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Ishta phala and kashta phala — benefic and malefic tendency
Kundaligram education desk · About · Updated 2026-09-26
Ishta phala and kashta phala are a pair of tendency scores derived from Shadbala, not a second full strength system. Kundaligram sets ishta to the square root of (exaltation strength × cheshta bala) and kashta to the square root of ((60 − exaltation strength) × (60 − cheshta bala)), with both inputs kept between 0 and 60. For the Sun and Moon, cheshta in this pair uses Raman’s substitute, because their ordinary cheshta bala in the Shadbala total is zero. High ishta is a smoother classical tendency. It is not a promise that events will be pleasant.
Educational guidance — not medical, legal, or financial advice. Read the disclaimer.
Two inputs, not all six folds
Uchcha bala is the exaltation component already inside sthana bala, capped here at 60. Cheshta bala is the motional strength. Planets that are swift or retrograde in the classical cheshta scheme score differently from planets that are slow near a station, but the ishta formula only sees the number, not the story.
A planet can have modest total Shadbala and still a relatively high ishta if these two inputs are both strong. The six-fold total and this pair answer different questions.
Sun and Moon need a substitute cheshta
In the main Shadbala total, Sun and Moon correctly receive zero cheshta bala. They do not go retrograde in this scheme. Raman’s ishta chapter still needs a nonzero motion-like input, so he builds one from the tropical longitude: for the Sun, add 90 degrees to the sayana longitude, fold the result above 180, and divide by 3. That substitute is used only for ishta and kashta. It is not added again into the Shadbala total.
Kundaligram keeps that separation so a printed ishta for the Sun is not secretly inflating his six-fold strength.
Kashta is the complement, not a curse
Because kashta uses 60 minus each input, a planet near deep exaltation with strong cheshta tends toward higher ishta and lower kashta. A planet near deep debilitation with weak cheshta tends the other way. Mid placements land in between. The square root compresses the product so the score stays on a readable scale.
Do not narrate kashta as suffering owed to the native. Narrate it as the classical malefic tendency of that planet’s dignity and motion, still subject to house, aspect, and dasha.
Ask for the pair, not a moral rank
On the kundali technical view, each of the seven planets has ishta phala and kashta phala beside the Shadbala row. Rahu and Ketu are outside this seven-planet strength model.
A good question is which planet’s ishta is high relative to its kashta, and whether that planet rules the house you care about. A poor question is which planet is “good” in the abstract.
Frequently asked questions
- Can ishta and kashta both be high?
- They move broadly in opposite directions because kashta uses the complements of the same two inputs. Mid values can leave both moderate.
- Is this the same number as Shadbala rupas?
- No. Rupas summarise all six folds. Ishta and kashta use only exaltation strength and cheshta.
- Why might my Sun’s cheshta show 0 and still have ishta?
- The Shadbala total’s cheshta for the Sun is 0. Ishta uses a separate substitute input and does not write that substitute back into the total.