D3 Drekkana Chart Calculator
A free drekkana (D3) chart calculator — each sign cut into three parts of ten degrees, placed in that sign, the fifth from it, or the ninth from it.
The drekkana is the D3 — the divisional chart that cuts each 30-degree sign into three equal parts of exactly ten degrees. The rule is easy to state: a planet in the first ten degrees of a sign stays in that sign, one in the middle ten goes to the fifth sign from it, one in the last ten to the ninth. Jagannatha Hora reads which part a planet's longitude falls in and places it there.
The first, fifth and ninth signs from any sign are its trines, and trines share an element — so a planet's drekkana sign always carries the element of its rasi sign. Ten degrees is a wide slice by varga standards: of the 23 divisions the calculator computes, only the rasi (D1) and the hora (D2, fifteen degrees) read a wider arc. Enter a birth date, time and place and the whole D3 is drawn.
The three drekkanas of Scorpio
In a sample chart for 1 January 1990, 12:00 noon IST at Chennai — a fabricated birth, used only for illustration — Mars sits at 16 deg 07' Scorpio.
| Part | Arc within Scorpio | Drekkana sign |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 deg 00' – 10 deg 00' | Scorpio — the sign itself |
| 2 | 10 deg 00' – 20 deg 00' | Pisces — the 5th from Scorpio |
| 3 | 20 deg 00' – 30 deg 00' | Cancer — the 9th from Scorpio |
16 deg 07' falls in the second drekkana, so Mars is placed in Pisces. Scorpio, Pisces and Cancer are all watery — true of every sign, because the 1st, 5th and 9th from a sign are its trines.
Weighted 4 of 20 in Shadvarga
In the six-chart Shadvarga scheme the drekkana carries 4 of the 20 Vimsopaka points — behind only the rasi on 6 and the navamsa on 5, and ahead of the hora and dwadasamsa on 2 each and the trimsamsa on 1.
Counted in all four schemes
Only six divisions appear in every Vimsopaka strength scheme the engine runs, and the D3 is one: 4 points in Shadvarga, 3 in Sapthavarga, 1.5 in Dasavarga and 1 in Shodasavarga.
Element never changes
The D3 can land only on the trines of the sign a planet occupies, so its element is invariant. The chaturthamsa (D4) is the counterpart for quality: its four destinations are the kendras, so a movable sign stays movable.
Common questions
What is a drekkana chart?
The drekkana — also spelled dreshkana or drekkena — is the D3, the three-part division of each sign. Classically it is the varga consulted for siblings, courage, drive and energy.
How is the drekkana calculated?
Divide a planet's degrees within its sign by ten and drop the remainder. The first part keeps the planet where it is, the second moves it forward four signs, the third forward eight — the fifth and ninth signs, counted inclusively.
Does a planet change element in the drekkana?
No. The three destinations are the trines of the occupied sign, and the four trine groups are exactly the four elements — so a planet in a watery sign lands in a watery drekkana sign, every time.
Do I need my exact birth time?
Less than for most vargas. A drekkana spans a full ten degrees, which the ascendant crosses in roughly forty minutes on average — though that rate varies with latitude and the rising sign. A D3 placement therefore shifts less readily than a D9 or D60 one.