Vimshottari dasha explained: how your Mahadasha and Antardasha are worked out

What a dasha is

In Vedic astrology, a dasha is a period of life traditionally associated with one planet. The most widely used system, Vimshottari, divides a 120-year span among the nine grahas. Each planet's main period is its Mahadasha, each Mahadasha is split into nine Antardashas, and astrologers read the themes of a period from where the two planets sit in your chart.

You can see your own current Mahadasha, Antardasha and the dates of the coming periods in the free Janam Kundli: enter your date, exact time and place of birth, and the dasha timeline appears under Kundli Phal.

How long each Mahadasha lasts

The nine Mahadashas always run in the same order and always have the same length. Together they add up to exactly 120 years:

• Ketu: 7 years
• Venus (Shukra): 20 years
• Sun (Surya): 6 years
• Moon (Chandra): 10 years
• Mars (Mangal): 7 years
• Rahu: 18 years
• Jupiter (Guru): 16 years
• Saturn (Shani): 19 years
• Mercury (Budh): 17 years, after which the cycle returns to Ketu

Which Mahadasha you are born into

Your first Mahadasha is decided by your birth nakshatra, the star the Moon occupied when you were born. Each of the 27 nakshatras is ruled by one of the nine planets, three nakshatras each:

• Ketu: Ashwini, Magha, Mula
• Venus: Bharani, Purva Phalguni, Purva Ashadha
• Sun: Krittika, Uttara Phalguni, Uttara Ashadha
• Moon: Rohini, Hasta, Shravana
• Mars: Mrigashira, Chitra, Dhanishta
• Rahu: Ardra, Swati, Shatabhisha
• Jupiter: Punarvasu, Vishakha, Purva Bhadrapada
• Saturn: Pushya, Anuradha, Uttara Bhadrapada
• Mercury: Ashlesha, Jyeshtha, Revati

The balance of dasha at birth

You are rarely born at the start of a Mahadasha. Each nakshatra spans 13°20′ of the sky, and the part of it the Moon has already crossed at your birth counts as the part of the first Mahadasha that has already passed. Only the remaining share is yours, and that remainder is called the balance of dasha at birth.

Worked example: suppose the Moon is in Rohini, ruled by the Moon, whose Mahadasha lasts 10 years, and it has crossed 40% of Rohini. The remaining 60% of 10 years gives a balance of 6 years. Someone born on 1 January 2000 would then run Moon Mahadasha until about January 2006, Mars until 2013, Rahu until 2031, Jupiter until 2047 and Saturn until 2066, each running its full length once the first period ends.

This is why the Moon's exact degree matters. A birth time that is off by an hour moves the Moon about half a degree, which shifts every dasha date by several months. When the exact degree is not available, the Janam Kundli tool says the dates are approximate.

How Antardasha dates are calculated

Each Mahadasha is divided among all nine planets in the same order, starting with the Mahadasha lord itself. The length of each Antardasha is proportional to that planet's share of the 120 years:

Antardasha length = Mahadasha years × Antardasha planet's years ÷ 120.

• Rahu Mahadasha, Rahu Antardasha: 18 × 18 ÷ 120 = 2.7 years, about 2 years 8 months
• Rahu Mahadasha, Jupiter Antardasha: 18 × 16 ÷ 120 = 2.4 years, about 2 years 5 months
• Saturn Mahadasha, Saturn Antardasha: 19 × 19 ÷ 120 ≈ 3 years
• Sun Mahadasha, Moon Antardasha: 6 × 10 ÷ 120 = 0.5 years, or 6 months

How astrologers read a dasha

Traditionally, a period is judged by where its planet sits in your chart: the house it occupies, the houses it rules counted from the Lagna, its sign and its strength. The same Saturn Mahadasha is read differently in two charts because Saturn sits in different houses in each. The guide to the 12 houses of a kundli explains what each house traditionally stands for.

The Antardasha lord then colours the Mahadasha: Jupiter Antardasha within Rahu Mahadasha is read through both planets' placements. Many astrologers also look at transits, especially of Saturn and Jupiter, alongside the dasha.

Using your dasha sensibly

The dates in a dasha timeline come from arithmetic and are the same in any correct software, provided the birth details and ayanamsa match. The meaning given to a period is a traditional interpretation, not a prediction you can rely on. Use it to understand your chart, and base decisions about career, money, health or marriage on practical advice. For marriage questions, families usually also look at a kundli match and what the score out of 36 means.