Tārā Bala and Chandra Bala — and why this site does not compute them

Tārā Bala

Counting begins at the person’s janma nakṣatra and runs to the nakṣatra of the day in question. The count is then reduced into nine groups, each with a traditional name and character, and some of the nine are treated as unfavourable for beginning an important undertaking.

For a ceremony involving two people — a wedding — the count may be taken for both, and which of them governs is itself a matter of tradition.

Chandra Bala

This looks at the Moon’s rāśi on the day relative to the person’s birth rāśi. Certain relative positions are traditionally sought and others avoided for major undertakings.

Because the Moon changes rāśi about every two and a quarter days, Chandra Bala varies quickly — which is one reason a priest asked for a date range rather than a single day will often come back with two or three options.

Why they are absent here

Three reasons, and they are worth stating plainly.

First, they need personal data. Both tests require a birth nakṣatra or rāśi, and Chandra Bala’s companion tests need more. This site’s standing position is that personal horoscope information should not be collected by an automated web tool that has no need of it.

Second, the rules differ. Which of the nine tārā groups are avoided, whose nakṣatra governs at a wedding, and for which ceremonies the tests apply at all are traditional judgements. They have not been set down for this site by Sri Kumar Gurukkal, and filling them in from general reading would be inventing his tradition on his behalf.

Third, they are exactly the part of the work a priest is for. A site that implemented them would be inviting families to skip the conversation that matters most.

What a family may do

• Know your janma nakṣatra and rāśi, and those of the people a ceremony is for.
• When asking Gurukkal about a wedding or an upanayanam, offer a range of dates and the birth details together — that is what lets him narrow it properly.
• Do not be surprised if a date that looks clear on a calendar is set aside. The calendar was only doing half the work.

Often misunderstood

• That a favourable day is favourable for everyone. These two tests exist precisely because it is not.
• That this site is withholding a feature. The rules for it have not been set down by Gurukkal, and it will not guess them.

Where traditions differ

• Traditions differ on which tārā groups are avoided, and on whether the bride’s or the groom’s nakṣatra governs. This is one of the questions in the review pack prepared for Gurukkal.

Explaining it to a child

Some days suit some people better than others — like how a birthday party at the same time suits one friend and not another. Priests have a careful way of working that out, and it needs to know when you were born.