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The Ashtakūṭa (“eight-fold”) system is the classical framework for assessing compatibility between two charts. It awards points across eight factors — almost all derived from each partner’s Moon sign and birth nakṣatra — for a combined maximum of 36 points. This page gives the complete scoring rules for every kūṭa in the order the app presents them, followed by a note on the chart-level factors that matter even when the score looks favourable.

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The eight kūṭas at a glance

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1. Varṇa (1 point)

Each Moon sign carries a varṇa — a spiritual-temperamental class — according to its element:
  • Brahmin — water signs: Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces
  • Kṣatriya — fire signs: Aries, Leo, Sagittarius
  • Vaiśya — earth signs: Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn
  • Śūdra — air signs: Gemini, Libra, Aquarius
The single point is awarded when the groom’s varṇa is equal to or higher than the bride’s in that hierarchy (Brahmin being the highest). A bride with a higher varṇa than the groom scores 0.

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2. Vaśya (2 points)

Signs are grouped into five vaśya types based on their symbolic nature: Chatuṣpada (quadruped), Mānava (human), Jalachara (watery), Keeta (insect/scorpion), and Vanachara (wild/forest). The score reflects mutual “controllability” and natural harmony between the partners’ signs:
  • Full 2 points — each partner’s sign is in the vaśya group of the other’s, or they share a group.
  • Partial 1 point — one-directional vaśya relationship.
  • 0 points — no vaśya relationship between the two signs.

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3. Tārā (3 points)

Count forward from one partner’s birth nakṣatra to the other’s (1 through 27), divide the count by 9, and read the remainder as one of nine tārās. Repeat the count in the reverse direction. The two results are averaged to produce the Tārā score. The nine tārās, in order, alternate between auspicious and inauspicious:
  1. Janma — mixed
  2. Sampat — auspicious ✓
  3. Vipat — inauspicious ✗
  4. Kṣema — auspicious ✓
  5. Pratyak — inauspicious ✗
  6. Sādhana — auspicious ✓
  7. Naidhana — inauspicious ✗
  8. Mitra — auspicious ✓
  9. Ati-mitra — auspicious ✓
Auspicious tārās in both directions yield full 3 points; inauspicious tārās in either direction reduce the score proportionally.

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4. Yoni (4 points)

Each nakṣatra is assigned one of 14 animal yonis, and the yoni carries a sex (masculine or feminine). The yoni pairs are compared for natural relationship: The sex of the two yoni animals provides finer gradation within the friendly and neutral categories. For example, a masculine and feminine animal of the same yoni scores higher than two animals of the same sex. The fourteen yonis are: horse, elephant, sheep, serpent, dog, cat, rat, cow, buffalo, tiger, deer, monkey, mongoose, and lion.

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5. Graha Maitri (5 points)

Take the lord of each partner’s Moon sign and look up the planetary friendship between those two lords. The five-point scale follows mutual friendship status:
  • Mutual great friends → 5
  • One friend, one great friend → 4
  • Mutual friends → 3 (or one friend, one neutral)
  • One neutral, one enemy — 1–2 (varies by combination)
  • Mutual enemies → 0
This kūṭa addresses mental and intellectual compatibility — how well the two minds understand and support each other day to day.

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6. Gaṇa (6 points)

Each of the 27 nakṣatras belongs to one of three temperament groups:
  • Deva (divine) — gentle, spiritually inclined, sattvic
  • Manuṣya (human) — balanced, practical, rajasic
  • Rākṣasa (demonic) — intense, independent, tamasic
The scoring follows this matrix: A Deva–Rākṣasa pairing in either direction is traditionally considered the most challenging combination.

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7. Bhakūṭa (7 points)

Count from the bride’s Moon sign to the groom’s, and then from the groom’s to the bride’s. Certain mutual distances are doshas and score 0 points; all other combinations score the full 7: Bhakūṭa governs emotional and material harmony, family welfare, and the prosperity of the household. A dosha here is flagged separately in the app even if the overall score remains high.

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8. Nāḍī (8 points)

Each nakṣatra belongs to one of three nāḍīs — Ādi (first), Madhya (middle), or Antya (last). The scoring rule is the reverse of every other kūṭa:
  • Different nāḍīs → 8 points (full score)
  • Same nāḍī → 0 points (Nāḍī dosha)
Nāḍī dosha is traditionally the most serious of all the compatibility warnings because it is held to affect the health, vitality, and progeny of the couple. The app flags it explicitly regardless of the total score.
Nāḍī and Bhakūṭa carry the most weight — 8 and 7 points respectively — and their doshas are treated most seriously in classical practice. A high total score that conceals a Nāḍī or Bhakūṭa dosha should not be read as a clean match. This is why the app flags doshas separately from the total and displays the marriage houses and D9 navāṁśa alongside the score.

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Beyond the score: doshas and chart factors

The 36-point total is a screening tool, not a verdict. Classical practice follows the Ashtakūṭa score with a review of several additional chart factors:
  • Mangal dosha — whether Mars occupies the 1st, 4th, 7th, 8th, or 12th house in each chart, and whether the dosha is mutual or classically mitigated.
  • 7th house and its lord — the condition of the house of partnership in each partner’s D1 (birth chart).
  • Venus and Jupiter — Venus as the natural significator of relationship, Jupiter as significator of wisdom and children, assessed in both D1 and D9.
  • D9 navāṁśa — vargottama planets, the strength of the 7th house, and the navāṁśa lagna in each chart.
For a full walkthrough of how all of these factors appear together in the report, see Couple Compatibility.