Jyotisha divides the zodiac into 27 equal parts, and each part is a nakshatra. From Ashwini to Revati, every nakshatra has a presiding deity, a ruling planet and a gana (nature). Your janma nakshatra is the nakshatra the Moon occupied at the moment of your birth.
What is a nakshatra?
The Moon goes round the zodiac in about 27 days, crossing roughly one nakshatra a day, which is why nakshatra is one of the five limbs of the daily panchangam. Dividing 360 degrees by 27 gives 13 degrees 20 minutes for each nakshatra. Each is further split into four padas, making 108 padas in all; two and a quarter nakshatras (nine padas) make one rashi.
For some muhurtham work an extra star, Abhijit, is counted between Uttarashadha and Shravanam, but regular panchangam reckoning uses 27.
The 27 nakshatras with deity, planet and gana
The deities come from the Vedic tradition. The ruling planets follow the Vimshottari dasha system, where the sequence Ketu, Venus, Sun, Moon, Mars, Rahu, Jupiter, Saturn, Mercury repeats three times.
| No. | Nakshatra | Deity | Ruling planet | Gana |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ashwini | Ashwini Kumaras | Ketu | Deva |
| 2 | Bharani | Yama | Shukra (Venus) | Manushya |
| 3 | Krittika | Agni | Surya (Sun) | Rakshasa |
| 4 | Rohini | Brahma (Prajapati) | Chandra (Moon) | Manushya |
| 5 | Mrigashira | Soma | Kuja (Mars) | Deva |
| 6 | Ardra | Rudra | Rahu | Manushya |
| 7 | Punarvasu | Aditi | Guru (Jupiter) | Deva |
| 8 | Pushyami | Brihaspati | Shani (Saturn) | Deva |
| 9 | Ashlesha | Sarpas (Nagas) | Budha (Mercury) | Rakshasa |
| 10 | Magha | Pitrus (ancestors) | Ketu | Rakshasa |
| 11 | Pubba (Purva Phalguni) | Bhaga | Shukra (Venus) | Manushya |
| 12 | Uttara (Uttara Phalguni) | Aryaman | Surya (Sun) | Manushya |
| 13 | Hasta | Savita | Chandra (Moon) | Deva |
| 14 | Chitta (Chitra) | Tvashta (Vishwakarma) | Kuja (Mars) | Rakshasa |
| 15 | Swati | Vayu | Rahu | Deva |
| 16 | Vishakha | Indra and Agni | Guru (Jupiter) | Rakshasa |
| 17 | Anuradha | Mitra | Shani (Saturn) | Deva |
| 18 | Jyeshtha | Indra | Budha (Mercury) | Rakshasa |
| 19 | Moola | Nirriti | Ketu | Rakshasa |
| 20 | Purvashadha | Apah (waters) | Shukra (Venus) | Manushya |
| 21 | Uttarashadha | Vishvedevas | Surya (Sun) | Manushya |
| 22 | Shravanam | Vishnu | Chandra (Moon) | Deva |
| 23 | Dhanishta | Ashta Vasus | Kuja (Mars) | Rakshasa |
| 24 | Shatabhisham | Varuna | Rahu | Rakshasa |
| 25 | Purvabhadra | Aja Ekapada | Guru (Jupiter) | Manushya |
| 26 | Uttarabhadra | Ahirbudhnya | Shani (Saturn) | Manushya |
| 27 | Revati | Pushan | Budha (Mercury) | Deva |
Some texts and regions give slightly different deity names (for example Savita or Surya for Hasta). Telugu spellings also vary: Pushyami or Pushya, Chitta or Chitra, Shatabhisham or Shatabhisha.
What do Deva, Manushya and Rakshasa gana mean?
The nakshatras are grouped by temperament into three ganas of nine each.
- Deva gana – considered gentle and sattvic.
- Manushya gana – mixed, worldly temperament.
- Rakshasa gana – said to show intensity and determination.
There is no need to worry about "Rakshasa gana". It is only a temperament label used as one factor in marriage matching; no nakshatra is judged good or bad on a single factor.
How is the janma nakshatra used?
In puja and sankalpam
When you request an archana at a temple you give your gotram, name and nakshatra. Home puja sankalpams also mention the nakshatra of the person for whom the puja is done.
In naming a child
Each pada has an assigned syllable. Many families choose a name beginning with this namakshara, while some keep it only as a nakshatra name alongside the everyday name.
In marriage matching
The couple's nakshatras are compared for factors such as gana, yoni and nadi. Experienced astrologers look at the whole chart rather than one score.
In muhurthams and dashas
When fixing a date, tarabalam checks whether the day's nakshatra suits the person's janma nakshatra. The Vimshottari dasha also begins with the dasha of the janma nakshatra's ruling planet.
Nakshatra birthday
Many Telugu families celebrate the day the janma nakshatra falls in the birth month and offer an archana at the temple.
How to find your janma nakshatra
- Collect the date, exact time and place of birth.
- If you have a jatakam, it lists the janma nakshatra and pada.
- Otherwise check that day's panchangam for when the nakshatra ends; if you were born after that time, the next nakshatra applies.
- When in doubt, ask your family purohit or an astrologer.
Key points
- 27 nakshatras, each 13°20′ with four padas, 108 padas in all.
- Each has a presiding deity, a ruling planet and a gana.
- Janma nakshatra is the Moon's nakshatra at birth.
- It is used in sankalpam, naming, matching, muhurthams and dashas.
- Do not judge any nakshatra as bad by its gana alone.