Aries (Mesha) in Vedic Astrology

Your ascendant, or lagna, is the sign rising on the eastern horizon at the moment of birth. It describes the body, the temperament and the direction a life tends to take. It changes roughly every two hours, so it needs an accurate birth time.

You meet life head-on. Decisions come fast, action follows immediately, and you would rather start and correct course than wait for certainty. Independence matters to you, and you are at your best leading from the front. Patience is the lesson.

With Aries rising, Mars is your lagna lord, the planet that carries your constitution and your life's direction. Where Mars sits in your chart shows where your energy naturally flows.

Your Moon sign, or rashi, is the sign the Moon occupied at birth. In Vedic astrology it matters at least as much as the ascendant, because it describes the mind and emotional life. It is also the sign used for daily horoscopes and for Sade Sati.

Emotionally you run hot and clear: you feel something, you say it, and it is over. You need something to push against, and you recover from setbacks faster than almost anyone. Boredom, not difficulty, is what unsettles you.

Mars owns Aries (and also Scorpio), so it is comfortable and free to act here. The Sun is exalted in Aries, at its strongest. Saturn is debilitated in Aries, at its weakest, though the classics give several ways this weakness is cancelled. Aries is also the moolatrikona sign of Mars, a placement nearly as strong as exaltation.

Every sign holds nine nakshatra padas (quarters), drawn from two or three nakshatras. A planet's nakshatra refines what its sign says about it.