Matching APIs: Ashtakoot vs Porutham

Kundli matching is the feature most matrimony and astrology apps build first, and the one where "the same match" most often gets different answers. Usually the two answers come from different systems: North Indian Ashtakoot and South Indian Porutham. This post explains what each one checks, where they overlap, and which matching capability to call for which job.

Ashtakoot: eight kootas, 36 points

Ashtakoot (also called Guna Milan) compares the two birth stars and Moon signs across eight factors, each with a maximum score:

Koota	Maximum	What it compares
Varna	1	spiritual temperament of the Moon signs
Vashya	2	mutual influence of the Moon signs
Tara	3	the count from one birth star to the other
Yoni	4	the animal symbol of each star
Graha Maitri	5	friendship of the Moon-sign lords
Gana	6	temperament of each star (deva, manushya, rakshasa)
Bhakoot	7	the relative position of the Moon signs
Nadi	8	the nadi of each star

The total is out of 36. A total of 18 or more is the usual threshold, but most practitioners also look at the two doshas: Nadi dosha (both stars in the same nadi, scoring 0 of 8) and Bhakoot dosha (an unfavourable sign pair, 0 of 7). Both have classical cancellations, so a good total with a dosha, or a low total without one, needs a reading rather than a number.

Porutham: objections, not just points

The Tamil Porutham system names ten checks: Dina, Gana, Mahendra, Stree Deergha, Yoni, Rasi, Rasi Adhipati, Vasya, Rajju and Vedha. Six of them (Dina, Gana, Yoni, Rasi, Rasi Adhipati, Vasya) look at the same relationships as Ashtakoot kootas (Tara, Gana, Yoni, Bhakoot, Graha Maitri, Vashya). The other four are distinct:

• Mahendra: is the groom's star at one of the favourable counts from the bride's?
• Stree Deergha: is the groom's star far enough from the bride's? Schools disagree about the middle band, which is a real difference of opinion, not noise.
• Rajju: each star sits on one of five "cords" (foot, waist, navel, neck, head). The same cord for both is an objection.
• Vedha: certain pairs of stars "pierce" each other, another objection.

The key difference in spirit: in Porutham, Rajju and Vedha are refusals. A match that passes nine checks and fails Rajju is, in classical practice, not a match. Adding the passes up and showing "9 of 10" misrepresents the system.

Which capability to call

You need	Capability	Input
A quick score from two birth stars	Quick Nakshatra Match	nakshatra and pada for each
The koota-by-koota breakdown	Ashtakoot Details	birth stars
Ashtakoot plus Rajju and Vedha (out of 41)	Dashakoot Match	birth stars
The South Indian checks	Porutham	birth stars
Only Rajju and Vedha	Rajju & Vedha Check	birth stars
Full matching from two births, with Manglik and Papasamya	Kundli Matching (Ayu Milan)	two birth date-times and places
Up to 100 star pairs at once	Bulk Nakshatra Match	list of star pairs

Our Porutham capability returns the four checks that do not overlap Ashtakoot (Mahendra, Stree Deergha, Rajju and Vedha), each with whether it is present, its severity and a reading, plus a summary that names any objection. The six that overlap come from the Ashtakoot kootas, so the two halves of a report can never disagree.

A star-based call is cheap and fast:

curl https://api.96astroapi.com/v1/matching/quick-match \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $ASTRO_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "groom": { "nakshatra": "Rohini", "pada": 2 },
    "bride": { "nakshatra": "Hasta", "pada": 1 }
  }'

The answer carries the total, the maximum (36), a verdict, every koota's score and the Nadi and Bhakoot dosha flags.

Stars or full charts?

Star-based matching needs only each person's birth nakshatra and pada, which many users know. It is right for search filters and "who matches whom" lists. But Manglik dosha, Papasamya (malefic balance) and the doshas' cancellations depend on the whole chart, so they need the birth date, time and place. Use the star-based calls for screening, and the full Ayu Milan match or the matching report once two people are seriously interested.

Show the system, not just the score

Whatever you show your users:

1. Name the system (Ashtakoot, Dashakoot or Porutham), because 25 of 36 and 27 of 41 are the same match.
2. Show the doshas and objections next to the total, not below the fold.
3. For a South Indian audience, lead with Rajju and Vedha.
4. Let users see the koota-by-koota breakdown; it explains a low score better than a verdict.