Hasta nakshatra
Updated
Hasta is the 13th of the 27 nakshatras, the lunar mansions of Vedic astrology. Its name is traditionally read as “the hand”; its symbol is an open hand, and its presiding deity is Savitar, the sun god of skill.
- Number
- 13 of 27
- Ruling planet
- Moon
- Deity
- Savitar, the sun god of skill
- Symbol
- An open hand
- Zodiac span
- 10°–23°20′ Virgo
- Gana
- Deva
- Yoni
- Buffalo
- Nadi
- Vata
- Pada navamsas
- Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer
Character and symbolism
Hasta is the skilled hand — craft, dexterity and the ability to make what the mind imagines. Its classical themes are cleverness, wit and practical mastery.
As with everything in a chart, these are classical descriptions of a temperament, not a verdict on any person — a nakshatra is one layer of a reading, always weighed with the rest of the chart.
Where Hasta sits in the zodiac
Each nakshatra spans 13°20′ of the sidereal zodiac, divided into four padas (quarters) of 3°20′. Hasta occupies 10°–23°20′ Virgo, entirely within Virgo. Its four padas take the navamsa signs Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer — the sub-chart positions used in the D9 (Navamsa) divisional chart.
Ruling planet and your starting dasha
Hasta is ruled by Moon, which carries a 10-year period in the Vimshottari dasha cycle. If your Moon sits in Hasta, Moon’s mahadasha is the period your life begins in, and the themes classical texts associate with Moon colour how this nakshatra expresses itself.
Hasta in marriage matching
Three of this nakshatra’s classifications feed the 36-point Guna Milan used in Kundali matching. Hasta belongs to the deva (divine) temperament group — read as gentle, harmonious and light in nature, which the Gana koota (6 points) compares between partners. Its yoni is the Buffalo, one of fourteen animal archetypes whose pairings the Yoni koota (4 points) scores for instinctive compatibility. And its nadi is Vata (air) — the Nadi koota (8 points) awards full marks only when the two nadis differ.
None of these classifications is good or bad on its own — they only ever describe a pairing, and even then they are a starting point beside the full charts.
Frequently asked
Which planet rules Hasta nakshatra?
Hasta is ruled by Moon. In the Vimshottari dasha system, a person born with the Moon in Hasta begins life in a Moon mahadasha of up to 10 years — how much of it remains depends on how far the Moon had moved through the nakshatra at birth.
Which rashi (sign) does Hasta fall in?
Hasta lies entirely within Virgo, spanning 10°–23°20′ Virgo of the sidereal zodiac.
What are Hasta's gana, yoni and nadi?
Hasta is classified as Deva gana, Buffalo yoni and Vata nadi. These three classifications are inputs to Guna Milan marriage matching — gana compares temperament groups, yoni instinctive compatibility and nadi constitution.
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