> ## 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.
# Shadbala Formulas: Complete Six-Bala Strength Reference
> The full technical derivation of all six balas, classical maxima, minimum thresholds, and the ratio formula used in the Shadbala panel.
Shadbala ("six-fold strength") is the classical framework for measuring how strong each planet is in a given chart. The app computes it according to **B. V. Raman, *Graha and Bhava Balas***, the primary source behind the Shadbala panel. All figures are in **virūpas** (also called Ṣaṣṭiāṁśas), where **60 virūpas = 1 rūpa**. Chapter references below are to Raman's book. Use this page as a technical companion to the panel itself — it tells you exactly where each number comes from and how the totals are judged.
Several components admit more than one classical method. The **Reading School** selector (Raman / Classical BPHS / Custom) in the Shadbala panel chooses among them. The figures on this page describe the standard **Raman** scheme. See the [Shadbala guide](/guides/shadbala) for how to switch reading schools.
## Formula overview
The total Shadbala for each planet is the sum of six independent balas:
```text theme={null}
Shadbala = Sthāna-bala + Dig-bala + Kāla-bala + Cheṣṭā-bala + Naisargika-bala + Dṛk-bala
```
That total is then compared against a fixed **minimum requirement** for each planet to produce a **ratio**. A ratio of 1.0 or higher means the planet meets the classical threshold for full strength.
***
## 1. Sthāna-bala — positional strength (Raman, ch. III)
Sthāna-bala measures where a planet sits in the zodiac and which dignities it holds. It is itself the sum of five sub-components:
| Sub-component | Strength from | Maximum (virūpas) |
| --------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----------------- |
| **Uccha-bala** | Distance from the debilitation point. Zero at exact debilitation, rising linearly to the maximum at exact exaltation. | 60 |
| **Saptavargaja-bala** | Dignity (own sign, friend's sign, exaltation, etc.) totalled across seven vargas: D1, D2, D3, D7, D9, D12, D30. | varies |
| **Ojayugma-bala** | Occupying the "correct" odd (*oja*) or even (*yugma*) sign and navāṁśa for the planet's nature. | 15 (+15) |
| **Kendrādi-bala** | Angular house = 60, succedent (*paṇaphara*) = 30, cadent (*āpoklima*) = 15. | 60 |
| **Drekkāṇa-bala** | A planet in the appropriate decanate for its nature earns points. | 15 |
For **Uccha-bala**, Parāśara's rule applies: take the planet's longitude minus its debilitation point; if the result exceeds 180°, subtract from 360°. That remainder, scaled linearly, gives the virūpa value — 60 at exact exaltation, 0 at exact debilitation.
The **Saptavargaja** tier values — how many virūpas a planet earns for occupying its mūlatrikoṇa, own sign, great friend's sign, and so on — are what the **Custom → Saptavargaja** option toggles between (for example, the BPHS six-tier scheme versus Raman's seven-tier scheme).
***
## 2. Dig-bala — directional strength (Raman, ch. IV)
Each planet is strongest in one cardinal direction, expressed as a house, and weakest in the opposite house. Strength increases with proximity to the planet's strong point and reaches a maximum of 60 virūpas exactly at that cusp.
| Direction | House | Planets strong here |
| --------- | ----------- | ------------------- |
| East | 1st (Lagna) | Mercury, Jupiter |
| South | 10th | Sun, Mars |
| West | 7th | Saturn |
| North | 4th | Moon, Venus |
***
## 3. Kāla-bala — temporal strength (Raman, ch. V)
Kāla-bala is the largest and most intricate of the six balas. It bundles several time-based sub-strengths, each reflecting the planet's relationship to the moment of birth:
| Component | Strength from | Maximum (virūpas) |
| ------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | ----------------- |
| **Nathonnata-bala** | Whether the chart is diurnal or nocturnal, and the planet's preference for day or night. | 60 |
| **Pakṣa-bala** | The lunar fortnight — benefics gain strength as the Moon waxes, malefics as it wanes. | 60 |
| **Tribhāga-bala** | Rulership of the current one-third division of day or night. | 60 |
| **Abda-bala** | Lord of the birth year (Sāmvatsara). | 15 |
| **Māsa-bala** | Lord of the birth month. | 30 |
| **Vāra-bala** | Lord of the birth weekday. | 45 |
| **Horā-bala** | Lord of the birth planetary hour. | 60 |
| **Ayana-bala** | Declination north or south of the celestial equator, weighted by season. | 60 |
| **Yuddha-bala** | "Planetary war" — when two planets are very close in longitude, the winner gains virūpas and the loser loses them. | — |
***
## 4. Cheṣṭā-bala — motional strength (Raman, ch. VI)
Cheṣṭā means "effort" or "motion." A planet that is retrograde or moving slower than its mean speed is considered to be exerting extra effort and therefore gains strength, up to a maximum of **60 virūpas**. The classical derivation uses the planet's position relative to its *śīghrocca* and mean-motion tables from traditional astronomy.
The **Sun and Moon never retrograde, so they carry no ordinary Cheṣṭā-bala.** By convention, the Sun's Ayana-bala and the Moon's Pakṣa-bala serve in its place. The **Custom → Cheṣṭā** option lets you compute motional strength either from classical mean-motion tables or from modern (heliocentric) true speeds.
***
## 5. Naisargika-bala — natural strength (Raman, ch. VII)
Naisargika-bala is a **fixed constant** for each planet, ordered by apparent brightness. It never changes from chart to chart:
| Planet | Naisargika-bala (virūpas) |
| ------- | ------------------------- |
| Sun | 60.00 |
| Moon | 51.43 |
| Venus | 42.85 |
| Jupiter | 34.28 |
| Mercury | 25.70 |
| Mars | 17.14 |
| Saturn | 8.57 |
The values step down in equal increments of 60⁄7 ≈ 8.57 virūpas from the Sun to Saturn.
***
## 6. Dṛk-bala — aspect strength (Raman, ch. VIII)
Dṛk-bala captures the net effect of all aspects falling on a planet. **Benefic aspects add virūpas; malefic aspects subtract them.** Because of this, Dṛk-bala can be **negative** — the only bala in the system for which that is possible. Raman's *Dṛṣṭi Kendra* rule weights each aspect by orb: the effect begins beyond 30° ahead of the aspecting planet, peaks at the exact aspected degree, and fades toward the 300th degree.
***
## Minimum strength required
The total Shadbala is judged against a classical minimum for each planet. Meeting or exceeding the threshold means the planet is considered **fully strong** in the chart:
| Planet | Minimum required (virūpas) | Minimum required (rūpas) |
| ------- | -------------------------- | ------------------------ |
| Sun | 300 | 5.0 |
| Moon | 360 | 6.0 |
| Mars | 300 | 5.0 |
| Mercury | 420 | 7.0 |
| Jupiter | 390 | 6.5 |
| Venus | 330 | 5.5 |
| Saturn | 300 | 5.0 |
The **ratio** displayed in the panel is:
```text theme={null}
Ratio = Total Shadbala ÷ Minimum required
```
A ratio of 1.0 means the planet exactly meets the threshold; above 1.0 it exceeds it; below 1.0 it falls short.
***
## Related measures
* **Ishta & Kashta Phala** (Raman, ch. X) — "benefic yield" and "malefic yield," derived primarily from a planet's Uccha-bala and Cheṣṭā-bala. They measure the *quality* of a planet's results, not just its raw quantity of strength.
* **Bhāva-bala** (Raman, ch. IX) — the strength of each **house**, built from its lord's strength, the strength of planets occupying it, planets aspecting it, and its intrinsic significations. The same six-bala machinery, applied to houses rather than planets.
***
## Worked totals — sample chart
The table below shows the panel output for the app's sample chart:
| Planet | Total (virūpas) | Rūpas | Min req (virūpas) | Ratio |
| ------- | --------------- | ----- | ----------------- | ----- |
| Sun | 584.26 | 9.74 | 300 | 1.95 |
| Jupiter | 482.56 | 8.04 | 390 | 1.24 |
| Mercury | 469.50 | 7.83 | 420 | 1.12 |
| Venus | 453.49 | 7.56 | 330 | 1.37 |
| Mars | 442.08 | 7.37 | 300 | 1.47 |
| Moon | 326.50 | 5.44 | 360 | 0.91 |
| Saturn | 295.16 | 4.92 | 300 | 0.98 |
The Sun clears its threshold nearly twice over (1.95×). The Moon and Saturn both fall just short (0.91 and 0.98 respectively). For guidance on interpreting these numbers in context, see the [Shadbala guide](/guides/shadbala).