Panch Mahapurush Yoga explained: Ruchaka, Bhadra, Hamsa, Malavya and Shasha

Panch Mahapurush means five great person yogas. They form when one of five planets is very strong and sits in a corner house of the chart. They are seen as marks of strength in a particular area of life.

The rule

The yoga forms when Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus or Saturn sits in its own sign or its sign of exaltation, and that sign is in a kendra from the lagna. The kendras are the 1st, 4th, 7th and 10th houses.

The five yogas

• Ruchaka (Mars in Mesh, Vrishchik or Makar): courage, leadership and a strong body.
• Bhadra (Mercury in Mithun or Kanya): intelligence, speech and business skill.
• Hamsa (Jupiter in Dhanu, Meen or Kark): wisdom, kindness and respect.
• Malavya (Venus in Vrishabh, Tula or Meen): comfort, charm and artistic taste.
• Shasha (Saturn in Makar, Kumbh or Tula): discipline, authority and long-lasting success.

What to remember

• Each yoga gives its best results in the dasha of its planet.
• A combust planet, one very near the Sun, or one placed badly in the Navamsa, gives less.
• These yogas are not common. Only a small share of charts have one.

If you have one, it shows an area where you are likely to do well when you put effort into it. If you do not, other combinations can give similar results.

Do not expect a yoga to run itself. The people who use theirs well are the ones who build skills in that area from an early age.