A nakshatra spans 13°20′ and is split into four padas (quarters) of 3°20′. Twenty-seven stars make 108 padas, and a sign of 30° holds nine of them, two and a quarter stars. So Mesha holds all of Aswini and Bharani and the first pada of Krithikai; Vrishabha starts with Krithikai's second pada. A pada is the same size as a navamsa, and the two line up exactly.
☕ Two rulers on one tape
Picture the zodiac as a tape 360° long. One ruler marks it in twelve signs of 30°. Another marks it in twenty-seven stars of 13°20′. The marks do not line up: each sign holds two and a quarter stars (Brihat Jataka, ch. I, v. 4).
Cut each star into four quarters and the rulers meet. A quarter is 3°20′, and nine quarters make exactly 30°. Every sign boundary falls on a quarter boundary, so each sign holds nine whole padas.
3°20′ is also the size of a navamsa (Jataka Parijata (tr. Subramanya Sastri), ch. I, vv. 32–33, p. 20). The 108 navamsas and the 108 padas are the same slices of the sky: Aswini's first pada is Mesha's first navamsa, and Revathi's last pada is Meena's last. The padas in each sign are in the card “The nine padas in each sign” below.
Sign by sign
- Mesha (Aries): Aswini 1–4, Bharani 1–4, Krithikai 1
- Vrishabha (Taurus): Krithikai 2–4, Rohini 1–4, Mrigashirsha 1–2
- Mithuna (Gemini): Mrigashirsha 3–4, Ardra 1–4, Punarvasu 1–3
- Kataka (Cancer): Punarvasu 4, Pushya 1–4, Ashlesha 1–4
- Simha (Leo): Magha 1–4, Poorva Phalguni 1–4, Uttara Phalguni 1
- Kanya (Virgo): Uttara Phalguni 2–4, Hasta 1–4, Chitra 1–2
- Tula (Libra): Chitra 3–4, Swati 1–4, Vishakha 1–3
- Vrischika (Scorpio): Vishakha 4, Anuradha 1–4, Jyeshta 1–4
- Dhanu (Sagittarius): Moola 1–4, Poorva Ashadha 1–4, Uttara Ashadha 1
- Makara (Capricorn): Uttara Ashadha 2–4, Shravana 1–4, Dhanishta 1–2
- Kumbha (Aquarius): Dhanishta 3–4, Shatabhisha 1–4, Poorva Bhadrapada 1–3
- Meena (Pisces): Poorva Bhadrapada 4, Uttara Bhadrapada 1–4, Revathi 1–4
- Mix-up: every star sits inside one sign. Eighteen of the twenty-seven do; the other nine straddle two signs.
- Mix-up: the pada counts from the start of the sign. It counts from the start of the star: Krithikai's second pada is the first pada in Vrishabha.
- Mix-up: the navamsa and the pada are different measures. They are the same 3°20′ slices, numbered two ways.
Frequently asked questions
Which stars lie wholly inside one sign?
Eighteen: Aswini, Bharani, Rohini, Ardra, Pushya, Ashlesha, Magha, Poorva Phalguni, Hasta, Swati, Anuradha, Jyeshta, Moola, Poorva Ashadha, Shravana, Shatabhisha, Uttara Bhadrapada and Revathi. The other nine each straddle two signs.
Where does Nava show my birth star's pada?
On the horoscope page, in the planets table: each planet's star and pada. Your birth star's pada is the Moon's.
Why does my pada matter for the navamsa?
Because they are the same slice. Knowing the Moon's star and pada tells you the Moon's navamsa sign without any sum.
Deep dive: from pada to navamsa
Using the padas, and what this builds on.
🔢 Pada number to navamsa sign
Number the padas 1 to 108 from Aswini's first. Divide by 12 and keep the remainder; count that many signs from Mesha, and a remainder of 0 means Meena. That is the navamsa sign. It is the same sum as on working out a navamsa in your head.
🧭 What this builds on
The twenty-seven stars, their spans and their lords are on nakshatra, the lunar mansion.