The Ascendant in Each Nakshatra: How Long Each Rises

Every nakshatra is 13°20′ of the zodiac, but the ascendant does not cross them at an even pace. The time an arc takes to rise is its oblique ascension, which depends on where the arc sits on the ecliptic and on the latitude of the birthplace; it is the same calculation that makes a whole sign rise in under ninety minutes or over two hours at Delhi. At Delhi Uttara Bhadrapada rises fastest, in 37 minutes, and Pushya slowest, in 63. The 27 always add up to one turn of the sky, 1,440 minutes, at every latitude.

Latitude matters more for some nakshatras than others. The twelve whose rising time changes least across the four cities are the twelve nearest a solstice point — Mula, Mrigashira, Ardra, Jyeshtha, Purva Ashadha, Rohini, Punarvasu, Anuradha, Uttara Ashadha, Krittika, Pushya, Vishakha — because near a solstice the arc’s oblique ascension barely depends on latitude. All figures are durations, not clock times: when a nakshatra rises on a given day depends on the date and the longitude.

For the ascendant sign by sign, see house lords for every ascendant and the ascendant calculator; for the nakshatras as birth stars, all 27 nakshatras. In Hindi: नक्षत्र के अनुसार लग्न.