What is the Vimshottari dasha?
Vimshottari is the most widely used timing system in Vedic astrology. It divides a life of 120 years into mahadashas (main periods) ruled by the nine planets, each split into nine antardashas (sub-periods). The planet ruling the period colours that stretch of life.
The order and lengths
The periods always run in the same order: Ketu 7 years, Venus 20, Sun 6, Moon 10, Mars 7, Rahu 18, Jupiter 16, Saturn 19 and Mercury 17.
How your dasha is calculated
- The first mahadasha belongs to the lord of the nakshatra the Moon was in at birth.
- The share of that nakshatra the Moon had already crossed decides how much of the first period was used up before birth; the rest is your dasha balance at birth.
- Each mahadasha divides into nine antardashas, starting with its own lord, each in proportion to its lord's years.
The calculator works this out from the Moon's exact position (Swiss Ephemeris, Lahiri ayanamsa) and shows every period with its dates, the one running now, and each period's antardashas.
A dasha shows which planet's themes are in focus, not a fixed event. Read it with the birth chart: a planet strong in your chart tends to give a smoother period than a weak one.
Read our chapter on dashas, or compare with your Jaimini Chara dasha.
Questions people ask
How is Vimshottari dasha calculated?
The first period belongs to the lord of the Moon's birth nakshatra. The part of that nakshatra the Moon had already crossed sets how much of the first period remained at birth, and the periods then follow in a fixed order.
What is the order of the mahadashas?
Ketu 7 years, Venus 20, Sun 6, Moon 10, Mars 7, Rahu 18, Jupiter 16, Saturn 19 and Mercury 17: 120 years in all.
What is an antardasha?
An antardasha is a sub-period of a mahadasha. Each mahadasha has nine, starting with its own lord, each in proportion to its lord's years.
What is the dasha balance at birth?
It is the part of the first mahadasha still to run when you were born, worked out from how far the Moon had travelled through its nakshatra.