What it means
The zodiac is divided into twelve Rashis of 30 degrees each, from Mesha (Aries) through Meena (Pisces). Every planet sits in one of them, and the sign colours how that planet expresses itself.
How it is read
When an Indian astrologer asks for your Rashi they almost always mean the Moon sign - the Rashi the Moon occupied at birth - not the Sun sign that Western horoscope columns use. This is why your Vedic Rashi often differs from the sign you have always called yours.
What to watch for
Vedic astrology also uses the sidereal zodiac, measured against the fixed stars rather than the seasons, which shifts most placements back by roughly 24 degrees. The gap between the two systems is the ayanamsa, and it is the single most common reason a Vedic chart surprises someone who only knows the Western one.
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