Article
What Is Guna Milan? The Eight Kootas Explained Simply
Guna Milan is the North Indian method of assessing marriage compatibility by comparing eight factors — the Ashtakoot — between two birth charts. Each carries a different weight, totalling 36 points. A score of 18 or above is conventionally treated as acceptable.
The eight Kootas
Guna Milan compares eight factors between two charts, working from the Moon’s Nakshatra and Rasi in each. Each factor carries a fixed maximum score.
| Koota | Points | What it examines |
|---|---|---|
| Varna | 1 | Working temperament and natural disposition |
| Vashya | 2 | Mutual influence and give-and-take |
| Tara | 3 | Health and general fortune |
| Yoni | 4 | Physical and instinctive compatibility |
| Graha Maitri | 5 | Mental and intellectual accord |
| Gana | 6 | Broad temperament type |
| Bhakoot | 7 | Emotional bond and household prosperity |
| Nadi | 8 | Health and progeny indicators |
| Total | 36 |
What the weighting tells you
The point values are not arbitrary, and reading them tells you what the system prioritises. Nadi and Bhakoot together carry 15 of the 36 points — nearly half. A pair can align well on six of the eight factors and still land below 18 if those two do not match.
This is worth knowing, because it explains a result that otherwise looks alarming. A low score frequently traces to one heavily-weighted factor rather than to broad incompatibility.
Where the score stops being useful
Three things the total does not capture:
Dasha periods. Two people can be well matched and still be entering very different planetary periods. That is a timing question, and it does not appear in the Ashtakoot score at all.
Dosha cancellation. Many Mangal Dosha placements are cancelled or substantially reduced by other positions in the chart. A software report will often flag the dosha and stop.
The rest of the chart. Guna Milan works from the Moon’s position. The lagna, the seventh house, the strength of Venus and Jupiter — none of it enters the calculation, and all of it matters.
How the number gets misused
A score is a convenient thing to quote, which is exactly why it gets quoted at families who are anxious and unfamiliar with the method. A low total is presented as a serious obstacle, and a remedy is offered.
Ask which koota produced the shortfall, and whether the placements behind it are cancelled elsewhere in either chart. A practitioner who has actually read both charts will be able to answer that immediately.
If your family follows the South Indian system
Telugu, Kannada and Tamil families generally use Porutham rather than Ashtakoot — ten factors, each reported as suitable or not, with Rajju and Dina carrying the most weight. If the two sides of an alliance follow different traditions, both can be prepared and read against each other.
Common questions
What is a good guna score for marriage?
18 or above out of 36 is conventionally treated as acceptable, and 25 and above as strong. Below 18 is usually treated as needing closer examination rather than as an automatic refusal. The number is a summary, not a verdict.
Which koota carries the most weight?
Nadi, at 8 points, followed by Bhakoot at 7. Together they account for 15 of the 36 points, which is why a mismatch in either lowers a total sharply even when the other six align well.
Is Guna Milan the same as Porutham?
No. Guna Milan is the North Indian eight-factor system scored out of 36. Porutham is the South Indian system, which assesses ten separate factors and reports each as suitable or not rather than producing a single total.