The deity of Purva Bhadrapada nakshatra is Aja Ekapada. It is the Cosmic Dancer that stands on one leg. If you’ve ever watched the ballet or any dance form, it represents a moment when the dancer is in a state of balance. Standstill moments give us a moment to breathe; perhaps even with bated breath.

This moment of suspension, however, cannot last. Sooner or later, movement is necessary. The dancer will begin dancing again. In the context of this nakshatra, it signifies that a holding pattern can only be sustained for a brief period of time. It is not in the nature of the Cosmos to stay at a standstill.

The evolution of how Aja Ekapada came to be is unclear. The first mention of Aja Ekapada is in the Vedas. It means the one-footed unborn one or the one that is yet to manifest. The deity Aja Ekapada has strong ties with Ahir Budhnya: the unseen and unknowable serpentine force which resides at the bottom of the sea in the great darkness. Aja Ekapada and Ahi Budhnya are twin aspects of the same deity.

Aja Ekapada is the Guardian of the Saptamatrikas: the Seven Matriarchs. They are also called Matar, Matri or Mitru. They are a star cluster of mother goddesses who are always depicted together in Hinduism. They are believed to be a personification of the seven stars of the Pleiades.

Seals with rows of seven feminine deities or priestesses were depicted during the Indus civilisation. They represent foreign women or immigrant women who travelled to new lands and gave birth there. They represent the Matriarchal Force that travels to foreign and faraway lands. Interestingly, this is an aggressive nakshatra in comparison to Uttara Bhadrapada–the nakshatra which comes after it.

Kartikeya

The birth of Kartikeya–the son of Shiva and Parvati–has a strong association with themes surrounding surrogacy and adoption. According to tradition, the six of the seven Matriarchs are his adopted mothers. The tale varies in both thought as well as form and there are many variants of the same story.

Another account mentions that six of the seven Matriarchs were accused by their husbands–the Saptarishis–of being Kartikeya’s birth mothers. They were abandoned by their husbands and sent into exile.

In Nepal, the Matrikas function both as city protectors and individual protectors. They are viewed as grandmother goddesses who can either bring calamities or restore order. In Kathmandu Valley, the Ashtamatrikas–along with a central village goddess–are worshipped as protectors of the city or town. They are identified as the guardians of directions, places, people as well as lands.

The Great Guru

Purva Bhadrapada is ruled by Jupiter. The element associated with this nakshatra is fire. It represents the creative or destructive force that is born when fire and water come together. It could be a reference to the force of lightning that comes down from the sky to rouse the dormant element of water into movement and action. These ‘dragons’ that were spoken about in ancient times could have been an attempt to speak about the unseen forces that govern our existence: like electricity, currents and so on.

The Jupiterian force signals a change that can come about suddenly. It is a force that has the power to change your life; for the better or for worse. When fire and water come together, the power of fire is lessened. Water tames fire and fire rouses water. They can be a constructive pair if temperance is achieved.

Contrarian energies are not the same as opposite energies–in that they repel one another. Contrarian energies are necessary for growth, development and even constructive destruction. Jupiter’s influence here signifies the potential for life to be born. Life and death are not opposites; but when one overpowers the other–the balance is temporarily shifted to one side.

Jupiter, as the largest planet in our solar system, shows how life can expand. As part of this expansion, some life will be destroyed before new life is created. We cannot, however, contain the currents that come into our lives. When Jupiter comes, it brings new currents into one’s life.

Your life will never be the same again.