More and more people who have had extensive involvement with Western astrology are seeking to know more about Eastern astrology and it's techniques.

One of the first challenges Westerners face when beginning their excursion into eastern studies are the square charts. Naturally people accustomed to reading the circular chart format used in the West will find the square chart confusing at first glance. However, learning to read a square chart is simply a matter of practice.

To show how easily square charts can be read an example of one chart, written in the two most common square chart formats, can be seen below. (Jyotishtools shareware sofware for calculation Vedic charts - excellent for a beginner. Downloads reasonably fast.)

South Indian style chart on the left, North Indian style chart on the right. GL = Gati Lagna, AL = Arudha Lagna HL=Hora Lagna. The Planets are all identified with the first three letters. The Nodes have planetary status in Vedic astrology.

The South Indian Chart Style:

The first chart on the left, filled with squares, is called the South Indian chart system. Here the chart is read in a clockwise pattern. In this pattern the position of the signs never change. The upper left-hand square is always Pisces; the upper right hand square is always Gemini. The lower right hand square is always Virgo and the lower left hand square is Sagittarius.

In this format the ascendant is shown by the placement of a line through the sign or by the inclusion of the abbreviation for the ascendant in the appropriate sign. The abbreviation may be either AS or ASC.

In this example, the ascendant is Capricorn. The abbreviation ASC, marking the ascendant is placed in the box representing Capricorn as the first house of this example chart.

To enhance clarity let us continue in a clockwise fashion around the chart, making note of the signs each planet is located in. Moving clockwise from Capricorn, we see the MOON, GL (Ghati Lagna) and AL (Arudha Lagna) placed in the square marking Aries. These foreign sounding Lagnas will be discussed at another time. For the purpose of this demonstration the planets and special Lagnas will only be identified as an aid to clarity.

Next we find the HL (Hora Lagna) in Taurus, KETU in Gemini, JUPITER in Cancer, nothing in Leo, SUN in Virgo, SATURN and MERCURY in Libra, VENUS in Scorpio, RAHU in Sagittarius and back to MARS in the first house Capricorn.

A summary of the South Indian chart format differences show:

1) In the South Indian chart the signs remain constant, therefore only planets and other special considerations are included in each box.
2) The South Indian chart is read in a clockwise order.
3) The South Indian chart shows the ascendant by a diagonal line or an abbreviation.

The North Indian Chart Style:

Look now to the example chart on the right, this format is called the North Indian chart. Here the first house is always the top diamond and subsequent houses are read in a counter-clockwise motion. The numbers shown in this format tell us which sign is in each house. For example, you can see MARS situated in the top triangle along with the number 10. The number ten represents the sign Capricorn. Therefore Capricorn is the ascendant in the example.

Before going around this chart in the same fashion as was done to show the South Indian chart let's review sign names and their appropriate numbers. The first list will show the western names of the signs whereas the second list will show the transliteration of the Sanskrit names.

Although it is not necessary to learn the Sanskrit names for the signs or the planets the lack of this knowledge will seriously hamper further reading.

Now going around the North Indian chart in the same way that was done in the South Indian chart the planets fall in the following pattern:

MARS falls in the top diamond and holds the number 10 signifying the sign Capricorn. Next moving in a counter clockwise motion the number 11 is seen in the triangle representing the sign Aquarius. Next comes a triangle with the number 12, representing Pisces.

Now we can see the second diamond holding GL, AL and the MOON. The number in this diamond is 1 representing the sign Aries. Next comes HL in a triangle with the number 2 representing Taurus. KETU falls in the next triangle representing Gemini.

The third large diamond holds JUPITER and the number 4 representing the sign of Cancer. The 8th house comes next with the number 5 representing Leo. The ninth house holds both the SUN and the number 6 representing Virgo.

The final large diamond holds SATURN, MERCURY and the number 7 representing the sign Libra. This is followed by VENUS and the number 8 representing Scorpio and finally the last house, which holds RAHU and the number 9 representing the sign Sagittarius.

A summary of the South Indian chart format differences show:

1) In the North Indian chart the signs remain constant, therefore only planets and other special considerations are included in each triangle.
2) The North Indian chart is read in a counter clockwise order.
3) The North Indian chart always places the ascendant in the top diamond.
4) The North Indian chart shows the signs by using numbers, not symbols or abbreviations.

Take your time, play with these charts or those of other people and before long, reading a square chart will be as easy as reading a circular one.

© Phyllis Chubb, M.A. 2001-2002

Phyllis teaches on the web through Dirah Academy, and you can e-mail Phyllis by clicking on her name.

© Phyllis Chubb