Narayana Dasa I: Basics

STRENGTH OF SIGNS
The dasa starts from the stronger of the two signs, the Lagna or the 7th house, since they are the seat of truth, otherwise known as the satya-peethas. To ascertain the stronger of the two signs, the lagna or the 7th, following rules can be followed. The rules are culled out from Brhat Parasari Hora Shastra and the Jaimini Sutras and beautifully presented in the Narayana Dasa book by Pt. Sanjay Rath.

The reader of the Narayana Dasa book would find that there is difference in the sequence of the rules given. To them I shall say that the sequence is revised based on my interaction with the author and my experience.

Rule-1: The sign with a planet (or with more planets) is considered stronger than a sign without a planet (or with lesser number of planets).

Rule-2:The sign which is aspected by Mercury, Jupiter or its Lord is stronger.

Rule-3: If the signs have equal number of planets and they are similarly aspected by Jupiter, Mercury and the lord, then the status of the planets like exaltation, Mulatrikona, Svakshetra etc. should be considered to declare the stronger sign.

Rule-4: If they are still equal in strength, or without planets, then the natural strengths - Dual signs stronger than fixed signs and fixed signs stronger than movable signs is considered. (This rule will not work when quadrants are considered).

Rule-5: If they are still equal in strength, then for an even (female) sign, the placement of Lord in an odd (male) sign OR for an odd (male) sign, the placement of the Lord in an even (female) sign is a source of strength.

Rule-6: If they are still equal in strength, the sign which gives a higher dasa period is stronger. The dasa period is counted by computing the signs from the sign to its lord in zodiacal direction if the sign is odd-footed and anti-zodiacal if the sign is even-footed. (Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Libra, Scorpio and Sagittarius are odd-footed and rest are even-footed.)

For Scorpio and Aquarius, the stronger of the two lords are to be taken to determine the dasa period.

Rule-7: If they are still equal in strength, the sign whose lord is the Atmakaraka is stronger.

Rule-8: If they are still equal in strength, then the degrees of their lords must
be considered. The Lord with a higher degree (used in Charakaraka) shall make the sign stronger.


STRENGTH OF PLANETS
Scoprio and Aquarius are lorded by two planets each. Scorpio is lorded by Mars and Ketu, whereas Aquarius is lorded by Saturn and Rahu. To determine the dasa period of Scorpio and Aquarius, one need to ascertain, which lord to be used. Hence, we must know the stronger of the two lords of these two signs.

If the lords are placed in the same sign then there is no trouble in computing the dasa period, since the computation would be from the sign to the sign, placed with these two lords. However, if they are placed in two different signs, their strength need to be ascertained, using the following rules.

Rule 1: If one of the lords is placed in the sign and the other is placed elsewhere, the dasa is estimated from the lord placed in the other sign.

Rule 2: If both lords are placed elsewhere, the stronger of the two signs, where they are placed, shall give the dasa period.

Rule 3: If the signs occupied by the lords are of equal strength, the lord contributing a larger dasa period should be considered.


ILLUSTRATION
CASE I: Lord Sri Rama


1. Find the stronger of the Lagna and the 7th.
Lagna has two planets namely the Moon and Jupiter and the 7th has only one planet, namely Mars. Thus Lagna is stronger compared to the 7th house.

2. Find the stronger of the two lords of Scorpio and Aquarius.
Scorpio: Mars is placed in Capicorn whereas Ketu is in Gemini. Among Capicorn and Gemini, Capricorn is stronger since it is aspected by Mercury and none of Jupiter/ Mercury/ house lord aspects Gemini. Thus Mars is the stronger of the two lords for Scorpio.

Aquarius: Saturn is exalted in Libra whereas Rahu is debilitated in Sagittarius. Among Libra and Sagittarius, Libra is stronger since it is aspected by Mercury and none of Jupiter/ Mercury/ house lord aspects Sagittarius. Thus Saturn is the stronger of the two lords for Aquarius.

CASE II: Myself


1. Find the stronger of the Lagna and the 7th.
Lagna has no planets whereas 7th has one planet, namely Saturn. Thus 7th is stronger compared to the Lagna.

2. Find the stronger of the two lords of Scorpio and Aquarius.
Scorpio: Mars is placed in Leo, whereas Ketu is placed in Taurus. Leo has more planets than Taurus and hence Leo is stronger.Thus Mars is the stronger of the two lords for Scorpio.

Aquarius: Saturn is placed in Gemini whereas Rahu is placed in Scorpio. Scorpio has more planets compared to Gemini and hence Scorpio is stronger. Thus Rahu is stronger of the two lords for Aquarius.