How to Find Your Nakshatra: Birth Star, Padas and All 27 Listed

Quick answer: Your nakshatra (birth star, or janma nakshatra) is the one of 27 star sectors the Moon was in when you were born. Each covers 13°20′ of the zodiac and has four padas (quarters) of 3°20′. To find yours, make a free kundli with your date, time and place of birth and look for "Nakshatra" or "Birth star". The full list of 27, with their ruling planets and rashis, is below.

What is a nakshatra?

The zodiac is a 360° circle. Vedic astrology divides it two ways: into 12 rashis of 30° each, and into 27 nakshatras of 13°20′ each. The nakshatras are often called lunar mansions, because the Moon takes roughly a day to pass through each one and about 27⅓ days to go round the whole circle.

When people say "my nakshatra", they mean the nakshatra the Moon was in at birth. Every planet sits in some nakshatra too, but the Moon's is your birth star.

What is a pada?

Each nakshatra is split into four equal padas (quarters) of 3°20′. So you will often see a birth star written as, for example, "Rohini pada 2". There are 108 padas in all, and each rashi holds exactly nine of them, which is why every rashi contains 2¼ nakshatras.

The pada matters for two things: it decides your traditional naming syllable, and it tells you which rashi you fall in when a nakshatra straddles two signs.

Why do you need your birth time and place?

Because the Moon moves fast, about 13° a day. It changes nakshatra roughly once a day, and changes pada every six hours or so. A date alone often isn't enough: if the Moon crossed into a new nakshatra on your birthday, only the time tells you which side of the line you were born on.

The place is needed to convert your local birth time into a standard time the calculator can use. If you don't know your birth time, a calculator can still show which nakshatras the Moon was in that day, so you know your two possible birth stars.

How do I find my nakshatra with a free kundli?

1. Open a free kundli calculator. See our guide to free kundli online.
2. Enter your date, time and place of birth.
3. Look in the basic details or "avakahada" section for Nakshatra, Birth star or Janma nakshatra. Most calculators show the pada too.
4. Check the Moon sign (rashi) on the same page. It should match the rashi column in the table below. Our guide on how to find your rashi explains that side.

What are the 27 nakshatras?

They run in this fixed order from 0° Mesh. The ruling planets repeat in the same nine-planet sequence three times: Ketu, Venus, Sun, Moon, Mars, Rahu, Jupiter, Saturn, Mercury. Where a nakshatra spans two rashis, the padas in each are shown.

What is your nakshatra used for?

• Naming. Each pada has a traditional syllable, and many families choose a baby's name starting with the syllable of the birth pada. Ashwini's four padas, for example, give Chu, Che, Cho, La. This is the same list that gives the naam rashi chart in our rashi guide.
• Vimshottari dasha. Your birth nakshatra's ruling planet decides your first mahadasha, and how far the Moon had moved through that nakshatra decides how much of it was left at birth. See Vimshottari dasha.
• Guna milan. Several of the eight kootas in kundli matching (Tara, Yoni, Gana and Nadi) are worked out from the two partners' birth nakshatras. See kundli matching for marriage and nadi dosha.

Is any nakshatra unlucky?

You may hear that certain nakshatras, such as Ashlesha, Jyeshtha or Mula (often called gandmool), are "bad" to be born in. Traditions do single some out, and families sometimes do a small shanti puja. But no nakshatra decides a person's fate on its own, and astrologers read it alongside the whole chart. Be wary of anyone who uses your birth star to frighten you into an expensive remedy.

It is also worth remembering that astrology is a belief system. There is no scientific evidence that your birth star shapes your personality or life. Many people value it as tradition, and that is reason enough to know it. More in is astrology accurate?

Frequently asked questions

Can I find my nakshatra from my date of birth only?

Sometimes. The Moon changes nakshatra about once a day, so on many dates it is in one nakshatra for most of the day and a second for the rest. Without the time you can narrow it down to two, not always one.

What is the difference between nakshatra and rashi?

A rashi is one of 12 signs of 30°. A nakshatra is one of 27 sectors of 13°20′. Both come from the Moon's position at birth, and each rashi contains 2¼ nakshatras, so your nakshatra tells you your rashi too.

Why do two apps show different nakshatras for me?

Usually because of a different birth time, place, time zone or ayanamsa setting. If your Moon was near a nakshatra boundary, small differences can tip it either way. Check the inputs match first.

Is my nakshatra the same as my star sign?

No. A Western "star sign" is your Sun sign, one of 12. Your nakshatra is your Moon's position among 27 sectors, on the sidereal zodiac. See sun sign vs moon sign.