What a Chart That Handles Rahu Looks Like

Rahu is easier to live with in the 3rd, 6th, or 11th house. Those are upachaya houses, where a malefic is said to grow through effort. In the 3rd, Rahu pushes courage, skill, and short journeys. In the 6th, it pushes competition, service, and the will to answer an opponent. In the 11th, it pushes gains, networks, and income, often by an unusual route.

This is chart-to-planet fitness, not a matching koota. Ashtakoot never scores Rahu. Two people are not compatible with each other because both have Rahu in the 11th.

Rahu mahadasha lasts 18 years. Compatibility shows when those years match the house. Rahu in the 11th during its own mahadasha keeps returning to gains. Rahu in the 7th during the same 18 years keeps returning to an unsettled marriage house, which is a poor fit, not a compatible one.

The antardashas run Rahu, Jupiter, Saturn, Mercury, Ketu, Venus, Sun, Moon, and Mars. A compatible Rahu still has a rough Rahu-Saturn or Rahu-Mars slice. Fitness lowers the cost. It does not delete a sub-period.

For Cancer lagna the 11th is Taurus, so Rahu's gains house is a Venus sign. For Taurus lagna the 11th is Pisces, a Jupiter sign. The same upachaya number lands in a different rashi, and the sign lord becomes the planet Rahu must answer to.

There is no single exaltation of Rahu that every text accepts, so skip a lucky-sign list. Read the house, the sign lord, and whether the 7th is free of the node. Hessonite strengthens Rahu. Wear it only if you meant to strengthen an already workable Rahu, not to invent compatibility.