Planets in Ashwini Nakshatra
Introduction
This is the very first Nakshatra. It's actually one of my favourite Nakshatras and you'll find out why very soon. As per mythology, it's ruled by the Ashwini Kumaras. So the entire mythology linked to Ashwini Kumaras is going to describe what this Nakshatra is all about.
Rescue Missions
The Ashwini Kumaras respond to our call for help instantly. They have a high speed vehicle and they bring the fruits of heavens to us immediately.
That is what they are known for. Now in this creation, whenever we are in an emergency, we give a call to the emergency number and we get some assistance. So the entire operation of responding to such calls, including the ones driving a vehicle coming to our house to help us, all of this is linked to Ashwini. Rescue missions are directly linked to Ashwini. We are caught up in a tsunami. We are caught in a war. We are caught in an earthquake. Every now and then we hear stories of a rescue mission. An aircraft was allocated for this duty. I remember a story from a few years ago when I visited Ladakh during the autumn.
The host there told me during the winters there's a complete snow cap. So for essential supplies they have to rely on government supplies from nearby cities which aren't snow capped in the plains. So that operation is very Ashwini like. An aircraft carries essentials and supplies to areas which have their supplies cut off by road. During COVID, we heard many stories of countries launching a rescue mission, getting their citizens back who were caught up in COVID regulations. So whenever there's a call for help, Ashwini Kumaras are there. The other story from my personal experience which I think is directly linked to Ashwini is when I was caught with a flat tyre on a highway. So I called the emergency number given to me by the car service provider for assistance. So every call we make in this creation for help and assistance and we are facing some emergency that is directly linked to Ashwini. And all the people directly involved in providing that assistance, an ambulance driver, an aircraft pilot, people on the ground, the ground staff. By extension you can also include the aviation sector. You can also include the ones driving Uber.
Sometimes we need an immediate help to go somewhere. We hire a taxi or we have this hunger pang and we need to eat immediately, can't resist any longer. So we call up or we place an order through an app. That too in my view is linked directly to Ashwini.
Speed and Healing
The other interesting aspect of Ashwini Kumaras providing us immediate help is that they do so without taking into account the proper procedure, the proper channel. This can translate to the Ashwini native bypassing authority, bypassing chain of command to provide assistance. For example a high-ranking bureaucrat goes to the village to help people directly rather than asking them to follow a procedure by making an application and then it'll funnel through to the concerned person and help would be provided. The Ashwini native would provide direct assistance and such behaviour is going to attract the displeasure of people who are exercising authority over Ashwini natives' work. So Ashwini native is very likely to have a difficult relationship with authority figures as the Ashwini native would be very keen to help. If help is required now, the Ashwini native would act immediately. It's the first Nakshatra. Later we'll find a horse's head is one of its symbols. So this also is symbolic that this Nakshatra has a lot to do with impulsive behaviour. But the intention is to help. This Nakshatra falls entirely in the sign of Aries ruled by Mars and responding immediately is also a very Mars-like function. This Nakshatra's planetary ruler is Ketu and that signifies the person may also have some past life skills, some magical qualities.
What kind of qualities? Magical healing qualities. This Nakshatra is directly linked to the healthcare sector. That brings me to the second mythology linked to Ashwini Kumaras. They are known as divine healers. They are known to be full-time physicians. There are several stories where they have restored the eyesight, hearing ability, speaking ability. In another story, they have also restored youthfulness.
So this can translate to the person being a specialist in ENT or the person can also be a specialist in the cosmetics side of the healthcare sector like skincare and by extension the entire pharmaceuticals industry dedicated to creams and lotions which are known to arrest ageing or even reverse ageing. So it doesn't necessarily mean that the person would be a physician or a surgeon. The person can also be involved with the cosmetics side of consumer goods. The Ashwini native might be privy to secret healing methods and that is another reason why an Ashwini native might attract the displeasure of authority figures. The mythology is that the gods were not in favour of the Ashwini Kumaras revealing these healing methods to humans. In another story, Ashwini Kumaras are also known to restore virility and even the ability to revive a person from the dead. So in an emergency room, we hear stories that the person was brought almost dead and the doctor with his or her experience revived the person. That is a very Ashwini related event.
Quick Thinking
The Ashwini Kumaras not only ride their vehicle at a very high speed; they are excellent navigators. So that may also be linked to the possible profession the Ashwini native might follow and the kind of personality the Ashwini native might have. The native might say, I know I'll find my way. And this can happen even on a mental plane.
The person might feel, I can find a solution. Quick thinking is directly linked to Ashwini Kumaras, particularly if moon or mercury is placed in this section of the sky. Bobby Fischer, a very well known chess player, has moon in Ashwini. Magnus Carlsen, a more recent chess player, a grandmaster, he also has moon in Ashwini.
In my experience of reading birth charts, I have seen people in a profession which requires quick thinking have moon or mercury in Ashwini. It can be in sales, where you are instantly required to make a sales pitch to your potential clients. Or it can be in the finance sector, where you have to quickly calculate and find a way out. Finding a way out is directly linked to this section of the sky, whether it's on a physical plane or on the mental plane.
The Horse Symbol
A horse's head is one of the main symbols of this section of the sky. What that means, I'll explain later. But why is a horse's head its symbol? Let's discuss that. Let's talk about Surya, the sun god. He's also known as Vivasvan. As per mythology, he and his wife Saranyu gave birth to Lord Yama. With the passage of time, as per mythology, Saranyu could not bear the Sun's heat and energy, Surya's heat and energy, and she escaped this marital bond, and she escaped to the woods as a mare.
And she left behind her sister, her shadow, by the name Chhaya. Now sun and Chhaya together had a child, and that child is called Shani, Saturn. It's a very interesting mythological story. It explains how Lord Yama is the brother of Shani, Saturn. Now when Vivasvan came to know of his wife's escape, he followed her. He transformed himself into a stallion, united with his wife, and together they gave birth to the Ashwini Kumaras. So the Ashwini Kumaras, Saturn, the planet Shani, and Lord Yama are all brothers. Now given Saturn and Lord Yama are stepbrothers, they had a conflict.
The astrological interpretation is that Saturn is uncomfortable in the Nakshatra ruled by Lord Yama, which is Bharani. Saturn is debilitated in Bharani. Perhaps this mythological story also explains that. Now that is why, coming back to Ashwini, a horse's head is one of the main symbols of this section of the sky.
Courage and Selflessness
So the Ashwini native would be very adventurous, very keen to win, and this Nakshatra is classified as belonging to the nature of Kshipra, which translates to fast moving. Whether that's on a mental plane or on a physical plane, the person would be either very quick thinking or quick moving. You'd find this interesting. Muhammad Ali has Mars in the Nakshatra of Ashwini, and that too in the 10th house. All professions that require courage, physical strength, are linked to Mars. When Mars is in Ashwini, the power of hands is also linked to Mars. When Mars is in Ashwini, in the career house, it's likely the person is very skillful with the use of hands, is perhaps competing with the use of hands. So Muhammad Ali is a great example. Now this Nakshatra belongs to the Guna of Sattvic, selfless behavior. This is illustrated by the stories of the Ashwini Kumaras providing assistance directly and immediately. This Nakshatra has the Gana of Deva, which translates to divine. So the person would also be very forgiving, would not be self-serving in one's help.
Lastly, this Nakshatra belongs to the caste of a merchant. So even if the person is providing help immediately without expecting anything in return, the person would remain practical. Whatever is possible would be done. Like an ethical business person, a person charging a fair price for one's services. That is why this Nakshatra is one of my favorite Nakshatras. It has everything to being very adventurous, to being very helpful, to being selfless, to being divine in thinking, forgiving in nature. This Nakshatra has everything. You must keep in view that the planet-Ashwini combination should not only be restricted to that.
You must also study where Ketu is placed. Ketu is the ruler of this Nakshatra. You must also study the position of Mars, which is the ruler of the sign Ashwini is placed in. And you must study the planet's position in the Navamsha and the Dashamsha chart as well. So a complete study has to be done. But looking at the planet-Ashwini combination is an excellent starting point.
Moon in Ashwini
Emotional construct
When Moon is in Ashwini, the person's natural way of thinking is to be helpful. I have in my life met a person who was working in the healthcare sector, had Moon in Ashwini. I do meet many people through Farfaraway who I find having Moon in Ashwini and having Moon linked to the career-related houses working in the healthcare sector. So Moon-Ashwini signifies that you will have that natural inclination to provide assistance, whether directly in the healthcare sector or it can be in the social services sector.
The person is going to be a problem solver, an instant solution provider on a mental plane. I had earlier given the example of two famous chess players who had Moon in Ashwini at the time of their birth. So very fast thinking ability, the ability to understand business very well. Moon is classified as per some astrologers as belonging to a merchant.
And Ashwini also belongs to the caste of a merchant. So the person would have an understanding of business, ethical business practices. And lastly, I think the person would be very adventurous and very competitive. And the person may also respond quickly with emotions.
Now, no, I have to help this person and I have to get this done. I have to win that. I have to go on that trip. That is likely to be the way of thinking of a Moon-Ashwini person.
Sun in Ashwini
Leadership and spiritual inclination
When Sun is in Ashwini, firstly, Sun is exalted and Sun is known as the eradicator of diseases. Sun is known to burn away our ailments. The Sun-Ashwini combination then becomes a very formidable combination for healthcare workers, doctors, physicians, surgeons, where you provide immediate relief. Now, Sun is about leadership.
The person would have the capability to be in charge, like a head of the department in a hospital. The person may find oneself in a position of authority and the person may have an ego tussle with other members in the team who are in a leader's position. The mythology of the Ashwini native not getting along with the ones having authority over the Ashwini native would play out in some ways. Sun has this extreme side.
Sun does not accept authority. Sun represents consistency and Ashwini belongs to the nature of Kshipra. So, it's likely the person is very consistent in responding to emergencies, like in a hospital. I think doctors are given a timetable that today this doctor would be handling emergencies between 1 to 6 a.m.
So, a Sun-Ashwini-like native would be very consistent with responding to such calls of emergency. The person would take great pride in helping people since this Nakshatra belongs to the caste of a merchant. The person can be a business leader in the pharmaceuticals industry or somewhat linked to the healthcare sector. The person would have the desire to make a name for oneself.
The intention, however, is largely going to be selfless given the nature of Ashwini and the person would be seen as a demigod of some kind. That is the capability the native might have if you have Sun in Ashwini.
Mars in Ashwini
Courage and action
When Mars is in Ashwini, the person's style of helping people would be by providing physical assistance. If we do run into an accident, what do we do? We immediately call an emergency number if there's someone who's injured. So the person comes immediately, the helper, the first responder and they immediately try to arrest the flow of blood or to make sure we are physically okay.
So ambulance drivers who immediately get hold of the patient, get the oxygen supply. If we are stuck in the hills somewhere, that physical assistance, someone is throwing us the rope to pull us from the valley we found ourselves dragged into. Mars is a builder. So when Mars is in Ashwini, the person can be on the construction side of the healthcare sector.
So either the person is manufacturing surgical instruments or the person is actually building the hospital. Mars Ashwini would be very adventurous and very competitive. Competitiveness comes from Mars and from Ashwini. The person can be excellent at sports.
I had earlier given the example of Muhammad Ali, who has Mars in Ashwini in the 10th house. Fast moving on a physical plane, maybe the manner of walking and talking is very fast. So if Mars is in the first house in Ashwini, or if the ruler of the first house is Mars and Mars is in Ashwini, you might show this behaviour. If you are in business, you're likely to be in a business that requires high level of competition, like the business linked to sports, horse riding, you run that business, or it's linked to investment banking.
My understanding is that these investment banks are very competitive. The margins are small. The working style is cutthroat. Those businesses that require excessive competitiveness might be your background.
If Mars is the ruler of the 6th, 10th or the 11th house and is in this Nakshatra, I think largely the person would remain selfless. But the manner of help might be such that the person might be mistaken to be self-serving. So here, since the person is immediately and instantly providing assistance, the one who is getting helped might feel maybe this person has an agenda.
So there's a possibility of misreading the intentions of Mars and Ashwini, Mars Ashwini native, and that might lead to issues with authority figures. They'd be like the planned help had to go next month. Why have you gone there providing assistance today? So the issue would be with the time of action.
Mars Ashwini would want things to be done immediately, problems to be solved immediately, assistance to be provided immediately. The intentions would largely be divine as the nature of Ashwini is such.
Mercury in Ashwini
Intellect and communication skills
People with Mercury in Ashwini, I think, are the most analytical and logical and they arrive at their logic immediately. They do not take any time understanding the nature of the problem. The answer is already there. So all professions that require quick thinking like financial advisory, you're having a very high level conversation with your clients and it's all about numbers and then you say okay we can have this percent return if we do this.
Immediate answer if it's management consultancy. I have actually met people working in the finance sector having mercury in Ashwini. So anything which is challenging on a mental plane, if you have mercury in Ashwini you'll be able to solve problems very quickly. Like whilst growing up I experienced that I had a bit of a habit of wanting to solve the problems, mathematical in nature, very quickly.
We had this sort of competition going on between me and my friends who would solve the problems very quickly. I do not have mercury in Ashwini but I do have a bit of Ashwini in my chart. So I can understand how this combination might be like. Mercury in Ashwini wanting to immediately solve the problems that are there.
Mercury in Ashwini belongs to a business person. Either the person has an independent business or the person is in a business role in someone else's business like a salesperson, a business head or something similar. Mercury belongs to a merchant and so does this Nakshatra. The person is likely to be very competitive in conversations.
I think those conversations would be held within reason, within the framework of logic. This Nakshatra inherently has the gana of deva, a very forgiving nature. So it's not as if the person is trying to prove someone as wrong and prove oneself to be intellectually superior. The idea would be that conversations lead to a logical conclusion.
So I think they make the best debaters or spokespersons. And here the person is likely to have issues with authority figures on the business plane. This person might feel we can immediately target that market, we have identified, let's go. Whereas authority figures, leaders in the person's company might say no we have to have the proper procedure, we have to have the team on the ground.
So this person would be more spontaneous, would be having ideas which translate to action immediately and on that plane there's likely to be disagreements the person might have with one's leadership team. So if you happen to have the 6th, 10th or the 11th house ruler in Ashwini, make sure your work environment is intellectually challenging or you're likely to struggle.
Jupiter in Ashwini
Knowledge and exposure
Jupiter in Ashwini signifies the person is very knowledgeable about health. So doctors, physicians, surgeons, health coaches, gym instructors, nutritionists, sports coaches, as coaching of that kind also involves looking after the athlete to make sure there is no injury. So the person is very knowledgeable about health and they are very motivating as well. This Nakshatra is about winning and Jupiter is that abundance of knowledge that goes behind your competitiveness.
If there are going to be issues when Jupiter is in Ashwini with authority figures, it's likely to be on a philosophical plane. The person is likely to be an adventure seeker. We come across stories of people who climbed that mountain without assistance. The person just went for it.
The person went to that remote place all by oneself. So hiking and climbing, traveling. So this is a beautiful combination, Jupiter in Ashwini. You provide an instant solution based on the knowledge you have been blessed with.
So doctors, you know when we go to the hospital, the doctor immediately makes a decision. I have seen the reports. I have physically examined the patient. This, this, this has to be done.
So Jupiter in Ashwini I think is the closest one to the health care sector, to the work of a doctor. It's the closest combination. This Nakshatra belongs to the caste of a merchant. Therefore the person can be a trainer in the business of training other health care workers.
Jupiter is known for a divine temperament and selfless behavior and this Nakshatra is also about that. On the whole this is a very positive planetary combination if you do happen to have it in your chart.
Venus in Ashwini
Creativity and love
When Venus, the planet of love, is in Ashwini, the person can be very quick to like or dislike people. The person's style of taking care of people would be by expressing love. I have seen in my experience nurses having a very strong association of Venus or Moon with their careers. The person may have many creative ideas and those ideas might be very spontaneous like an advertiser.
You have a problem thrown to you by the client and you immediately respond, we can do this, we can do that. It reminds me of the episodes of Mad Men where they'd have those client meetings and someone might say what happens if we do this and what happens if you do that and the advertiser had to immediately respond with a creative solution. Venus Ashwini like person can do that job very well. Venus is directly linked to eyesight and therefore the person can be an eye specialist.
The person can specialise in the field of medicine linked to our eyes. Since this Nakshatra belongs to the caste of a merchant, the person can be in the business of healthcare and beauty combined. It can even be that you have a pharmacy and the main clientele that you have are women.
Saturn in Ashwini
Hard work and service
When Saturn is in Ashwini, the person's way of helping people is by practical means and by being there for a long time. Like if there's water shortage in a village, they file a complaint that we don't have clean drinking water. So a bureaucrat assigns an Ashwini-native-like person to the village and that person stays in the village for many months trying to restore the water supply. Restoration is very closely linked to Ashwini.
He spends many, he or she spends many months trying to do that. So the person would be very service oriented, would not be impatient, would be willing to give the time necessary, would be quick to respond but would continue to remain helpful as long as it requires. So it's not a quick rescue mission, it's a long term solution. Within the healthcare sector, the person can become an expert in healing long term health issues.
A skin disease which is going on for a very long time, genetic in nature. Why genetic? Ashwini is ruled by Ketu, that's why. So the person now is providing assistance, help, medical expertise to get rid of that long term health issue.
The person generally would be very meticulous, very methodical in finding a solution to any problem. So they make the best problem solvers as they're not quickly trying to muster a solution. They are ready to give the problem the time it requires. Businesses linked to Saturn would be more service related such as elder care hospitals or elder care homes.
Those are very Saturn Ashwini like. Elder care is directly linked to Saturn. Or healing centres that use ancient healing methodologies as Saturn represents such methodologies. The person can be in that kind of healthcare business.
Very service oriented business. Saturn is known for selflessness and this Nakshatra is also known for that and I think Saturn overall does really well here. Authority issues may still be there, but the person might have the resilience to face such issues. When Sun is in Ashwini, the person might challenge, why did you question my authority?
I am in charge, you should follow my direction. With Saturn, the person would have more resilience. There would be issues and most of the time, the Saturn like person may have to compromise but the person would have the inner strength, the resilience to go through and move on and look at the big picture. That's my view of Saturn in Ashwini.
Rahu in Ashwini
The future
Rahu Ashwini makes unconventional healers. The best way to explain this is this. The person has their own style of helping others, their own style of healing others. Like in a movie we see a character who says, I have some experimental drugs.
They are going to relieve you of your problems. So such kind of doctors who have experimental drugs or treatments or methods not approved by the society or governing bodies, those are Rahu Ashwini like. So there are naturally going to be issues with government bodies or authority figures where your actual methods of healing are questioned or in some cases misunderstood. So when I use the term experimental drugs, I'm not saying those drugs are always going to fail.
Maybe those drugs are actually helping but the issues they'll have with authority figures would be linked to related permissions and the dangers associated with using such methods. The person would be an adventure seeker, lover of travel. The person's style of solving a problem would be very unconventional. Like we say there was this issue but this person solved it in an entirely new way.
So the style of solving problems would also be unique. The solutions would be uncommon. Ashwini can make a very smart business person. If business problems are solved in a conventional way, it is likely to lead to limited growth.
But with Rahu in Ashwini, the person may solve a problem in a way never solved before. The person can be running a business which is extremely unconventional, uncommon, foreign in nature like running a Chinese medicine shop in France. The person's intentions of being selfless and divine might be questioned as Rahu does not conform to being entirely selfless or being divine in temperament. So the person is largely going to be misunderstood and that's a challenge the person would need to face.
Ketu in Ashwini
Past
A Ketu Ashwini-like person might be privy to secret healing methods. I see this combination as the native being a doctor in the past life. That's how I see it. The person was in the healthcare sector and was a healer in one's past life.
Past life skills are seen from Ketu and Ketu Ashwini signifies that and therefore in this life the person may come up with a healing technique or method, a medicine or drug which is healing but it hasn't been approved. Similar to what I'd said about Rahu, a Ketu Ashwini native would have a strong desire to travel and the travel would be for the purpose of being by one's own self. The person's style of helping people might be very direct and the person who's receiving the help might feel I didn't ask for it or yes I wanted help but not in this way. The person may also be very critical whilst providing that assistance that you are suffering because you're eating this, this and this wrong.
So the person who has received medical advice for example does feel yes you are helping me but I'm also feeling demotivated or depressed by your analysis of my lifestyle. A Ketu Ashwini native might have a business linked to the past. A healing method which has been used for many hundreds of years is now practiced in that native's clinic or the person is in the business linked to the past. The person's style of help is likely to be misunderstood.
Ketu isn't known for selfless behavior or divine temperament but the Nakshatra is. A Ketu Ashwini native is likely to face many issues with authority figures particularly to do with the healing methods the person might follow as those methods might be unapproved. On the whole I think Ketu Ashwini has the best intention of helping people but the intention is not enough. A procedure is there, the process is there, the correct use of words is important which a Ketu Ashwini native may struggle with.
Che Guevara is the first example I'd like to share with you even though he is known more for his revolutionary activism. He has Jupiter in Ashwini. He had a degree in medicine and he did spend some time in a leprosy colony. I think his medicine degree is linked to Jupiter Ashwini and that's the parallel I am drawing.
Martin Luther King Jr has his rising Nakshatra as Ashwini, Jupiter in the first house in Ashwini as well. His fight was to help the society but he did face a lot of opposition from authority figures and that's what I want to highlight from his example. The Ashwini native might face resistance from authority figures. Magnus Carlsen and Bobby Fischer have Moon in Ashwini which in my view is behind their quick thinking ability.
Louis Pasteur is the last example I'd like to share with you. He has Saturn in Ashwini. He's credited with discovering pasteurisation which we practice every day when we pasteurise our milk. So that is linked to the healthcare sector.
He was a medical researcher, Saturn Ashwini and if you recall whilst describing Saturn Ashwini I had mentioned the person can be a medical researcher. So I hope these examples made sense.
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