Nakshatra 18 of 27
Jyeshthaజ్యేష్ఠ
The eldest — seniority, protection, and its burden.
- Ruling planet
- Mercury
- Deity
- Indra, king of the gods
- Symbol
- A circular amulet, an umbrella
- Gana
- Rakshasa (fierce)
- Nature
- Tikshna — sharp
- Sidereal span
- Vrischika 16° 40′ – 30° 00′
About Jyeshtha
Jyeshtha means 'the eldest', and it carries everything the word implies: authority, responsibility for those below, and the isolation that comes with both. Its deity is Indra at the height of his power, and its symbols — the amulet and the umbrella — are both objects of protection. This is a nakshatra of protective seniority and of hard-won competence, classed tikshna because that competence is often forged in difficulty.
What it traditionally favours
Taking responsibility, protective and defensive measures, occult and mantra practice, and matters requiring seniority. Avoided for auspicious beginnings.
The four padas
Every nakshatra is divided into four quarters called padas, each three degrees twenty minutes wide. The pada refines the reading: two people born under the same nakshatra but in different padas are held to differ meaningfully, because each pada falls in a different navamsa and so carries a different sub-influence.
The pada also decides the first syllable of a child's name. Where the moon stood at birth gives the nakshatra; which quarter of it gives the syllable. The four syllables below are in pada order — a child born in the first pada takes the first, and so on. This is the naming convention used at namakaranam across most of southern India.
- 1No16° 40′ →
- 2Ya20° 00′ →
- 3Yi23° 20′ →
- 4Yu26° 40′ →