The 27 Nakshatras of Vedic Astrology

Long before telescopes, Indian astronomers tracked the Moon against 27 fixed star groups and gave each one a name, a deity and a temperament. These are the nakshatras, and they still do the heavy lifting in Jyotish: your birth star fixes the first syllable of a traditional name, sets the starting point of your dasha cycle, and carries a personality portrait that is often more specific than the rashi everyone asks about.

Each nakshatra spans 13 degrees 20 minutes of the zodiac and splits into four padas. The guides below cover every star from Ashwini to Revati: its ruling planet and deity, what the symbol means, how the four padas differ, which careers and relationships suit it, and the mantra and remedies tradition prescribes.

Which nakshatra were you born under? The Moon changes star every day, so your birth date alone is not enough.

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All 27 Nakshatras in Order

What Exactly Is a Nakshatra?

The zodiac's 360 degrees divide into 27 equal arcs, and each arc is a nakshatra, a lunar mansion the Moon crosses in about a day. Where the 12 rashis describe broad terrain, the nakshatras zoom in: two people with the same Moon sign can have very different birth stars, and Jyotish trusts the star for the finer reading. Each one comes with a presiding deity, a ruling planet that anchors the Vimshottari dasha sequence, a symbol, and matching attributes such as gana, yoni and nadi that power kundali matching for marriage.

The pada system sharpens this further. Every nakshatra divides into four quarters of 3 degrees 20 minutes, each mapped to one navamsa sign, so the 27 stars yield 108 padas, the same 108 that appears across mantra counts and mala beads. Your pada decides the traditional naming syllable and colours how the star behaves; the same nakshatra can act quite differently in its first and fourth quarters, which is why each guide here treats the padas separately.

Gandmool Nakshatras

Six stars sit at the sensitive junctions where a water sign ends and a fire sign begins, or at the zodiac's own start and end: Ashwini, Ashlesha, Magha, Jyeshtha, Mula, Revati. These are the Gandmool nakshatras, all ruled by Mercury or Ketu. A birth in one of them is traditionally followed by a shanti puja around the 27th day, when the same star returns. It is a precaution, not a verdict; plenty of accomplished people are Gandmool-born, and each guide explains what the tradition actually asks for.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a nakshatra in Vedic astrology?

A nakshatra is one of the 27 lunar mansions that divide the zodiac into equal arcs of 13 degrees 20 minutes each. The Moon spends roughly one day in each nakshatra, and the one it occupied at your birth is your janma nakshatra, or birth star. It shapes temperament, naming syllables and the starting point of the Vimshottari dasha cycle.

How do I find my nakshatra?

You need your date, time and place of birth, because the Moon moves about 13 degrees a day and can change nakshatra within hours. The free BhaktiRas nakshatra calculator works it out instantly, including your pada, and has a special mode for people who do not know their birth time.

What is a pada?

Each nakshatra is divided into four quarters called padas, each 3 degrees 20 minutes wide. Every pada maps to one navamsa sign, which fine-tunes how the nakshatra expresses itself, and each pada carries the traditional first syllable used for naming a newborn.

Which nakshatras are Gandmool?

Six nakshatras ruled by Mercury and Ketu are called Gandmool: Ashwini, Ashlesha, Magha, Jyeshtha, Mula and Revati. A birth in these stars is traditionally followed by a Gandmool shanti puja, usually on the day the same nakshatra returns, about 27 days after birth.

Are 27 or 28 nakshatras used?

The working zodiac uses 27 equal nakshatras. The 28th, Abhijit, is a short intercalary segment inside Uttara Ashadha and Shravana that is honoured in muhurta as an auspicious moment, but it is not used for birth stars, dasha or matching.