Hindu astronomy Astronomy has long history in Indian subcontinent stretching from pre-historic to modern times. Some of the earliest roots of Indian astronomy can be dated to the period of Indus Valley civilisation or earlier. Astronomy later developed as a dis ...

, there are 27 ''

nakshatra Nakshatra ( sa, नक्षत्रम्, translit=Nakṣatram) is the term for lunar mansion in Hindu astrology and Indian Astronomy. A nakshatra is one of 27 (sometimes also 28) sectors along the ecliptic. Their names are related to a ...

s'' , or sectors along the

ecliptic The ecliptic or ecliptic plane is the orbital plane of the Earth around the Sun. From the perspective of an observer on Earth, the Sun's movement around the celestial sphere over the course of a year traces out a path along the ecliptic again ...

. A list of them is first found in the ''

Vedanga Jyotisha Vedanga Jyotisha (), or Jyotishavedanga (), is one of earliest known Indian texts on astrology (''Jyotisha''). The extant text is dated to the final centuries BCE, but it may be based on a tradition reaching back to about 700-600 BCE. The text ...

'', a text dated to the final centuries BCE. The ''Nakṣatra'' system predates the influence of

Hellenistic astronomy Greek astronomy is astronomy written in the Greek language in classical antiquity. Greek astronomy is understood to include the Ancient Greek, Hellenistic, Greco-Roman, and Late Antiquity eras. It is not limited geographically to Greece or to eth ...

on Vedic tradition, which became prevalent from about the 2nd century CE. There are various systems of enumerating the ''Nakṣatra''-s; although there are 27-28 days to a sidereal month, by custom only 27 days are used. The following list gives the corresponding regions of sky. Names of the months in

Indian national calendar The Indian national calendar, sometimes called the Saka calendar, is a solar calendar that is used alongside the Gregorian calendar by ''The Gazette of India'', in news broadcasts by All India Radio, and in calendars and official communications i ...

is related to the names of Nakshatras.

Padas (quarters)

The 27 Nakshatras cover 13°20’ of the

each. Each Nakshatra is also divided into quarters or ''padas'' of 3°20’, and the below table lists the appropriate starting sound to name the child. The 27 nakshatras, each with 4 padas, give 108, which is the number of beads in a Japa mala, indicating all the elements (ansh) of Vishnu:

Names in Indian and Asian languages

The names of nakshatras in other languages are adapted from the Sanskrit variation (apabhramsa) through Pali or Prakrit. The variations evolved for easier pronunciation in popular usage.

References

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Nakshatras Nakshatra ( sa, नक्षत्रम्, translit=Nakṣatram) is the term for lunar mansion in Hindu astrology and Indian Astronomy. A nakshatra is one of 27 (sometimes also 28) sectors along the ecliptic. Their names are related to a ...

Horoscopic astrology Nakshatra Astrology-related lists