VedaChartsNakshatra · #8 of 27
Pushya
The nourisher; the most auspicious
The most nourishing of all nakshatras, the cosmic caretaker.
Traditional attributes
Ruling planet
♄ Saturn
Deity
Brihaspati
Symbol
A cow's udder; a flower; an arrow
Gana
Deva
Yoni
Sheep (male)
Dosha
Pitta
Motivation
Dharma
Body part
Mouth, face
Direction
East
Where it sits in the zodiac
Sign
Cancer
3°20' to 16°40'
Pada syllables
The four padas (quarters) of Pushya. In tradition, a child's first-letter name often comes from the syllable of the pada in which their Moon was placed.
Pada 1
Hu
Pada 2
He
Pada 3
Ho
Pada 4
Da
If your Moon is here
You are the caretaker. Your emotional instinct is to nourish, protect, and feed the people around you, and you feel settled when you are doing that. Your loyalty runs deep and your presence is a quiet shelter for people who need one.
Temperament
Pushya is the nakshatra Vedic tradition calls *the most auspicious*. Brihaspati is the priest of the gods, and Pushya carries his quality of nourishment by counsel, the steady, fatherly knowing that lifts a community.
People with Pushya prominent are often the trusted ones. The friend everyone calls in a crisis, the colleague who quietly holds the team together, the family member who hosts the holiday. Their default is to feed, protect, and stabilize, and they tend to feel most themselves when they are doing that.
Strengths
Reliability, steady warmth, deep loyalty. Excellent caretakers and counselors. Naturally drawn to wisdom traditions and good at translating them. The kind of person whose presence makes a room safer.
Shadow
Can over-nourish to the point of suppressing others' growth. Tends to take responsibility that isn't theirs. Difficulty receiving, they're so used to giving that letting someone care for them feels strange.
Relationships
Devoted partners and parents. Slow to leave even when they should. Best matches are with people who insist on giving back rather than only receiving.
Career & vocation
Teaching, counseling, medicine, religion, food service, financial advising, parenting, anything where the role is to nourish others through long stretches of time.
Spiritual note
Saturn rules Pushya and Brihaspati is the deity, the discipline of being a steady source. Practice: feeding someone weekly with no expectation of return.