Match Making – An exhaustive review :

In astrology when we talk about matchmaking, we invariably talk about "Ashtakoot Milan". In order to remove mist around this highly sought after method, let us examine how it works and its relevance in today’s society. Most importantly let us be unbiased and flexible in our approach.

"Ashtakoot Milan" means matchmaking (Milan) in 8 (Asht) ways (koot). Each of these 8 ways are provided weight (Guna).

 

Before we dig deeper, let us understand basic astrology that we will require to understand this article:

• Position of the moon is taken as the basis for all calculations in "Ashtakoot Milan" like nakshatra and Rashi in which the moon is present.
• Moons being the closest astrological planet, have the most impact on a person.
• Symbol assigned to Rashi/Sign has a significant impact on nature related to that sign.
• There are 27 nakshatra. Circle has 360°. So, each nakshatra has 360/27 = 13.33°

 

Varna/Varan/Jaati

There are 4 Varna i.e., Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vaishya and Shudras. Brahmin have affinity to Moksha, Kshatriya towards Dharam, Vaishya to Arth and Shudras towards Kaam.

 

Guna: 1 point is provided if partners have the same “Varna” or if boy’s “Varna” is higher. 0 points if the girl’s “Varna” is higher.

Dosha: Couples scoring 0 points are said to have Varna Dosha

Opinion: It is a general experience that unless both partners have similar goals or attitude towards life, life becomes a drag for both of them. While this system worked till last generation, it is NOT relevant in today’s culture and needs to be updated with changing times. Life is blissful if both husband and wife complement each other and have same the outlook.

 

Vasya/Vashya

There are 5 Vasya i.e., Manav/Nara (human), Vanchar (wild animals), Chatushpad (4 legged animals), Jalchar (sea animals), Keeta/Keet (insects).

Based on symbols assigned to each rashi/sign, these 5 Vasya are assigned. They represent the physical nature and attitude of a person.

 

Guna: 2 points are provided for Vasya. Why is this more important than Varna (1 point) is anyone’s guess.

 

Dosha: Couples scoring 0 points are said to have Vasya Dosha.

Opinion: This seems more or less on equal footing for both the partners except when the girl is wilder than the boy. That being said, today’s world is more fluid regarding who wants to be dominated by whom. This is more of a personal choice between couples rather than society deciding rigid good-bad system.

 

Tara/Dina

Hold on, this is one of the most complicated calculations in "Ashtakoot Milan". Tara is divided into 9 parts i.e., 1) Janma (Self), 2) Sampat (prosperity, success), 3) Vipat (Disaster), 4) Kshem (Wellbeing, Safety), 5) Pratyari (Obstacle), 6) Saadhak (Perfective), 7) Vadh (Kill), 8) Mitra (Friend), 9) Ati-Mitra (best friend) in that order. Take the moon nakshatra of both boy and girl and mark it on the table below. Number of nakshatra between both is counted and an appropriate decision is taken based on the above 9 Tara. Let’s take a few examples.

1. Boy Nakshatra – Magha; Girl Nakshatra – Moola; Tara (Boy to Girl) – 1; Tara (Girl to Boy) - 1
2. Boy Nakshatra – Magha; Girl Nakshatra – Krittika; Tara (Boy to Girl) – 3; Tara (Girl to Boy) – 8 (Krittika in 3^rd line, so counting from 3 till 9 and from 1)
3. Boy Nakshatra – Ardra; Girl Nakshatra – Uttarashada; Tara (Boy to Girl) – 7; Tara (Girl to Boy) – 4

 

 

Guna: 3 points are provided for Tara.

If nakshatra difference* from boy to girl and girl to boy, both are good, 3 points are given.

If nakshatra difference* from boy to girl is good and girl to boy is bad or vice versa, 1.5 points are given.

If nakshatra difference* from boy to girl and girl to boy, both are bad, 0 points are given.

* While some suggest that only the effect of girl’s nakshatra be checked on boy’s life, others seem to have already adopted the effect of boy’s nakshatra on girl’s life.

 

Dosha: Couples scoring 0 points are said to have Tara Dosha.

 

Opinion: Vasya is dependent on the difference between The Moon angles of boy and girl. I personally see no basis to this calculation. I need to be honest, however hard I try to make sense of this calculation, it simply makes no sense to me. I tried looking for any clue or hint. I made many different astrological calculations but to no avail. So, does vasya work? Truthfully, since there is no basis to it, the answer is anyone’s guess.

 

Yoni

This is the most interesting and preposterous of all "Ashtakoot Milan". It categorises the type of Yoni (sexual organ) based on the Moon nakshatra. There are 14 animals assigned which are further divided into male and female yoni type (Some take effect of male and female yoni type others don’t). Basically, it tries to determine sexual satisfaction based on type, shape, size and depth of sexual organ.

 

 

Guna: 4 points are provided for Yoni. Scoring charts for matches between different sexual organ types is provided below.

 

Dosha: Couples scoring 0 points are said to have Yoni Dosha.

Opinion: With so many sexual wellness tools available around the world, physical satisfaction is only limited by one’s imagination. Unlike olden days when there was no internet, the amount of knowledge and content available is literally infinite. Yoni Milan is not as important in modern times and that too assigning 4 points seems a bit of stretch.

 

Graha Maitri

Graha Maitri involves compatibility between Rashi in which the Moon is located. All 12 rashi are governed by a planet and each planet has their nature. Some are soft and feminine while others are tough and masculine. Idea here is to see if Couples feel comfortable in a similar environment. A person with the Moon in Capricorn (Saturn) will want to take things slow and steady while a person with the Moon in Scorpio (Mars) will want to move fast and aggressively. This may be cause of mismatch.

 

Guna: 5 points are provided for Graha Maitri. Compatibility chart is provided below.

 

Dosha: Couples scoring 0 points are said to have Graha Maitri Dosha.

 

Opinion: In my view, Graha Maitri is something that needs to be considered seriously. In the long run, if Couples have a similar comfort zone they would collude and bond. While adjustment can be made in the short term to accommodate differences in opinion, in the long term it’s better to have a partner with whom you can be comfortable with.

 

Gana

There are 27 nakshatras. Of these, 9 are highly auspicious, 9 are average and 9 have negative connotations to it. The auspicious ones are named “Dev Gana”, average ones are named “Manushya Gana” and the remaining are named “Raksha Gana”. They are based on quality and what these nakshatras represent.

 

Guna: 6 points are provided for Gana. There is a huge difference between how points are counted for Gana. Some say that boy’s Gana should be equal or better than a girl. Some treat both genders on equal footing while calculating while others have different points for different matches. This is the only one in "Ashtakoot Milan" where there is no one single way for point calculation.

 

Dosha: Couples scoring 0 points are said to have Gana Dosha.

Opinion: In my view, this one is tricky. If we examine closely, generally 6 (or 5) points are provided for a match between Dev and Manushya Gana. It is only that we are discriminating with Raksha Gana or with people who are born in these 9 inauspicious nakshatra. Of these doomed 9 nakshatra, 5 are not so inauspicious (Kritika, Chitra, Vishakha, Dhanishtha and Shatbheesha.) and for remaining 4 (Ashlesha, Magha, Jyeshtha and Moola) “Gand moola” puja is performed. So, in the that end, Gana milan can be safely removed from "Ashtakoot Milan" with a rider that people born in Ashlesha, Magha, Jyeshtha and Moola get proper “Gand moola” puja done. This “Gand moola” is not just about the matchmaking it also actually helps a person in general.

 

Rashi or Bhakoot

Rashi or Bhakoot milan is based on the relative position of the Moons in a partner’s chart. Rashi in which the Moon is present is seen for both boys and girls and the table is used for point calculation.

 

Guna: 7 points are provided for Rashi or Bhakoot. One gets either 7 points or 0 points. Compatibility chart is provided below.

 

Dosha: Couples scoring 0 points are said to have Rashi or Bhakoot Dosha.

 

Opinion: In my view, this one is the most flawed among all of "Ashtakoot Milan". There are 2 reasons.

First, it is common knowledge among astrologers that when two planets are opposite to each other, they are considered the worst of all. Above chart suggests that people with the Moon in opposite Rashi are perfect for each other. The Moon represents the subconscious mind in astrology. How can two persons with opposite subconscious minds live in harmony? 

Second, Rashi or Bhakoot milan is based on relative the position of the moons. Technically, the actual angular gap between two Moons must be found and it should be used for calculation. With proper technical calculation and renewed understanding of relative Moon position, this is actually a very powerful tool for matchmaking. However, in current format, Rashi or Bhakoot milan MUST NOT be performed as it may result in counterproductive results.

 

Nadi

The flow of breath shows the dominant Nadi at any given point of time. It alternates every 1 hour and 20 minutes.

When the right nostril is active, Pingla Nadi is active. When the left nostril is active, Ida nadi is active. When both nostrils are active, Sushmana Nadi is active.

Pingla Nadi is ruled by the Sun and it is related to the Vaata. Masculine (Shiva) character is prominent. This is also called Adi.

Ida Nadi is ruled by the Moon and it is related to Kapha. Feminine (Shakti) character is prominent. This is also called Madhya.

Sushmana Nadi, it is ruled by Fire and it is related to Pitta. Balanced (Shiva-Shakti) character is prominent. This is also called Antya.

Science of Nadi is a huge topic in itself and covered in Shiv Swarodaya.

 

 

 

Guna: 8 points are provided for Nadi. One gets either 8 points or 0 points. Compatibility chart is provided below.

 

Dosha: Couples scoring 0 points are said to have Nadi Dosha.

 

Opinion: There are two main views that are normally expounded for nadi.

The 1st view is that of Vaata, Pitta and Kapha from ayurveda. This view doesn’t make any sense as why two people with either Vaata dominance, Pitta dominance or Kapha dominance cannot be together? Even if it makes any sense, advancement in today’s medical science is significant to take care of things.

The 2nd view is that of Ida (Shakti), Pingla (Shakti) and Sushmana (Shiva-Shakti) from Shiv Swarodaya. This view makes lots of sense in Yog Sadhana. When seating for Sadhana, it was preferred to have completeness. Hence, a partner with opposite nadi was always preferred. However, in current times, such Sadhana which requires Couples to sit together to achieve something superior is largely lost art.

Also, Nadi alternates approx. every 1 hour 20 minutes. It also changes based on current health status, sleeping position, anger or calmness etc. Hence it is NOT something fixed that remains for lifetime. Interestingly, Shiv Swarodaya which is the original shastra on Nadi science makes no mention of its relation with nakshatra.

 

Myth:

There is a popular myth that Ram and Sita had 36 matching Guna.

In Valmiki Ramayan (the original Ramayan), Valmiki ji talks a lot about astrology in appropriate places like birth of Ram, Death of Dasrath etc. However, there is NO mention of "Ashtakoot Milan" during Rama and Sita’s Marriage.

Also, Sita was NOT born to Janak, but was found by him in the field. So technically, Sita never had Janam Kundli and hence "Ashtakoot Milan" was not possible.

Facts:

Who and when "Ashtakoot Milan" started – We have no known reference.

Is there any reference of "Ashtakoot Milan" in any shastra – Not that we could find.

What is the basis of Guna/Weight/Points provided to each way – None that we could find.

Final table:

 

Final opinion:

There are 9 planets in astrology. "Ashtakoot Milan" considers a match with respect to planet the Moon only. Traditional astrology gives most importance to the Moon only and ignores other 8 planets and Lagna. In my opinion, a more comprehensive review would be to include atleast Sun and Lagna if not all other planets.

Gana (6 points), Bhakoot (7 points) and Naadi (8 points) consist of 21 points out of a total 36 points. Points for these 3 can either be full or Nil. This gives too much importance to some factors while ignoring others.

When we talk about a married life, we must consider three aspects vis-à-vis compatibility and each partner’s individual patri. It is certainly not enough to check only compatibility; individual planetary positions also play a significant role in blissful nuptial life.

"Ashtakoot Milan" should be treated as a flexible guiding light rather than a fixed rigid system with exam-like pass/fail marks.

Weights/Guna/Points attached to 8 ways of "Ashtakoot Milan" are completely arbitrary. While one couple might give importance to one aspect and totally ignore other aspects, others may want to assign different points to different aspect. "Ashtakoot Milan" should be more of an individual couple’s exercise rather than a rule cast in stone. Think of it as well-informed conscious decision making on what’s important and what’s not.

For Astrology consultation, click here

For Vastu consultation, click here

For Astrology Course, click here

For Vastu Course, click here