Designated Padas - Special spots to be aware of in a Horoscope

A broad spectrum of a horoscope consists of 12 houses represented by 12 different zodiac signs. However when it comes to dividing a zodiac signs into parts, the Navamsa or the D9 variation adds an extra colour when looked at from the purview of vedic astrology. Each of the Zodiac signs thus are bifurcated into 9 equal parts measuring a zone of 3 degrees 20 minutes making up 108 parts (12*9) in totality.

When it comes to analyzing these Padas, there are certain of them which tend to be auspicious and a few inauspicious. There are different characterizations under which these padas can be slotted into which are pretty important to look at in a horoscope. Some of them also overlap with each other but it's good to note and understand these specific padas as they can be quite useful in the analysis of a horoscope. Many a time we don't tend to reflect on these as they are much in number and quite difficult to keep a tab at. But certainly they can give a divergent flavour when looked at from the lens of a horoscope.

The different padas to be aware of in a horoscope which ultimately yields it's result in the D9 or Navamsa chart are as below:

- Vargottama Amsa Pada

- Pushkara Amsa Pada

- Gandanta Amsa Pada

- Tyajya Amsa Pada

- Duritha Amsa Pada 

- Mrityu Amsa Pada

Let's briefly look at all of the above and understand the specific spots in a horoscope where they occur:

Vargottama Amsa Pada:
Vargottama is used to describe a position where a planet attains the same placement in the main D1 Rasi chart as well as the subsequently derived D9 Navamsa chart. Vargottama is applicable in all the Divisional charts but is particularly looked at with importance in the Navamsa division. As they are placed in the same sign in both D1 and D9, it is said to indicate a harmonious alignment and is a position of strength known to amplify the results. It is said to have a major influence in an individual's horoscope. Though it tends to seemingly connote a position of strength, it needs to be looked at from a broader perspective and with a touch of caution. For instance the Ascendant Lord in Vargottama can indicate vigour and energy for the individual but however the 6th Lord say placed in Vargottama can influence 6th house negative matters which may not always be a good thing. Brihar Parashara Shastra mentions Vargottama as a significant tool in computing strength of a planet.

Vargottama happens in each zodiac sign in a particular part out of the 9 parts. In a movable zodiac sign the 1st part becomes a Vargottama whereas in a Fixed zodiac sign every 5th part becomes a Vargottama and in a Dual zodiac sign, the 9th part ends up being in Vargottama. Hence there are a total of 12 Vargottama Pada's out of a total possible 108 Padas making up the Rasi chart.

Pushkara Amsa Pada:
Pushkara are supposed to be those areas within a zodiac which are said to enhance the qualities of a planet. It denotes nourishment and when any entity is placed in a Pushkara pada, it is said to indicate a sweet spot. Pushkara in Sanksrit means blue lotus and these Pushkara Amsa's fall in special designated degrees that tend to bring growth, luck and auspiciousness. Though some of the major classics have no reference of Pushkara Amsa, Vidhya Madhaveeyam and Jathaka Parijatha do have a passing mention of these.

Pushkara Pada takes place in 2 specific parts in each zodiac sign leading to a total of 24 Pushkara Pada's in total. In a fire sign viz Aries, Leo and Sagittarius it happens to be the 7th and 9th part. For Earth signs viz Taurus, Virgo and Capricorn it is the 3rd and 5th part. For Air signs it is the 6th and 8th part whereas for Water signs it is the 1st and 3rd part. In essence 24 out of 108 total padas happen to be Pushkara Amsa Padas.

Note: Since the topic of Pushkara Amsa was mentioned, it would also make sense to note about the topic of Pushkara Bhaga which are said to be one specific degree in each zodiac sign that are said to be extremely auspicious. Jathaka Parijatha denotes the following degrees to be Pushkara Bhaga for the zodiac signs from Aries to Pisces viz 21°, 14°, 18°, 8°, 19°, 9°, 24°, 11°, 23°, 14°, 19°, 9°. In the book Navamsa Astrology however Pushkara Bhaga degrees are a little different and is believed to be obtained from Poorva Kalamrita and as per this 21° of a fire sign, 14° in an Earth sign, 24° in a Air sign and 7° in a Water sign are said to be Pushkara Bhaga 

Gandanta Amsa Pada:
Gandanta are the junction points which take place in the transition between water to fire signs. Gandanta can be said to be a point of danger and if a planet is placed in the Gandanta zone, it is said to be inauspicious causing negative things to befall upon the path of an individual. Gand means 'knot' and Anta means 'end' which can loosely be translated to as knot being tied that is difficult to unshackle. This is said to be connected at a soul level and hence very deep. It is ideal if no planet is placed in the Gandanta zone and especially that of the Moon as it signifies the mind which makes it difficult to overcome.

Gandanta Pada takes place only in the fire and water signs with the first of the fire signs and the last of the water signs initiating the Gandanta zone. Hence there are only 6 parts out of a total 108 parts which fall in Gandanta. Also in general it is said that only the last two ghatis and the first two ghatis of the Nakshatra falling in water and fire signs respectively to be extremely intricate and sensitive points which when converted in degree terms denote the following span viz:
29° 23' 20'' of Pisces, Cancer, Scorpio to 0° 26' 40'' of Aries, Leo, Sagittarius  

Tyajya Amsa Pada:
There are selective Nakshatra Padas in each of the 12 zodiac signs where planets are said to lose their potency and become ineffective when seated within that designated spot of 3°20'. These are also termed as Poojya Pada that translates to zero point and said to denote a cursed or poisoned space. Hence if any of the planets falls in this area, it can attract negative vibrations and misfortune.

Tyajya or Poojya Pada takes place in one particular pada in each of the 12 zodiac signs. Hence there are a total of 12 Tyajya Padas out of 108. In 4 of the zodiacs viz Aries, Taurus, Virgo and Sagittarius. Tyajya Pada falls in the very 1st pada whereas in 4 of the zodiacs viz Gemini, Leo, Libra and Aquarius, Tyajya Pada falls in the middle 5th pada and in the remaining zodiacs viz Cancer, Scorpio, Capricorn and Pisces, Tyajya Pada falls in the last 9th pada.

Duritha Amsa Pada:
The Nakshatras are said to be divided into 3 groups - Creation, Maintenance and Destruction. The First Nakshatra beginning from Ashwini is Srishti (Creation), 2nd Bharani is Sthiti (Maintenance) and 3rd Krithika is Samhar (Destruction). The sequence is said to repeat from the 4th Nakshatra onwards until the last 27th Nakshatra. The Samhara Nakshatras which are those that occur in multiples of 3 are said to initiate Durithamsa. Any planet placed in Durithamsa is known to be inauspicious and capable of causing trouble, and despair.

Duritha Pada takes place only in the Nakshatras whose star lord happens to be Sun, Rahu and Mercury. These fall in the Earth, Air and Water signs only and Durithamsa is devoid of Fire signs. Though there are 4 padas in each of these Nakshatras, it is only the 3rd and 4th pada that attract the sensitivity of Durithamsa Pada and they happen to all fall specifically only in the zodiac sign of Aquarius and Pisces in the D9 Navamsa chart. Hence there are a total of 18 Duritha Amsa Padas out of 108 Padas (2 in each of the 3 earth, air and water signs).

Mrityu Amsa Pada:
There is also a mention of Mrityu point where it's said that when planets are placed in these spots they can suck the signification and cause a killing effect. There is no much information available of this in any specific text. However these are also being documented for reference purpose.

Summary of Designated Padas:
Listed below is a tabular representation of the specified zones in which Vargottama Amsa, Pushkara Amsa, Gandanta Amsa, Tyajya Amsa, Duritha Amsa and Mrityu Amsa takes place.

Overall Analysis:
From a broad overview we can state Vargottama and Pushkara to be more favorable as compared to Gandanta, Tyajya, Duritha and Mrityu which all indicates malicious effects. There are only 3 particular padas out of 108 which happen to be both Vargottama & Pushkara that happen to be Rohini 2nd Pada in Taurus sign, Punarvasu 4th pada in Cancer sign and Uttara Ashada 1st pada in Sagittarius sign. Likewise there are only 3 particular parts out of 108 which fall in the ambit of being Gandanta, Tyajya and Durithamsa all at the same time and these are Ashlesha 4th pada in Cancer sign, Jyeshta 4th pada in Scorpio sign and Revathi 4th pada in Pisces sign. Out of this Revathi 4th pada alone happens to be a Vargottama pada also and ascertains strength. Ashwini 1st pada which happens to be the next pada after Revathi 4th pada also happens to be Vargottama pada and also a Gandanta and Tyajya Pada but however does not fall into the category of Durithamsa pada. None of the Pushkara Pada happen to be Gandanta or Tyajya Padas however 6 of these 24 Pushkara padas unfortunately end up becoming Durithamsa Padas viz the 4th padas of the Samhara Nakshatras of  Krithika, Aarudra, Uttara Phalguni, Swathi, Uttara Ashada and Satabisha. 2 of the Pushkara Pada also fall into the category of Mrityu Pada namely Krithika 4th pada and Uttara Bhadrapada 2nd pada. Poorva Phalguni 1st pada gathers strength on being Vargottama but however loses its sheen because it's a Tyajya pada and same is the case for Satabisha 3rd pada which gains strength due to Vargottama but is exposed to the cursed Tyajya Pada as well as the harmful Duritamsa Pada.