The nakshatras are the oldest layer of Indian astronomy — lunar mansions that mark the Moon’s path night by night, named in the Vedas long before the twelve rashis arrived. Today they do most of the work in jyotisha: your birth nakshatra sets your Vimshottari dasha, and kundli matching is computed almost entirely from the two partners’ nakshatras.
How the nakshatras divide the sky
The sidereal zodiac is cut into 27 equal parts of 13°20′, beginning from 0° Aries. Each nakshatra is split again into four padas (quarters) of 3°20′, giving 108 padas — and each pada coincides exactly with one navamsa, which is how the nakshatras tie into the D9 chart. Nine padas make a rashi, so the nakshatras and the signs line up every 30°, though individual nakshatras often straddle two signs.
Older lists count 28, adding Abhijit between Uttara Ashadha and Shravana; the Atharvaveda gives the 28-fold list. The 27-fold division, with equal spans, is the one used for the panchang, dasha and matching, and it is the one used here.
The full list
Every column below is read directly from this site’s calculation engine, so it matches what the kundli and matching tools use.
| # | Nakshatra | Span (sidereal) | Lord | Deity | Gana | Nadi | Yoni |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ashwini | Aries 0°00′ – 13°20′ | Ketu | Ashwini Kumaras | Deva | Aadi | Horse |
| 2 | Bharani | Aries 13°20′ – 26°40′ | Venus | Yama | Manushya | Madhya | Elephant |
| 3 | Krittika | Aries 26°40′ – Taurus 10°00′ | Sun | Agni | Rakshasa | Antya | Sheep |
| 4 | Rohini | Taurus 10°00′ – 23°20′ | Moon | Brahma | Manushya | Antya | Serpent |
| 5 | Mrigashira | Taurus 23°20′ – Gemini 6°40′ | Mars | Soma | Deva | Madhya | Serpent |
| 6 | Ardra | Gemini 6°40′ – 20°00′ | Rahu | Rudra | Manushya | Aadi | Dog |
| 7 | Punarvasu | Gemini 20°00′ – Cancer 3°20′ | Jupiter | Aditi | Deva | Aadi | Cat |
| 8 | Pushya | Cancer 3°20′ – 16°40′ | Saturn | Brihaspati | Deva | Madhya | Sheep |
| 9 | Ashlesha | Cancer 16°40′ – 30°00′ | Mercury | Nagas | Rakshasa | Antya | Cat |
| 10 | Magha | Leo 0°00′ – 13°20′ | Ketu | Pitris | Rakshasa | Antya | Rat |
| 11 | Purva Phalguni | Leo 13°20′ – 26°40′ | Venus | Bhaga | Manushya | Madhya | Rat |
| 12 | Uttara Phalguni | Leo 26°40′ – Virgo 10°00′ | Sun | Aryaman | Manushya | Aadi | Cow |
| 13 | Hasta | Virgo 10°00′ – 23°20′ | Moon | Savitr | Deva | Aadi | Buffalo |
| 14 | Chitra | Virgo 23°20′ – Libra 6°40′ | Mars | Vishvakarma | Rakshasa | Madhya | Tiger |
| 15 | Swati | Libra 6°40′ – 20°00′ | Rahu | Vayu | Deva | Antya | Buffalo |
| 16 | Vishakha | Libra 20°00′ – Scorpio 3°20′ | Jupiter | Indra-Agni | Rakshasa | Antya | Tiger |
| 17 | Anuradha | Scorpio 3°20′ – 16°40′ | Saturn | Mitra | Deva | Madhya | Deer |
| 18 | Jyeshtha | Scorpio 16°40′ – 30°00′ | Mercury | Indra | Rakshasa | Aadi | Deer |
| 19 | Mula | Sagittarius 0°00′ – 13°20′ | Ketu | Nirriti | Rakshasa | Aadi | Dog |
| 20 | Purva Ashadha | Sagittarius 13°20′ – 26°40′ | Venus | Apas | Manushya | Madhya | Monkey |
| 21 | Uttara Ashadha | Sagittarius 26°40′ – Capricorn 10°00′ | Sun | Vishvedevas | Manushya | Antya | Mongoose |
| 22 | Shravana | Capricorn 10°00′ – 23°20′ | Moon | Vishnu | Deva | Antya | Monkey |
| 23 | Dhanishta | Capricorn 23°20′ – Aquarius 6°40′ | Mars | Vasus | Rakshasa | Madhya | Lion |
| 24 | Shatabhisha | Aquarius 6°40′ – 20°00′ | Rahu | Varuna | Rakshasa | Aadi | Horse |
| 25 | Purva Bhadrapada | Aquarius 20°00′ – Pisces 3°20′ | Jupiter | Aja Ekapada | Manushya | Aadi | Lion |
| 26 | Uttara Bhadrapada | Pisces 3°20′ – 16°40′ | Saturn | Ahir Budhnya | Manushya | Madhya | Cow |
| 27 | Revati | Pisces 16°40′ – 30°00′ | Mercury | Pushan | Deva | Antya | Elephant |
What the columns are for
- Lord — the Vimshottari dasha lord. The nine lords repeat in a fixed order three times around the zodiac, which is why Ashwini, Magha and Mula all begin with Ketu. See Vimshottari dasha.
- Deity — the presiding deity from the Vedic nakshatra lists. It shapes the classical character of each nakshatra and is used in muhurta.
- Gana — Deva, Manushya or Rakshasa temperament, worth 6 of the 36 points in Ashtakoota matching.
- Nadi — Aadi, Madhya or Antya, worth 8 points; two partners sharing a nadi is Nadi Dosha.
- Yoni — an animal assigned to each nakshatra, worth 4 points; pairs of animals are graded from identical to hostile.
Finding your own nakshatra
Your janma nakshatra is the one the Moon occupied at the moment of birth. The Moon crosses a nakshatra in about a day, so on most dates it changes nakshatra at some hour of the day, and the time of birth decides which one applies. The kundli tool computes it from your date, time and place.