# VedicStars Gurukul

> A gamified, quiz-driven platform for learning Jyotish (Vedic astrology) from absolute beginner to chart reading — "Duolingo for Jyotish." The path is mastery-gated: you unlock the next node only by passing its quiz at the mastery threshold.

VedicStars Gurukul teaches the *system* of Vedic astrology, not horoscopes. Learners progress through a guided sequence and learn to read a birth chart (kundali) themselves.

## What it teaches

- Foundations: the sidereal zodiac, the ecliptic, and why Jyotish counts from the stars rather than the seasons.
- The nine grahas (planets): Sun, Moon, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, Saturn, and the lunar nodes Rahu and Ketu.
- The twelve rashis (signs): their elements, lords, and qualities.
- The twelve bhavas (houses): the areas of life a planet's placement activates.
- The twenty-seven nakshatras (lunar mansions).
- Reading a full kundali end to end: lagna (ascendant), house lords, and aspects.

## How it works

- Each node on the skill map is a short, graphics-rich lesson followed by a quiz.
- A node unlocks only when the learner passes its quiz at the mastery threshold, so progress reflects genuine understanding.
- A short adaptive placement quiz can start an experienced learner further along the path.
- Spaced repetition ("Sky Review") brings earlier material back before it fades.
- Game feel is adult and zen by default: streaks, XP, a skill map, and badges — no hearts or lives.

## Correctness principles

- All chart math is deterministic: a pure function of birth time, location, and ayanamsa, computed with the Swiss Ephemeris and cached. No astrology is ever computed by a language model.
- The default ayanamsa is Pushya-paksha. Interactive-chart questions use a fixed library of seeded teaching charts, not real user birth data.
- Classical references are delivered with citations and are never invented. Sanskrit quotes are not fabricated.
- No fear-framing or fatalism: Jyotish is taught as a symbolic language of tendencies and timing — windows, never doom.

## Key facts

- Jyotish (Vedic astrology) is the traditional Indian system of astronomy and astrology; it uses the sidereal zodiac, fixed against the stars, unlike the tropical zodiac of Western astrology.
- VedicStars Gurukul is free to start.
- The North Indian kundali is drawn as a diamond-within-a-square with twelve houses, distinct from the round Western zodiac wheel.

## Links

- Home: https://learn.vedicstars.app/
- Sign in / get started: https://learn.vedicstars.app/login