All 52 chapters
- Part 1 · The sky and the chart
- The sky above us
- Time and place of birth
- Two zodiacs
- How a chart is drawn
- Part 2 · The building blocks
- The 9 planets
- The 12 signs
- The 27 nakshatras
- The 12 houses
- The lagnas
- Part 3 · How planets work together
- How planets interact
- Friends, dispositors, exchanges
- House lords
- Reading one placement
- Part 4 · Strength and condition
- Dignity in depth
- A planet's mood
- Planetary strength
- Ashtakavarga in depth
- Part 5 · Patterns: yogas and doshas
- Yogas
- Doshas
- Part 6 · The nakshatras up close
- Reading a nakshatra
- Tara Bala
- Part 7 · Divisional charts
- Divisional charts
- Navamsa in depth
- Part 8 · Timing
- Dashas
- Transits
- The annual chart (Tajika)
- Part 9 · Relationships
- Compatibility
- Marriage in depth
- Part 10 · Advanced systems
- Special points
- Jaimini astrology
- Arudha padas
- KP astrology
- Nadi astrology
- Part 11 · Choosing the moment
- Panchanga
- Muhurta
- Prashna (horary)
- Part 12 · Life areas
- Career, money and business
- Travel, abroad, spirituality
- Health and longevity
- Karma and past lives
- Remedies
- Rectifying a birth time
- Part 13 · Western astrology
- Western astrology basics
- Aspects and chart shapes
- Western prediction
- Synastry
- Horary and electional
- Part 14 · The wider world
- Mundane astrology and eclipses
- Astrocartography and branches
- Part 15 · Putting it all together
- How it all fits
- How AstroMatch4u scores a chart
- Using astrology well
Tara Bala: the nine stars of a day
Is today's star friendly to my birth star?
Your janma nakshatra is the nakshatra your Moon was in at birth. Tara Bala compares it with the nakshatra the Moon is in on any other day. Count from your birth star to the day's star (counting your own as 1), divide by 9, and look at the remainder (a remainder of 0 counts as 9):
| # | Tara | Meaning | Good for starting things? |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Janma | Birth star: sensitive day | Mixed; go carefully |
| 2 | Sampat | Wealth | Good |
| 3 | Vipat | Danger, obstacles | Avoid |
| 4 | Kshema | Well-being | Good |
| 5 | Pratyari | Opposition | Avoid |
| 6 | Sadhaka | Achievement | Very good |
| 7 | Naidhana (Vadha) | Destruction | Avoid most |
| 8 | Mitra | Friend | Good |
| 9 | Ati-Mitra (Parama Mitra) | Great friend | Very good |
The same count is the Tara koota in marriage matching (3 points), where it is done from each partner's star to the other's. It is also used to judge which dasha sub-periods and transits are kind: a planet passing through your 3rd, 5th or 7th tara is read as harder.
Some astrologers watch a few other stars from the birth star too: the 10th (karma), 16th (sanghatika), 18th (samudayika), 23rd (vainashika) and 25th (manasa) nakshatras.
neighbours on your street. Some are friends who help, some are best avoided on an important day.