The 9 planets (Grahas)

Who or what creates the influence?

Vedic astrology works with nine "planets", called grahas, a word that means "those that grab hold of you". Seven are real bodies you can see in the sky: the Sun, the Moon, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus and Saturn. The other two, Rahu and Ketu, are not objects at all. They are the two points where the Moon's path crosses the Sun's path, the points where eclipses happen, so tradition treats them as "shadow planets". Uranus, Neptune and Pluto are not used.

Each planet stands for one kind of energy, and the same planet always means the same thing in every chart. Each one also rules one or two signs, has a sign where it is at its strongest, and a day of the week named after it (Sunday for the Sun, Monday for the Moon, and so on).

a play with nine actors. Each actor always plays the same character. How well they perform depends on the costume (the sign) and the stage (the house) they are given.

The nine planets: what each one rules, where it is strongest, what it stands for and its day.

Tradition also sorts the planets from gentle to harsh. Benefics (Jupiter, Venus, a bright Moon) tend to help and soften whatever they touch. Malefics (Saturn, Mars, Rahu, Ketu, and mildly the Sun) tend to test, delay or cut. Mercury has no nature of its own and takes on the colour of the planets beside it. "Harsh" does not mean bad: Saturn's delays build patience, and Mars's heat builds courage.

From gentle to harsh: the natural nature of each planet.

Each planet at a glance

Every planet is a karaka, a "significator": it naturally stands for certain people, body parts and things in every chart. These are the meanings tradition gives them:

Planet	Stands for (karaka)	Body	Nature	Element · gender	Direction	Gem
Sun · Surya	Soul, father, authority, government, confidence	Heart, bones, eyes, vitality	Mild malefic	Fire · male	East	Ruby
Moon · Chandra	Mind, mother, feelings, public, comfort	Fluids, blood, chest, sleep	Benefic when bright	Water · female	North-west	Pearl
Mars · Mangal	Courage, energy, brothers, land, police, sport	Muscles, blood, marrow, injuries	Malefic	Fire · male	South	Red coral
Mercury · Budha	Intellect, speech, trade, writing, friends, youth	Nerves, skin, lungs, speech	Takes on its company	Earth · neutral	North	Emerald
Jupiter · Guru	Wisdom, teachers, children, wealth, faith, husband (in a woman's chart)	Liver, fat, hips, growth	Great benefic	Ether · male	North-east	Yellow sapphire
Venus · Shukra	Love, beauty, art, comfort, vehicles, wife (in a man's chart)	Reproductive system, kidneys, face	Benefic	Water · female	South-east	Diamond
Saturn · Shani	Time, discipline, work, servants, old age, delay, endurance	Bones, joints, teeth, chronic issues	Great malefic	Air · neutral	West	Blue sapphire
Rahu	Obsession, foreign things, technology, sudden rise, illusion	Hard-to-diagnose problems	Malefic	— (shadow)	South-west	Hessonite
Ketu	Detachment, past skills, spirituality, sudden cuts	Hidden or nervous problems	Malefic	— (shadow)	—	Cat's eye

Two more ideas belong here. A planet's natural meaning (Jupiter is always wisdom) is different from its functional meaning in your chart: what it does because of the houses it rules there (the house lords chapter). And tradition gives each planet an age of maturity, when its promise is said to ripen: Jupiter 16, Sun 22, Moon 24, Venus 25, Mars 28, Mercury 32, Saturn 36, Rahu 42 and Ketu 48 are the ages commonly quoted.

every planet's sign, house and strength is on your Kundali Overview.

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