Prashna Jyotish: The Complete Guide to Vedic Horary Astrology — History, Method and a Worked Example

You have a question you can't stop turning over. Will the offer come through? Will they call back? Where did the ring go? Should you sign? You may not know your exact birth time, and even if you do, a birth chart describes a whole life. It wasn't built to answer one sharp question asked on one ordinary Tuesday afternoon.

Prashna was.

Prashna Jyotish (प्रश्न ज्योतिष, "the astrology of the question") casts a chart for the exact moment a sincere question is asked, at the place it is asked, and reads the answer from that sky. No birth data is needed. The moment itself is the chart.

This guide covers what Prashna is, where it came from, and how to cast and judge a Prashna chart step by step: significators, Tajika yogas, classical checks, timing, special questions, and the KP and Kerala methods. It finishes with a fully worked example you can follow line by line. If you'd rather start with your own question, open Rohshan's free Prashna tool and come back to the method as you read your chart.

Prashna in one paragraph: The rising sign and its lord stand for you, the person asking. The Moon stands for your mind and how things are moving. The house that rules your question, and its lord, stand for the matter itself. If the planet representing you and the planet representing the matter are moving toward an exact aspect (an Ithasala), the matter is classically promised. If they are moving apart (an Isharafa), the moment has passed. Everything else in the chart refines that core answer and tells you how, how easily and how soon.

What is Prashna Jyotish?

Prashna is the horary branch of Vedic astrology. "Horary" comes from the Latin hora, hour: the chart of the hour. In Sanskrit the word is simply prashna, a question.

The idea behind it is old and intuitive. A sincere question doesn't arise at random. It surfaces when a situation has ripened enough to trouble you. Prashna treats the instant the question is asked, or the instant it is put to an astrologer, as a "birth" in its own right: the birth of the question. Cast a chart for that instant and the chart describes the question's life, including its likely outcome.

That gives Prashna three practical strengths:

• It works without a birth time. Millions of people don't know theirs, or know it only roughly. Prashna doesn't need it.
• It answers the question you actually asked. A natal chart says "career is strong in this period". A Prashna chart answers "will this job offer come through?"
• It is fast and focused. You look at a handful of significators and their relationships, not the whole architecture of a life.

Prashna is one of the classical limbs of Jyotisha. The Kerala text Prasna Marga counts six branches of the science (shadanga jyotisha): Ganita (calculation), Gola (spherical astronomy), Jataka (natal astrology), Prashna (horary), Muhurta (electional astrology) and Nimitta (omens). Prashna sits between Jataka and Muhurta. Jataka reads the life you were born into. Muhurta chooses a good moment to act. Prashna reads the moment a question is born.

A short history of Prashna

Prashna isn't one book or one school. It is a river fed by several streams over at least fifteen centuries.

Roots: omens, the moment, and the questioner

Long before formal horary rules, Indian astrologers paid close attention to nimitta: the omens surrounding a consultation. The direction the questioner came from, the first words spoken, what they touched, the sounds heard, the breath flowing through the left or right nostril. All of these were read as signs. That habit of treating the moment of consultation as meaningful is the soil Prashna grew from. Kerala practice still records these omens alongside the chart.

Shatpanchashika: the classic short text (6th century)

The earliest widely studied Prashna text is the Shatpanchashika ("the fifty-six verses"), attributed to Prithuyashas, the son of the great astronomer-astrologer Varahamihira, in the 6th century CE. In just 56 verses it lays down rules still used today:

• The classification of rising signs into Shirshodaya (rising head-first), Prishtodaya (rising back-first) and Ubhayodaya (both), and what each means for success.
• Benefics and malefics in the angles.
• Rules for journeys, illness, gain and loss.
• Techniques for lost and stolen objects.

The 10th-century commentator Bhattotpala wrote on it, and his own Prashna-jnana became another reference. Many later compilations quote the Shatpanchashika directly.

Tajika: the Persian stream (13th–16th centuries)

The second great stream is Tajika. The word means "Persian", and the system came into India through contact with the Perso-Arabic astrological tradition. Tajika brought a distinctive toolkit: aspects measured with orbs, a sharp distinction between planets applying to and separating from an aspect, and a set of named yogas (combinations) describing exactly how two significators meet.

A 13th-century writer, Samarasimha, is credited with early Sanskrit Tajika works, including the original Prashna Tantra. In the 16th century Nilakantha Daivajna, a scholar settled in Kashi (Varanasi) who served as royal astrologer in Emperor Akbar's administration, wrote the Tajika Nilakanthi, completing its second volume in 1587. It became the standard Tajika textbook. A version of the Prashna Tantra associated with Nilakantha and his students added Prashna rules from earlier works, including the Shatpanchashika. It runs to about 430 verses in four chapters.

That Perso-Arabic tradition is also the ancestor of European horary astrology, which reached its classic form in William Lilly's Christian Astrology (1647). That is why Vedic Tajika Prashna and Western horary share so much: applying aspects, orbs, translation and collection of light. Both drink from the same well.

Prasna Marga: Kerala's encyclopedia (1649)

The third stream is Kerala. In 1649, Narayanan Nambutiri of the Panakkattu family, writing at Edakkad near Thalassery in present-day Kerala, composed the Prasna Marga ("the path of the question"). It is widely regarded as the most comprehensive classical work on horary astrology. It covers:

• The conduct of the astrologer and the omens of the consultation.
• Arudha, the sign indicated by the questioner, and the Chatra (canopy) sign derived from the Sun's path.
• The sphutas: sensitive points made by adding planetary longitudes, such as Trisphuta.
• Detailed rules for health, marriage, children, lost property and more.

Prasna Marga underpins the Kerala ritual of Ashtamangala Prashna, and the large Devaprashnam consultations still held for temples, in which astrologers examine a temple's condition and the deity's "wishes" through a Prashna chart and omens.

KP horary: the 20th-century innovation

The newest major stream is Krishnamurti Paddhati (KP), developed by Professor K. S. Krishnamurti in mid-20th-century South India. KP divides each of the 27 nakshatras into nine unequal "subs" in proportion to the Vimshottari dasha years. Where a sub crosses a sign boundary it is split in two, which gives 249 divisions of the zodiac. In KP horary, the querent thinks of a number from 1 to 249. That number fixes the Ascendant, and the "sub-lord" of the relevant house cusp decides the answer. It is precise, mechanical and popular across India today.

Timeline at a glance

Period	Development	Key contribution
Ancient	Nimitta (omens) at consultations	The moment of asking is meaningful
6th century CE	Prithuyashas, Shatpanchashika	Rising-sign types, core horary rules, lost objects
10th century	Bhattotpala, commentaries and Prashna-jnana	Explained and extended the early rules
13th century	Samarasimha, early Tajika texts	Perso-Arabic aspects and yogas in Sanskrit
1587	Nilakantha, Tajika Nilakanthi (and the Prashna Tantra compilation)	The standard Tajika textbook; 16 yogas, orbs
1647	William Lilly, Christian Astrology (England)	The parallel Western horary tradition
1649	Narayanan Nambutiri, Prasna Marga (Kerala)	Arudha, Chatra, sphutas, Ashtamangala
20th century	K. S. Krishnamurti, KP	Sub-lords and the 1–249 horary number

Prashna vs a birth chart

	Birth chart (Jataka)	Prashna chart
Cast for	The moment of birth	The moment a sincere question is asked
Needs birth time?	Yes, accurately	No
Answers	Life themes, potentials, timing through dashas	One specific question, often yes/no plus how and when
Main tools	Houses, vargas, yogas, dashas, transits	Significators, Tajika aspects and yogas, Moon, timing by degrees
Shelf life	A lifetime	Until the question is resolved
Best used for	Understanding yourself and your periods	Decisions, outcomes, lost things, "will it happen?"

The two work beautifully together. A Prashna answers the question. Linking it to your running dasha shows whether the matter is central to this chapter of your life. Rohshan's Prashna tool can link your birth chart for exactly this check.

Before you ask: the rules of a valid Prashna

Every classical source insists that a Prashna is only as good as the question. These rules aren't superstition. They are what makes the moment meaningful.

1. Ask sincerely. The question must genuinely matter to you. Idle curiosity, tests ("let's see if astrology works") and hypothetical questions produce charts that don't describe anything real.
2. Ask one question. One chart, one matter. "Will I get the job, and will I like it, and should I move?" is three Prashnas.
3. Ask it clearly. "Will I receive the offer from the company I interviewed with last week?" is far better than "what about my career?"
4. Don't keep re-asking. The first sincere asking is the one the sky answers. Re-casting the same question an hour later because you didn't like the answer muddies everything. Rohshan's tool reopens your earlier Prashna if you repeat a question within 24 hours.
5. Use the true moment and place. For your own question, that's the moment you decide to ask, wherever you are. If someone asks an astrologer, the classical moment is when the astrologer receives and understands the question.
6. Ask when the question is "ripe". A question that has genuinely surfaced, because a decision is pending or something has happened, gives a clearer chart than one you've invented for the sake of casting.

How to do Prashna: step by step

Here is the full method, in the order an astrologer actually works. Rohshan's Prashna tool performs every step and shows its working, so you can follow along with a live chart.

Step 1: Cast the chart for the moment and place

Note the date, time (to the minute) and location. Cast a sidereal chart (Lahiri ayanamsa is the common standard) with whole-sign houses. You need two charts:

• D1, the Rashi chart. This is the Prashna chart proper. It shows the question, the people, the matter and the dynamics.
• D9, the Navamsha. This is the "fruit" of the matter. A significator that looks strong in D1 but collapses in D9 promises more than it delivers. One that is strong in both is reliable. (For a refresher on divisional charts, see our guide to the vargas.)

Note the panchanga of the moment as well: weekday, tithi, nakshatra, yoga, karana and the planetary hour (hora). Prashna Marga gives weight to the quality of the moment itself.

Step 2: Check the chart is fit to judge

Before reading anything, ask whether the chart is "radical", that is, fit to judge. Warning signs include:

• Lagna in gandanta. The last 3°20′ of a water sign (Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces) or the first 3°20′ of a fire sign (Aries, Leo, Sagittarius). These are karmic knots. The situation is confused or not yet ripe.
• A very early Lagna degree (under about 3°). It may be too early to judge, because the matter is still forming.
• A very late Lagna degree (over about 27°). The matter may already be decided, or largely out of your hands.
• Moon in gandanta. An unsettled mind about the question.

None of these forbid a reading, but they lower confidence. Say so honestly.

Step 3: Identify the significators

This is the heart of Prashna. There are four players:

Player	Represented by	What it tells you
The querent (you)	The Lagna and the Lagna lord	Your position, strength and agency in the matter
The mind	The Moon	Your state of mind; how the matter is moving; co-significator of the querent
The matter	The house of the question (karya bhava) and its lord	The thing asked about: the job, the person, the object
The karaka	The natural significator of the topic	A second witness to the matter

Choosing the right house is crucial. Use this table:

Question about…	House of the matter	Natural karaka
Career, promotion, status	10th	Saturn, Sun
A job, service, employment	10th (6th for service and daily work)	Saturn, Mercury
Money, gains, payment owed	11th (2nd for savings)	Jupiter
Marriage, a partner, the other party	7th	Venus (Jupiter for a husband, traditionally)
Romance, love affairs	5th and 7th	Venus, Moon
Property, home, vehicles	4th	Mars (land), Moon, Venus (vehicles)
Long journeys, visas, abroad	9th and 12th (3rd for short trips)	Moon, Rahu
Education, exams	4th, 5th, 9th (11th for success)	Mercury, Jupiter
Disputes, court cases	7th (opponent), 6th (victory), 10th (judge)	Saturn, Mars
Business deals, contracts	7th and 11th	Mercury, Jupiter
Lost objects	2nd (movable possessions)	Moon
Health, recovery	1st (vitality), 6th (illness)	Sun, Moon
Children, pregnancy	5th	Jupiter

Questions about other people use derived houses (bhavat bhavam). Turn the chart so the other person's house becomes their Lagna, then count from there. For "will my brother get the job?", the brother is the 3rd house, and his career is the 10th from the 3rd, which is the 12th house of the chart. Rohshan's tool does this rotation automatically when you choose who the question is about. If you want to brush up on house meanings first, read our guide to bhava analysis.

Step 4: Find how the significators meet (Tajika aspects)

Prashna is less about where planets sit and more about what they are doing to each other. For this, Tajika is unrivalled. Tajika aspects are counted by sign:

Signs apart	Aspect	Nature
Same sign	Conjunction	Strong, neutral, coloured by the planets
3rd / 11th	Sextile (60°)	Friendly ("hidden friendship")
5th / 9th	Trine (120°)	Friendly ("open friendship")
4th / 10th	Square (90°)	Inimical ("hidden enmity"): achieved with effort
7th	Opposition (180°)	Inimical ("open enmity"): achieved through struggle
2nd, 6th, 8th, 12th	None	No aspect: the planets "don't see" each other

Two refinements matter enormously.

1. Orbs (deeptamsha). An aspect only "works" in Tajika when the planets are close to exact. Each planet has an orb of light:

Sun	Moon	Mars	Mercury	Jupiter	Venus	Saturn
15°	12°	8°	7°	9°	7°	9°

Two planets are in effective contact when the distance from exact aspect is within the average of their two orbs. Sun and Mars, for example: (15 + 8) ÷ 2 = 11.5°.

2. Applying or separating. The faster planet determines the direction:

• Applying: the faster planet is moving toward the exact aspect. In sign terms it has fewer degrees in its sign than the slower planet. The meeting is in the future, so the matter is coming.
• Separating: the faster planet has already passed the exact point. The meeting is in the past, so the matter is going or gone.

The usual speed order is Moon (fastest), then Mercury, Venus, Sun, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn. Retrograde motion reverses a planet's direction, which is why a careful judgement uses actual daily speeds. (Our article on retrogression and combustion explains why a retrograde planet behaves so differently.)

Step 5: Name the Tajika yoga

Tajika gives names to the ways the querent and the matter can meet. The Tajika Nilakanthi lists sixteen. These are the ones that matter most in Prashna:

Yoga	What happens	Meaning in a Prashna
Ithasala (Muthashila)	The faster significator applies to the slower within orb	The matter is promised. Within 1° it's a "Purna" (full) Ithasala, very strong. If it only forms after a sign change, it's Bhavishyat (future) Ithasala: promised, but later.
Isharafa	The significators are separating within orb	The moment has passed; the matter slips away or is already over
Nakta	No direct contact, but a faster third planet separates from one and applies to the other	Success through a go-between: an agent, a friend, a recruiter
Yamaya	No direct contact, but both apply to a slower third planet	Success through a senior person, authority or institution
Kamboola	An Ithasala, and the Moon also applies to one of the significators	The Ithasala is reinforced; strong promise
Manahu	Mars or Saturn closely afflicts the applying planet	Obstruction: a third party or circumstance interferes
Radda	The applying planet is retrograde, combust, debilitated or in a dusthana	The promise is withdrawn, reversed or only partly kept
Khallasara	The Moon makes no applying aspect within orb (void)	Effort comes to nothing; little changes

Two further supports are worth noting. Mutual reception (each significator in the other's sign) shows willingness on both sides. A significator in the other's house (the Lagna lord in the house of the matter, or the matter's lord in the Lagna) is classically one of the strongest "yes" indications: you go to the matter, or the matter comes to you.

Step 6: Apply the classical checks

Now weigh the general condition of the chart, mostly from the Shatpanchashika and Prasna Marga:

• Rising-sign type. Shirshodaya signs (Gemini, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Aquarius) rising favour success and readiness. Prishtodaya signs (Aries, Taurus, Cancer, Sagittarius, Capricorn) show delay or a roundabout path. Pisces (Ubhayodaya) is mixed.
• Benefics in the Lagna and kendras (Jupiter, Venus, a well-associated Mercury, a waxing Moon) support the querent. Malefics in the Lagna, 7th or 8th show strain, opposition or sudden obstacles. Malefics in the 3rd, 6th and 11th are good: they give strength to overcome.
• The house of the matter. A benefic in it or aspecting it (especially Jupiter) helps. Saturn's aspect delays and Mars's provokes conflict. A house lord sitting in its own house protects it.
• Dignity of the significators. Exalted, own-sign and moolatrikona planets act with power. Debilitated or combust ones struggle, or are overshadowed by a stronger party.
• The Moon. Waxing is growth and waning is diminishing return. The Moon in the 6th, 8th or 12th brings worry and loss. With Jupiter (Gaja Kesari) it brings clear counsel. With Saturn, Rahu or Ketu it shows a pressured mind. Its last aspect shows what has just happened. Its next aspect shows what is coming.
• The moment. A benefic hora, a "full" tithi (Panchami, Dashami, Purnima) and a calm karana support the question. Rikta ("empty") tithis (Chaturthi, Navami, Chaturdashi), Amavasya and Vishti karana are classically obstructive.

Step 7: Weigh everything and form a judgement

The traditional order of importance is:

1. The Tajika relationship between querent and matter (Ithasala, Isharafa, Nakta and so on). This is the deciding factor.
2. The condition of the significators (dignity, house, combustion, retrogression), which shows how well the promise can be kept.
3. The Moon.
4. The general testimonies (rising-sign type, benefics and malefics, the moment).

A clean Ithasala between strong significators, with a supportive Moon, is a clear yes. An Ithasala spoiled by Radda or Manahu is "yes, but…". No connection at all, plus a void Moon, is a clear "not as things stand". Good Prashna judgement is honest about mixed charts. Most real questions are mixed, and the value lies in seeing which way it leans and what would tip it.

Rohshan's tool makes this weighing explicit. Every factor gets a visible weight, the factors are summed into a leaning (Strongly favourable to Strongly challenging) with a confidence level, and the full list is shown so you can check the reasoning yourself.

Step 8: Time the answer

Prashna timing is symbolic, and it is best treated as a window rather than a date:

• Take the degrees remaining until the deciding aspect becomes exact.
• Convert degrees to time by the modality of the sign holding the applying planet: movable signs (Aries, Cancer, Libra, Capricorn) count in days, dual signs (Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, Pisces) in weeks, and fixed signs (Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, Aquarius) in months.
• Angular placement speeds things up. Cadent placement slows them.
• Also watch the real-sky date when the aspect actually perfects. It is often a second, independent window.

So an aspect 4° from exact with the applying planet in a dual sign suggests about four weeks. If nothing perfects, there is no reliable timing, and that itself is information.

Special questions: lost items, missing people, disputes, travel and health

Lost and stolen objects

Lost-object Prashna is one of the oldest and most practical uses of the art. The 2nd lord represents the item, and the Moon is co-significator:

• Will it be found? Look for the item's lord applying to the Lagna lord, the item's lord in the 1st, 2nd or 4th, a retrograde item lord (things come back), or a benefic in the Lagna. A combust item lord means hidden and hard to see. In the 8th or 12th it is well hidden or gone far.
• Which direction? Use the element of the item lord's sign: fire signs point east, earth south, air west, and water north.
• Near or far? An angular item lord means close at hand. In a succedent house (2, 5, 8, 11) it is nearby. In a cadent house (3, 6, 9, 12) it is farther away or moved.
• Has it moved? A fixed sign means it's still where it was put. A movable sign means it was carried somewhere. A dual sign means near a doorway or between places.
• What kind of place? Fire: near heat or appliances. Earth: low down, the floor or storage. Air: high up, near windows, papers or clothes. Water: near water, such as a bathroom, kitchen or laundry.

Classical texts also describe signs of theft. Use these with great care. A chart can suggest "someone else was involved"; it can never identify a person, and should never be used to accuse anyone.

Missing people and "will they come back?"

The person is represented by their house: the 7th for a partner or an unrelated person, the 5th for a child, and so on. A retrograde significator, or one applying to the Lagna lord or moving into the 1st or 4th, is the classical sign of return or contact. Significators in the 9th or 12th suggest distance. If someone is genuinely missing, contact the police and the relevant authorities first. Astrology is a source of perspective, never a substitute for search and rescue.

Disputes and court cases

The Lagna lord is you, and the 7th lord is the opponent. Compare their strength by dignity, house and combustion. Malefics in your 6th help you, and malefics in your 12th (the opponent's 6th) help them. An applying aspect between the two lords suggests settlement. The 10th lord is the judge or authority: whom does it favour? Use this as perspective alongside a qualified lawyer, never in place of one.

Travel, visas and moving abroad

Movable signs rising, or the Moon in a movable sign, favour movement. Fixed signs favour staying put. Look for the Lagna lord applying to the 9th or 12th lord, or placed in the 3rd, 9th or 12th.

Health questions

Classically, compare the Lagna lord (vitality) with the 6th lord (the illness). A stronger Lagna lord leans toward recovery. Rohshan answers health, pregnancy and fertility questions only as tendencies, always alongside your doctor's guidance, and never makes predictions about death or lifespan, for anyone. Many traditional teachers held the same line.

Three traditions: Tajika, KP and Kerala

A strong practice of Prashna doesn't rely on one method. When independent methods agree, confidence rises sharply.

KP horary with a number from 1 to 249

In KP horary you hold your question in mind and say the first number from 1 to 249 that comes to you. Then:

1. The number identifies one of the 249 KP sub-divisions. The Ascendant is fixed at the start of that sub.
2. The other house cusps are calculated with the Placidus system for that Ascendant at your latitude. The planets are taken for the actual moment of judgement.
3. For each cusp, note its sign lord, star (nakshatra) lord and sub-lord.
4. Find the sub-lord of the cusp of the matter: the 7th for marriage, the 10th for career, the 11th for gains, and so on.
5. Look at the houses that sub-lord signifies through its star lord. If they include the houses that fulfil the matter (for a job, typically 2, 6, 10 and 11) and not the houses that deny it (the 12th from those: 1, 5, 9), the answer is yes.
6. The ruling planets at the moment (day lord; the Moon's sign, star and sub lords; the Lagna's sign, star and sub lords) that are also significators of the fulfilling houses point to timing.

Kerala (Prasna Marga): Udaya, Arudha and Chatra

Kerala practice reads three "lagnas" together:

• Udaya: the sign actually rising at the moment.
• Arudha: the sign the querent indicates. Traditionally this is done by touching a sign on a chart or by choosing a number. In the 1–108 method, each number is a navamsha, nine to a sign.
• Chatra: derived from the Sun's "path" (vithi) and the Udaya sign.

Benefics in or aspecting these three favour the querent, and malefics harm. Kerala practice also uses the sphutas. Trisphuta is the sum of the longitudes of the Lagna, Moon and Gulika. Chatussphuta adds the Sun, and Panchasphuta adds Rahu. Their signs and nakshatras, relative to the querent's birth star, are read as general indicators of wellbeing. (Prasna Marga also uses them for longevity judgements; Rohshan deliberately does not.)

Rohshan's Prashna tool shows all three side by side: the Tajika and classical leaning, the KP judgement from your number, and the Kerala reading from your Arudha number. You can see at a glance where they agree.

A worked example: "Will I get the job I interviewed for?"

Let's read a real chart. Every number below was computed by Rohshan's Prashna engine for the moment of the question.

The question: "Will I get the job I interviewed for last week?"
Asked: 7 September 2026, 12:15 pm, Dubai (UTC+4)
Category: New job, so the matter is the 10th house, with Saturn and Mercury as karakas.

The chart and its fitness

Scorpio rises at 12°25′. That's a comfortable middle degree, neither too early nor too late, and not gandanta. The chart is fit to judge. Scorpio is a Shirshodaya sign (+), so results tend to come readily. The question was asked on a Monday in Krishna paksha (waning Moon), on Ekadashi, in the hora of Venus, a benefic hour.

The players

Role	Planet	Position	Condition
Querent (Lagna lord)	Mars	Gemini 23°09′, 8th house	Weak: an enemy's sign, in a dusthana
The mind	Moon	Cancer 0°38′, 9th house, Punarvasu	Strong: own sign, with exalted Jupiter
The matter (10th lord)	Sun	Leo 20°30′, 10th house	Strong: own sign, angular
Karaka	Saturn	Pisces 19°08′ retrograde, 5th house	Fair
Karaka	Mercury	Virgo 0°01′, 11th house	Exalted but combust

Read it as a story. The querent (Mars) is in the 8th house in an uncomfortable sign: anxious, a little out of their depth, waiting. The job (the Sun) sits powerfully in its own sign in the 10th, the house of career. It is a real, solid opportunity, and it is visible and active. The querent's mind (the Moon) is in its own sign with an exalted Jupiter: hopeful, with good advice around them.

The deciding yoga

Mars is in Gemini. The Sun is in Leo, the 3rd sign from Gemini, so the two are in sextile, a friendly aspect. The Sun is faster than Mars and sits at 20°30′ of its sign against Mars at 23°09′. The faster planet has fewer degrees, so it is applying: 2°36′ from exact, well within the Sun–Mars orb of 11.5°.

Ithasala by friendly sextile between the querent's lord and the lord of the 10th. The matter, the job, is moving toward the querent. Classically, the matter is promised.

There is no Radda: the Sun, the applying planet, is strong and direct, not combust, not debilitated and not in a dusthana. There is no Manahu either: neither Mars nor Saturn closely afflicts the Sun.

Supporting and opposing testimony

• (+) The matter's lord is angular and in its own sign. The job is real and in a strong position.
• (+) A Shirshodaya sign is rising.
• (+) The Moon is well placed in the 9th with Jupiter's influence (Gaja Kesari). The querent is thinking clearly and has good counsel.
• (+) A benefic hora. Mercury, a karaka of contracts, is exalted in the 11th house of gains, though weakened by combustion.
• (−) Mars, the querent, is in an enemy's sign in the 8th. Nerves, uncertainty, perhaps an unexpected hurdle in the process.
• (−) Ketu sits in the 10th with the Sun. Something unusual or unclear about the role or the process.
• (−) A waning Moon: more effort needed than it first appears.

The Moon's story adds texture. It has just separated from a sextile with Mercury, so a conversation or message has already happened (the interview). Its next aspect is to Venus, which suggests pleasant news to come.

Judgement and timing

Rohshan's engine weighs this as Strongly favourable, with High confidence. That rests on a clean friendly Ithasala between strong significators, tempered by the querent's nervous 8th-house Mars and Ketu's presence in the 10th.

For timing, the Sun is 2°36′ from exact in Leo, a fixed sign, which counts in months: symbolically about three months, shortened because the Sun is angular. In the actual sky the aspect perfects in about 7–8 days. That gives two windows: an early signal within about a week, and the matter settling within a few months.

The KP check agrees. With the number 108, the 10th cusp's sub-lord is Venus, in the star of Mars, which signifies houses 3, 4, 7, 8, 10 and 11. That includes the fulfilling houses 10 and 11 and none of the denying ones. KP verdict: promised.

In plain words: the offer is likely, though the process may feel nerve-wracking or slightly unusual. Expect movement within about a week, and patience as details settle. That is how a Prashna reads: a leaning, its reasons, its texture and its timing. It is never just "yes".

Common mistakes in Prashna

• Using the wrong house. A question about a sister's marriage isn't the 7th house. It's the 7th from the 3rd, which is the 9th.
• Ignoring applying vs separating. A tight aspect that is separating is a "no" (or an "it already happened"), not a "yes".
• Reading the whole chart like a birth chart. Prashna is about the significators of this question. A beautiful yoga elsewhere in the chart doesn't answer it.
• Ignoring the Moon. A void Moon (Khallasara) quietly overrides many hopeful testimonies.
• Asking again and again. The first sincere chart is the answer. Shopping for a better chart only produces noise.
• Treating timing as a date. Symbolic timing gives windows. Use both the symbolic and the real-sky windows.
• Forgetting the D9. A significator strong in D1 but debilitated in the Navamsha may promise more than it delivers.

What Prashna will and won't do

Good Prashna practice has always carried ethical weight. Kerala texts devote whole sections to the astrologer's conduct. Rohshan follows these principles:

• A Prashna gives a leaning, never a guarantee. It describes how the matter stands at the moment you asked, and your choices still count.
• Rohshan never predicts death or lifespan, for you or anyone else.
• Health, pregnancy, legal and financial questions are answered as tendencies, with a clear pointer to the right professional.
• Questions about other people's private conduct ("is my partner cheating?") are handled gently. A chart can describe dynamics; it can't prove anything about another person.
• If you're going through something painful, please talk to someone you trust or a local support line. A chart can't replace real support.

How to use Rohshan's free Prashna tool

Rohshan's Prashna tool follows exactly the method in this guide:

1. Ask one sincere question in your own words.
2. Choose the category. Rohshan suggests one from your wording. Then say whom the question is about; derived houses are handled for you.
3. Set the place (your location or a city search). The chart is cast for right now, or for the moment a question was put to you.
4. Read the free judgement: the D1 and D9 charts, the key players, the Tajika yogas and an aspect table with orbs, every weighted factor with its classical source, a timing window, what the Moon says, and a focused reading for your category (lost items get direction, distance and kind of place).
5. Add the second opinions: a KP judgement from your 1–249 number, a Kerala reading from your Arudha number, and a link to your birth chart for Tarabala, Chandrabala and your running dasha.
6. Go deeper with Rohshan's full reading if you want the whole picture in plain language, with follow-up questions on the same chart.
7. Record the outcome later (happened, partly, or didn't) and track your own Prashna accuracy over time.

Casting and every rule-based insight are free, with no sign-up. There's also a dedicated Prashna calculator page explaining the calculation, and if you'd like to understand the nakshatras that appear in your chart, start with our guide to the 27 nakshatras.

Frequently asked questions

What is Prashna Jyotish?

Prashna Jyotish is Vedic horary astrology: a chart is cast for the exact moment and place a sincere question is asked, and the answer is read from that chart. It needs no birth time.

Is Prashna accurate?

Prashna's reliability depends heavily on the sincerity and clarity of the question and on careful judgement. Classical texts stress that idle or repeated questions produce unreliable charts. Rohshan shows every factor behind its leaning and lets you record outcomes, so you can judge its usefulness for yourself.

Do I need my birth details for Prashna?

No. Prashna uses the moment and place of the question. You can optionally link your birth chart for extra checks such as Tarabala and your running dasha.

Can I ask the same question again?

Classically, no. The first sincere asking is the one that counts. Ask again only when circumstances have genuinely changed and the question itself is new.

What is the difference between Prashna and KP horary?

Traditional Prashna (Tajika, Shatpanchashika and Prasna Marga methods) judges the chart of the moment through significators, aspects and yogas. KP horary fixes the Ascendant from a number between 1 and 249 and judges by the sub-lord of the relevant house cusp. Many astrologers use both as cross-checks.

What is Ithasala yoga?

Ithasala is the Tajika yoga in which the faster of two significators is applying to an exact aspect with the slower one within their combined orb. In Prashna, an Ithasala between the querent's lord and the matter's lord classically promises the matter.

How does Prashna predict timing?

By the degrees remaining until the deciding aspect becomes exact, counted in days, weeks or months according to whether the applying planet is in a movable, dual or fixed sign. The real-sky date of the aspect gives a second window.

Which book should I read to learn Prashna?

The classics are Prithuyashas's Shatpanchashika (short and foundational), the Prashna Tantra associated with Nilakantha's Tajika school, and the Kerala Prasna Marga (comprehensive). For KP, Krishnamurti's own readers on horary astrology.