List of Nakshatras

A list of them is first found in the Vedanga Jyotisha, a text dated to the final centuries BCE[citation needed].

The Nakṣatra system predates the influence of Hellenistic astronomy on Vedic tradition, which became prevalent from about the 2nd century CE.

[1] Months in the modern Indian national calendar—despite still carrying names that derive from the nakshatras—do not signify any material correlation.

Each Nakshatra is also divided into quarters or padas of 3°20’, and the below table lists the appropriate starting sound to name the child.

The 27 nakshatras, each with 4 padas, give 108, which is the number of beads in a Japa mala, indicating all the elements (ansh) of Vishnu: The names of nakshatras in other languages are adapted from the Sanskrit variation (apabhramsa) through Pali or Prakrit.