This portal is dedicated to Vedic Astrology - Vedanga Jyotish, a science that is deep-rooted in Indian culture, tradition, and philosophy of life.

Graha and Bhava Balas

By Kshitij Sharma,
Published: May 19, 2008, Last Updated: April 13, 2014

Name of the book Graha and Bhava Balas
Author Dr. B. V. Raman
Publisher UBS Publishers Distributors Ltd
Amazon Link Graha and Bhava Balas: a unique treatise for measuring the strengths of planets and houses numerically

The books on astrology by Dr. B. V. Raman are concise and short. This book is a typical one, just about 125 pages long but even then it packs a punch. There are no metaphysical discussion, no subjective lectures; this is pure mathematics and in the words of the author “… all superfluous material has been omitted …”

The book, which assumes a basic knowledge in astrology, ought to be mathematical since it covers shadbala, which are six factors of strength of planets in a horoscope. The unit of strength of a planet in a horoscope is rupa. Interestingly, rupa was also the monetary unit in ancient India, a word from which the modern day currency of Indian Rupee is derived. That’s besides the point though.

This book helps answer a basic question of strength of planet in a chart. While the intuition and experience of an astrologer is supreme, it is a tool that helps increase accuracy of prediction. Therefore, it is an important aid for all astrologers.

There are tons of example in the book to help a budding astrologer understand the mathematics. Since all the calculations can fit in a computer program, shadbala calculation is a default part of most horoscope software available online on the Internet or as installable programs. Therefore, it may be possible that an astrologer may never have to do this calculation on a piece of paper, but it would not hurt to know the source of all the code available in these computer programs.



2 comments

  • Comment by nipun on February 18, 2010 at 1:13 pm

    my dos is 13-04-1982,3:42pm
    my lagna is leo and it was placd in 8th house,and aspected by kuja and sani(both are in vakra).lord of eighth house is in 3rd (vakra too).what will be the result in sun dasa.is there any problem for longetivity.how will be my earnings

  • Comment by shalini negi negi on May 26, 2020 at 1:35 pm

    My lagna is scorpio and i have sun in 8th house .. kindly explain

Please follow this link for Contact and Consultation.

Before submitting a comment on VEDIC ASTROLOGY, please understand that discussions/messages on the forum and on the blog are visible to the visitors of the site as public information and you allow the site to use the comment appropriately in the articles and notes. Inappropriate and irrelevant comments will be removed at an admin’s discretion. Your email is used for verification purposes only, it will never be shared. Please go through the Terms of Use in the footer of the page.