Journal · Almanac

Why your Vedic sign is probably one sign back

Two zodiacs, nearly 24 degrees apart, and what that does to your chart.

Born on April 1? A Western chart calls you an Aries. In a Vedic chart your Sun sits in Pisces. Neither is a mistake. They measure from different starting points, and only one of them is the sky overhead.

Two ways to start the zodiac

The tropical zodiac, used in Western astrology, starts Aries at the March equinox, when the Sun crosses the celestial equator heading north. It is tied to the seasons.

The sidereal zodiac, used in Jyotish, starts Aries against the fixed stars. It is tied to the sky you would actually see.

The two once lined up. But Earth’s axis wobbles slowly, like a spinning top, and the equinox point slides backward against the stars by about one degree every 72 years. By the Lahiri reference, the standard in Jyotish, the two zodiacs matched around the year 285 and have drifted apart ever since. In October 2026 they sit 24°14′ apart.

AriesAriesTaurusTaurusGeminiGeminiCancerCancerLeoLeoVirgoVirgoLibraLibraScorpioScorpioSagittariusSagittariusCapricornCapricornAquariusAquariusPiscesPisces24°14′ apartTwo zodiacsouter: tropical · inner: sidereal
The outer ring starts at the March equinox. The inner ring starts where Aries sits among the stars today.

What that does to your chart

Anything in roughly the first 24 degrees of a tropical sign lands in the sign before it in a Vedic chart. That is most of every sign, so most placements move back one. The same goes for your rising sign.

When the Sun enters each sign, 2026
SignTropicalSidereal
AriesMar 20Apr 14
TaurusApr 19May 14
GeminiMay 20Jun 15
CancerJun 21Jul 16
LeoJul 22Aug 16
VirgoAug 22Sep 16
LibraSep 22Oct 17
ScorpioOct 23Nov 16
SagittariusNov 22Dec 16
CapricornDec 21Jan 14
AquariusJan 19Feb 12
PiscesFeb 18Mar 14

Computed with the Swiss Ephemeris, Lahiri, US Eastern dates.

Your rising sign changes about every two hours, so finding it takes your birth time and place. In Jyotish it matters more than where the Sun was: it is the lens that decides which areas of your life each planet governs for you.