Graha · Ketu
Ketu
Stands for detachment, insight and the spiritual.
The graha in short
- Rules
- no rasi of its own — the nodes are points where the Moon's path crosses the Sun's, not bodies, and classical Jyotisha gives them no sign to rule
- Exalted in
- Viruchigam
- Debilitated in
- Rishabam
- Its nakshatras
- Aswini, Magam, Moolam — the three whose Vimshottari dasha is its own
- Mahadasha
- 7 years of the 120-year cycle. Work out the periods.
- Day
- Tuesday
- Hora
- The nodes own no hora: the twenty-four planetary hours run through the seven visible grahas only.
What it is read for
The three lines the chart summary and the lessons are both built from, so nothing here says something the rest of the app does not.
- Stands for
- detachment, insight and the spiritual
- A strong Ketu supports
- insight, spiritual depth and the ability to let go
- A Ketu period brings forward
- introspection, release from old ties and spiritual interests
These are the traditional leanings of a placement, not a verdict on a person; the whole chart, and the family astrologer, decide how much any one of them shows.
Parihaaram
The traditional remedy row for Ketu, the same one the remedies and mantras pages read.
- Deity
- Naganathar (Sivan) and Ketu Bhagavan; Ganapathi
- Colour
- Mixed colours, brown and smoke-grey
- Gem
- Cat's eye (Vaiduryam)
- Mantra
- Ketu gayatri (Om Aswadhwajaya Vidmahe Sula Hastaya Dhimahi Tanno Ketuh Prachodayat); Ganapathi Atharvashirsham; Ganesha worship — the texts, with their meanings
- Fasting
- Tuesday; Sankatahara Chaturthi for Ganapathi
- Daanam
- Horse gram (kollu), navadhanyam (nine grains), a multicoloured cloth and a blanket; food to dogs and the poor
Its gem, and how it is worn
- Stone
- Cat's eye (Vaiduryam) · Honey to smoky grey with a single band of light
- Substitutes
- Cat's eye quartz, Tiger's eye, Apatite cat's eye
- Finger and metal
- Middle finger of the right hand, in silver or panchaloha
- When
- Tuesday or Saturday. In the evening after sunset, in the Ketu hora
- Weight
- Not below 5 ratti; the band of light must run clean across the stone
- Read for
- Strengthens Ketu: detachment, insight, protection from unseen trouble and steadiness in spiritual practice.
A shadow gem, like Hessonite: given for a period, watched closely, and put away when the period ends. The whole wearing table, and whether a chart calls for a stone at all, is on the gems page. A gem is worn only on the advice of the family astrologer, after the graha's strength and role in the chart have been weighed; a gem strengthens its graha, so it is never taken up on a table like this alone.
Where it is worshipped
- Keezhperumpallam Naganathaswamy Temple Keezhperumpallam, Mayiladuthurai, Tamil Nadu · the Navagraha sthalam for Ketu
- Palani Dhandayuthapani Swamy Temple Palani, Dindigul, Tamil Nadu
- Srikalahasti Temple Srikalahasti, Tirupati district, Andhra Pradesh
- Thiruvazhuvur Veerateswarar Temple Thiruvazhuvur, Mayiladuthurai, Tamil Nadu
- Mel Malayanur Angalamman Temple Mel Malayanur, Viluppuram, Tamil Nadu
- Thiruvalanchuzhi Kapardeeswarar Temple Thiruvalanchuzhi, Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu
- Pillaiyarpatti Karpaga Vinayagar Temple Pillaiyarpatti, Sivaganga, Tamil Nadu
79 temples in the gazetteer are kept for Ketu; the ones near you are on the temples page. Parihaaram is traditional practice, offered for devotion and peace of mind; it is not a guaranteed cure of any condition. Temple hours change with festivals and the season, so check before travelling.
The name
The same graha in every script this app carries.
- English Ketu
- தமிழ் கேது
- తెలుగు కేతువు
- ಕನ್ನಡ ಕೇತು
- മലയാളം കേതു
- हिन्दी केतु
- বাংলা কেতু
- ગુજરાતી કેતુ
- मराठी केतू
- ଓଡ଼ିଆ କେତୁ
- ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਕੇਤੂ
- සිංහල කේතු
The glossary's entry for Ketu lists the other names a family may have been given — Ketu is called several things across the traditions.