Does Vastu work in Japan?
Yes. Vastu Shastra is organised around directions, which are the same in Tokyo as in India, so its guidance applies to a 2LDK in Nishikasai as much as to a flat in Pune. Two things stand out in Japan. The compass points about 8° west of true north in Tokyo and nearly 10° in Hokkaido, enough to move rooms near a zone boundary. And Japan has its own direction tradition, kasō, which treats the north-east as the kimon, the "demon gate", and agrees with Vastu more than many people expect.
Kimon and Vastu: two traditions that agree on the north-east
Kasō, the Japanese tradition of reading a house by its directions, treats the north-east as the kimon (鬼門, the demon gate) and the south-west as the ura-kimon (裏鬼門). Many Japanese families avoid putting the entrance, the toilet or the bath in those directions. Vastu is a separate tradition from India, but it reaches some of the same conclusions:
| Kasō (Japan) | Vastu Shastra (India) | |
|---|---|---|
| North-east | The kimon: keep it clean; avoid a toilet, bath or entrance | The most sacred zone (Ishanya): keep it open and light; avoid a toilet |
| South-west | The ura-kimon: also kept free of water and the entrance | The zone of stability: best for the main bedroom and heavy storage |
| The centre | Many practitioners avoid a toilet or a stair at the centre | The Brahmasthan: kept open, free of toilets, stairs and heavy walls |
| Which north | Practitioners differ on magnetic or true north | VastuIQ uses true north |
VastuIQ gives a Vastu reading only. If you also follow kasō, the two will often point the same way, especially about the north-east.
What 8° does to a Vastu reading
A phone compass points to magnetic north, and so does any north arrow drawn from a compass reading on site. In Tokyo that is about 7.9° west of true north, the direction the classical texts mean. Each of the eight Vastu zones is 45° wide, so a reading near the edge of a zone lands in the wrong one. Four examples:
| Compass reads | Zone by compass | True direction | True zone |
|---|---|---|---|
| 26° | North-East | 19° | North |
| 116° | South-East | 109° | East |
| 206° | South-West | 199° | South |
| 296° | North-West | 289° | West |
So a kitchen your compass puts in the south-east may truly stand in the east, and a door your compass reads as north-east may really face north. VastuIQ corrects every reading for your town before anything is scored, using the World Magnetic Model.
Japanese homes, read correctly
The report uses the names on your plan and reads them the way a home here is built:
LDK is read as the living room with its kitchen; 洋室 (Western-style room) as a bedroom; 和室 (tatami room) as a bedroom unless you use it as a living or guest room. You can change any room on the confirm screen.
Read as the entrance. Your apartment door is the main door that is checked, with its exact position (pada) on its wall.
The bath is read as a bathroom, the washroom (senmenjo) as a utility room and the separate toilet as a toilet. The north-east and the centre of the home are the places tradition avoids for both.
Futon closets are read as closets, a nando or service room as storage. Traditionally best for heavy storage: South-West, South or West, where heavy storage is traditionally placed.
Read as an outdoor area. Traditionally best: North, North-East or East.
A butsuma or a kamidana shelf is read as a prayer space, as is a pooja corner. Traditionally best: North-East (Ishanya), traditionally the most sacred zone.
New to Vastu? What it is, in brief
Vastu Shastra is a traditional Indian system of architecture and home layout, set out in Sanskrit texts such as the Mayamata and the Manasara. It divides a home into eight directional zones around its centre and suggests which rooms and activities suit which zone. Many Indian families use it when they buy, build or arrange a home, and so do people of other backgrounds who are curious about how a home is laid out.
Kept the lightest and least cluttered part of the home; a good place for prayer or quiet.
The zone traditionally linked with Agni, fire, so it is the classical place for cooking.
Linked with weight and stability; tradition places the main bedroom and heavy storage here.
It is a cultural tradition, not a science, and it does not promise outcomes. VastuIQ shows what the classical texts recommend, measured accurately for your home and your city, and you decide what to do with it. Most of the report's fixes need no building work: they are about how rooms are used and arranged.
Renting, mansions and the management association
Many families in Japan rent, and in a condominium (mansion) the management association (kanri kumiai) sets rules for the outside, the balconies and the shared parts. Choose Renting or Own it (building rules) in the tool and the report leads with fixes you can make yourself: how rooms are used, where the futon or the bed and the desk go, colours, lighting and keeping the north-east and the centre clear.
Compass vs true north in Japan
Across Japan a compass points about 6–10° west of true north: less in Okinawa, more in Hokkaido. Your score uses the exact figure for your own city.
| City | Compass vs true north | Daylight, mid-winter to mid-summer |
|---|---|---|
| Sapporo, Hokkaido | 9.9° west | 9.0 – 15.4 h |
| Sendai, Miyagi | 8.6° west | 9.5 – 14.8 h |
| Saitama, Saitama | 8.0° west | 9.7 – 14.6 h |
| Tokyo, Tokyo | 7.9° west | 9.7 – 14.6 h |
| Edogawa, Tokyo | 7.9° west | 9.7 – 14.6 h |
| Nishikasai, Tokyo | 7.9° west | 9.7 – 14.6 h |
| Chiba, Chiba | 7.8° west | 9.7 – 14.6 h |
| Yokohama, Kanagawa | 7.9° west | 9.8 – 14.6 h |
| Kawasaki, Kanagawa | 7.9° west | 9.8 – 14.6 h |
| Nagoya, Aichi | 8.2° west | 9.8 – 14.5 h |
| Kyoto, Kyoto | 8.2° west | 9.8 – 14.5 h |
| Osaka, Osaka | 8.2° west | 9.8 – 14.5 h |
| Kobe, Hyogo | 8.2° west | 9.8 – 14.5 h |
| Hiroshima, Hiroshima | 8.3° west | 9.9 – 14.5 h |
| Fukuoka, Fukuoka | 8.0° west | 9.9 – 14.4 h |
| Naha, Okinawa | 5.9° west | 10.5 – 13.8 h |
Calculated for 2026 with the World Magnetic Model WMM-2025 (NOAA / British Geological Survey) and NOAA solar equations. "East" means a compass points to the east of true north.
Check one home, or compare your shortlist
- Score out of 100 and its band
- Your top three issues
- True north correction for your city
- Every room scored, with no-cost and low-cost fixes
- Your floor plans with the zones at true north
- Centre, front door and pada
- Action plan, 90-day plan and checklist
- Two or three homes side by side
- Which home fits Vastu best, and why
- Plus the full report for the home you choose
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Vastu in Japan: questions people ask
Does Vastu work in Japan?
Vastu Shastra is organised around directions, which are the same in Japan as in India, so its room-by-direction guidance can be applied to a Japanese apartment or house. What matters is correcting the compass and reading Japanese rooms properly. Vastu is a tradition; it does not promise outcomes.
What is the difference between kimon and Vastu?
They are separate traditions: kasō from Japan, Vastu from India. Both treat the north-east as a direction to keep clean and free of toilets, and both care about the centre of the home. They differ on the south-west and on some details. VastuIQ gives a Vastu reading only.
How far off is a compass in Tokyo or Osaka?
About 8° west in Tokyo, 8° west in Osaka, 8° west in Fukuoka, 10° west in Sapporo and 6° west in Naha (World Magnetic Model). Vastu uses true north, so VastuIQ corrects every reading for your city.
Can I upload a madori labelled in Japanese?
Yes. Labels such as LDK, 洋室, 和室, 玄関, 浴室, 洗面所, トイレ, 押入 and バルコニー are understood, and on the confirm screen you see how each room has been read and can change it. The report is in English.
How does Vastu treat a tatami room?
A tatami room (washitsu) is read as a bedroom by default. If you use it as a living room, a guest room or a prayer room, change it on the confirm screen and it is scored for that use.
Can I compare apartments before signing?
Yes. Use Compare 2–3 homes: the side-by-side comparison is free, and Home Buyer Compare (US$79, about ¥12,502) adds a PDF that ranks the homes and includes the full report for the one you choose.
Vastu for homes in other countries
Written by Manoj Jangra, founder of VastuIQ. Last updated 20 October 2026.
Vastu Shastra is a traditional and cultural practice. VastuIQ reports are not engineering, legal, financial or medical advice and do not promise any outcome.