Does Vastu work in Mauritius?
Yes, with two things to get right. Vastu Shastra is organised around directions, so it can be applied to a Mauritian home just as to one in India, where most Indo-Mauritian families trace their roots. First, the compass: in Mauritius it points about 18° west of true north, enough to put many rooms in the wrong zone if it is not corrected. Second, the island lies south of the equator, and practitioners disagree on whether north and south should swap here. VastuIQ corrects the compass for your town, scores the classical directions and shows the flipped reading beside any room where it would change the result a lot.
Do north and south swap in the Southern Hemisphere?
In India the midday sun is to the south. In Mauritius it is to the north for most of the year (in Port Louis, all but about 60 days around December, when it passes just south of overhead). Classical Vastu was written north of the equator, and there is no single agreed answer on what that means here. Practitioners take three views:
Directions are directions; a north-east kitchen means the same in Port Louis as in Delhi.
The midday sun is in the north in Mauritius, so the roles of north and south should swap.
Keep the directions but read light and warmth from the local sun.
What VastuIQ does: the score follows the classical directions. Beside any room where the flipped view would change the reading by 25 points or more, the report shows that reading too. For example, a kitchen in the north-east scores 5 classically; in the flipped view it would read as south-east, which scores 100. You see both and decide.
What 18° 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 Port Louis that is about 18.2° 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 32° | North-East | 13° | North |
| 122° | South-East | 103° | East |
| 212° | South-West | 193° | South |
| 302° | North-West | 283° | 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.
Mauritian homes, read correctly
The report uses the names on your plan and reads them the way a home here is built:
The varangue (veranda) and an open terrace are read as outdoor areas. Traditionally best: North, North-East or East.
Upload each floor separately. A floor you plan to add can be checked from its drawing before it is built, so the staircase, the kitchen and the bedrooms go in the right place from the start.
Both are read as kitchens, each by its own direction. Traditionally best for cooking: South-East, the zone traditionally linked with Agni (fire). North-West is the usual second choice.
A prayer room or a pooja corner is read as a prayer space. Traditionally best: North-East (Ishanya), traditionally the most sacred zone.
Read as parking. Traditionally best: North-West, traditionally the zone of movement (Vayu). South-East is also acceptable.
Mark the outline of your own apartment; its front door is your apartment door, not the entrance of the building.
Building or extending a house in Mauritius
Vastu is easiest to follow before the walls go up. If you are building a new house or adding a floor, upload the architect's drawing of each floor, set north from the site plan and confirm the rooms: the free score shows where the kitchen, the main bedroom, the staircase and the prayer room sit by tradition while they can still be moved on paper. Try two or three layouts side by side before the drawings are final.
Mauritius has a cyclone season from November to April, so anything structural belongs with your architect and engineer. The report never asks you to change a wall, and its fixes for a finished home need no building work.
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.
Buying as a foreign resident
Non-citizens usually buy in Mauritius through schemes approved by the Economic Development Board, such as the Property Development Scheme (PDS) and Smart City projects, or an apartment in a qualifying building. Most of these homes are sold from plans: upload the plan, set north from the master plan and compare homes free before you sign. Check current rules with the EDB or your notary; VastuIQ gives Vastu guidance only.
Compass vs true north in Mauritius
Across Mauritius a compass points about 18° west of true north, and a little less on Rodrigues. The figure barely changes from one town to the next, but it is large. Your score uses the exact figure for your own town.
| City | Compass vs true north | Daylight, mid-winter to mid-summer |
|---|---|---|
| Grand Baie, Rivière du Rempart | 18.0° west | 10.9 – 13.3 h |
| Goodlands, Rivière du Rempart | 18.0° west | 10.9 – 13.3 h |
| Triolet, Pamplemousses | 18.0° west | 10.9 – 13.3 h |
| Port Louis, Port Louis | 18.2° west | 10.9 – 13.4 h |
| Centre de Flacq, Flacq | 18.2° west | 10.9 – 13.4 h |
| Beau Bassin-Rose Hill, Plaines Wilhems | 18.3° west | 10.9 – 13.4 h |
| Moka, Moka | 18.2° west | 10.9 – 13.4 h |
| Quatre Bornes, Plaines Wilhems | 18.3° west | 10.9 – 13.4 h |
| Vacoas, Plaines Wilhems | 18.3° west | 10.9 – 13.4 h |
| Bambous, Black River | 18.3° west | 10.9 – 13.4 h |
| Curepipe, Plaines Wilhems | 18.4° west | 10.9 – 13.4 h |
| Mahébourg, Grand Port | 18.4° west | 10.9 – 13.4 h |
| Port Mathurin, Rodrigues | 16.7° west | 10.9 – 13.3 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
Prices are charged in US dollars and your bank converts them; local amounts are a guide.
Vastu in Mauritius: questions people ask
Does Vastu work in Mauritius?
Vastu Shastra is organised around directions, and they are the same in Mauritius as in India, so its guidance can be applied to a Mauritian home. Two things need care: the compass correction of about 18° west, and the Southern Hemisphere question, on which practitioners disagree. VastuIQ handles both openly. Vastu is a tradition; it does not promise outcomes.
How far off is a compass in Port Louis, Curepipe or Grand Baie?
About 18° west in Port Louis, 18° west in Curepipe, 18° west in Grand Baie, 18° west in Mahébourg and 17° west in Port Mathurin, Rodrigues (World Magnetic Model). The figure hardly changes across the island, but uncorrected it moves many walls and doors into the next zone, so VastuIQ corrects every reading for your town.
Should north and south be swapped for a house in Mauritius?
Practitioners disagree. Some keep the classical directions; some flip north and south because the midday sun is in the north here for most of the year. VastuIQ scores the classical directions and, beside any room where the flipped view changes the reading by 25 points or more, shows that reading too, so you can follow the view your family or your pandit prefers.
Is the midday sun ever overhead in Mauritius?
Yes. Mauritius lies inside the Tropic of Capricorn, so for about 60 days around December the midday sun is slightly to the south, passing directly overhead at the start and the end of that period. In June it stands about 46° above the horizon to the north. The report shows these sun facts for your address separately from the Vastu reading.
Can I check a house before I build it?
Yes. Upload the architect's floor plan for each level, set north from the site plan and confirm the rooms. The free score takes a few minutes, so you can try two or three layouts before the drawings are final. To choose between homes or layouts, Home Buyer Compare (US$79, about Rs 3,733) ranks them in a PDF and includes the full report for the one you choose; the side-by-side comparison itself is free.
Which page should I use for a home in Rodrigues?
This one. Rodrigues is part of the Republic of Mauritius: type Port Mathurin or the nearest town and the score uses the compass correction there, about 17° west.
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.