> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.jyotiguide.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Reading Your Individual Birth Chart in Jyoti Guide
> Cast and read a single natal chart — enter birth data, choose an ayanāṁśa, explore the chart diagram and planets table, and export your results.
The Individual Chart is where every Jyoti Guide session begins. You enter a person's birth details, and the engine returns a complete sidereal natal chart with positions, dignities, house lords, aspects, and five analytical panels ready to layer on. Whether you are new to Vedic astrology or a practicing reader, this page walks you through every element — from the birth-data form to the export menu.
## Entering birth data
The form asks for a birth place, date, and time. The name field is optional — it only labels the output.
### Choosing a place
You have two ways to set the birth location.
Type a city name (for example, `Mumbai`) into the place field and select from the suggestions. Each result shows its coordinates and time zone. Selecting one fills all three values automatically, and a confirmation line appears:
```text theme={null}
Using 19.0728°N, 72.8826°E · timezone Asia/Kolkata
```
This is the fastest option for well-known cities and towns.
Click **Enter coordinates** to type latitude, longitude, and time zone directly. Use this when:
* the birthplace is a village or small hospital not in the search results;
* you already have exact coordinates and want them used verbatim;
* the historical time zone for the birth date differs from the current civil zone.
The latitude, longitude, and time zone are what the engine actually computes from. The place *name* is a label only. If two towns share a name, always confirm the coordinates before generating the chart.
### Setting the date and time
Enter the day, month, and year, then type the **local clock time** as it read at the birthplace. Jyoti Guide converts this to universal time using the selected time zone. For the sidereal mechanics that follow, see [The sidereal sky](/concepts/the-sidereal-sky).
## Choosing the ayanāṁśa
The **Ayanāṁśa** selector above the result offers three values: **Raman**, **Lahiri** (the default), and **Pushya**. Changing the selection re-fetches the entire chart, because the ayanāṁśa shifts every sidereal longitude together. Leave it on **Lahiri** unless you work in a lineage that uses a different value. Full detail is in [Ayanāṁśa options](/reference/ayanamsa).
## Reading the chart diagram
Jyoti Guide draws the chart in two traditional styles. Both encode identical data — choose whichever you read more fluently.
In the North Indian layout the **houses never move**. The 1st house is always the top-centre diamond, and you read counter-clockwise around the figure. The small number printed inside each house is its **sign**; planets are written in the house they occupy.
This style makes it easy to track house-to-house relationships at a glance because the geometry is fixed.
In the South Indian layout the **signs never move**. Aries always occupies the same box in the 4 × 4 grid, and a corner mark indicates where the Lagna falls. Planets are written in their sign's box, and you read clockwise.
This style makes sign-based analysis — exaltations, own signs, aspects — immediately visible because each sign's box is always in the same place.
## The Planets table
The **Planets** table is the most-referenced section of the chart. Each row gives one body's complete sidereal address.
| Column | What it tells you |
| ------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Planet** | The body — Lagna, the seven classical planets, and Rāhu / Ketu. |
| **House** | The life area the body occupies (see [Bhāvas](/concepts/bhavas-and-aspects)). |
| **Sign / Rāśi** | The sidereal sign, with its Sanskrit name. |
| **Degree** | Exact position, e.g. `25°43′28″`. |
| **Nakṣatra · Pada** | Lunar mansion and quarter — the driver of the daśā sequence and the D9 chart. |
| **Status** | Dignity flags: *Exalted*, *Debilitated*, or *Own sign*. |
A sample table output looks like this:
```text theme={null}
Lagna 1st Cancer / Karka 17°06′40″ Ashlesha · 1 —
Sun 11th Taurus / Vrishabha 16°30′36″ Rohini · 2 —
Moon 5th Scorpio / Vrischika 25°43′28″ Jyeshtha · 3 DEBILITATED
Mars 10th Aries / Mesha 15°41′10″ Bharani · 1 OWN SIGN
Mercury 12th Gemini / Mithuna 5°16′50″ Mrigashirsha · 4 OWN SIGN
Saturn 9th Pisces / Meena 18°02′03″ Revati · 1 —
Rahu 8th Aquarius / Kumbha 9°56′10″ Shatabhisha · 1 —
Ketu 2nd Leo / Simha 9°56′10″ Magha · 3 —
```
The headline reading comes quickly: a **Cancer Lagna**, the **Moon debilitated in Scorpio**, but **Mars and Mercury in their own signs** — two significant strengths counterbalancing a notable weakness, all visible before you open any analysis panel.
## House lords, aspects, and combustion
Below the Planets table, the **Relationships & strengths** section makes the chart's structure explicit. These concepts are explained in [Bhāvas & aspects](/concepts/bhavas-and-aspects); in the app they appear as three blocks:
Each house's ruling planet and where it currently sits — for example, `1st lord Moon is in the 5th house`. This is the starting point for judging how each life area is connected.
What each planet aspects and which planets aspect it — for example, `Jupiter from 12th → 4th · 6th · 8th`. Both the **Aspects** and **Aspected by** views are shown.
Each planet's distance from the Sun and whether it is considered burnt (*combust*). If no planet qualifies, the section simply reads `None combust`.
## Sharing and exporting
The action row below the chart gives you several ways to save or share a result.
| Action | Produces |
| --------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Copy share link** | A URL that reopens this exact chart — same birth data, ayanāṁśa, and panel state. |
| **Offline copy** | A self-contained copy you can keep without the app being online. |
| **Full report (PDF)** | A complete, printable reading with chart, tables, strengths, and periods. |
| **Copy chart** | A clean **Markdown** summary — metadata, house table, dignities, house lords, aspects, combustion, the D9, Vimśottarī daśā, Shadbala, Ashtakavarga, and Gochara. Ideal for pasting into notes or sharing with another reader. |
| **Open in GPT** | Hands the chart's full data to an AI assistant for a conversational interpretation. |
See [Exports & sharing](/reference/exports) for the exact contents of each format.
## The five analytical panels
Switch on any of the five panels above the chart to layer deeper analysis onto the natal positions. Each panel has its own dedicated guide:
The life-period timeline — which planet is on stage and when each chapter begins and ends.
Current transits overlaid on your natal chart, read from both Lagna and Moon.
The solar-return chart for a single year, with its own yogas and short daśās.
Six-fold planetary strength — a quantitative measure of each body's power.
Benefic-point maps that support transit timing and sign strength analysis.
For a power-user layout with all sixteen divisional charts visible alongside every panel at once, open [The Workbench](/guides/the-workbench) from the button next to the chart title.