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Nakshatra Calculator by Date of Birth

Your birth Nakshatra is the lunar mansion — one of 27 slices of the zodiac, each 13°20′ wide — that the Moon occupied when you were born. This free calculator finds your Nakshatra, its pada and lord, and your Moon sign (Rashi) and Sun sign, all worked out with the sidereal zodiac used in Vedic astrology. Enter your birth date, place and, if you know it, your birth time.

New to the term? Read the full definition: Nakshatra

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What your Nakshatra result means

Your Janma Nakshatra is the lunar mansion the Moon occupied when you were born. The zodiac is divided into 27 Nakshatras of 13°20′ each, and every Nakshatra is split into four padas of 3°20′. Your Moon sign, or Rashi, is the 30° sign the Moon was in. Together they are the starting point for most Vedic chart matching and for the Vimshottari Dasha.

The Nakshatra lord is the planet that rules your Nakshatra. It also decides which planet’s Dasha you are born into — see the Dasha calculator for the timeline that follows from it.

The Moon travels about 13° in a day, close to the width of one Nakshatra, so it usually changes Nakshatra during a single date. If you do not know your birth time, the calculator shows where the Moon is at the start and at the end of your birth date so you can see the range.

How to find your Nakshatra by hand

  1. Find the Moon’s tropical longitude at your birth moment from an ephemeris, then subtract the Lahiri ayanamsa (about 24° today) to get its sidereal longitude, measured from 0° Aries.
  2. Divide the sidereal longitude by 13°20′ (13.33°). Take the whole number and add one: 1 is Ashwini and 27 is Revati.
  3. Take what remains after that division and divide it by 3°20′. The whole number plus one is the pada, from 1 to 4.
  4. Divide the sidereal longitude by 30°: the whole number counts signs from Aries, so 0 is Aries and 11 is Pisces. That sign is your Moon sign (Rashi).
  5. For the Nakshatra lord, take the Nakshatra number minus one, divide by 9 and keep the remainder. It indexes Ketu, Venus, Sun, Moon, Mars, Rahu, Jupiter, Saturn, Mercury, counting from 0.

How this calculator decides

  • Positions are sidereal (Lahiri ayanamsa), the zodiac Vedic astrology uses, and are calculated from the Swiss Ephemeris for your exact date, time and place.
  • The Moon’s longitude gives its Nakshatra (27 divisions of 13°20′), its pada (4 divisions of 3°20′) and its Rashi (12 divisions of 30°).
  • The Nakshatra lord follows the Vimshottari order — Ketu, Venus, Sun, Moon, Mars, Rahu, Jupiter, Saturn, Mercury — repeated three times across the 27 Nakshatras, starting from Ashwini.
  • The Sun sign is also sidereal, so it often differs from the Western (tropical) Sun sign.

Frequently asked questions

How do I find my Nakshatra by date of birth?

Enter your birth date, time and place in the calculator above. It computes where the Moon was at that moment in the sidereal zodiac and names the Nakshatra, pada and Moon sign for that position.

What is a Rashi, or Moon sign?

Your Rashi is the zodiac sign the Moon was in at your birth. In Vedic astrology it is the main sign for personality-related readings, daily horoscopes and Sade Sati, and it is usually the sign people mean when they say "my rashi".

Why is my Vedic sign different from my Western sign?

Vedic astrology uses the sidereal zodiac, which is about 24° behind the tropical zodiac used in Western astrology. For that reason your Vedic Moon or Sun sign is often the sign before the one you know from Western horoscopes.

What is a pada?

A pada is a quarter of a Nakshatra, 3°20′ wide. Each Nakshatra has four padas, numbered 1 to 4. The pada narrows your Moon’s position and is used in naming traditions and in finer chart analysis.

What does the Nakshatra lord mean?

Each Nakshatra is ruled by one of the nine grahas in the Vimshottari order. The lord of your birth Nakshatra decides which Mahadasha you start life in.

What if I do not know my birth time?

Tick "I don’t know my birth time". The Moon usually moves into a new Nakshatra during a day, so the calculator shows the Moon’s Nakshatra at the start and at the end of your birth date. If they differ, an exact time is needed to know which one is yours.

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For cultural and entertainment purposes. Not medical, financial or legal advice.