Planet Friendship: Natural, Temporary and Compound
Planets in Vedic astrology regard one another as friends, neutrals or enemies. This tool builds the natural, temporary and compound friendship tables for the seven planets in your chart.
Three kinds of friendship
Natural friendship, called naisargika maitri, is fixed and the same for everyone. It comes from the table in Brihat Parashara Hora Shastra. The Sun, for example, counts the Moon, Mars and Jupiter as friends, Mercury as neutral, and Venus and Saturn as enemies. These relations are not always mutual: the Moon has no enemies, yet Mercury treats the Moon as one.
Temporary friendship, called tatkalika maitri, depends on your chart. A planet counts another as a temporary friend when that planet sits in the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 10th, 11th or 12th sign counted from its own. Any other placement, including the same sign, makes it a temporary enemy.
Compound friendship, called panchadha maitri, combines the two. A natural friend that is also a temporary friend becomes a great friend (Adhi Mitra). A neutral that is a temporary friend becomes a friend (Mitra). A natural friend that is a temporary enemy, or a natural enemy that is a temporary friend, becomes neutral (Sama). A neutral that is a temporary enemy becomes an enemy (Shatru), and a natural enemy that is also a temporary enemy becomes a great enemy (Adhi Shatru).
Reading the tables
Each table is read from row to column. The row names the planet doing the regarding, and the column names the planet being regarded. So the cell in the Mars row and the Mercury column tells you how Mars views Mercury. The reverse cell may say something different.
The tool also lists the sign each planet occupies, so you can see why a temporary relation came out as it did. The compound table is the one most often used in later steps, such as judging how comfortable a planet is in the sign of another planet. The planet dignity tool on this site uses the same compound result for that purpose.
Calculation settings
Planet positions are sidereal with the Lahiri ayanamsa. Placement is by whole signs, so only the sign matters, not the degree within it. Only the seven classical planets from the Sun to Saturn are included. Rahu and Ketu are left out because classical texts do not agree on their friendships.
The tables describe traditional associations and are not predictions. The calculation is done by MyAstroLuck's own engine.
Frequently asked questions
Why is a friendship not always mutual?
The natural table gives each planet its own list. Venus counts Saturn as a friend and Saturn returns that, but the Moon counts Mercury as a friend while Mercury counts the Moon as an enemy.
How is temporary friendship decided?
By sign distance. A planet in the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 10th, 11th or 12th sign from another is its temporary friend. Any other position, including the same sign, makes it a temporary enemy.
Why are Rahu and Ketu missing?
Classical texts do not agree on their friendships, so the tool covers only the seven planets from the Sun to Saturn.
Which table should I use?
The compound table is the usual choice because it combines the fixed natural relation with the chart-based temporary one.
Which zodiac and ayanamsa are used?
The sidereal zodiac with the Lahiri ayanamsa, using whole signs.
From the blog
Lagna (Ascendant) Explained
What the Lagna (ascendant) is, how it is calculated, why a few minutes of birth time can change it, and how it differs from your Moon and Sun signs.
How to Read Your Kundli: A Beginner’s Guide
A calm, step-by-step guide to reading your Kundli: the houses, signs, Lagna and planets, the two chart styles, and a simple order for a first reading.
Your Moon Nakshatra and What It Says
Why the Moon’s nakshatra at birth matters in Vedic astrology, how to find yours, what its deity, symbol and ruler describe, and how to read it as one layer.
The 27 Nakshatras: An Introduction
An introduction to the 27 nakshatras: how the sky is split into lunar mansions and padas, the full list with ruling planets, and how they link to dashas.