An essential part of a students toolkit

The Dasha system is one of the main aspects which differentiate Jyotish from other forms of Astrology or even other occult practices (like Western Astrology, Tarot etc.)

This is not to take away anything from other forms of studies, however in my limited experience I have found Jyotish to be:

1. Highly structured and analysis based 
2. There are core principles which need to be studied and applied judiciously to a particular situation
3. Repetitive in its manifestation and interpretation generally (statistically that suggests its not a random thing)

More importantly, is its ability to allow us mortal humans to correlate timing of events with static potentials in a birth chart (if the Universe blesses the Jyotishi to do so).

This is based on a concept of Dashas or time periods which indicate certain event themes to manifest in a native’s life.

One wonders how and for what purpose our great ancient sages put together this knowledge. Maybe to help us better understand our karmas and life journey. I still do not have all the answers.

Note: Jyotish is a very technical subject and requires careful weighing of many variables. No one factor determines the complete picture. There are always exceptions. Every chart is unique

What are Dashas

Dashas, are time periods that indicate the potential of any specific life theme to manifest in a native’s life during a certain window of time.

A native whose chart shows a static potential, experiences the full or partial fruit of the same when dashas get activated. Theory suggests this is based on Karmas over many lifetimes.

There many many different forms of Dasha systems in Jyotish, however most of them are classified into two categories:

1. Nakshatra/Planetary period based (Vimshottari Dasha being the most all prominent)
2. Zodiac Sign period based (Chara Dasha being the most prominent) (Sidereal Zodiac)

Dashas get activated the moment a native is born and takes his/her first breath. The life’s static potential maps out based on the positions of the grahas in the sky at that time.

Vimshottari and Chara Dasha

Vimshottari and Chara Dasha are the two main general all purpose Dashas. As both are interpreted very differently they help a student arrive at a “confluence” for a life theme to manifest (in the words of my Guru).

Vimshottari Dasha which is a planetary dasha is based on the position of the Moon’s Nakshatra. Each Nakshtra has a planetary ruler which determines the beginning Dasha period.

A native may be born into the period of Jupiter (which is for 16 years at the max). All the potential of Jupiter will manifest in an individual’s life during that period.

In comparison, Chara Dasha, which is another general all purpose Dasha, is sign based. A person can run the period of Leo and depending on where the sign is positioned in the static birth chart, various themes can manifest.

When two or more Dasha systems indicate the same theme to manifest, the probability of the same increases.

Does this mean there are no exceptions? There are situations when one Dasha system explains the theme more accurately than the other. However what we are looking for is confluence.

By now you would have realized that in Jyotish it is important to stay a student and not adopt a dogma. While the above explanation is very simplistic, it should encourage students to focus on at least two Dasha systems as a part of their study.

Thank you for patiently reading and for your constructive feedback and insights.

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