Meaning
The Vedic birth chart showing planetary positions at the moment of birth.
Etymology
From Sanskrit kuṇḍa (vessel, round pot) — the circular birth chart that 'holds' planetary positions at the moment of birth.
Detailed Explanation
Kundlī (also spelled kundali or janam patri) is the Vedic birth horoscope — a circular diagram divided into 12 houses (bhavas) that maps the exact positions of the nine grahas (navagraha) at the moment of birth. Each house governs a domain of life, and the planets within them form the primary material for astrological interpretation. The kundlī is the foundational document of Vedic astrology: virtually all predictive techniques — dasha systems, transit analysis, yoga identification — are applied to it.