you confirm.