Chaturthamsa (D4): the 4-fold fortune chart explained, computed and read with classical citation
The Chaturthamsa, written as D4 in modern notation, is the fortune and property chart in Parashari Vedic astrology. It is the dedicated divisional for 4th house themes: home, mother, vehicles, fixed assets, and the emotional-material foundation of the chart. This piece walks through what the Chaturthamsa is, how to compute it, and how the four destination signs (the kendras from the natal sign) produce the structural reading.
The Chaturthamsa or D4 is the 4-fold harmonic division of the Vedic birth chart, used as the dedicated fortune, property and fixed-assets chart in Parashari astrology. The four arcs of any sign always fall in the four kendras from that sign.
- Each 30-degree natal sign is divided into four arcs of 7.5 degrees.
- 1st arc same sign; 2nd is 4th-from-itself; 3rd is 7th-from-itself; 4th is 10th-from-itself.
- The four destinations are the four kendras (angular houses) from the natal sign.
- Read for 4th house themes: home, mother, property, vehicles, fixed assets.
- Moon is the karaka for both home and mother in the Chaturthamsa reading.
What the Chaturthamsa actually is
The Chaturthamsa, from the Sanskrit chatur (four) and amsa (division), is the chart produced by dividing each sign of the natal Vedic chart into four equal arcs. The chart is the dedicated divisional for 4th house themes: home, mother, property, vehicles and the emotional-material foundation of the life. Where the natal D1 4th house indicates the surface texture of these themes, the D4 provides the deeper-resolution structural register.
The Chaturthamsa is one of sixteen standard divisional charts in Parashari astrology. Each varga has a topical focus: D9 for marriage, D10 for career, D7 for children, D12 for parents. The D4 is reserved for the fortune-and-property axis.
The 4-fold division and the kendra destination rule
A sign is 30 degrees wide. The 4-fold division produces four arcs of 7.5 degrees each. The four arcs span 0 to 7.5, 7.5 to 15, 15 to 22.5, and 22.5 to 30 degrees within the natal sign. Each arc maps to one of the four kendras from the natal sign:
- The 1st Chaturthamsa (0 to 7.5 deg) is the natal sign itself.
- The 2nd Chaturthamsa (7.5 to 15 deg) is the 4th sign counted from the natal sign.
- The 3rd Chaturthamsa (15 to 22.5 deg) is the 7th sign from the natal sign.
- The 4th Chaturthamsa (22.5 to 30 deg) is the 10th sign from the natal sign.
The complete map for all twelve signs (showing the four destinations):
| Natal sign | 1st | 2nd (4th-from) | 3rd (7th-from) | 4th (10th-from) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aries | Aries | Cancer | Libra | Capricorn |
| Taurus | Taurus | Leo | Scorpio | Aquarius |
| Gemini | Gemini | Virgo | Sagittarius | Pisces |
| Cancer | Cancer | Libra | Capricorn | Aries |
| Leo | Leo | Scorpio | Aquarius | Taurus |
| Virgo | Virgo | Sagittarius | Pisces | Gemini |
| Libra | Libra | Capricorn | Aries | Cancer |
| Scorpio | Scorpio | Aquarius | Taurus | Leo |
| Sagittarius | Sagittarius | Pisces | Gemini | Virgo |
| Capricorn | Capricorn | Aries | Cancer | Libra |
| Aquarius | Aquarius | Taurus | Leo | Scorpio |
| Pisces | Pisces | Gemini | Virgo | Sagittarius |
Classical citations
Worked example
Take Moon at Cancer 12 degrees. 12 degrees falls in arc 2 (between 7.5 and 15). The 2nd Chaturthamsa of Cancer is the 4th sign from Cancer, which is Libra. Moon is therefore in Libra in the D4. Libra is Venus's sign, and the Moon in Libra indicates a foundation-axis with aesthetic-and-relational tone. The reading complements the natal Moon-in-Cancer (own sign, very strong) by giving a 4th-house deeper-resolution placement that emphasises partnership-and-aesthetic-driven home themes.
What the Chaturthamsa predicts
Home and emotional foundation
The Chaturthamsa lagna and the 4th house from the Chaturthamsa lagna describe the structural texture of home and the emotional-material foundation. Planets in the Chaturthamsa 4th, the 4th lord's placement, and Moon's Chaturthamsa position together describe the durability and quality of the foundation.
Property and fixed assets
Mars's Chaturthamsa position is read for fixed property (real estate, land, structural assets). A strong Mars in a benefic Chaturthamsa sign indicates favourable property significations. Venus's Chaturthamsa position is read for vehicles and comfort-related assets.
Mother-related material themes
The Moon (karaka for mother) and the 4th lord's placement in the Chaturthamsa together describe the mother-related material register. This reads alongside the D12 Dwadasamsa, which provides the deeper mother-relationship texture; the D4 adds the material-foundation dimension of the same axis.
What the Chaturthamsa does NOT predict
Three boundary conditions. First, no timing on its own; property events come from Vimshottari plus Saturn and Jupiter transits. Second, birth-time sensitivity (30 minutes of clock time per arc). Third, structural rather than specific (the chart indicates the kind of property, not the address).
References
- Brihat Parashara Hora Shastra, Chapter 6 (Chaturthamshe bhagya-griha-vichara). Sage Parashara.
- Phaladeepika, Chapter 8 (Chaturthamshe griha-vahana-shubha). Mantreshwar, 13th century.
- Saravali (Chaturthamshe matri-griha-yoga). Kalyana Varma, circa 8th century.
- Internal: Rashi (D1)
- Internal: Dwadasamsa (D12): parents and ancestry
- Internal: Navamsa (D9)
Frequently asked questions
What is the Chaturthamsa or D4 chart in Vedic astrology?
The Chaturthamsa, written as D4 in modern notation, is the 4-fold harmonic division of the Vedic birth chart used in Parashari Vedic astrology for fortune, property and fixed-assets reading. Each of the twelve 30-degree signs in the natal chart is divided into four equal arcs of 7.5 degrees each, and each arc is assigned to one of the four kendras (angular houses) counted from the natal sign. The first arc maps to the natal sign itself, the second to the 4th sign from itself, the third to the 7th sign from itself, and the fourth to the 10th sign from itself. The D4 is read primarily for the 4th house themes of the natal chart: home, mother, property, vehicles, fixed assets, and the emotional-material foundation of the life.
How is the Chaturthamsa computed?
Each 30-degree sign is divided into four equal arcs of 7.5 degrees each. The first arc (0 to 7.5 degrees) maps to the same sign as the natal sign. The second arc (7.5 to 15 degrees) maps to the 4th sign counted from the natal sign. The third arc (15 to 22.5 degrees) maps to the 7th sign counted from the natal sign. The fourth arc (22.5 to 30 degrees) maps to the 10th sign counted from the natal sign. So for Aries the four Chaturthamsas are Aries, Cancer, Libra, Capricorn (the four kendras from Aries); for Taurus they are Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, Aquarius. A planet at Aries 10 degrees occupies the 2nd Chaturthamsa of Aries (between 7.5 and 15 degrees), which is Cancer.
What does the Chaturthamsa chart actually predict?
The Chaturthamsa is read for fortune, property and fixed-assets questions. Classical readings address four things. First, the texture of home and the emotional-foundation of the life, read through the Chaturthamsa lagna and the 4th house counted from the Chaturthamsa lagna. Second, property and fixed-assets significations, including real estate, vehicles and long-term holdings, read through the 4th lord placement in the Chaturthamsa and through Mars (the karaka for fixed property). Third, the mother-related material themes, read through the Moon's Chaturthamsa position (Moon is karaka for mother) and Venus's Chaturthamsa position (Venus is karaka for comforts and vehicles). Fourth, the broader fortune-and-foundation themes including emotional stability and the durability of the chart's material base. The Chaturthamsa does not predict timing; timing comes from the Vimshottari dasha system combined with Saturn and Jupiter transits to the natal 4th house.
Why do all four Chaturthamsas fall in the kendras of the natal sign?
Because the destination rule (1st same sign, 2nd 4th-from-itself, 3rd 7th-from-itself, 4th 10th-from-itself) traces the four kendra positions exactly. The kendras (angular houses) are the 1st, 4th, 7th, and 10th counted from any reference sign. The Chaturthamsa rule walks through these four positions, producing four destination signs that are always in the kendra relationship to each other. This property is structurally elegant and reinforces the D4's connection to the 4th house (which is itself one of the kendras): the entire chart is built within the kendra structure of the natal sign.
How is the Chaturthamsa different from the natal 4th house for property reading?
The natal D1 4th house is the primary surface indicator of home, mother, property and fixed assets. The Chaturthamsa adds deeper-resolution texture to the same significations. A complete property-and-foundation reading uses both. The classical sequence is to check the D1 4th house, 4th lord, and Mars and Moon (karakas) for the surface picture, then check the corresponding Chaturthamsa 4th house and the karakas' Chaturthamsa placements for the deeper-resolution texture, then cross-validate with the active Vimshottari period for any property-event timing. Reading the D4 in isolation produces an incomplete reading; reading the D1 4th alone misses the deeper structural register.
What are the limits of the Chaturthamsa chart?
The Chaturthamsa has four explicit limits. First, it does not predict timing on its own; specific property or fortune events come from the Vimshottari dasha system combined with transit triggers, especially Saturn and Jupiter transits to the natal 4th house and the Chaturthamsa lagna. Second, it is birth-time sensitive because each 7.5-degree arc corresponds to approximately 30 minutes of clock time at the ascendant in temperate latitudes; a birth-time error of 30 minutes can shift the Chaturthamsa lagna by one arc and change the reading. Third, the chart describes structural texture (the kind of property and fortune significations the chart carries) rather than specific outcomes (which property, which inheritance amount). Fourth, the Chaturthamsa is one of sixteen divisional charts; a complete property reading also checks the natal D1 4th house, the D12 Dwadasamsa for the mother-related context, the D16 Shodasamsa for vehicle-and-luxury significations, and the active Vimshottari period.
Read next
This article is a source-grade reference on the Chaturthamsa (D4) divisional chart used in Parashari Vedic astrology for fortune, property and fixed-assets reading. Classical citations are drawn from Brihat Parashara Hora Shastra (Chapter 6), Phaladeepika (Mantreshwar, 13th century), and Saravali (Kalyana Varma, circa 8th century). Computation rules and reading methodology are documented in the cited classical sources. This research is published for informational and educational purposes only. No commercial, financial, medical, legal or professional decisions should be taken solely on the contents of this article. Internal audit log maintained.