Chitra Nakshatra
Chitra begins at 23°20' of Virgo and ends at 6°40' of Libra, so its first two padas belong to Mercury's sign and its last two to Venus's. Mars is its Vimshottari lord, with a mahadasha of seven years. The name means something bright or many-coloured, and tradition gives it the symbol of a shining jewel or pearl, the deity Tvashtar, also called Vishwakarma, the architect and maker of forms among the gods, and the rakshasa gana. As with every nakshatra, it is the Moon's position within Chitra at birth that decides where the Vimshottari count begins, in this case partway through a Mars period.
From the engine
- Span
- 23°20' Virgo to 6°40' Libra
- Falls in
- Virgo, Libra
- Nakshatra lord
- Mars
- Vimshottari years
- 7
What it traditionally signifies
A Chitra Moon is traditionally read as a temperament with an eye for form. The descriptions speak of a feel for design, proportion and surface, whether in buildings, clothes, images or the arrangement of a room, and of a wish to make things that are striking. There is often charisma and a certain polish, and a drive, supplied by Mars, to shape the surroundings rather than accept them as found. People with this Moon are frequently described as noticeable, in appearance or in manner.
The jewel has a hard setting. Mars in a Mercury or Venus sign can make the love of form impatient and the polish brittle: vanity, a quick temper when the picture is spoiled, an argumentative streak, and a tendency to value how something looks over how it works. The rakshasa gana in the old lists is a reminder that this is not a placid nakshatra; its energy wants an outlet.
The padas divide at the sign boundary. The first pada, in Virgo with a Leo navamsa, is the most self-expressive; the second, in Virgo with a Virgo navamsa and therefore vargottama, is the most exacting and technically skilled; the third, in Libra with a Libra navamsa and also vargottama, is the most aesthetic and relationship-aware; the fourth, in Libra with a Scorpio navamsa, is the most intense and the one Mars feels most at home in.
What it does not mean
Chitra is not a promise of artistic talent, beauty, fame or a career in design, and it does not say that a person is vain or quarrelsome. These are the tendencies tradition lists, the better and the worse together, and which of them shows is decided by the house, the sign lord and the years. Mars as nakshatra lord is sometimes written up as a warning; it is more accurately a source of drive whose direction the chart has to supply. And a Virgo Chitra and a Libra Chitra are different enough that the nakshatra name alone settles less than it seems to.
Questions it raises
- 01Is the Moon in the Virgo half or the Libra half of Chitra, and which house does that sign fall in from the lagna?
- 02How is Mars, the nakshatra lord, placed, and does it aspect the Moon or sit with it?
- 03What is the condition of the sign lord, Mercury for the Virgo padas or Venus for the Libra padas?
- 04Which mahadasha and antardasha are running, and do their lords sit well with Mars and the Moon?
- 05Is Saturn transiting the sign before, on or after the Moon's sign, which is how sade sati is counted?
In practice
Read with the rest of the chart, Chitra tells a careful reader where the wish to shape and to be seen is likely to go, and the house, the sign lord and the dasha tell whether that wish is currently finding a form or still looking for one. Nothing about the year follows from the nakshatra by itself. Envisstack readings put the supporting placements and dates next to each line so that a claim about drive or display can be checked against the chart.
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