How Kundli Milan (36-guna matching) works
Kundli Milan compares two birth charts across eight areas called kootas, worth 36 points in total.
The eight kootas
The most common method in North India is Ashtakoota ("eight-fold") matching. It uses the Moon's nakshatra and sign of the bride and groom, and gives points for each koota:
- Varna (1 point): spiritual and ego compatibility
- Vashya (2 points): mutual attraction and influence
- Tara (3 points): health and well-being through the nakshatras
- Yoni (4 points): physical and instinctive compatibility
- Graha Maitri (5 points): friendship between the Moon-sign lords, mental compatibility
- Gana (6 points): temperament (Deva, Manushya, Rakshasa)
- Bhakoot (7 points): emotional bond, family life and prosperity
- Nadi (8 points): health and the children, the highest-weighted koota
1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 5 + 6 + 7 + 8 = 36.
What score is considered good?
Traditionally, 18 or more out of 36 is considered acceptable, around 24 and above good, and 32 and above very good. Many families treat the number as a guide, not as a verdict, and look at the individual kootas and the charts too.
The three dosha people worry about
- Nadi dosha: when both people share the same Nadi (the koota is scored 0 of 8). Classical texts list conditions under which it is cancelled, for example when the Moon sign is the same but the nakshatras differ.
- Bhakoot dosha: when the Moon signs fall in certain positions from each other (such as 2/12, 5/9 or 6/8). It is also subject to cancellations, for example when the sign lords are friends or the same planet.
- Gana dosha: a mismatch of temperament, such as Deva with Rakshasa.
A low score from one of these is not automatically a reason to refuse a match. The cancellation rules exist for a reason, and a good matching report should apply them.
What the 36 points do not cover
Guna matching only looks at the two Moons. A fuller matching also checks Manglik dosha in both charts, the strength of the 7th house and its lord, the marriage indicators in each chart, and whether the running dasha periods of both people are supportive. That is why the same score can mean different things for different couples. See our guide to Manglik dosha.
What our Kundli Milan report includes
The Kundli Milan report (₹199 for both charts) scores all eight kootas and explains each one, applies the classical cancellations, checks Manglik for both people, and describes each person's marriage picture and the favourable periods you share. It is about 20 pages, in English or Hindi.
Astrology is a traditional belief system. This guide explains how the system works and is for information and self-reflection, not a prediction or advice on health, money or law.
By AT Astro · Updated 22 October 2026 · All guides