Methodology
Planet dignities
A planet's strength depends on the sign it occupies. Classical Jyotisha names four states a planet can be in by sign, plus a separate astronomical state — retrograde. SahiKundli marks these on the diamond chart as V, U, N, S.
Every planet rules certain signs, is exalted in one sign, debilitated in the opposite, and behaves neutrally in the rest. A planet in its own sign acts with authority; in its exaltation, with amplified positive expression; in debilitation, with diminished or compromised expression. Retrogression — apparent backward motion from Earth — is read classically as the planet's significations turning inward, intensified, or delayed in unfolding.
These four states are the minimum vocabulary classical interpreters use to grade a chart's planetary expression. They appear in every house-based reading on SahiKundli — when a card says "Mars in the 7th house DEBILITATED" or "Saturn in the 8th house OWN SIGN," the dignity is what drives the modern voice's calibration.
The four markers on your chart
UUcchaउच्चExalted
The planet sits in the sign of its maximum strength. Classical texts describe exaltation as the planet acting with confidence and positive amplitude. Sun in Aries, Moon in Taurus, Mars in Capricorn, Mercury in Virgo, Jupiter in Cancer, Venus in Pisces, Saturn in Libra.
NNeechaनीचDebilitated
The planet sits in the sign opposite to its exaltation — its weakest sign placement. Its significations are read as constrained, compromised, or expressed in difficult ways. Importantly, debilitation is not the same as malefic influence; it is a strength rating, not a moral label.
SSwakshetraस्वक्षेत्रOwn sign
The planet sits in one of the signs it rules. The expression is direct, comfortable, and authoritative — less amplified than exaltation, but the planet is on home ground. Sun rules Leo; Moon rules Cancer; Mars rules Aries and Scorpio; Mercury rules Gemini and Virgo; Jupiter rules Sagittarius and Pisces; Venus rules Taurus and Libra; Saturn rules Capricorn and Aquarius.
VVakriवक्रीRetrograde
An astronomical phenomenon — from Earth's vantage, the planet appears to move backward along the zodiac for a period. Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn all retrograde periodically; Sun and Moon never do; Rahu and Ketu, the lunar nodes, are retrograde most of the time. Classical interpreters read retrograde planets as turning their significations inward, intensifying them, or delaying their outward expression. Interpretations vary across schools, which is why we surface the marker but don't override the house reading with retrograde-specific copy.
SahiKundli uses the true lunar node for Rahu and Ketu. The true node occasionally turns direct, whereas the mean node is always retrograde; the two can differ by up to ~1.5°.
Why Rahu and Ketu don't show U or N
Classical texts disagree on the exaltation signs for Rahu and Ketu. BPHS, Phaladeepika, and Saravali offer different positions; modern Jyotisha schools (KP, Lal Kitab, traditional Parashari) disagree further. Because we cite where we make claims and cannot cite where the tradition is split, SahiKundli marks U/N only for the seven classical planets (Sun through Saturn) and shows the lunar nodes without dignity labels. They still receive house-placement interpretations grounded in their house-by-house verses from Phaladeepika Ch. 8.
How SahiKundli computes dignities
The exaltation, debilitation, and ruling-sign assignments follow the BPHS table (Ch. 3, Shlokas on planetary lordships and exaltation degrees). The computation is deterministic: given a sign-placement, dignity is a lookup. We don't interpret "deep exaltation" by exact degree, partly because schools disagree on whether the degree of exaltation requires a separate (and contested) calculation, partly because the binary marker carries the working interpretive weight in our house cards. The Mooltrikona designation — a stronger gradation than own-sign for the first few degrees of certain signs — is computed in the engine but not currently surfaced as a marker on the chart.