Bodygraph

The bodygraph (Rave BodyGraph) is the main Human Design diagram: nine centers linked by channels, with gates at planetary positions. It turns mandala imprinting into a map you can read for type, authority, definition, and life themes.

From mandala to graph

Calculation begins in the Rave Mandala — an imprinting matrix based on the astrological wheel. The inner ring tracks constellations; the outer ring divides into 64 partitions from the I Ching hexagrams (genetic potentials). Planetary positions at birth and at the design moment mark gates; gate activations transfer onto the graph, including half-colored channels when only one gate of a pair is active.

Teaching metaphor: imagine each center as a community. Roads (black) are conscious connections; tunnels (red) are unconscious. When both gates of a channels link are active across personality and design, the road/tunnel becomes a reliable definition bridge between centers.

Synthesis on the graph

Component	Traditional root (teaching)
centers	Chakra system — energy/information hubs adapted for the nine-centered form
channels	Kabbalah Sephiroth — fixed circuits between centers
gates	I Ching — any wheel position translates into the BodyGraph

The graph is “new” in the sense that it integrates these streams into one mechanical picture of the individual.

Personality and design

A full chart uses two calculations — see personality-design:

Side	Color	Moment	Theme
Personality	Black	Birth time	Conscious — “who you think you are”
Design	Red	88° solar arc before birth (88 days)	Unconscious — body, bio-genetic inheritance

Defined centers, channels, and gates arise from either side when channel rules are met.

Defined, undefined, and open

Appearance	Meaning
Defined (colored)	Consistent energy in that centers hub — reliable through life
Undefined (white)	Amplifies others; wisdom from pattern recognition over time
Open	Undefined with no gates touching the center; especially receptive to conditioning

Colored vs white is the obvious duality on every chart: what is fixed in you vs what you sample from the world.

Reading order on the graph

1. types — Sacral + motor→Throat pattern
2. definition — how many center clusters connect (split_definition, splits in humandesign.chart)
3. authority — which center hierarchy drives decisions (strategy field)
4. channels then gates — detail and themes

Rendering in AstroRust

Provider humandesign.bodygraph:

Graph kind	Use
bodygraph	Single natal chart
composite_bodygraph	Two charts merged

Operations: render (SVG), graph_model / composite_graph_model (JSON for UI).

Return to overview for the learning path, or composite / transit for relationship and timing layers.

Sources

Bodygraph synthesis, mandala transfer, and center/channel metaphor paraphrased from the IHDS introduction (intro_hd.md, Ra Uru Hu, 2004–2010).

• International Human Design School
• Newcomers — BodyGraph and reports
• Foundation courses — Rave ABC & Cartography