# Divisional Charts (Vargas) -- Meaning, Origin & How It's Used > Divisional charts, or vargas, re-slice a birth chart's data into specialized D-charts, from D1 for overall life through D9 for marriage to D60 for fine-grained detail, each focused on one life theme. - **Canonical URL**: https://merirashi.com/en/glossary/divisional-charts - **Language**: en --- 1. [Home](https://merirashi.com/en) 2. / 3. [Glossary](https://merirashi.com/en/glossary) 4. / 5. Divisional Charts (Vargas) Glossary - Chart Basics ## Divisional Charts (Vargas) Varga Quick definition Divisional charts, or vargas, re-slice a birth chart's data into specialized D-charts, from D1 for overall life through D9 for marriage to D60 for fine-grained detail, each focused on one life theme. [Calculate your free birth chart](https://merirashi.com/en/birth-chart-calculator)[Browse the full glossary](https://merirashi.com/en/glossary) Definition ## What is Divisional Charts (Vargas)? Divisional charts, or vargas, are a family of supplementary charts derived mathematically from the same birth data as the main D1 (Rashi) chart, each one re-slicing planetary positions at a finer resolution to highlight a specific life theme. Classical texts describe up to sixty such divisions (D1 through D60), with sixteen principal ones, the Shodashvarga, singled out as the core working set. Some of the most commonly used: D1, the Rashi chart, for overall life and general nature; D9, the navamsa, for marriage and dharma, arguably the most consequential after D1; D10, the Dashamsha, for career and public life; D7, the Saptamsha, for children; D12, the Dwadashamsha, for parents; and D60, the Shashtiamsha, for extremely fine-grained karmic detail, considered by many classical sources the most subtle and hardest to interpret reliably. Each chart takes the same underlying planetary degrees and divides each sign into that many equal parts, then re-maps every graha accordingly, producing a genuinely different chart layout for each division while remaining mathematically derived from a single consistent birth moment. Where the word comes from ## Etymology Varga comes from the Sanskrit वर्ग, meaning "division," "group," or "class," from a root associated with separating or classifying. The numbering convention, D1, D9, D10, and so on, is a modern shorthand layered onto the classical Sanskrit names, each of which describes the division count directly: amsha means "part," so navamsa is "nine-part," dashamsha is "ten-part" (dasha meaning ten), saptamsha is "seven-part" (sapta meaning seven), and shashtiamsha is "sixty-part" (shashti meaning sixty). The word Shodashvarga, meaning "sixteen vargas," names the classical set of sixteen principal divisions singled out from the larger sixty-chart family as the most commonly consulted. ## How it's used in a real chart A worked example, not just theory. Take a chart where the D1 10th house looks modest on its face, perhaps the 10th lord is placed in a dusthana in the main chart, or no major planet aspects the 10th house directly, a picture that read in isolation might suggest an unremarkable or difficult professional trajectory. Before drawing that conclusion, an astrologer specifically consulted with career questions will pull up the D10, the Dashamsha, the divisional chart built explicitly to examine profession and public life in finer detail. If, in that D10 chart, the 10th lord turns out to be exalted and sitting in its own D10 kendra, the professional reading shifts substantially: the D10 is the specialized lens for career specifically, and a strong D10 result is read as evidence that this person's actual working life will carry more strength, recognition, and trajectory than the D1 10th house alone suggested. A competent reading leans on the D10 result here rather than stopping at the more general D1 impression, since D10 exists precisely to add resolution to career questions the way a zoomed-in map adds detail a country-level map cannot show, while the D1 still anchors the overall picture of the life. No fear-selling ## Common misconceptions Myth vs. reality Because there are as many as sixty divisional charts named in classical texts, a common assumption among beginners, and a real risk with fear-driven marketing, is that "more charts equal more accurate, or scarier, predictions," as if running a birth through all sixty vargas produces sixty separate verdicts that each need to be individually worried about. In practice, most working astrologers do not read anywhere near all sixty for a typical consultation. The D1 and D9 do the great majority of interpretive work in most readings, with D10 brought in specifically for career questions, and other vargas consulted selectively when a specific life theme is under discussion, children, siblings, parents, and so on, rather than as a matter of routine. Deeper vargas like D60 are traditionally regarded as extremely subtle and genuinely difficult to interpret reliably, reserved for advanced practitioners examining fine karmic detail, not tools for producing dramatic pronouncements. Treating the existence of sixty charts as sixty independent sources of danger misunderstands how the system is actually used in serious practice. Go deeper ## Related tools & guides [See all 12 Houses (Bhavas)](https://merirashi.com/en/houses) [See all 12 Rashis (zodiac signs)](https://merirashi.com/en/rashi) ## Frequently asked questions What are divisional charts in Vedic astrology? Divisional charts, or vargas, are supplementary charts derived from the same birth data as the main D1 chart, each dividing every zodiac sign into a specific number of equal parts to highlight one life theme, such as D9 for marriage or D10 for career. How many divisional charts are there? Classical texts describe up to sixty, D1 through D60, with sixteen principal ones, the Shodashvarga, forming the core working set most astrologers actually reference. Most consultations lean primarily on D1, D9, and sometimes D10. Which divisional chart is most important? After the main D1 birth chart, the D9 navamsa is generally considered the most important, used for marriage, dharma, and confirming a planet's true underlying strength. D10 follows closely behind for career-specific questions. Do I need all sixty divisional charts read for an accurate prediction? No. Most working astrologers rely mainly on D1 and D9, bringing in D10 or other specific vargas only when a particular life theme is under discussion. Claims that all sixty charts must be examined to avoid missing something are typically more marketing than classical method. Explore ## Related terms [Navamsa (D9)](https://merirashi.com/en/glossary/navamsa) [Rashi (Zodiac Sign)](https://merirashi.com/en/glossary/rashi) [Bhava (House)](https://merirashi.com/en/glossary/bhava) [Karaka (Significator)](https://merirashi.com/en/glossary/karaka) ## See Divisional Charts (Vargas) in your own chart Definitions are a start. Compute your real birth chart to see exactly where this shows up for you -- free, in seconds. [Calculate my chart](https://merirashi.com/en/birth-chart-calculator)[Browse all terms](https://merirashi.com/en/glossary)