Nakshatra 9 of 27 · Ruled by Mercury
Ashlesha Nakshatra
The Embracer
Hypnotic depth: sees beneath every surface, holds what it loves closely.
Zodiac range
16°40′ Cancer – 0°00′ Leo
Symbol
Coiled serpent
Deity
Nagas
Lord
Mercury
Gana
Rakshasa
Yoni
Cat (male)
Nadi
Antya
Ashlesha personality and character
Ashlesha occupies 16°40′ Cancer – 0°00′ Leo of the sidereal zodiac, and everyone born with the Moon in this span carries it as their janma nakshatra, their birth star. Its symbol, the coiled serpent, and its presiding deity, Nagas, set the mythic tone: hypnotic depth: sees beneath every surface, holds what it loves closely. The ruling planet Mercury adds its own signature, since a Ashlesha native begins life in a Mercury dasha and returns to Mercury's lessons at every major turning point.
Temperamentally, Ashlesha belongs to the Rakshasa gana: the fierce temperament: intense, perceptive, strong-willed, and unafraid of the shadow side of life. Its constitutional current is Antya (Kapha), the nadi of endurance and stability, and its instinctive animal is the male cat, the figure Vedic tradition uses to describe how this star bonds, plays, and protects. Read together, the attributes sketch a coherent nature long before a full chart is drawn, which is exactly how classical astrologers used the birth star for quick assessment.
The four padas of Ashlesha
Each nakshatra divides into four padas of 3°20′, and each pada takes the flavour of one navamsa sign: for Ashlesha, pada 1 falls in Sagittarius navamsa, pada 2 in Capricorn, pada 3 in Aquarius, and pada 4 in Pisces. Two people can share a birth star and still differ noticeably because their padas point the same energy through different signs. Your exact pada is shown when you cast your chart with the free Vedic birth chart calculator.
Ashlesha in love and marriage matching
In kundli matching, Ashlesha contributes three of the eight kootas directly: its Rakshasa gana (6 points), its Cat yoni (4 points), and its Antya nadi (8 points, the heaviest of all). The Tara koota is also counted from the birth star. No nakshatra scores well or badly on its own; everything depends on the pairing, which is why the same Ashlesha native can score 30 with one partner and 14 with another. Run any two birth details through the calculator for the full 36-point table, and see the western view of the same question in our zodiac compatibility guide.
When the Moon transits Ashlesha
Once a month the Moon spends about a day in Ashlesha, and that day carries the star's flavour for everyone: a monthly visit from Nagas. Panchang followers time activities to these transits, and the daily panchang page shows the current nakshatra in real time. For the wider lunar rhythm behind it, our guides to the moon phases and the 2026 full moon calendar complete the picture.
Ashlesha FAQs
- What is Ashlesha nakshatra?
- Ashlesha is the 9th of the 27 nakshatras, spanning 16°40′ Cancer – 0°00′ Leo of the sidereal zodiac. Its name means the embracer, its symbol is the coiled serpent, its presiding deity is Nagas, and its planetary lord is Mercury.
- Which planet rules Ashlesha?
- Mercury rules Ashlesha. In the Vimshottari dasha system, anyone born with the Moon in Ashlesha begins life in a Mercury planetary period, which colours their early years with Mercury’s themes.
- What gana is Ashlesha?
- Ashlesha belongs to the Rakshasa gana, the fierce temperament: intense, perceptive, strong-willed, and unafraid of the shadow side of life. Gana carries 6 of the 36 points in traditional kundli matching.
- What is the yoni of Ashlesha?
- The yoni of Ashlesha is the male Cat, used in the Yoni koota of marriage matching, worth 4 points. Yoni compatibility compares the instinctive natures of the two birth stars.
- Is Ashlesha good for marriage matching?
- Ashlesha contributes its Rakshasa gana, Cat yoni, and Antya nadi to the eight-koota Guna Milan. No nakshatra is good or bad in isolation; the score depends entirely on the partner’s star. Run any pairing through the free kundli matching calculator to see the full 36-point breakdown.