Vedic Astrology API

Short answer: Asterwise is a REST API for Vedic (Jyotish) astrology. Send a birth date, time and place to POST /v1/astro/natal and get the sidereal chart back as JSON: graha positions with nakshatra and pada, rasi and bhava chalit houses, drishti, arudha padas and interpretation fields. Fifty endpoints cover charts, dashas, yogas, panchanga, matching and remedies. Lahiri ayanamsa by default, 500 free calls a month.

What a Vedic natal chart request returns

POST /v1/astro/natal takes date, time, latitude, longitude and timezone (a sunrise chart is used when the time is unknown) and returns nine grahas including Rahu and Ketu, each with sidereal sign, longitude, nakshatra and pada, retrograde, combust and deep-combust flags, and two house numbers: rasi_house counted from the ascendant sign and bhava_chalit_house from the bhava cusps. The response also carries the ascendant, the Moon sign and nakshatra, avakahada details, bhava madhya and sandhi degrees, graha and rashi drishti, arudha padas, the upapada lagna, and interpretation text for the ascendant, Moon sign and Moon nakshatra.

Request

curl -X POST https://api.asterwise.com/v1/astro/natal \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $ASTERWISE_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"date":"1985-11-12","time":"06:45","latitude":19.076,"longitude":72.8777,"timezone":"Asia/Kolkata"}'

Fields: date (required), time, latitude, longitude, timezone (IANA), ayanamsa (lahiri by default; raman, kp, or tropical), include_interpretation.

Response, abbreviated

{
  "success": true,
  "data": {
    "ascendant": 205.298058,
    "ascendant_sign": "Tula",
    "moon_sign": "Tula",
    "moon_nakshatra": "Swati",
    "ayanamsa_used": "lahiri",
    "ayanamsa_value": 23.659624,
    "planets": [
      { "planet": "Sun", "sign": "Tula", "degree": 205.937088, "nakshatra": "Vishakha", "nakshatra_pada": 2, "is_retrograde": false, "is_combust": false, "rasi_house": 1, "bhava_chalit_house": 1 },
      { "planet": "Moon", "sign": "Tula", "degree": 198.178670, "nakshatra": "Swati", "nakshatra_pada": 4, "is_retrograde": false, "is_combust": true, "rasi_house": 1, "bhava_chalit_house": 1 }
    ],
    "houses": [ { "house": 1, "sign": "Tula", "degree": 205.298058 } ],
    "birth_time_provided": true
  }
}

This is the reference chart used across the site; the same birth data is checked planet by planet against an independent Swiss Ephemeris run on the proof page. Full field list in the natal chart reference.

The fifty endpoints

Every endpoint below is on every plan, including the free tier. Names link to the reference page with the full request and response schema.

Four of these have their own pages with worked requests: kundli matching, Vimshottari dasha, panchang, and the Swiss Ephemeris positions underneath all of them.

Ayanamsa, houses and divisional charts

Every sidereal request accepts ayanamsa: lahiri (default), raman, kp, or tropical for a zero offset, and every chart response reports ayanamsa_used and ayanamsa_value in degrees, so the offset is never hidden. There is no house-system parameter on Vedic endpoints: each planet is returned with both its rasi house and its bhava chalit house, and the cusps and sandhis are listed. POST /v1/astro/divisional returns any one of the sixteen vargas (D1, D2, D3, D4, D7, D9, D10, D12, D16, D20, D24, D27, D30, D40, D45, D60) or all sixteen in one call. POST /v1/astro/chart renders the D1 and D9 charts as SVG in North Indian and South Indian style. Dates from 1800 to 2099 are accepted.

Yogas with their sources, vetoes that stay vetoes

POST /v1/astro/yoga detects Pancha Mahapurusha, Raja, Dhana, Kartari, Chandra and Surya yogas and returns, for each, the formation rule, a modern summary and classical_sources: the classical texts it is drawn from (Brihat Parashara Hora Shastra, Phaladeepika, Brihat Jataka), with the section named where it is unambiguous. Matchmaking reports Rajju and Vedha as explicit vetoes beside the 36-point Ashtakoot score rather than folding them into it; the reasoning is in Rajju and Vedha as hard vetoes.

What you can verify before you build

The positions under every chart were checked against NASA JPL Horizons: 80 longitudes from 1950 to 2050, median difference 0.046 arcseconds, 79 of 80 within half an arcsecond, with the raw data and script on the accuracy page. The comparison pages put Asterwise beside seven other astrology APIs row by row, with a source on every row and a public corrections log.

SDKs, MCP and no-code

Python and TypeScript SDKs are generated from the OpenAPI document, so every field above is typed. The MCP server exposes the same calculations as 103 read-only tools for Claude, Cursor and other AI clients. An n8n community node and a Postman collection cover the no-code path.

Questions developers ask

What is a Vedic astrology API?

A Vedic astrology API computes Jyotish results from birth data over HTTP and returns them as structured JSON: the sidereal natal chart (kundli), divisional charts, dasha periods, yogas and doshas, panchanga, muhurta and kundli matching. Your application sends a date, time and place and receives the numbers, so it never has to implement the astronomy or the classical rules itself.

Which ayanamsa does Asterwise use?

Lahiri by default. Every sidereal request accepts an ayanamsa field with lahiri, raman or kp, and tropical for a zero offset. The response reports the ayanamsa used and its value in degrees for the birth date, so the offset behind every position is visible.

How are house positions returned?

Each planet carries two house numbers: rasi_house (whole-sign, counted from the ascendant sign) and bhava_chalit_house (from the bhava cusps), with the cusps and sandhis listed separately. Vedic endpoints take no house-system parameter; both conventions are always returned so your product can show either.

Which divisional charts are available?

All sixteen classical vargas: D1, D2, D3, D4, D7, D9, D10, D12, D16, D20, D24, D27, D30, D40, D45 and D60. Request one chart or all sixteen in a single call.

Is a Jyotish API the same as a Vedic astrology API?

Yes. Jyotish is the Sanskrit name of the discipline; Vedic astrology is its common English name. Both describe the same sidereal system this API implements, and the endpoints use the traditional terms (graha, rasi, nakshatra, dasha, bhava) in their field names.

Is there a free tier?

Yes. The Sandbox plan is free, includes 500 calls a month and every endpoint, needs no credit card and does not expire. Paid plans start at $10/month. See pricing.

How accurate are the planetary positions?

Positions come from the Swiss Ephemeris. Checked against NASA JPL Horizons over 80 positions from 1950 to 2050, the median difference was 0.046 arcseconds and 79 of 80 agreed within half an arcsecond. The raw data and the script to repeat the check are published. Read the accuracy check.

Can an AI assistant use it?

Yes. The same calculations are exposed as 103 read-only tools on a remote MCP server, so Claude, Cursor or any MCP client can cast a kundli, read the running dasha or score a match without guessing. Connect an AI client.

Start with 500 free calls a month, no card, no expiry. Every plan includes all 118 endpoints. See pricing or create a key.