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Panchang · Gochar · Budha (Mercury)

Budha gochar in 1996

Budha changes sign 17 times in 1996: Dhanu on 22 Jan (moving back, retrograde), Makara on 8 Feb, Kumbha on 3 Mar, Meena on 21 Mar …. Retrograde from 9 Jan, 3 May, 4 Sep, 23 Dec.

Times in London (Europe/London, GMT/BST).

Budha’s signs through 1996

  1. Makara27 Dec, 8:21 pm 1995 → 22 Jan, 7:46 am 1996· 25 days
  2. Dhanu(entered moving backward)22 Jan, 7:46 am 1996 → 8 Feb, 11:38 pm 1996· 18 days
  3. Makara8 Feb, 11:38 pm 1996 → 3 Mar, 1:44 pm 1996· 24 days
  4. Kumbha3 Mar, 1:44 pm 1996 → 21 Mar, 2:30 am 1996· 18 days
  5. Meena21 Mar, 2:30 am 1996 → 5 Apr, 2:31 am 1996· 15 days
  6. Mesha5 Apr, 2:31 am 1996 → 23 Apr, 4:20 pm 1996· 19 days
  7. Vrishabha23 Apr, 4:20 pm 1996 → 16 May, 6:15 am 1996· 23 days
  8. Mesha(entered moving backward)16 May, 6:15 am 1996 → 7 Jun, 11:40 am 1996· 22 days
  9. Vrishabha7 Jun, 11:40 am 1996 → 29 Jun, 5:59 am 1996· 22 days
  10. Mithuna29 Jun, 5:59 am 1996 → 13 Jul, 12:07 pm 1996· 14 days
  11. Karka13 Jul, 12:07 pm 1996 → 29 Jul, 12:01 am 1996· 15 days
  12. Simha29 Jul, 12:01 am 1996 → 19 Aug, 8:05 am 1996· 21 days
  13. Kanya19 Aug, 8:05 am 1996 → 18 Sep, 3:46 pm 1996· 30 days
  14. Simha(entered moving backward)18 Sep, 3:46 pm 1996 → 4 Oct, 1:43 pm 1996· 16 days
  15. Kanya4 Oct, 1:43 pm 1996 → 23 Oct, 10:02 am 1996· 19 days
  16. Tula23 Oct, 10:02 am 1996 → 10 Nov, 5:31 pm 1996· 18 days
  17. Vrishchika10 Nov, 5:31 pm 1996 → 30 Nov, 8:17 am 1996· 20 days
  18. Dhanu30 Nov, 8:17 am 1996 → 4 Feb, 7:52 pm 1997· about 2 months

Date by date

Times in London (Europe/London, GMT/BST).

January 1996

  • 9 Jan9:50 pm

    Budha turns retrograde at 11°22′ Makara

  • 13 Jan2:30 am

    Budha becomes combust (asta) until 24 Jan†

  • 22 Jan7:46 am

    Budha enters Dhanu (moving backward)

  • 24 Jan9:54 am

    Budha rises again (asta ends)†

  • 30 Jan10:17 am

    Budha turns direct at 25°19′ Dhanu

February 1996

  • 8 Feb11:38 pm

    Budha enters Makara

March 1996

  • 3 Mar1:44 pm

    Budha enters Kumbha

  • 12 Mar7:34 am

    Budha becomes combust (asta) until 10 Apr†

  • 21 Mar2:30 am

    Budha enters Meena

April 1996

  • 5 Apr2:31 am

    Budha enters Mesha

  • 10 Apr9:25 pm

    Budha rises again (asta ends)†

  • 23 Apr4:20 pm

    Budha enters Vrishabha

May 1996

  • 3 May11:39 pm

    Budha turns retrograde at 4°50′ Vrishabha

  • 6 May3:46 pm

    Budha becomes combust (asta) until 23 May†

  • 16 May6:15 am

    Budha enters Mesha (moving backward)

  • 23 May7:00 am

    Budha rises again (asta ends)†

  • 27 May8:02 pm

    Budha turns direct at 25°51′ Mesha

June 1996

  • 7 Jun11:40 am

    Budha enters Vrishabha

  • 29 Jun4:14 am

    Budha becomes combust (asta) until 24 Jul†

  • 29 Jun5:59 am

    Budha enters Mithuna

July 1996

  • 13 Jul12:07 pm

    Budha enters Karka

  • 24 Jul1:01 pm

    Budha rises again (asta ends)†

  • 29 Jul12:01 am

    Budha enters Simha

August 1996

  • 19 Aug8:05 am

    Budha enters Kanya

September 1996

  • 4 Sep6:46 am

    Budha turns retrograde at 9°41′ Kanya

  • 11 Sep8:47 am

    Budha becomes combust (asta) until 24 Sep†

  • 18 Sep3:46 pm

    Budha enters Simha (moving backward)

  • 24 Sep7:38 am

    Budha rises again (asta ends)†

  • 26 Sep6:08 pm

    Budha turns direct at 25°11′ Simha

October 1996

  • 4 Oct1:43 pm

    Budha enters Kanya

  • 12 Oct5:12 pm

    Budha becomes combust (asta) until 27 Nov†

  • 23 Oct10:02 am

    Budha enters Tula

November 1996

  • 10 Nov5:31 pm

    Budha enters Vrishchika

  • 27 Nov10:10 am

    Budha rises again (asta ends)†

  • 30 Nov8:17 am

    Budha enters Dhanu

December 1996

  • 23 Dec7:45 pm

    Budha turns retrograde at 25°25′ Dhanu

  • 27 Dec10:37 am

    Budha becomes combust (asta) until 7 Jan†

† Practice varies. Budha is counted asta within 14° (12° when retrograde) of the Sun (Surya Siddhanta); some almanacs use another limit or a visibility rule.

See also: Budha (glossary) · Gochar 1996: all grahas · Transits over your chart

Understand

What gochar is

Gochar means the movement of the grahas: each moves on through the zodiac, and when it crosses from one rasi into the next, that is its sign change (sankramana). This page only says which graha is where, and when. In the classical method gochar is read by counting from a person’s natal Moon sign; to see today’s sky against your own chart, open the transits tool.

Retrograde (vakri) and direct (margi)

Seen from the Earth, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus and Saturn now and then appear to move backward for a while. That is retrograde motion; the instant the graha stops and turns is a station, and moving forward again is turning direct. It is an effect of the Earth and the planet moving on their orbits at different speeds. The Sun and Moon are never retrograde; Rahu and Ketu (mean) always move backward.

Combustion (asta)

A graha very close to the Sun is lost in its glare; the texts call it asta (set), and its reappearance udaya (rising). The Surya Siddhanta gives a distance limit for each graha. The limits used here: Mangala 17°, Budha 14° (12° when retrograde), Guru 11°, Shukra 10° (8° when retrograde), Shani 15°. Almanacs leave out the asta periods of Guru and Shukra when choosing times for samskaras such as weddings.

Sidereal signs

Indian almanacs count the rasis against the stars (nirayana). Western (tropical) signs run about 24° ahead, so the dates printed there are about three weeks earlier than these. The ayanamsa used here is Lahiri.

How this is calculated

Each graha’s apparent geocentric position from NASA JPL’s DE421 ephemeris, less the Lahiri ayanamsa. The instants of crossing a rasi edge, of zero speed and of reaching the asta limit are found by bisection to under a second. Small differences in ayanamsa can move a slow graha’s time (Shani above all) by a few hours against other almanacs.

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