Dosha checks · Lahiri sidereal
Pitra dosha check, done honestly
Pitra dosha is a name for a few placements around the 9th house, the house of elders and the family line. Enter your birth details to see which of them your chart has, what they ask of you and what they do not mean.
Check your chart
What the texts say, and the modern name
In the classical texts the 9th house speaks of the father, teachers, elders and dharma. "Pitra dosha" as a single named affliction with a fixed ritual is a later, commercial simplification; what the texts read is each placement, with its strength and its cancellations.
The 9th house is counted from the lagna, or from the Moon when the birth time is unknown. The check reads that house, its lord, which is the graha ruling the sign on it, and the grahas sitting in it or joined with the lord. Guru well placed counts as a support, and the result names the supports as well as the placements.
Our exact rule
We look for these placements: Rahu, Ketu or Shani in the 9th house; Surya within 6° of Rahu or Ketu, or within 10° of Shani; Chandra within 6° of Rahu or Ketu; the 9th lord in the 6th, 8th or 12th house; the 9th lord in the same sign as Rahu, Ketu or Shani.
None found: the 9th house and its lord are clear. A note: one placement, or two when none of them is in the 9th house itself. Present: three or more, or two when one of them is Rahu, Ketu or Shani in the 9th house.
Supports are named too: the 9th lord well placed, Guru in the 1st, 5th or 9th house, or Guru in the sign of the 9th house.
What it does not mean, and what helps
It does not mean the ancestors are displeased, that children will be delayed, or that a ritual must be bought. The remedy the texts actually name is conduct — respect, care and honesty with elders — not a purchase.
Whatever the result, the texts name conduct, not a purchase:
- Keep a living bond with the elders: a call, a visit, their stories written down.
- Settle unfinished family business — a document, an apology, a debt — rather than carrying it.
- In the dasha of the 9th lord or of Rahu/Ketu, mentors and teachers matter more than usual; seek them out.
The possible results
- Present
- Yes, by the texts’ rule — and it is a note on duties, not a verdict.
- A note only
- Not as a dosha — one or two placements worth a note.
- Not present
- No — the 9th house and its lord are clear.
Questions people ask
What is Pitra dosha?
A name for several placements around the 9th house, the house of the father, teachers, elders and dharma. As a single named affliction with a fixed ritual it is a later, commercial simplification; the classical texts read each placement with its strength and its cancellations.
Does it mean the ancestors are displeased?
No. It does not mean the ancestors are displeased, that children will be delayed, or that a ritual must be bought. The remedy the texts actually name is conduct: respect, care and honesty with elders.
What can I do about it?
Keep a living bond with the elders, settle unfinished family business and, in the dasha of the 9th lord or of Rahu or Ketu, seek out mentors and teachers. All of it is free, and none of it needs a priest or a purchase.
How does the calculator decide?
It reads seven kinds of placement around the 9th house and counts them: none is clear, one or two is a note, and three or more, or two that include Rahu, Ketu or Shani in the 9th house itself, counts as present. It also names supports such as Guru in a trine. Your birth details are used for this calculation only and are not stored.
Every position on this page is calculated sidereal with the Lahiri ayanamsa from the astronomy-engine library (MIT licence). The classical texts describe tendencies; this page is for guidance and reflection, not a verdict, and no outcome is promised. How we calculate. This is the English page and the legal reference. The same page is available in Hindi. Checked October 2026.