Lesson S01-M05-L03: The Sixteen Vargas — A Conceptual Map — Workbook¶
Course / Module 5 — Special Ascendants and the Sixteen Vargas / Chapter 8, Part 1 — Divisional Consideration / Lesson S01-M05-L03: The Sixteen Vargas — A Conceptual Map — Workbook
S01-M05-L03 · Chapter 8, Part 1 — Divisional Consideration
📖 Lesson → 📝 Workbook → 📊 Application → ✅ Quiz
Homework
Homework is included in this Workbook. Complete the marked Homework sections before moving to the Quiz.
Homework — Practice and Understanding is on this page. Homework — Chart Observation and Application continues on this chapter's Application page.
1. Chapter Purpose¶
Introduces all sixteen Vargas (sign-subdivisions) by name, division-count, and BPHS's own stated practical use for each — building the vocabulary this course will keep reusing, without yet requiring the heavier construction technique.
2. Connection Bridge¶
- Builds on: nothing structurally required.
- Feeds forward into: S3-M22 (full construction technique), S1-M5-L4 (Vimshopaka Bala, next lesson), S3-M23 (Karakamsha, built on Navamamsha).
Bridge prompt: Before reading, write one sentence: if you could only use one Varga beyond the D1 chart, which would you guess is most important, and why?
3. Memorize · Understand · Apply¶
| Memorize | Understand | Apply |
|---|---|---|
| All 16 Varga names, in order, with division-count | Why the last few Vargas (Akshavedamsha, Shastiamsha) get a broad "all indications" use rather than one narrow domain | Match a life-topic question to the correct Varga |
| Each Varga's one-line BPHS-given use | The general construction pattern (divide, assign starting point, assign lords in sequence) | Identify the Shadvarga membership (6 Vargas) from memory |
4. Homework — Practice and Understanding¶
(Closed-form items are self-check-only — no answers on this part of the page. Check your work against §7 Check Answers and Explanations below.)
Recall
R1. List all sixteen Vargas in order with their division-count. R2. What is BPHS's stated use for the Navamamsha? The Dasamamsha? The Dwadasamsha? R3. Name the six Vargas that make up the Shadvarga grouping. R4. State BPHS's given use for the Trimshamsha and the Khavedamsha.
Understanding
U1. Why might BPHS give some Vargas (Hora, Drekkana, Navamamsha) a narrow, specific use, while others (Akshavedamsha, Shastiamsha) get the broad "all indications" label? U2. The Navamamsha's starting-point rule depends on whether a sign is movable, fixed, or dual. Why might a system encode that distinction into a Varga's construction rather than treating all twelve signs identically? U3. Explain the general construction pattern shared by all sixteen Vargas, using at least one of the three illustrated examples (Hora, Drekkana, Navamamsha). U4. Explain why this course defers full Varga construction technique to S3-M22 rather than teaching it now.
Application
A1. A planet sits in its own sign in the Navamamsha but is combust in the Rashi (D1) chart. Per Ch. 7 v.52–53's auspicious-Varga rule, is the Navamamsha placement itself auspicious or inauspicious? Does the D1 combustion change your answer to that specific question? A2. A student wants to examine progeny (sons/grandsons) specifically. Which Varga should they consult first, per Ch. 8 v.1–8?
Source Awareness
S1. Locate the exact verse(s) giving each Varga's practical use. Give chapter and verse. S2. Locate the exact verse(s) defining the Shadvarga grouping and its combination names (e.g., Kimshuka). Give chapter and verse. S3. Is the full lordship ("Chakra") table for each Varga part of Parashara's own numbered verse text, or a translator-supplied reference table?
Fill-in-the-Blank
F1. The _ (D3) is used for happiness through co-born (siblings). F2. The _ (D10) is used for effects of great importance — professional status and influence on authority. F3. A planet's Varga placement is auspicious when it falls in its own _, _, or __ sign within that Varga.
Matching
| # | Varga | Letter | Use |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hora | ||
| 2 | Chaturthamsha | ||
| 3 | Saptamamsha | ||
| 4 | Shodasamsha | ||
| 5 | Vimsamsha | ||
| 6 | Bhamsha |
A. Worship/spiritual practice · B. Wealth · C. Fortune · D. Conveyances · E. Sons/grandsons · F. Strength and weakness
Check Answers — Recall, Understanding, Application, Source Awareness, Fill-in-the-Blank, Matching
Recall
- R1. Kshetra/Rashi (D1), Hora (D2), Drekkana (D3), Chaturthamsha (D4), Saptamamsha (D7), Navamamsha (D9), Dasamamsha (D10), Dwadasamsha (D12), Shodasamsha (D16), Vimsamsha (D20), Chaturvimsamsha/Siddhamsha (D24), Bhamsha (D27), Trimshamsha (D30), Khavedamsha (D40), Akshavedamsha (D45), Shastiamsha (D60).
- R2. Navamamsha: wife/spouse. Dasamamsha: "effects of great importance" — influence on authority/government, professional status. Dwadasamsha: parents.
- R3. Lagna, Hora, Drekkana, Navamamsha, Dwadasamsha, Trimshamsha.
- R4. Trimshamsha: evil effects. Khavedamsha: auspicious and inauspicious effects.
Understanding
- U1. No fixed answer beyond what the text supports — self-check that your response notices the pattern: the earlier, coarser Vargas (Hora, Drekkana, Navamamsha) each own one narrow life-domain, while the finer, later ones (Akshavedamsha, Shastiamsha) are given a broad catch-all role, functioning more as general confirmation/refinement tools than domain-specific charts.
- U2. No fixed answer — self-check that your response connects this to the same movable/fixed/dual classification used elsewhere in the course (e.g., Ch. 4's sign classifications), suggesting BPHS treats this three-way division as a recurring structural principle, not a one-off rule.
- U3. Accept any correct use of the three illustrations (Lesson §5.3): e.g., Hora splits each sign into two 15° halves ruled by Sun/Moon depending on odd/even sign; Drekkana splits into three 10° parts ruled by the sign itself, the 5th, and the 9th from it; Navamamsha splits into nine parts with a movable/fixed/dual-dependent starting point.
- U4. Accept any answer citing that full construction requires memorizing sixteen separate lordship sequences and starting-point rules (Ch. 7's dense Chakra tables), which the syllabus deliberately places in Semester 3 once the course's outcome shifts to combining D1 with Vargas, yogas, and other factors — matching the course's "mastery over speed" philosophy rather than rushing technical construction ahead of when it's needed.
Application
- A1. Auspicious. Per v.52–53, a Varga placement's auspiciousness is judged by the planet's own condition within that specific Varga (own sign, in this case) — the D1 chart's combustion does not change the judgment of the Navamamsha placement itself, though a full reading would weigh both facts together.
- A2. Saptamamsha (D7) — Ch. 8 v.2 (sons and grandsons).
Source Awareness
- S1. Ch. 8, v.1–8.
- S2. Ch. 7, v.42–44 (Shadvarga definition and combination names).
- S3. Translator-supplied reference tables. The verse text states the construction rule in words (with one or two illustrative examples); the Chakra tables that follow are the translator's own summarizing tool, not Parashara's numbered shlokas.
Fill-in-the-Blank
- F1. Drekkana
- F2. Dasamamsha
- F3. exaltation sign / Mooltrikona / own
Matching
1–B, 2–C, 3–E, 4–D, 5–A, 6–F