Introduction
When a marriage is being discussed, most families have the kundlis matched. The common North Indian method is ashtakoot milan: eight factors (kootas) are compared from the bride's and groom's birth nakshatras and Moon signs, each worth some points (gunas), 36 in all.
The method comes from the muhurta literature; Muhūrta-cintāmaṇi's Vivāha-prakaraṇa gives its kootas and cancellations. Regions differ somewhat in the number of kootas and in the tables. So 36 points is a common method, not a final test.
The eight kootas and their points
| Koota | Max points | From | Tradition associates it with |
|---|---|---|---|
| Varna | 1 | the Moon sign's varna (an old astrological category, not caste) | an old classification |
| Vashya | 2 | the sign's class | mutual ease and attraction |
| Tara | 3 | counting from one nakshatra to the other | the easy flow of life together |
| Yoni | 4 | the nakshatra's emblem animal | temperament and closeness |
| Graha maitri | 5 | friendship of the Moon-sign lords | meeting of minds |
| Gana | 6 | Deva, Manushya, Rakshasa | the pace of temperament |
| Bhakoot | 7 | the distance between the two Moon signs | the rhythm of home life |
| Nadi | 8 | Aadi, Madhya, Antya | the koota with the most points |
| Total | 36 |
Rakshasa gana is the name of an old category, not a sign of anything bad; tradition associates it with an independent, intense temperament.
ePandit reads the doshas first, then the total
For three kootas, tradition calls zero points a "dosha": Nadi (both have the same nadi), Bhakoot (the Moon signs are 2–12, 5–9 or 6–8 from each other) and Gana (certain gana pairs). Mangal vichar is checked alongside.
Muhūrta-cintāmaṇi's Vivāha-prakaraṇa also gives their parihār (cancellations): situations in which the dosha is not counted. For example:
- Nadi: same Moon sign but different nakshatras; or same nakshatra but different signs; or same nakshatra but different padas.
- Bhakoot: the nadi is pure, and both Moon signs have the same lord, or the two lords (or the two Moon-navamsha lords) are friends.
- Gana: the two Moon-sign lords, or the two Moon-navamsha lords, are friends; or one of the three nadi exceptions holds (same sign with different nakshatras, and so on).
- Mangal: its cancellations are on the Mangal vichar page; and if both charts have it, tradition treats it as balanced (sāmya).
These are examples; the texts and traditions give a few more.
A cancellation removes the dosha; it never adds points. So ePandit shows each koota's actual score and notes beside it whether a cancellation applies.
How ePandit summarises a match
No text sets a pass mark. Families still want a plain summary, so ePandit gives its own three-level summary. This is ePandit's convention, not a rule from any text. It works by looking at the doshas first and the total second:
| Summary | When |
|---|---|
| बहुत अच्छा मेल (very good match) | 27 or more points, and no dosha that needs a cancellation |
| अच्छा मेल (good match) | 18 or more points, every Nadi, Bhakoot and Gana dosha cancelled, and no Mangal condition left without a cancellation or balance |
| बात करके आगे बढ़िए (talk it over, then go ahead) | every other case |
"Talk it over" does not mean "no". It means both families and both partners should talk openly: way of life, work, expectations and each other's temperament. ePandit never tells anyone not to marry.
Points alone never decide
- Matching is mostly from the Moon; the whole chart, both people's natures and their life circumstances matter far more.
- Many pandits themselves say that the couple's own meeting of hearts stands above any score.
- Tables differ slightly, for example 0 or 1 point for some gana pairs, so two apps may differ by a point or two.
- A low score calls for no puja, gem or expense. The remedies page lists the ₹0 options first, and the choice is yours.