OPENJYOTISH PRIMER, CHAPTER 5: ASHTAKAVARGA AND GOCHARA
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Original synthesis by the OpenJyotish contributors (AGPL-3.0, like the
program). Ashtakavarga rules describe this program's engine exactly
(SAV 337 invariant, verified house-for-house against an independent
implementation); gochara doctrine is classical; the transit table is
live engine output for 2026-09-11 on the reference chart (1990-01-15,
17:30 IST, Bangalore) — reproduce with `jhora transit` on that data.


1. BINNA AND SARVA ASHTAKAVARGA
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Eight references (Sun through Saturn plus Lagna) each drop bindus into
their benefic houses, counted from their own positions, per a fixed
(subject, contributor) matrix. Summing one planet's eight rows gives
its Bhinna Ashtakavarga (BAV); summing all seven BAVs gives the Sarva
Ashtakavarga (SAV). No occupancy condition enters: totals are
chart-invariant — Sun 48, Moon 49, Mars 39, Mercury 54, Jupiter 56,
Venus 52, Saturn 39, SAV 337 in every chart ever cast. Only the
DISTRIBUTION across signs varies, and distribution is the whole art.

Reference SAV for the fixture chart (Aries to Pisces):
35, 27, 29, 21, 31, 33, 33, 33, 21, 22, 25, 27 (total 337).


2. READING SAV AND BAV
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A sign with SAV above 30 is strong: even malefics transiting it give
favorable results. Below 25 is weak: even benefics struggle there.
Between 25 and 30 is neutral ground. This program marks the same
cutoffs (30 good, 25 weak) when scoring transits.

BAV reads per planet: Jupiter transiting a sign where its BAV holds 5+
bindus (of 8) prospers; 0–2 bindus starves it. Combine both: a transit
is favorable only with SAV above 30 AND BAV 4 or more — this program's
exact rule. One strong number never rescues the other.


3. GOCHARA (TRANSITS) FROM THE MOON
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Classical gochara judges transits from the natal Moon's sign. Benefic
transit houses by planet: Sun 3, 6, 10, 11; Moon 1, 3, 6, 7, 10, 11;
Mars 3, 6, 11; Mercury 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 11; Jupiter 2, 5, 7, 9, 11;
Venus 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 11, 12; Saturn 3, 6, 11; Rahu and Ketu 3,
6, 11. The 11th from the Moon favors every planet without exception.

Reference transits, 2026-09-11, natal Moon in Leo:
Sun in Leo (H3/H1-from-Moon, SAV 31, BAV 5) — favorable.
Moon in Leo (H3/H1, SAV 31, BAV 4) — favorable.
Mars in Virgo (H4/H2, SAV 33, BAV 2) — strong sign, starved planet:
mixed, leaning difficult.
Mercury in Libra (H5/H3, SAV 33, BAV 2) — same pattern: good ground,
weak planet.
Jupiter in Gemini (H1/H11, SAV 29, BAV 5) — excellent 11th-from-Moon
placement spoiled by sub-30 SAV: help that arrives late.
Venus in Cancer (H2/H12, SAV 21, BAV 4) — weak sign despite decent
BAV: comforts cost more than usual.
Saturn in Pisces (H10/H8, SAV 27, BAV 2) — 8th from Moon and weak on
both counts: the month's heaviest transit, demanding patience.

Read the pattern, not isolated planets: September 2026 gives this chart
luminaries supported, outer planets starved — act through visibility
and routine, postpone Saturn-ruled commitments (property, elders,
long-term contracts).


4. SADE SATI AND DHAIYA
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Transit Saturn in the 12th, 1st or 2nd from the natal Moon is Sade
Sati: seven and a half years of Saturnine pressure in three phases
(12th: expense and displacement; 1st/peak: health and self; 2nd:
family and income). Transits through the 4th and 8th from the Moon
(Dhaiya, the small panoti, two and a half years each) are classically
difficult in a lesser key. Here Saturn in Pisces stands 8th from natal
Leo — not Sade Sati (this program reports the verdict explicitly on
the Dashboard), but squarely inside Dhaiya territory: the heaviness
above has a name and an expiry date.


5. WHERE THIS LIVES IN THE PROGRAM
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Ashtakavarga tab (BAV grids, SAV bar, kakshya tables), Transits tab
and `jhora transit` (positions with SAV/BAV scores and favorability),
Tajaka for solar returns, Dashboard transits panel, conversation anchor
(transit snapshot the AI reads), and the verification note (every SAV,
BAV and transit house in an AI answer is checked before display).
