Ketu in Ashlesha Nakshatra (Ketu in आश्लेषा)

Ashlesha, the 9th of the 27 nakshatras, covers 106°40′ – 120°00′ of the sidereal zodiac, wholly inside Cancer. Ashlesha is ruled by Mercury, so Ketu in Ashlesha stands in Mercury’s star.

Ketu’s row in the friendship lists counts Mercury neutral; Mercury’s row names no node, so the star lord of Ashlesha has no entry for Ketu, and this page does not supply one. The other two nakshatras Mercury rules, Jyeshtha and Revati, put Ketu under the same star lord.

Ketu in Ashlesha, Pada by Pada

By rashi, Ketu is in an enemy's sign in all four padas of Ashlesha, because the whole nakshatra lies in Cancer. By navamsa the four padas fall in Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius and Pisces. Ketu’s strongest navamsas in Ashlesha are padas 2 (Capricorn, in a friend's sign) and 3 (Aquarius, in a friend's sign), and its weakest are padas 1 (Sagittarius, in a neutral sign) and 4 (Pisces, in a neutral sign).

Ashlesha pada 4 (Cancer 26°40′ – 30°00′) is gandanta: one of the six padas on the junction of a water sign and the fire sign after it, and Ketu placed in that quarter of Ashlesha sits on the junction itself.

The classical table of deepest exaltation and debilitation degrees covers the seven grahas and gives Ketu none, so for Ketu in Ashlesha no degree of special dignity can be located; the sign-level verdicts above carry the hedge the planet pages use for Ketu.

When Ketu Is in Ashlesha, 2026–2028

• 5 December 2026: Ketu enters Ashlesha, and leaves on 14 August 2027 — 252 days.

That is the one spell Ketu spends in Ashlesha between 1 January 2026 and 1 January 2029, 252 days in all. Over the same span Ketu stands in 6 of the 27 nakshatras. The dates are days only; for Ketu in Ashlesha a minute would be more precise than the ayanamsa behind it.

Inside Ashlesha: what the tables locate there for Ketu

Of the four complete spells Ketu has in the table, in any nakshatra, the shortest is 251 days and the longest 252, and a spell in Ashlesha is level with the longest.

• 1 March 2027: Ketu meets Jupiter at 25° Cancer, in Ashlesha pada 3.
• 20 April 2027: Ketu meets Jupiter at 22° Cancer, in Ashlesha pada 2.
• 4 August 2027: Ketu meets the Sun at 17° Cancer, in Ashlesha pada 1.
• 5 August 2027: Ketu meets Venus at 17° Cancer, in Ashlesha pada 1.
• 8 August 2027: Ketu meets Mercury at 17° Cancer, in Ashlesha pada 1.

Ashlesha as the Setting for Ketu

In the nakshatra tables Ashlesha’s deity is listed as Sarpas (Nagas) and its symbol as coiled snake; its gana is Rakshasa, and the muhurta texts put it in the Tikshna class (sharp). Those belong to Ashlesha whichever graha is in it, and they are read on the Ashlesha page. What changes with Ketu is everything above: the dignities in Cancer, the relation to Mercury, and the dates. None of it is a prediction for anyone born with Ketu in Ashlesha; the house it occupies and the dasha running decide what the placement does in a chart.

Related Placements

The sign-level reading is on Ketu in Cancer; Ketu in all 27 nakshatras is on the Ketu nakshatra table. For the nakshatras themselves, see the 27 nakshatras guide and astrology for beginners.

The Other Grahas in Ashlesha