Nakshatra
Krittika nakshatra: Agni, the Sun and two signs
Krittika (Kṛttikā) is the third nakshatra, spanning 26°40' sidereal Aries to 10°00' Taurus, so its first pada is in Aries and the other three are in Taurus. Its god is Agni, the fire deity, and its Vimshottari lord is the Sun. The symbol is commonly given as a razor or a flame.
Draft · specialist source review requested
Fire is the whole vocabulary of this nakshatra. Its deity is fire, its planetary lord is the Sun, and its symbol is a blade or a flame. Krittika is also the Pleiades, one of the few star groups that almost every culture has a story for.
| Fact | Krittika |
|---|---|
| Number | 3 of 27 |
| IAST spelling | Kṛttikā |
| Deity | Agni |
| Vimshottari lord | Sun |
| Symbol (commonly given) | Razor or flame |
| Sidereal span | 26°40' Aries-10°00' Taurus |
| Rashi | Mesha (pada 1), Vrishabha (padas 2-4) |
| Muhurta class | Usually given as miśra (mixed); see below |
Agni at the head of the old list
Agni is Kṛttikā's deity in the Bṛhat Saṃhitā sequence.[32] He is the fire on the altar, the one who carries offerings up to the other gods, so he sits between people and whatever they are reaching for. Older Vedic lists actually began the nakshatras with Kṛttikā rather than Aśvinī, which says something about how central it was.
What the fire imagery suggests
Cutting, cooking, purifying: these are the jobs fire and razors do, and they are the jobs people tend to associate with Krittika. Read them as prompts, not a personality. A Krittika Moon can belong to the gentlest person you know.
- What in your routine needs cutting rather than adjusting?
- Who do you feed, literally or otherwise?
- When you are blunt, is it to clarify or to end the conversation?
How to calculate nakshatra?
Take the Moon's sidereal longitude, counted from 0° Aries, and divide by 13°20'. The whole number plus one is the nakshatra; the remainder divided by 3°20' gives the pada. A Moon at 2° sidereal Taurus is 32° from 0° Aries, which lands in the third nakshatra, Krittika, pada 2. Nakshatras use the sidereal zodiac, so tropical-only readers should compute their sidereal Moon first with the nakshatra calculator; the sidereal glossary entry explains the offset.
| Pada | Sidereal span | Navamsa sign |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 26°40'-30°00' Aries | Sagittarius |
| 2 | 0°00'-3°20' Taurus | Capricorn |
| 3 | 3°20'-6°40' Taurus | Aquarius |
| 4 | 6°40'-10°00' Taurus | Pisces |
Muhurta uses
Krittika is one of the seven nakshatras whose class does not appear in the Bṛhat Saṃhitā verses this site has checked. Later muhurta manuals usually call Krittika and Vishakha miśra, or mixed, and allow ordinary daily work and fire-related tasks on them. Treat that as common practice that still needs a source check. Whatever a panchang says, the practical deadline wins.
For the chanting text, go to the Krittika mantra page. The neighbors are Bharani and Rohini.
Source review
Agni as Kṛttikā's deity comes from Bṛhat Saṃhitā chapter 97, verses 4-5 (Sanskrit edition; 98 in the English translation).[32] The miśra class, the symbol and the reflection prompts are not drawn from that text.
Common questions
Is Krittika nakshatra Aries or Taurus?
Both. Pada 1 is in sidereal Aries (Mesha) and padas 2 to 4 are in sidereal Taurus (Vrishabha), so the rashi depends on the exact degree.
Who is the god of Krittika nakshatra?
Agni, the Vedic god of fire. The Bṛhat Saṃhitā's deity sequence gives Agni for Kṛttikā.
Is Krittika the Pleiades?
Yes. The star group traditionally identified with Krittika is the Pleiades cluster in the constellation Taurus.
Keep going
Updated 2026-10-12. Traditional interpretations are not predictions.
Sources: [32] https://www.wisdomlib.org/hinduism/book/brihat-samhita-sanskrit/d/doc1218130.html
Vedic lens
What does the Vedic lens add?
Krittika is lunar mansion 3 in the standard 27-part sidereal sequence. Its span is 13 degrees and 20 arcminutes, divided into four padas of 3 degrees and 20 arcminutes. A Moon placement should be calculated in a named ayanamsa before applying a natal interpretation.
In Vimshottari, its starting lord is Sun. The fraction of the mansion still ahead of the Moon determines the remaining balance of that first major period. This does not mean everyone with a Krittika Moon begins life with a complete Sun period.
Natal meaning and electional timing answer different questions. A birth placement is not a recommendation to schedule every important activity under the same mansion. Check the current tithi, local time, and the practical deadline separately. Our editorial prompt is to compare one familiar response with a concrete alternative before making a decision; that is a reflection exercise, not a translated classical prediction.
Explore the yoga patterns, major and subperiods, and house-lord connections behind this reading.
How we calculate
Is astrology a guarantee of what will happen?
No. These calculations locate celestial bodies; astrology is a reflection and timing tradition, not evidence of guaranteed health, financial or relationship outcomes.
How are these results calculated?
Positions come from Astronomy Engine, an open-source astronomy library, and are checked against Swiss Ephemeris in our methodology tests. Western readings use the tropical zodiac; Vedic readings subtract the Lahiri ayanamsa. Terms are defined in the glossary.
Next: compare your birth chart, see today's sky, or make a private vision board.