' (Sanskrit: à ¤Âà ¥Âà ¤¤à ¥Âà ¤¤à ¤¿à ¤Âà ¤¾, pronounced , popularly transliterated Krittika), sometimes known as KÃÂrtikÃÂ, is the third of the 27 s (lunar mansions) in Indian astronomy. It corresponds to the open star cluster called the Pleiades in Western astronomy; it is in the constellation Taurus. The name literally translates to "the cutters".
It is also the name of its goddess-personification, who is a daughter of Daksha and Panchajani, and thus a half-sister to Khyati. Spouse of Ká¹Âttikàis Chandra ("moon").
Alternative accounts suggest that Kritika was the name of six celestial women. The six Krittikas who raised the Hindu God Kartikeya are à Âiva, Sambhà «ti, Prëti, Sannati, Anasà «ya and Ká¹£amÃÂ.
In Hindu astrology (), is ruled by the Sun. Under the traditional Hindu principle of naming individuals according to their Ascendant/Lagna , the following Sanskrit syllables correspond with this , and would belong at the beginning of the first name of an individual born under it: A (à ¤ ), I (à ¤Â), U (à ¤Â) and E (à ¤Â).
In Vedic literature and Hindu mythology, the Krittika are known as the six mothers or nursemaids of the war god Kartikeya (also known as Skanda or Murugan), who was nurtured by them after being born from the sparks of Lord ShivaâÂÂs third eye. The Krittika are identified with the Pleiades star cluster, and their names are often listed as à Âiva, Sambhà «ti, Prëti, Sannati, Anasà «ya, and Ká¹£amàin various texts. They are revered as embodiments of maternal care and protective fierceness. In the Rigveda and later scriptures, the Krittika are associated with fire rituals (Agnihotra) and purification rites, symbolizing the transformative power of heat and flame. The lunar mansion of Krittika was also significant in Vedic astronomy as the original starting point of the zodiac in some ancient systems.