The 27 nakshatras — lunar mansions of Jyotish

What a nakshatra is

The 360° zodiac is divided into 12 signs of 30° and, at the same time, into 27 nakshatras of 13°20′. The nakshatras are the oldest layer of Indian astronomy: the Vedas name them long before the zodiac signs appear. The Moon circles the sky in 27.3 days, so each night it “lodges” in a new mansion — hence the other name, lunar mansions.

Each nakshatra divides into four padas of 3°20′. 27 × 4 = 108 padas, and every pada coincides with one navamsha (D9) sign — so nakshatras, signs and the navamsha form a single grid.

Your nakshatra: why the Moon

When someone in India asks “what is your star?”, they mean your janma nakshatra, the Moon's nakshatra at birth. It sets the order of your Vimshottari dashas: a Moon in a Ketu nakshatra (Ashwini, Magha, Mula) starts life in Ketu's period, a Moon in a Venus nakshatra in Venus's period, and so on. The Moon's nakshatra is also the basis of the 36-guna compatibility test (Ashtakuta), of the first syllable of a traditional name and of choosing good days for action (tara bala).

The nakshatras of the ascendant and of the planets are read too, but the pages below describe above all the Moon in each of the 27 mansions.

Nine rulers, three cycles

The rulers follow the Vimshottari order — Ketu, Venus, Sun, Moon, Mars, Rahu, Jupiter, Saturn, Mercury — repeated three times. So every graha rules exactly three nakshatras, one in each third of the zodiac. The three cycles begin with Ashwini (Aries), Magha (Leo) and Mula (Sagittarius): all three ruled by Ketu, all three right after a gandanta, the junction of a water sign and a fire sign.

Gana, yoni and nadi

For matching, each nakshatra carries three attributes. Gana is temperament: deva (gentle), manushya (human) and rakshasa (fierce, independent). Yoni is one of 14 animal symbols that describes physical compatibility. Nadi is one of three constitutions; the same nadi in both partners is the heaviest dosha in the 36-guna score. On these pages all three come from the same tables JyotiSoft uses to score a couple.

Vedic nakshatras and Western astrology

Western astrology has no direct equivalent. Its tropical signs are tied to the seasons, while nakshatras are counted in the sidereal zodiac, fixed to the stars — so even your sidereal Moon sign usually differs from the tropical one, and a single sign holds two or three nakshatras with quite different characters. If you know your Western chart, think of the nakshatra as a finer lens on the Moon: not “a Taurus Moon”, but “a Moon in Rohini, pada 2”.

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