Ardra Nakshatra
Ardra
Ardra nakshatra is sixth among 27 nakshatras. All four quarters of this nakshatra fall in Gemini. The literal meaning of Ardra is ‘moist’ and another close meaning of Ardra is ‘fresh’. The main symbols assigned to Ardra nakshatra are a teardrop and a diamond.
A teardrop may look like a mere drop of water but this is not so in reality. A teardrop represents the peak or culmination of an emotion where such emotion may be positive or negative. It means tears come out of our eyes when we are under extreme pain, trauma and other such troublesome emotions or they roll out when we are extremely happy. In both cases, the emotional state has reached its peak and that is when a teardrop is formed.
Looking at a diamond, it is also formed in the same way; which means it is the culmination point of carbon atoms which undergo intense heat and pressure, within the crust of earth. Therefore, both these symbols may look different and they are different in certain senses. However, they are same in the sense that both of them represent the peak or culmination of some processes or emotions.
Hence Ardra nakshatra renders characteristics like hard work, patience, strength, determination and intensity to the natives under its strong influence. It means Ardra natives may have to work hard and be strong as well as patient; in order to reach peaks in their lives; just like diamond. For this reason; Ardra natives are often seen achieving much more success during second halves of their lives; compared to the first halves.
Ardra natives generally don’t depend much on luck and they may believe in making their own destinies through their efforts. For this reason, such natives may reject their family professions or other such offers where they are supposed to run already established businesses or professions. Instead, an Ardra native may choose to start something of his own, build it up gradually, learn a lot during the process and then achieve success which is well deserved, according to him.
Since these natives may not be that much dependent on luck and they may be true believers in hard work, Ardra nakshatra may have significant impact on some of the greatest people in history. This is because a man is called great, not if he achieves success by luck but if he works hard and he keeps fighting or moving even when luck or wind is blowing against him. Hence Ardra nakshatra may produce warriors in many walks of life and these warriors may win their wars through their own courage, hard work and determination, rather than depending on luck.
A teardrop also represents the process of removing emotions which have become too much for us to handle, so that some type of balance may be restored. For instance, when you are in extreme emotional pain, the act of crying and shedding teardrops helps you relax, though such act in itself looks very troublesome or extreme. It means crying may be considered as an extreme type of act but through this act; your existence is trying to balance itself out, by getting rid of emotions which may have become too much to handle or which simply need to leave.
For this reason, the act of crying or shedding tears often happens when someone close to you dies. Through these tears, you are not only balancing your existence by getting rid of too much emotion; you are also preparing yourself for a fresh start; which means for a life without such loved one.
Therefore, the act of crying is an act of renewal and the same characteristic is exhibited by Ardra nakshatra. Hence, Ardra natives may have to undergo a number of renewals/transformations in various spheres of their lives. Though such transformations may look troublesome like the act of crying, they may end up strengthening these natives in the long run.
Due to this characteristic, Ardra natives may not get stuck at any points in their lives; no matter how important such points may be; and these natives may keep moving despite setbacks. Therefore, if you are looking at a native who has transformed a lot during his lifetime and he keeps getting better and stronger with age; he is likely to be under strong influence of Ardra nakshatra. This nakshatra is among the best ones in 27 nakshatras, when it comes to induce such personality transformations.
Ardra nakshatra is a strong energy and natives with weak horoscopes may not be able to handle it properly. Hence Ardra natives need strong Sun, Mars, Jupiter and/or Saturn in their horoscopes as otherwise, they may not be able to bear the pressure applied by such transformations and they may simply shatter.
Vedic astrology assigns Rahu as the ruling planet and lord Rudra as the ruling deity of Ardra nakshatra. Lord Rudra is the fierce form of lord Shiva, the destroyer among trinity. It is believed that whenever lord Shiva needs to get into the acts of destruction, he transforms into Rudra and engages in required acts of destruction. Here again, the characteristic of transformation is evident.
Looking at the process of destruction, it is more like the process of renewal. Just like the tears renew us, just like the transformations make us more capable of handling the future; such acts of destruction are necessary for renewal of natural elements. Looking at an example in nature, the eruption of a volcano is a troublesome and disturbing event. However, it tells that too much lava was collected in a zone and it needed to be released, like teardrops.
When such lava spreads and it solidifies, the most fertile lands are formed by it. This means such eruption of volcano helps the disturbed zone maintain its balance by throwing out excess lava and at the same time, such lava refreshes and renews the lands it falls on. Likewise, Ardra natives may undergo a number of troublesome transformations in their lives; only to benefit in the long run; provided their horoscopes are strong enough to go through such transformations.
Lordship of Rudra over Ardra nakshatra adds characteristics like being fierce yet decisive, anger, aggression, bravery, and the element of destruction. Vedic Astrology assigns Rahu as the planetary ruler of Ardra nakshatra. Rahu deals with mysteries and illusions among other things. Hence it adds characteristics like mystery, intellect, curiosity and wander-thirst to Ardra nakshatra. All quarters of Ardra nakshatra fall in Gemini which is an air sign ruled by Mercury. Hence Ardra nakshatra also exhibits characteristics like intellect, the ability to analyze as well as dissect, communication and some other characteristics.
Natives under strong influence of Ardra nakshatra may be curious and analytical by nature. They may like to get to the root of the matter and know everything in detail. Ardra natives may have the tendency to shift from one state of mind to another in a matter of seconds. Accordingly, these natives may be unpredictable at times. They may burst out in anger easily and they may scare or harm other people at times. Ardra natives may be brave and they may not be afraid of confrontations, arguments, disputes, fights or wars.
Natives under the influence of Ardra nakshatra may be keen to explore. Some of them may be very good observers having deep probing eyes which may try to scan people around them and find out what lies inside them. Ardra natives may not pay much attention to social courtesies or formalities and they may do what they like, regardless of whether the people around them approve or not. Ardra natives may not bother about public opinion and they may be independent in their approach towards life.
Ardra natives can make opponents and enemies due to their argumentative nature and non-bothering attitude towards the others. However, these natives may not bother changing themselves or trying to make peace with their opponents/enemies. Instead they may face their competitors and enemies with courage, bravery and hard work; winning in the end; in most cases.
Due to influence of lord Rudra on this nakshatra; Ardra natives may prove very difficult enemies. They may continue to engage in battles/wars for years and years; until decisive results are achieved. In the opinion of one such native; such decisive result may be the defeat of enemy or his own death. It means Ardra natives may not surrender and they may keep fighting till the end. Hence they may lose small/significant battles in a war; they may not lose the war as long as they live; since they may keep fighting. Once they are in one such situation; they may go to any lengths to eliminate the threats of their enemies or even their enemies.
Looking at professions, natives under strong influence of Ardra nakshatra may achieve success as lawyers, scientists, analysts, researchers, explorers, revolutionaries, engineers, electricians, people dealing in computer industry and all related fields, writers, doctors, surgeons, detectives, spies, warriors, defense professionals, gangsters, weapon dealers, astrologers; professionals dealing in media industry, defence industry, medical industry, television industry, movie industry, telecom industry, internet industry, travel industry, airline industry, logistics industry and many other types of professionals.
Let’s look at some other facts associated with this nakshatra. Ardra is considered as a balanced and harsh nakshatra. It is considered as a female nakshatra. Vedic astrology assigns Butcher Varna and water element to Ardra nakshatra. The Gana assigned to Ardra nakshatra is Manava and the Guna assigned to it is Tamasic. It is an upward nakshatra and its Yoni or animal symbol is Dog.
Himanshu Shangari