In Sri Lanka, matching two horoscopes is a familiar step before many marriages. Families compare the bride's and groom's birth charts to see how well they agree — a practice called porondam (පොරොන්දම්) in Sinhala and porutham (பொருத்தம்) in Tamil. You can check two charts with the calculator on this page; this guide explains what goes into a match and how families use the result.
What do you need to match two horoscopes?
Each person's horoscope (kendaraya) is drawn from the exact date, time and place of birth. From these come the three things matching relies on most: the birth star (nakshatra) the Moon occupied, the Moon sign (chandra rashi) and the rising sign (lagna). The birth time matters most — the Moon changes birth star roughly once a day, so a time recorded a little early or late can change the result. A birth certificate or hospital record is better than memory.
The signs used in Sri Lanka belong to the sidereal zodiac, so a person's Moon sign is usually not the "star sign" they read in a newspaper.
How does a matching consultation work?
Families usually take both horoscopes to a shasthrakaraya (ශාස්ත්රකාරයා), an astrologer they trust, often one the family has consulted for years. The astrologer works through the porondam points one by one, looks at the two complete charts, and gives a view on the match. If the match is accepted, the same astrologer is often asked for the auspicious times (nekath) for the engagement and the wedding, in the same spirit as the Avurudu nakath that guide the New Year.
Which points are compared?
The Sinhala tradition checks twenty points, the visi porondam, from the two birth stars, the two Moon signs and their ruling planets, the birth weekdays, and the balance of planets across both charts. The Tamil tradition checks ten, the pathu porutham. In both, rajju and yoni are treated as essential points, and kuja dosha — the position of Mars — is checked in each chart.
As a rule of thumb, published Sinhala guidance treats a match with more than half of the porondam obtained as acceptable, and Tamil families usually look for at least eight of the ten porutham.
Are Sinhala and Tamil matching different?
They share the same roots in Jyotisha and much of the same method, but differ in detail. The Tamil list is shorter, counts the dina point between birth stars rather than weekdays, and accepts a rajju match in some cases that Sinhala sources do not. Families simply follow the tradition they belong to — and some ask for both.
Can I match horoscopes online?
Yes. The calculator on this page works out both birth charts from the actual positions of the Moon and planets and shows the Sinhala porondam, the Tamil porutham and kuja dosha side by side. Nothing you enter is stored. Many families use a calculation like this as a first look and then take the charts to their astrologer for a full reading. To see how two signs compare in general, browse the porondam for each rashi pair.
Do younger Sri Lankans still match horoscopes?
Practice varies from family to family. For some, the horoscope match remains an important step that can decide whether a proposal goes ahead; for others it is a custom observed out of respect for parents and grandparents, alongside everything else the family knows about the couple. Couples who meet on their own often still have their horoscopes matched for the same reason.
A tradition worth understanding
For visitors, horoscope matching offers a window into how astrology runs through Sri Lankan family life — from naming a child to choosing the moment a wedding begins. It sits naturally alongside the island's other living traditions, from Sri Lankan weddings to the rituals of the Temple of the Tooth in Kandy.