bhagolblog

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Essays on the computed sky

Ten series, twice a week: panchang craft, worked computations, the fears examined, and the twenty-seven stars taken one at a time. A reading is a decision tool, not a prophecy.

Never met any of this before? Every essay here has a two minute plain English version, written for somebody who knows nothing about astrology, Sanskrit or the Indian calendar.

Start with the gist
A greyscale photograph of a handwritten Indian manuscript page. A single wheel is drawn in ink at the centre: two concen myth-vs-method · 26 September 2026 The escape hatches The afflictions in the classical books come printed with the conditions that lift them, by the same hand. What that architecture is telling you. Nikhil Verma · 7 min read

September 2026

8 essays
26 Sep The escape hatches, Nikhil Verma myth-vs-method 22 Sep Purva Ashadha: the water that does not lose, Yamini Sardesai nakshatra-files 19 Sep The book that moved Mercury, Rukmini Athavale tradition 15 Sep Asking for the reasoning, Raman Patel decisions 12 Sep The eighteen-year wobble, Meghnad Chitnis computed-sky 08 Sep Mula: the root, aimed at the centre of the galaxy, Yamini Sardesai nakshatra-files 05 Sep The fortnight for the dead, Priya Sharma almanac 01 Sep Jyeshtha: the eldest, and the rival of Mars, Yamini Sardesai nakshatra-files

August 2026

9 essays
29 Aug Anuradha: the star of company, Yamini Sardesai nakshatra-files 25 Aug Vishakha: the forked branch, Yamini Sardesai nakshatra-files 22 Aug Swati: the one that stands apart, Yamini Sardesai nakshatra-files 18 Aug Chitra: the jewel that is two stars, Yamini Sardesai nakshatra-files 15 Aug Hasta: five stars make a hand, Yamini Sardesai nakshatra-files 11 Aug Uttara Phalguni: the second bed, Yamini Sardesai nakshatra-files 08 Aug Purva Phalguni: the hammock, Yamini Sardesai nakshatra-files 04 Aug Magha: the throne, and the dead who sat on it, Yamini Sardesai nakshatra-files 01 Aug Ashlesha: the coil, Yamini Sardesai nakshatra-files

July 2026

17 essays
29 Jul Pushya: the nourisher, Yamini Sardesai nakshatra-files 28 Jul Punarvasu: the two who come back, Yamini Sardesai nakshatra-files 27 Jul Ardra, and a star that is dying while we watch, Yamini Sardesai nakshatra-files 25 Jul Mrigashira: the head that keeps turning, Yamini Sardesai nakshatra-files 24 Jul Rohini, and the moon who would not keep the rota, Yamini Sardesai nakshatra-files 22 Jul Ekadashi, and why two dates circulate, Priya Sharma almanac 21 Jul Bhakoot, the quiet veto, Nikhil Verma myth-vs-method 20 Jul The family group chat, a field guide, Dhruv Banhatti screen-time 18 Jul The day that never happens, Priya Sharma almanac 16 Jul The meme is doing doctrine's job, Dhruv Banhatti screen-time 14 Jul Nadi dosha, and the marriages it ends, Nikhil Verma myth-vs-method 12 Jul Your Co-Star is not your kundli, Dhruv Banhatti screen-time 11 Jul Krittika: the blade and the flame, Yamini Sardesai nakshatra-files 09 Jul The sun-sign column, Nikhil Verma myth-vs-method 07 Jul The sign in your bio, Dhruv Banhatti screen-time 04 Jul The day that happens twice, Priya Sharma almanac 02 Jul The temple committee's calendar, Kaveri Nambiar elsewhere

June 2026

22 essays
30 Jun Bharani: the bearer, Yamini Sardesai nakshatra-files 29 Jun Someone else's chart, Raman Patel decisions 28 Jun Sunrise at sixty degrees north, Kaveri Nambiar elsewhere 27 Jun Thirty-six points, and what they actually weigh, Nikhil Verma myth-vs-method 26 Jun Ekadashi across the date line, Kaveri Nambiar elsewhere 25 Jun The Kerala school, and calculus before Newton, Rukmini Athavale tradition 24 Jun The app's city menu, Kaveri Nambiar elsewhere 23 Jun The many schools of jyotisha, Rukmini Athavale tradition 22 Jun Night shift, day fast, Kaveri Nambiar elsewhere 21 Jun The two-clock kitchen, Kaveri Nambiar elsewhere 20 Jun Your festival, eight thousand kilometres later, Kaveri Nambiar elsewhere 16 Jun Ashwini: the first spark, Yamini Sardesai nakshatra-files 15 Jun Finding the exact moment a tithi turns, Meghnad Chitnis computed-sky 13 Jun Which day is your fast, actually, Priya Sharma almanac 11 Jun Aryabhata says the earth turns, Rukmini Athavale tradition 09 Jun Counting days since the beginning, Meghnad Chitnis computed-sky 08 Jun The twelve months and the stars they are named for, Priya Sharma almanac 06 Jun Amanta and purnimanta, Priya Sharma almanac 04 Jun Reading a muhurta table without panic, Priya Sharma almanac 03 Jun Raising the ascendant by hand, Meghnad Chitnis computed-sky 02 Jun Why two panchangs disagree, Priya Sharma almanac 01 Jun Your chart, their hopes, Antara Bagchi inheritance

May 2026

21 essays
30 May Sidereal time, or what the sky reads on your clock, Meghnad Chitnis computed-sky 29 May The clipping your grandmother saved, Antara Bagchi inheritance 28 May Believing a little, Antara Bagchi inheritance 27 May Why the arithmetic is open, Ankit Sahu founder-notes 26 May How we set a price, Ankit Sahu founder-notes 25 May Why the sundial and the clock disagree, Meghnad Chitnis computed-sky 24 May Asking to see your own chart, Antara Bagchi inheritance 23 May The day number that every ephemeris agrees on, Meghnad Chitnis computed-sky 22 May The first veto, Antara Bagchi inheritance 21 May The sceptic at the puja, Antara Bagchi inheritance 19 May The kundli in the locker, Antara Bagchi inheritance 18 May Should I leave this job, Raman Patel decisions 16 May The free kundli, Nikhil Verma myth-vs-method 12 May Nobody wrote down the time, Raman Patel decisions 11 May Making a planet go backwards, Meghnad Chitnis computed-sky 09 May What a birth chart actually computes, Meghnad Chitnis computed-sky 08 May Why there is no daily horoscope, Ankit Sahu founder-notes 07 May The table you have never used, Priya Sharma almanac 05 May How to read a panchang, Priya Sharma almanac 04 May The guarantee nobody has to keep, Nikhil Verma myth-vs-method 02 May Your birth details, Ankit Sahu founder-notes

April 2026

17 essays
30 Apr Your chart has five doshas, Nikhil Verma myth-vs-method 28 Apr The gemstone question, Nikhil Verma myth-vs-method 25 Apr Sky in the Rigveda, and the temptation to over-read it, Rukmini Athavale tradition 23 Apr The recording question, Raman Patel decisions 21 Apr When to stop the session, Raman Patel decisions 18 Apr The refusal list, Ankit Sahu founder-notes 16 Apr Second opinions, Raman Patel decisions 15 Apr Building a year planner from a panchang, Priya Sharma almanac 14 Apr How to choose an astrologer, Raman Patel decisions 13 Apr The reading that fits everyone, Nikhil Verma myth-vs-method 11 Apr What an honest reading looks like, Ankit Sahu founder-notes 09 Apr The book you could carry in your head, Rukmini Athavale tradition 08 Apr Five days of Diwali, and their tithi anchors, Priya Sharma almanac 07 Apr Varahamihira, and a century that can be pinned down, Rukmini Athavale tradition 04 Apr The question you have been avoiding, Raman Patel decisions 02 Apr Abhijit, the window at noon, Priya Sharma almanac 01 Apr The sixty-year wheel, Priya Sharma almanac

March 2026

20 essays
31 Mar The oldest calendar we have, Rukmini Athavale tradition 30 Mar The verse in the middle of the page, Rukmini Athavale tradition 28 Mar Entering the Hora Shastra by a side door, Rukmini Athavale tradition 24 Mar The slow clock of precession, Meghnad Chitnis computed-sky 21 Mar Rahu kaal, without the fear, Priya Sharma almanac 19 Mar How to take notes, Raman Patel decisions 17 Mar Keeping a decision journal, Raman Patel decisions 16 Mar Navamsha as a division problem, Meghnad Chitnis computed-sky 14 Mar Ten minutes of doubt, Meghnad Chitnis computed-sky 12 Mar Mercury retrograde comes to India, Nikhil Verma myth-vs-method 11 Mar A Greek book in Sanskrit verse, Rukmini Athavale tradition 10 Mar Where are the intellectuals?, Ankit Sahu founder-notes 09 Mar The weekday, and where seven came from, Priya Sharma almanac 07 Mar The century the zodiac arrived, Rukmini Athavale tradition 06 Mar The palm-leaf reading, Nikhil Verma myth-vs-method 05 Mar Sunrise is a decision, not an observation, Meghnad Chitnis computed-sky 04 Mar Eight annas for the coming year, Rukmini Athavale tradition 03 Mar What to bring, Raman Patel decisions 02 Mar Pitru dosha, and the debt you are told you inherited, Nikhil Verma myth-vs-method 01 Mar Against engagement, Ankit Sahu founder-notes

February 2026

27 essays
28 Feb Kaal sarp: anatomy of a modern fear, Nikhil Verma myth-vs-method 27 Feb One thousand and thirty-one aphorisms, Rukmini Athavale tradition 26 Feb The equation of centre, Meghnad Chitnis computed-sky 25 Feb Comment-section jyotisha, Dhruv Banhatti screen-time 24 Feb Astrology and the anxious mind, Raman Patel decisions 23 Feb Brahmagupta's chapter of faults, Rukmini Athavale tradition 22 Feb Four house systems, one birth moment, Meghnad Chitnis computed-sky 21 Feb Who was Parashara?, Rukmini Athavale tradition 20 Feb A child's chart, Raman Patel decisions 19 Feb Solar months, and the twelve sankrantis, Priya Sharma almanac 18 Feb Everyone in India is on Allahabad time, Meghnad Chitnis computed-sky 17 Feb Computed, not composed, Ankit Sahu founder-notes 16 Feb Asking about money first, Raman Patel decisions 14 Feb The mangal dosha panic, Nikhil Verma myth-vs-method 13 Feb The tilt that sets the seasons, Meghnad Chitnis computed-sky 12 Feb Learning this yourself, Raman Patel decisions 11 Feb Rudraksha, from tree to invoice, Nikhil Verma myth-vs-method 10 Feb The arithmetic of Vimshottari, Meghnad Chitnis computed-sky 09 Feb The notification, considered as a sentence, Dhruv Banhatti screen-time 08 Feb Disagreeing with your chart, Raman Patel decisions 07 Feb Fear is not guidance, Ankit Sahu founder-notes 06 Feb An encyclopedia that happens to include astrology, Rukmini Athavale tradition 05 Feb The ledger nobody keeps, Nikhil Verma myth-vs-method 04 Feb Why every astrology app is purple, Dhruv Banhatti screen-time 03 Feb Bring a decision, not a fear, Raman Patel decisions 02 Feb Twenty-seven before twelve, Rukmini Athavale tradition 01 Feb How we screen astrologers, Ankit Sahu founder-notes

January 2026

6 essays
31 Jan Sade sati: a field guide, Nikhil Verma myth-vs-method 30 Jan Checking the calendar too often, Raman Patel decisions 29 Jan Kemadruma, the loneliness yoga, Nikhil Verma myth-vs-method 28 Jan The five limbs of a day, Priya Sharma almanac 26 Jan Why your moon sign changes between apps, Meghnad Chitnis computed-sky 24 Jan Why we are building bhagol, Ankit Sahu founder-notes