The Moon (Chandra): Sovereign of the Mind, Keeper of the Tides

Essential Attributes at a Glance

Attribute	Chandra’s Nature
Sanskrit Name	Chandra (also Sasi)
Cosmic Role	The Mind (Kalapurusha)
Cabinet Status	Royal — King/Queen
Nature	Benefic (waxing/Shukla Paksha); Malefic (waning/Krishna Paksha)
Gender	Female
Caste	Vaisya (Merchant class)
Guna	Sattvic (Pure, soft)
Element	Water (via Varuna)
Deity	Varuna (Lord of Waters)
Color	White / Tawny
Taste	Saline (Salty)
Dosha (Humour)	Kapha (Phlegm) & Vata (Wind)
Directional Strength	North / North-West
Temporal Strength	Night
Natural Strength	2nd Strongest among Grahas
Exaltation	Taurus (3°)
Moolatrikona	Taurus (3°–30°)
Own Sign	Cancer
Time Unit	Muhurtha (48 minutes)
Season	Varsha (Monsoon/Rainy)
Abode	Watery places, water-resorts
Apparel	Silken robes, new/clean/white garments
Substance	Gems; Dhatu (Metals/Minerals)
Tree	Milky trees (rubber-yielding)
Friends	Sun, Mercury
Enemies	None
Neutral	Mars, Jupiter, Venus, Saturn

Astronomical Overview

The Moon is Earth’s sole natural satellite, a companion that has measured human time since the earliest civilizations. Its orbital dance around our planet takes approximately 27.3 days (sidereal month), while the synodic month—from new moon to new moon—spans roughly 29.5 days. This difference creates the ever-shifting phases that Jyotisha so carefully observes.

The Moon’s distance from Earth averages 384,400 kilometers, close enough that its gravitational pull governs our ocean tides—a fitting correspondence to its rulership over Varuna’s watery realm. With a diameter of 3,474 kilometers, the Moon appears nearly the same size as the Sun from our vantage point, creating the phenomenon of perfect solar eclipses—moments of profound astrological significance.

The lunar surface reflects sunlight with varying intensity depending on its phase. This waxing and waning cycle—from the brilliant fullness of Purnima to the hidden darkness of Amavasya—forms the foundation of Chandra’s dual nature in classical texts: benefic when growing in light, malefic when diminishing.

Classical Description

The ancient sages describe Chandra with remarkable consistency across the foundational texts. Both Brihat Parashara Hora Shastra and Saravali portray the Moon as possessing a fair complexion—Saravali specifically uses the term Gauravarna (fair-skinned)—while Parashara adds a tawny quality to this luminous appearance.

The Moon’s physical form is described as round-bodied yet also thin or emaciated, tall in stature, with beautiful and auspicious features. The hair is noted as curly and short. There is something youthful about Chandra’s appearance—a perpetual freshness that mirrors the monthly renewal of the lunar cycle itself. The eyes are particularly emphasized as beautiful, and the overall appearance is described as auspicious or fortunate to behold.

Temperamentally, the classical sources agree on several key traits: the Moon is learned and possesses sweet speech. Yet beneath this gentle exterior lies a restless quality—the texts use terms suggesting fickleness of mind, a nature that shifts like the phases themselves. The Moon is described as lustful and, in Saravali, notably fond of old ladies—perhaps a reference to the nurturing, maternal wisdom that Chandra seeks and embodies.

Essential Qualities

Element & Cosmic Association

Though not explicitly assigned an element in certain verses, the Moon’s association with Water runs deep through its governing deity Varuna, lord of the cosmic waters, and its natural abode in watery places. This aquatic connection extends to Chandra’s significations: water-born products, milk, salt, flowers, and all things that flow and nourish.

Guna: Sattvic Nature

Chandra embodies Sattva—the quality of purity, luminosity, and gentle receptivity. This sattvic nature manifests as softness, kindness, and an amicable disposition toward friends. The Moon does not impose or assert; it reflects, receives, and nurtures. Its purity is that of still water mirroring the sky.

Dosha: Kapha-Vata Constitution

The Moon carries a dual humoral nature—Kapha (the phlegmatic, watery principle) combined with Vata (the windy, airy principle). This creates a constitution prone to both the cool, moist qualities of Kapha and the changeable, restless qualities of Vata. The classical texts describe Chandra as both “phlegmatic” and “windy,” reflecting this mixed temperament that can be both nurturing and unsettled.

Temperament & Character

The Moon governs the mind in the cosmic body (Kalapurusha), making mental and emotional patterns its primary domain. The classical texts emphasize learning and wisdom alongside sweet, pleasing speech. Yet this same mind is described as fickle—shifting, wandering, easily moved by circumstance. This is not a flaw but rather the Moon’s essential nature: responsive, impressionable, and cyclically changing.

Physical, Emotional & Psychological Traits

Physical Characteristics

Individuals strongly influenced by Chandra often display the Moon’s physical signatures: a fair or pale complexion with possible tawny undertones, rounded features or body type (though the frame may also appear thin or delicate), and notably attractive or expressive eyes. The hair tends toward curly or wavy textures, kept short. There is typically a youthful quality to the appearance that persists regardless of age—a certain softness and approachability in the features.

Emotional Nature

The Moon’s emotional landscape is one of sensitivity, receptivity, and fluctuation. Like the tides governed by lunar gravity, feelings rise and fall in natural rhythms. There is a deep capacity for kindness and genuine warmth toward friends and loved ones. However, the emotional nature can also be impressionable, easily influenced by environment and company. The “fickleness” noted in classical texts reflects not superficiality but rather a mind that responds authentically to each moment’s changing conditions.

Psychological Patterns

The Moon rules the mind itself—not the discriminating intellect, but the feeling-mind that experiences, remembers, and dreams. Those under strong lunar influence possess natural learning abilities and often communicate with sweetness and charm. The psychological life tends toward introspection and imagination. There may be a particular affinity for wisdom traditions, nurturing roles, and connection with maternal or elder feminine figures.

Symbolism & Mythic Archetypes

Chandra holds royal status in the celestial cabinet—a sovereign of the inner realm, the Queen or King of the night sky. This royal dignity connects to the Moon’s role as face and countenance in human experience; just as a monarch represents their kingdom, the face represents the self.

The Moon’s deity Varuna rules over waters both cosmic and terrestrial—the primordial ocean, rainfall, rivers, and the unseen waters within all living beings. Through Varuna, Chandra connects to ancient themes of cosmic order, oaths, and the mysteries of the night. The association with milky trees (rubber-yielding plants) extends this symbolism: like the Moon’s soft white light, these trees exude a nourishing, protective substance.

As mother-karaka, Chandra embodies the maternal principle—nurturing, protective, instinctive, and unconditionally present. The rainy season (Varsha) further emphasizes themes of fertility, growth, and the waters of life descending from heaven to earth.

Significations (Karakatvas)

The Moon serves as karaka—natural significator—for numerous aspects of life and the material world:

Primary Domain

The Mind (Manas): all mental functions, emotional processing, memory, imagination, and the general state of psychological well-being.

Relationships

• Mother: the birth mother and maternal figures generally
• Queen: consort, spouse, or significant feminine authority

Body & Health

• The Face: features, complexion, and expression
• Pure Blood: healthy circulation and blood quality
• Bodily fluids generally

Substances & Materials

• Water and all water-born products
• Milk and dairy
• Salt
• Flowers
• Gems and precious stones
• Pearl specifically
• Metals including Lead and Zinc
• Silken fabrics
• White or new garments

Places & Settings

• Watery places: rivers, lakes, oceans, wells, water-resorts
• Gardens and places where flowers grow
• The North and North-West directions

Professions & Activities

• Commerce and trade (Vaisya caste association)
• Nurturing professions
• Work involving liquids, dairy, or maritime industries
• Roles requiring public presence and emotional connection

Strengths & Challenges

Inherent Strengths

Chandra ranks as the second strongest of the nine Grahas, possessing natural luminosity and influence. The Moon gains directional strength (Dig Bala) in the North and North-West, and temporal strength during night hours. When waxing—particularly in the Shukla Paksha bright half—Chandra’s benefic qualities fully manifest: nurturing warmth, emotional intelligence, popular appeal, and mental clarity.

A remarkable quality sets Chandra apart from all other Grahas: the Moon considers no planet an enemy. This universal friendliness reflects the Moon’s sattvic, receptive nature—open to all influences, resistant to none. Even when waning, the Moon can recover benefic status if conjunct or aspected by a benefic planet.

The Yavana teaching offers additional nuance: the Moon is considered auspicious or full when positioned 120°–240° from the Sun, medium in strength at 0°–120°, and bereft of strength at 240°–360° (approaching conjunction).

Potential Challenges

The Moon’s primary challenge lies in its cyclical nature—the waning phase (Krishna Paksha) diminishes Chandra’s benefic capacity, potentially bringing mental unrest, emotional volatility, or reduced vitality. The described fickleness of mind can manifest as indecision, inconsistency, or excessive impressionability.

The Kapha-Vata constitution carries its own challenges: excess Kapha may bring lethargy, attachment, or emotional heaviness, while Vata imbalance can create anxiety, restlessness, or scattered thinking. The lustful quality mentioned in classical texts points to potential issues with desire, attachment, or difficulty maintaining boundaries.

Planetary Relationships

Relationship	Planets
Friends	Sun, Mercury
Enemies	None
Neutrals	Mars, Jupiter, Venus, Saturn

The Moon’s friendship with the Sun—despite their fundamental opposition as day and night luminaries—reflects the cosmic marriage of masculine and feminine, consciousness and mind. Mercury’s friendship connects Chandra to intellect, communication, and commerce. The absence of enemies in the Moon’s relational schema is unique among the Grahas, embodying pure receptivity without opposition.

Classical Reference Notes

Brihat Parashara Hora Shastra: Describes Chandra as windy and phlegmatic in constitution, learned, with a round body and auspicious appearance. Notes sweet speech alongside a fickle and lustful nature. Assigns the Moon to watery abodes, the Muhurtha time unit, saline taste, and rulership over milky trees. Specifies exaltation at Taurus 3°, Moolatrikona in Taurus 3°–30°, and own sign Cancer. States that Moon has no enemies.

Saravali: Provides the synonym Sasi and assigns the Moon to the Mind in the cosmic body (Kalapurusha). Describes fair complexion (Gauravarna), beautiful eyes, thin and tall body with curly short hair, and youthful appearance. Notes sattvic guna, white color, association with gems, the rainy season, and new/clean apparel. Lists karakatvas including pure blood, Queen, Mother, Face, water-born products, flowers, salt, milk, lead, pearl, and zinc.

Closing Reflection

The Moon reminds us that change itself is constant—that waxing and waning are not failures but the natural rhythm of all living things. In Chandra’s gentle light, the ancient seers saw the mirror of the mind: sometimes full and radiant, sometimes hidden in shadow, yet always present, always cycling toward renewal. To know the Moon is to know that softness carries its own strength, that receptivity is its own wisdom, and that even in darkness, the light is only resting.

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References

This article synthesizes knowledge from the following classical Vedic astrology texts:

1. Brihat Parashara Hora Shastra - The foundational text of Vedic astrology attributed to Sage Parashara, detailing planetary characteristics, significations, and interpretive principles.

2. Saravali - A comprehensive classical text by Kalyana Varma, providing detailed descriptions of planetary qualities, physical appearances, and astrological effects.

These ancient texts form the bedrock of Vedic astrological wisdom, passed down through generations of practitioners and scholars.

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