--- title: "Chitra Nakshatra: Lord Mangala, Deity, Padas" url: "https://abhisheksoni.in/learn/nakshatra/chitra" language: "en" updated: "2026-10-27" description: "Chitra spans 173°20'-186°40' of the zodiac, ruled by Mangala, presided by Tvashtar / Vishvakarma. Symbol: Bright jewel / pearl. Gana rakshasa, yoni tiger, nadi pitta. Its four padas fall in Kanya and Tula." --- # Chitra Nakshatra *Nakshatra* Chitra (चित्रा) is the 14th of the 27 nakshatras of Vedic astrology, spanning 173°20' - 186°40' of the zodiac across Kanya and Tula. Its lord is Mangala and its deity Vishwakarma/Tvashtar. Symbol: Bright jewel / pearl. It is of rakshasa gana, tiger yoni and madhya nadi, and its lord's Vimshottari dasha lasts 7 years. ## What is Chitra nakshatra? Chitra is the 14th of the 27 nakshatras, spanning 173°20' to 186°40' of the zodiac across Kanya and Tula. Its lord is Mangala, its deity is Vishwakarma (Tvashtar), the divine craftsman, and its symbol is a bright jewel. Chitra means bright or brilliant, and also a picture, something wonderfully made. Its star is Spica (Alpha Virginis). Spica sits at the very start of Tula, and the Chitrapaksha ayanamsa, used by most Indian almanacs, is defined by that position, so this one star anchors sidereal calculation. ## Which rashi is Chitra in, and who is its lord? Chitra is split evenly between two rashis: its first two padas, 173°20' to 180°00', are in Kanya, and its last two, 180°00' to 186°40', are in Tula. Its lord is Mangala, and Mangala's Vimshottari dasha lasts 7 years. Mangala also rules Mrigashira and Dhanishta, both of which are split the same way, two padas in each sign. A Moon in Chitra means life begins in Mangala's dasha. The balance depends on how far the Moon had travelled, and since the dasha is short, Rahu's long dasha usually follows in childhood. ## What are the four padas of Chitra? The four padas fall in the navamsas of Simha, Kanya, Tula and Vrishchika. The navamsa is the D9, each sign divided into nine, read for marriage and for the real strength of a graha. Padas 1 and 2 begin at 173°20' and 176°40' in Kanya; padas 3 and 4 begin at 180°00' and 183°20' in Tula. The second pada is Kanya in both rashi and navamsa and the third is Tula in both, so both are vargottama, which the texts count as a strength. Traditional naming gives the syllables Pe, Po, Ra and Ri. ## What does tradition say about people born in Chitra? The texts describe Chitra natives as attractive, well turned out, artistic and intelligent, with an eye for form and design. Tvashtar, who shaped the weapons and the forms of the gods, is said to give craft and a love of making beautiful things; Mangala adds drive, courage and technical skill. Rakshasa gana here is read as a strong will and independence. Tradition describes the Kanya half as more precise and technical and the Tula half as more aesthetic and social. The shadow it names is vanity, impatience and a sharp tongue. ## Which careers are traditionally linked with Chitra? Tradition links Chitra with making and design: architecture, engineering, interior and product design, fashion, photography and film, painting and sculpture, building trades, surgery and technology. The 10th house, its lord and the dashas decide the career itself. Chitra tells you about the maker's temperament, not which trade the chart supports. ## What does Chitra mean for marriage and kundli matching? Chitra is rakshasa gana, tiger (vyaghra) yoni, female, and madhya nadi. In Ashtakoota matching nadi carries 8 points, gana 6 and yoni 4. Rakshasa matches best with rakshasa and scores lowest against deva. The tiger yoni pairs with Vishakha, the other tiger nakshatra, and is counted an enemy of the cow yoni of Uttara Phalguni and Uttara Bhadrapada. Two madhya nadi Moons give nadi dosha, the classical concern, with exceptions in the texts. Matching compares two Moons; the marriage itself is read from the 7th house, its lord, Shukra and the dashas. ## What does Chitra not tell you? Two things are often mixed up here. A Mangala-ruled Moon nakshatra does not make anyone manglik: that label comes from Mangala's house position, not from a Chitra Moon. And "I am Chitra" does not say whether the Moon is in Kanya or Tula, which changes the reading; the pada, fixed by the birth time, decides it. Being born under the divine craftsman does not make someone an artist either. Everyone born in that window shares the nakshatra and lives a different life. It is one factor among hundreds, and I read it inside the whole chart. ## Classical facts - **Number:** 14 - **Sanskrit name:** Chitra - **Hindi name:** चित्रा - **Lord:** Mangala - **Deity:** Vishwakarma/Tvashtar - **Symbol:** Bright jewel / pearl - **Gana:** Rakshasa - **Yoni:** Tiger, female - **Nadi:** Madhya - **Degree range:** 173°20' - 186°40' - **Rashi:** Kanya, Tula - **Vimshottari dasha of its lord:** 7 years - **Reference:** [List of Nakshatras (Wikipedia)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Nakshatras) ## The four padas - 1, 173°20' - 176°40', Kanya, Simha - 2, 176°40' - 180°00', Kanya, Kanya - 3, 180°00' - 183°20', Tula, Tula - 4, 183°20' - 186°40', Tula, Vrishchika ## Articles about Chitra Nakshatra - [Gudi Padwa in Maharashtra: meaning and where to see it](/learn/gudi-padwa-in-maharashtra): Gudi Padwa is Chaitra Shukla Pratipada, the Marathi new year and one of the three and a half auspicious days. What it means and where it is kept.