Nakshatra
Punarvasu nakshatra: Aditi, Jupiter and return
Punarvasu is the seventh nakshatra and runs from 20°00' sidereal Gemini to 3°20' Cancer. Padas 1 to 3 are in Gemini and pada 4 is in Cancer. Its deity is Aditi, mother of the gods, and its Vimshottari lord is Jupiter. The symbol most lists give is a quiver of arrows.
Draft · specialist source review requested
After Ardra's storm comes Punarvasu, whose name means something like "good again." The order is hard to miss. Plenty of astrologers read the pair as one story: the downpour, then the clear morning after it.
| Fact | Punarvasu |
|---|---|
| Number | 7 of 27 |
| IAST spelling | Punarvasu |
| Deity | Aditi |
| Vimshottari lord | Jupiter |
| Symbol (commonly given) | Quiver of arrows |
| Sidereal span | 20°00' Gemini-3°20' Cancer |
| Rashi | Mithuna (padas 1-3), Karka (pada 4) |
| Muhurta class | Usually given as cara (movable); see below |
Aditi, the boundless mother
Aditi is Punarvasu's deity in the Bṛhat Saṃhitā sequence.[32] Her name means "unbound" or "without limit," and the Vedas make her the mother of the Ādityas, the sun-gods who keep cosmic order. A mother whose defining trait is having no edges is an unusual figure. She tends to be read as space, shelter and the patience to let people come back.
The quiver in modern symbol lists makes the same point from a different angle. Arrows leave; a quiver is where they return to be used again.
Questions for a Punarvasu Moon
Traditional writing calls Punarvasu forgiving, homeward and resilient. Hold that lightly.
- What have you returned to more than once, and what brings you back?
- Who has given you a second chance, and have you given one lately?
- Where do you need a boundary that Aditi, by definition, would not have?
How to find janma nakshatra?
Janma nakshatra means birth nakshatra: the one the Moon occupied at your birth. You need date, time and place, then the Moon's sidereal longitude. Divide it by 13°20' to get the nakshatra and by 3°20' within that to get the pada. Nakshatras are sidereal, so tropical-only readers should compute a sidereal Moon with the nakshatra calculator (more in the sidereal glossary entry).
| Pada | Sidereal span | Navamsa sign |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 20°00'-23°20' Gemini | Aries |
| 2 | 23°20'-26°40' Gemini | Taurus |
| 3 | 26°40'-30°00' Gemini | Gemini |
| 4 | 0°00'-3°20' Cancer | Cancer |
Padas 3 and 4 fall in the same sign in both the birth chart and the navamsa, so they count as vargottama.
Muhurta uses
The Bṛhat Saṃhitā verses this site has checked do not assign Punarvasu to a class. Later muhurta manuals usually call it cara, or movable, together with Svātī, Śravaṇa, Dhaniṣṭhā and Śatabhiṣaj, and use these days for travel, buying vehicles and starting things that involve movement. That is common practice awaiting a source check, and practical deadlines matter more.
The devotional verse is on the Punarvasu mantra page. Neighbors: Ardra and Pushya.
Source review
Aditi as deity rests on Bṛhat Saṃhitā chapter 97, verses 4-5, Sanskrit edition (98 in the English translation).[32] The cara classification, the symbol, the etymology and the prompts are not taken from that text.
Common questions
What is the rashi of Punarvasu nakshatra?
Mithuna (sidereal Gemini) for padas 1 to 3, and Karka (sidereal Cancer) for pada 4.
Who is the lord of Punarvasu nakshatra?
Jupiter, in the Vimshottari scheme. Vishakha and Purva Bhadrapada also have Jupiter as lord.
What does Punarvasu mean?
It is usually translated as "good again" or "return of the light," from punar (again) and vasu (good, bright, wealth).
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?
Punarvasu is lunar mansion 7 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 Jupiter. 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 Punarvasu Moon begins life with a complete Jupiter 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.