Saturday 14 April 2018

Nakshatra names in Sanskrit English and Tamil

This multilingual table is listed as a separate blog post, so I (and others) can reference in it my other essays. I prepared it mainly based on printed notes handed out by Dr Devadoss, who taught a class on astronomy at the Birla Planetarium in Kotturpuram, Madras, in 2004.

Star Name in Sanskrit
Sanskrit Month
Tamil Month
Star Name in Tamil
Star name with constellation
Star name in English or Arabic

Asvini
Asvina
ஐப்பசி
அசுவினி
Beta Aries

Bharani


பரணி
35 Aries

Krittika
Karthika
கார்த்திகை
கார்த்திகை
Eta Tauri
Alcyone
Rohini


ரோகிணி
Alpha Tauri
Aldebaran
Mrigasirsa
Margarisa
மார்கழி
மிருகசீரிசம்
Lambda Orionis

Ardra


திருவாதிரை
Alpha Orionis
Betelgeuse
Punarvasu


புனர்பூசம்
Beta Geminoram
Pollux
Pushya
Pausa
தை
பூசம்
Delta Canceri

Aslesha


ஆயில்யம்
81 Canceri

Magha
Magha
மாசி
மகம்
Alpha Leonis
Regulus
Poorva Phalguni


பூரம்
Theta Leonis

Uthara Phalguni
Phalguni
பங்குனி
உத்திரம்
Beta Leonis
Denebola
Hastha


அஸ்தம்
Delta Corvi

Chithra
Chaithra
சித்திரை
சித்திரை
Alpha Virginis
Spica
Swathi


ஸ்வாதி
Alpha Bootes
Arcturus
Visaka
Vaisaka
வைகாசி
விசாகம்
Iota Libra

Anuradha


அனுஷம்
Beta Scorpii

Jyeshta
Jyaistha
ஆனி
கேட்டை
Alpha Scorpii
Antares
Moola


மூலம்
Lambda Scorpii
Shaula
Poorva Ashada
Ashada
ஆடி
பூராடம்
Delta Sagittarii

Uthara Ashada


உத்திராடம்
Phi Sagittarii

Sravana
Sravana
ஆவணி
திருவோணம்
Alpha Aquilae
Altair
Sravistha


அவிட்டம்
Alpha Delphini

Satabhishaj


சதயம்
Alpha Aquarii

Poorva Bhadrapada
Bhadrapada
புரட்டாசி
பூரட்டாதி
Alpha Pegasii
Markab
Uthara Bhadrapada


உத்திரட்டாதி
Gamma Pegasii
Algenib
Revathi


ரேவதி
Zeta Pescium


Notes November 13, 2022 Some of these star identifications are contested or disputed. 
Chidamabaram Iyer of Madurai in is the Introduction to his 1884 English  translation of Varahamihira's Brihat Samhita (1885) disagrees that Revathi is Zeta Piscium, as it is not on the ecliptic. He also writes that the star Revathi seems to have disappeared. Did it turn nova, but went unobserved by Indian astronomers. 
There are other scholars who disagree that Betelgeuse is Ardra or Tiruvaadirai for similar reasons.

2 comments:

  1. Very useful tabulation for reference. Thank you.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I've become a visitor of this page every full-moon to get the name of the star in proximity to the moon. This month is Bhadrapada and I see Algenib close to the moon as well as the Markab.

    ReplyDelete