What Are Nakshatras and Rashis?

You might have heard the words nakshatra and rashi in astrology. People often read horoscopes based on their rashi. Long ago, ancient Indian sages studied the movement of the Sun, Moon, and stars and created the panchang (a traditional calendar).

The panchang gives exact positions of the Sun, Moon, and stars for each day. Since the Earth and Moon have fixed orbits and rotation speeds, the movement of the solar system can be tracked with accuracy.

In the sky, the Moon moves among the stars. Astronomers divided the Moon’s path into 27 parts, and each part was named based on the shape of nearby star groups (constellations). These parts are called nakshatras, and the names of Indian months — like Kartak, Magshar, and Posh — come from these nakshatras.

The Indian Vikram Samvat calendar is based on the Moon’s movement and is called a lunar year.

Just like the Moon's path, the Sun also moves in a fixed path. That path was divided into 12 parts, each called a rashi. The word “rashi” means a group, and each rashi represents a group of stars. People imagined the shapes of animals or objects from these stars — like a bull (Taurus), lion (Leo), weighing scale (Libra), or fish (Pisces) — and gave names to the 12 rashis.

Even though the system is circular, Ashwini is considered the first nakshatra, and Mesh (Aries) is considered the first rashi.