Tarabalam Calculation: How to Find Your Tara Bala for Today

A tarabalam calculation is the traditional way to check whether today supports an important task, based on the Moon’s position measured from your birth star. In Vedic astrology, the Moon passes through 27 nakshatras, or lunar mansions, and the one it occupied when you were born is your Janma Nakshatra. Each day, the Moon sits in a different nakshatra, and counting forward from your birth star to today’s star gives a number from 1 to 9, called your Tara for the day. Five of the nine Taras are counted as auspicious, and the rest call for caution or delay. This guide explains tarabalam calculation step by step, works through the same example used on the tool page, and flags the mistakes that most often give a wrong Tara. If you would rather check your result instantly, try the free Tarabalam Calculator and compare its Tara with your own counting.

The idea behind the check is easy to grasp. A day is not judged on its own; it is judged relative to you. Your birth nakshatra never changes, but the Moon’s nakshatra changes roughly once a day, so the same calendar day can be favourable for one person and unhelpful for another. Tarabalam is a traditional panchang method used before starting new ventures, travel, ceremonies and other important tasks. It does not change your birth star or the Moon’s path; it only gives you a reading to weigh alongside practical matters such as timing, preparation and your own judgement.

The Method / Formula

The method used on the tool page can be written as one clear formula. Write down the 27 nakshatras in their fixed order, starting with Ashwini and ending with Revati. Find your birth nakshatra in that order and today’s Moon nakshatra, then count forward from your birth nakshatra to today’s nakshatra, counting both ends. That count is a number between 1 and 27. Divide it by 9 and take the remainder; that remainder is your Tara. A remainder of 0 counts as the 9th Tara, because the nine-Tara cycle repeats.

The nine Taras, in order, are: 1 Janma, 2 Sampat, 3 Vipat, 4 Kshema, 5 Pratyak, 6 Sadhana, 7 Naidhana, 8 Mitra and 9 Parama Mitra. Taras 2, 4, 6, 8 and 9 are auspicious. Sampat, Kshema, Sadhana, Mitra and Parama Mitra are considered favourable, while Vipat, Pratyak and Naidhana are unfavourable, and Janma is neutral to unfavourable.

Two ideas therefore sit at the heart of the check, and it helps to keep them apart. The count is always forward, never backward, and it always wraps around the end of the list back to Ashwini when needed. And because the cycle is nine, only the remainder matters: a count of 10 gives the same Tara as a count of 1, a count of 11 the same as 2, and so on.

How to Find Your Tara Bala for Today Step by Step

1. Find your birth nakshatra. It is printed in your janma kundli or horoscope; if you do not have one, it can be calculated from your date, time and place of birth.
2. Find today’s Moon nakshatra from any panchangam. Make sure you use the nakshatra in force at the time of your planned work, not just the one at sunrise.
3. Write the 27 nakshatras in order and mark your birth nakshatra as position one. Count forward one by one until you reach today’s nakshatra, counting both ends.
4. Divide your count by 9 and take the remainder. If the count is 9, 18 or 27, the remainder is 0, which counts as Tara 9.
5. Read the Tara’s name and meaning from the nine-Tara list, and note whether it is one of the auspicious Taras (2, 4, 6, 8, 9) or one that calls for caution.

That is the whole process. There is no birth-date arithmetic and no letter conversion in this method, because Tarabalam works only with the order of the nakshatras.

Worked Example

Take the example used on the tool page: a birth nakshatra of Ashwini and a today’s nakshatra of Rohini. Counting from Ashwini to Rohini inclusive gives Ashwini (1), Bharani (2), Krittika (3) and Rohini (4), so the count is 4. Dividing 4 by 9 leaves a remainder of 4, so the Tara is 4, Kshema, which is auspicious. In other words, for a person born under Ashwini, a day when the Moon is in Rohini is counted as a favourable day for important work.

Notice how the remainder does the work. Had the count been 13 instead of 4, the remainder after dividing by 9 would still be 4, and the Tara would still be Kshema. And had the count been exactly 9 or 18, the remainder would be 0, which is read as Tara 9, Parama Mitra, the most favourable Tara of all.

Common Mistakes / Good to Know

• Counting without including both ends. The count runs from the birth nakshatra to today’s nakshatra, both inclusive. Leaving out either end shifts the count by one and changes the Tara.
• Counting backwards or forgetting to wrap around. Always count forward through the fixed order, and when you pass Revati, continue from Ashwini again. Counting backwards gives a different number entirely.
• Using the wrong day’s nakshatra. Tarabalam changes when the Moon moves into the next nakshatra, which happens roughly once a day. Check the nakshatra in force at the exact time of your work, not yesterday’s or tomorrow’s.
• Treating the result as a proven prediction. Tarabalam is a traditional, belief-based panchang method, as the tool page presents it, not a scientific measurement. The tool page itself advises using the result as a traditional guide alongside your own judgement.

Frequently Asked Questions

For an instant check, try the Raj Yog Calculator, and read our related guide Bhagyank Calculation: How to Find Your Destiny Number to see how a destiny number is worked out from a birth date.