Mercury in Krittika Nakshatra (Budh in कृत्तिका)

Krittika, the 3rd of the 27 nakshatras, covers 26°40′ – 40°00′ of the sidereal zodiac, across the boundary between Aries and Taurus. Krittika is ruled by the Sun, so Mercury in Krittika stands in the Sun’s star.

Mercury counts the Sun a friend, while the Sun counts Mercury neutral. The table is not symmetric, so Mercury in Krittika has to be described from both sides, as it is here. The other two nakshatras the Sun rules, Uttara Phalguni and Uttara Ashadha, put Mercury under the same star lord.

Mercury in Krittika, Pada by Pada

By rashi, Mercury in Krittika is in a neutral sign in pada 1 (Aries) and in a friend's sign in padas 2, 3 and 4 (Taurus), because Krittika crosses from Aries into Taurus. By navamsa the four padas fall in Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius and Pisces. Mercury’s strongest navamsas in Krittika are padas 1 (Sagittarius, in a neutral sign), 2 (Capricorn, in a neutral sign) and 3 (Aquarius, in a neutral sign), and its weakest is pada 4 (Pisces, debilitated).

Neither Mercury’s deepest exaltation (Virgo) nor its deepest debilitation (Pisces) degree falls inside Krittika, and Mercury’s moolatrikona lies outside it as well, so in Krittika the rashi and navamsa verdicts above are the whole of Mercury’s dignity.

When Mercury Is in Krittika, 2026–2028

• 13 May 2026: Mercury enters Krittika, and leaves on 19 May 2026 — 6 days.
• 4 May 2027: Mercury enters Krittika, and leaves on 11 May 2027 — 7 days.
• 26 April 2028: Mercury enters Krittika, and leaves on 4 May 2028 — 8 days.

Those are the three spells Mercury spends in Krittika between 1 January 2026 and 1 January 2029, 21 days in all. Over the same span Mercury stands in every one of the 27 nakshatras. The dates are days only; for Mercury in Krittika a minute would be more precise than the ayanamsa behind it.

Inside Krittika: what the tables locate there for Mercury

Of the 100 complete spells Mercury has in the table, in any nakshatra, the shortest is 4 days and the longest 58; the Krittika spells, at 6, 7 and 8 days, sit inside that range.

• 14 May 2026: Mercury meets the Sun at 29° Aries, in Krittika pada 1.

The retrograde table runs from 2024 to 2031, wider than the ingress table, and it places one of Mercury's stations in Krittika. On 2 May 2029 Mercury stations retrograde inside Krittika, in pada 2. At a station Mercury’s motion is at its slowest, so these are the days it is most nearly still in Krittika.

Krittika as the Setting for Mercury

In the nakshatra tables Krittika’s deity is listed as Agni and its symbol as razor; its gana is Rakshasa, and the muhurta texts put it in the Mishra class (mixed). Those belong to Krittika whichever graha is in it, and they are read on the Krittika page. What changes with Mercury is everything above: the dignities in Aries and Taurus, the relation to the Sun, and the dates. None of it is a prediction for anyone born with Mercury in Krittika; the house it occupies and the dasha running decide what the placement does in a chart.

Related Placements

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

The Other Grahas in Krittika