1.1 The Night Sky

God has decorated the heavens with constellations like pearls on dark steed. The light of the Sun hides them in the day, and all knowledge of them is divined in the darkens of the night (Maharṣi Parāśara Rig-Veda 1.68.4)

Of the various lights in the sky, the mobile lights are the graha while the stationary ones are the stars of the nakṣatra maṇḍala.

The nakṣatra maṇḍala is visible in the night sky and is therefore, lorded by the Moon, the queen of the night. The day is lorded by the Sun for when He shines, all others little lights of the graha and nakṣatra go into hiding. His mighty presence outshines all and hence, he is the overlord of the bhā-chakra (zodiac and all jyotiṣa).

“Rather than counting the innumerable stars of the night sky, the eighteen ancient sages were wise to divide the circular space of 360° into 27 parts each measuring 13°20’ and called a nakṣatra. They arrived at this number 27 by rounding off the average revolution of the Moon 27.32 days (a sidereal month). Other times they took the decimal part 0.32 and converted that into an intercalary nakṣatra called Abhijit. They gave the 27 nakṣatra to the beings on earth while the short span 28^th Abhijit was reserved for the mighty Hari (Viṣṇu) who was the source of the energy for the Sun. It’s transit through the lunar mansions was observed both in shape formed by stars within the constellation as well as in relation to the natural phenomena by the Vedic seers for determining their names, characteristics and identifying the form and mood of God. This became the basis of the nomenclature of the asterisms and the natural phenomena became the basis of symbolizing the mood of God.

The word नक्षत्र (nakṣatra) is from नक् nak, meaning Ved. night; [probably fr. rt. 2. naś. 1. nakta, 2. niś, niśā.] and क्षेत्र kṣetra meaning area [Outer a.: अङ्गनम्: v. Yard. Inner a. प्रकोष्ठः। In geo. फलम्, a. of a circle वृत्तक्षेत्रफलम्; a. of a triangle त्रिभुजफलम्, Li.] or farm [Lit. क्षेत्रम्, owner of a farm: क्षेत्र–पतिः, H.]. This is a royal or feudal lord indicated by the Moon that produces food from farm-lands giving it a royal status – क्षत्र kṣatra referring to power, Kṣatriya class or caste, wealth, governing body, Crape Jasmine, supremacy, might, warrior, authority of the second caste, military or reigning order, water, body.