Mahadasha
A mahadasha is a major planetary period in the Vimshottari system, lasting from 6 to 20 years depending on the planet. The running mahadasha sets the main themes of that chapter of life.
Also known as: Maha dasha, Mahadasa, major period, planetary period
Life in Vedic astrology unfolds as a sequence of mahadashas, each ruled by one planet. The lengths are fixed: Sun 6 years, Moon 10, Mars 7, Rahu 18, Jupiter 16, Saturn 19, Mercury 17, Ketu 7 and Venus 20. The full cycle takes 120 years, so most people live through only part of it.
To read a mahadasha, an astrologer looks at what its planet means in your chart: the houses it rules and occupies, its sign and strength, the planets it joins or aspects, and its condition in the Navamsa. A well-placed lord of the 9th or 10th can open a productive chapter. The same planet, weak or afflicted, may ask for more effort.
Each mahadasha is coloured by its antardashas and by the slow transits of Saturn and Jupiter. The changeover from one mahadasha to the next, called the dasha sandhi, is often felt as a turning point.
A common worry is that a “bad” planet’s mahadasha must be a hard time. Saturn’s 19 years, for example, often bring steady achievement when the chart favours Saturn. No dasha should be judged by the planet’s name alone.