Read for
letting go, the inward and the sudden
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Today’s panchangall five angas with exact timesTithithe lunar day, and when it endsNakshatrathe Moon’s position todayHorathe planetary hour, all twenty-fourRahu Kaalthe time to avoid starting new workChoghadiyaday and night, each split into eightFestivalsDiwali, Holi and 81 more, with the rule behind each dateVratEkadashi with parana, Purnima, Amavasya, Pradosh
5.8% of the cycle
Ketu Mahadasha
7 years
Ketu mahadasha runs 7 years and is read for letting go, the inward and the sudden. What it brings you depends on where Ketu sits in your kundli.
Ketu mahadasha in the cycle
7 of 120 years. It follows Mercury (17 years) and comes before Venus (20 years). You are born into it if the Moon was in Ashwini, Magha or Mula, the three nakshatras Ketu rules.
Ketu7y
Venus20y
Sun6y
Moon10y
Mars7y
Rahu18y
Jupiter16y
Saturn19y
Mercury17y
The nine antardashas
Each runs for 7 × its own lord’s years ÷ 120. The longest is Ketu–Venus, the shortest Ketu–Sun; together they make up the 7 years.
A dasha year here is 365.25 days, the common modern convention; a panchang using a 360-day year will give slightly different dates, in the same ratio. Each length is rounded to the day.
As Parashara reads them (BPHS chapter 59)
Each line is the text’s reading when the antardasha lord is well placed, and when it is not; your kundli decides which applies.
Ketu antardasha
Goes well: BPHS gives happiness from the spouse and children, recognition from those in power, and gains of land or property, though with some mental anguish.
Hard: BPHS warns of heart trouble, a damaged reputation, loss of wealth and livestock, distress to the spouse and children, and an unsettled mind.
Caution: When Ketu is connected with the lord of your 2nd or 7th house, or sits in the 2nd or 7th, BPHS treats it as a maraka (literally “killer”: a graha or house watched in matters of health and longevity) caution (the 2nd and 7th being the houses the texts link with danger to life).
Remedy: For relief, BPHS prescribes recitation of the Durga Saptashati and the Mahamrityunjaya japa, the mantra to Shiva for health and long life.
BPHS 59.1–6Shukra (Venus) antardasha
Goes well: BPHS gives the favour of those in power, good fortune, gains of clothes, the regaining of a lost position of authority, the comfort of vehicles, pilgrimage, and gains of land or property through those in power.
Hard: BPHS warns of quarrels without cause, loss of wealth and trouble to livestock.
Caution: When Shukra rules your 2nd or 7th house (the maraka houses, which the texts link with danger to life), BPHS warns of physical distress and mental anguish, and asks for care with health.
Remedy: For relief, BPHS prescribes the Durga Path (recitation of the Durga Saptashati) and giving a tawny (kapila) cow or a female buffalo in charity.
BPHS 59.7–15Surya (Sun) antardasha
Goes well: BPHS gives gains of wealth, the favour of those in power, pious deeds and the fulfilment of all ambitions.
Hard: BPHS warns of trouble from those in power, separation from parents, journeys to foreign lands, trouble from thieves, danger from snakes and poison, penalties from government, friction with friends, sorrow and danger from fever.
Caution: When Surya rules your 2nd or 7th house, BPHS counts this a maraka period (one the texts link with danger to life).
Remedy: For relief, and to regain comfort through Surya's grace, BPHS prescribes giving a cow and gold in charity.
BPHS 59.16–24Chandra (Moon) antardasha
Goes well: BPHS gives recognition from those in power, enthusiasm, well-being, enjoyment, a house and land, unusual gains of food, clothes, vehicles and livestock, success in business, the building of a water tank or similar public work, and happiness for the spouse and children.
Hard: BPHS warns of unhappiness and mental anguish, obstacles in ventures, separation from parents, losses in business, and loss of livestock.
Caution: When Chandra rules your 2nd, 7th or 8th house, BPHS treats this as a maraka caution (one the texts link with danger to life).
Remedy: For relief, BPHS prescribes reciting the mantras of Chandra and giving in charity the things associated with Chandra.
BPHS 59.25–36Mangal (Mars) antardasha
Goes well: BPHS gives gains of land or property, growth in wealth and livestock, the laying out of a new garden, and gains of wealth through the favour of those in power.
Hard: BPHS warns of danger to life or a mishap on a journey abroad, diabetes, needless troubles, danger from thieves and from those in power, and quarrels. Amid these, it says, some good results also come.
Caution: When Mangal rules your 2nd or 7th house, BPHS treats this as a maraka caution (one the texts link with danger to life).
Remedy: For relief, BPHS prescribes giving a bull in charity. It says Mangal's grace then brings enjoyment and gains of property.
BPHS 59.37–44Rahu antardasha
Goes well: BPHS gives growth and gains of wealth, grain, livestock, land and property through a foreign ruler or authority. There is some trouble at the start, but all goes well later.
Hard: BPHS warns of frequent urination, bodily weakness, chills with fever, danger from thieves, recurring fever, ill repute, quarrels, diabetes and stomach pain.
Caution: When Rahu sits in your 2nd or 7th house (the maraka houses, which the texts link with danger to life), BPHS warns of distress and danger, and asks for care.
Remedy: For relief, BPHS prescribes recitation of the Durga Saptashati.
BPHS 59.45–50Guru (Jupiter) antardasha
Goes well: BPHS gives growth in wealth and grain, the favour of those in power, enthusiasm, gains of vehicles, celebrations at home such as the birth of a son, pious deeds and yajnas (fire rituals), victory over rivals, and enjoyment.
Hard: BPHS warns of danger from thieves, snakes and wounds, loss of wealth, separation from the spouse and children, and physical distress. Some good may be felt at the start, but it says only hard results follow later.
Caution: When Guru rules your 2nd or 7th house, BPHS counts this a maraka period (one the texts link with danger to life).
Remedy: For relief, BPHS prescribes the Mahamrityunjaya japa, the mantra to Shiva for health and long life, and recitation of the Shiva Sahasranama.
BPHS 59.51–60Shani (Saturn) antardasha
Goes well: BPHS gives success in all ventures, happiness from one's employer, comfortable journeys, growing happiness and property in one's home town, and an audience with those in power.
Hard: BPHS warns of distress for oneself and relatives, anguish, loss of wealth through fines imposed by government, leaving one's present post, journeys to foreign lands, and danger of theft while travelling. It also lists an increase in livestock.
Caution: When Shani rules your 2nd or 7th house, BPHS counts this a maraka period (one the texts link with danger to life).
Remedy: For relief, BPHS prescribes a havan (fire offering) with sesame seeds (til) and giving a black cow or a female buffalo in charity.
BPHS 59.61–68Budh (Mercury) antardasha
Goes well: BPHS gives a rise to authority or a position of command, enjoyment, charity, gains of wealth and land, the birth of a son, religious functions and sudden happy occasions such as a wedding, well-being in the family, and gains of clothes and ornaments.
Hard: BPHS warns of friction with government officials, living in other people's houses, and loss of wealth, clothes, vehicles and livestock. It sees some good at the start, better results in the middle and an inauspicious end.
Caution: When Budh rules your 2nd or 7th house, BPHS counts this a maraka period (one the texts link with danger to life).
Remedy: For relief, BPHS prescribes reciting the Vishnu Sahasranama, the thousand names of Vishnu.
BPHS 59.69–79What Ketu mahadasha is read for
What the tradition reads it for, and what decides it in a chart.
Decided by your chart
Ketu rules no house. What decides its period is the house it sits in, the rashi there and that rashi’s lord, and the grahas with it; the tradition adds that Ketu acts like Mars (“Kujavat Ketu”). See Ketu in each house and its upay.
Read for your chart
The dasha calculator finds when Ketu mahadasha falls in your life and reads it, and each of its antardashas, for your chart. Find my dasha.
What Parashara says of this mahadasha (BPHS 47.71–77)
His readings come with conditions: where the dasha lord sits in your kundli, and what it joins. The old text speaks of a man; it applies to anyone.
When it goes well
- When Ketu is in a kendra (the 1st, 4th, 7th or 10th house), a trikona (the 1st, 5th or 9th house) or the 11th, in a benefic rashi, or in his exaltation or own rashi (BPHS gives Vrischik (Scorpio) for both, and Dhanu (Sagittarius) as his mooltrikona, the root sign of his strength; some sages take Meen (Pisces) as his own rashi instead), BPHS gives good relations with those in power, a position of authority over a region or a village, the comfort of vehicles, happiness from children, gains from abroad, happiness from the spouse, and the gain of cattle.BPHS 47.34–39½, 47.72–77
- When Ketu is in the 3rd, 6th or 11th house, BPHS gives a rise to authority, good relations with friends, and the chance of acquiring vehicles and grand possessions.BPHS 47.72–77
- When Ketu's dasha is at its start, BPHS gives the results of a Raj Yoga (a combination that raises one to standing and power).BPHS 47.72–77
When it is hard
- When Ketu's dasha reaches its middle and last parts, BPHS warns of a time of fear in the middle, and of illness and journeys to distant places in the last part.BPHS 47.72–77
- When Ketu is in the 2nd, 8th or 12th house, or receives the drishti (aspect) of a malefic, BPHS warns of imprisonment, harm to relatives, damage to one's home, anxieties, low company and disease, and asks for care on each.BPHS 47.72–77
Upay in Ketu mahadasha
Suggestions the tradition gives while Ketu’s period runs; your kundli says which apply.
What helps
- Worship Lord Ganesha regularly
- Practise meditation and spiritual sadhana
- Feed stray dogs
- Donate to spiritual organisations
- Practise working without worrying about the result
What to keep clear of
- Don't ignore health warning signs
- Avoid cutting yourself off from everyone
- Don't reject material responsibilities entirely
Beej mantra and daan
The beej mantra is Ketu’s seed sound, chanted with a count.
ॐ स्रां स्रीं स्रौं सः केतवे नमः
Daan: a blanket and sesame, on Tuesday
Ketu mahadasha for each lagna
For Ketu, the lord of the rashi it sits in takes the place of lordship.
Ketu rules no house, so no lagna makes it good or bad by lordship: it gives the results of the house it sits in and of the lord of that rashi. Ketu in each house shows how.
All nine mahadashas
Common questions
How long is Ketu mahadasha?
7 years, 5.8% of the 120-year cycle, divided into nine antardashas.
When does Ketu mahadasha start?
From birth, if the Moon was in Ashwini, Magha or Mula at birth; otherwise when Mercury mahadasha ends. Whether it comes in your lifetime depends on which mahadasha was running when you were born.
Is Ketu mahadasha good or bad?
Neither in general. Ketu rules no house, so it depends on the house it sits in, that rashi’s lord and the grahas with it; the calculator reads it for your chart.
Which dasha you are running is a fact about your chart.
It follows from the Moon’s nakshatra at your birth. Enter your birth details and the whole 120-year timeline comes with it, each period read for your chart.
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