Nakshatra and pada in a birth chart

A natal nakshatra is one of 27 equal divisions of the sidereal zodiac, each spanning 13°20′. Each has four padas of 3°20′. A birth chart gives a nakshatra and pada for the lagna and each listed longitude, not just for the Moon.

“Birth star” usually means the Moon's nakshatra at birth. The same column on the Mars row instead describes Mars's position.

Reading a boundary

In a schematic fragment, 12° Aries lies in Ashwini pada 4. Ashwini ends at 13°20′ Aries; the next nakshatra is Bharani. The sign remains Aries across that boundary.

The nakshatra reference lists all 27 names. Their boundaries do not generally coincide with sign boundaries, so a nakshatra can span parts of two signs.

Three different lords

At 12° Aries, Mars rules the sign and Ketu is the nakshatra lord in the Vimshottari sequence. The house lord depends on which house Aries occupies in that chart. These labels answer different questions.

The Moon's nakshatra selects the starting Vimshottari lord, while the portion remaining in it sets the birth balance. The pada also connects with the Navamsa division; it is not another name for the D1 house.

Why another table has 28

The Sarvatobhadra chakra inserts Abhijit into a 28-nakshatra arrangement. The natal Positions table and Vimshottari calculation use the 27-part system. Adding Abhijit to the latter would change the system rather than fill an omitted row.

A nakshatra label describes a position. It does not by itself establish personality, compatibility or a future event.

See the chart and its tables on the Kundli page.