Soma, the nectar and the Moon: the deity who presides over Mrigashira

Who is Soma in the Rig Veda?

Soma is first a plant, pressed during the Vedic sacrifice, and the drink drawn from it; then the god present in that drink. The ninth book of the Rig Veda is devoted entirely to him. There he is called Pavamana, “the one who purifies himself”, because he flows through a woollen filter before being offered.

Soma gives poets their inspiration and the gods their vigour, starting with Indra, who drinks it before facing the serpent Vritra. The hymns make it amrita, the drink of immortality: “We have drunk the soma, we have become immortal, we have gone to the light” (Rig Veda VIII, 48).

Soma, the Moon and his twenty-seven wives

Little by little, Soma becomes the Moon, Chandra: the Moon is the cup of nectar, which the gods drink as it wanes and which fills up again as it waxes. He is also called lord of plants, which the coolness of the nights makes grow. Monday, Somavara, still bears his name.

Soma married the twenty-seven daughters of Daksha, who are the nakshatras, but he cherished only Rohini. The neglected sisters complained to their father, and Daksha’s anger made the Moon wane. Soma turned to Shiva, who soothed him and has worn him ever since as a crescent in his hair: the Moon wanes, then is reborn. This is the origin of the phases, and one of the reasons that link Soma to Rudra.

Soma, Tara and the birth of Mercury

Another story makes Soma the father of Mercury. Tara, wife of Brihaspati, teacher of the gods, left her husband for the Moon; a war among the gods followed, which Brahma settled by returning Tara to Brihaspati. The child born of that union, Budha, became the planet Mercury.

Jyotish keeps a trace of it: among the natural friendships of the planets, the Moon counts Mercury as a friend, while Mercury counts the Moon as an enemy. The heart forgives faster than reason; in a chart, the understanding between your emotions and your thinking is something to work on.

What Soma gives to Mrigashira

Soma presides over Mrigashira, “the head of the deer”, from 23°20′ Taurus to 6°40′ sidereal Gemini. Indian poets see a deer on the Moon and call it Mriganka, “marked by the deer”: the nakshatra bears the very emblem of its deity. It receives from him prinana shakti, the power to fulfil, to nourish what is thirsty.

The ruler of Mrigashira is Mars, and a birth with the Moon in this nakshatra begins life in the Mars mahadasha. The pairing is subtle: Soma gives delicacy and a taste for nectar, Mars the drive to go out and look for it. That is why Mrigashira searches tirelessly, and gently.

How Soma’s energy shows in a birth chart

Soma is read on two levels. First wherever a point of your chart falls in Mrigashira, which the nakshatra calculator shows:

• The Moon in Mrigashira: the mind of a seeker, sensitive and curious; you need to feed your mind as much as your heart.
• The Ascendant in Mrigashira: a delicate, attentive presence that puts others at ease and asks the right questions.
• Venus in Mrigashira: love as a quest; you look for the person who fulfils, and the lever is knowing when to stop once you have found them.
• Mars in Mrigashira: the planet in its own nakshatra; an energy that explores, investigates, tries, and gains from choosing one trail at a time.

The second level is the Moon itself, since Soma is the Moon. Tradition counts a waxing Moon among the benefic planets: look at your birth phase. A Moon born waning is no lack; it turns sensitivity inward, towards listening and perspective. During the Moon mahadasha, ten years, Soma speaks louder still: emotions, home and the bond with the public come to the fore.

A simple practice under the sign of Soma

On Monday evening, Soma’s day, take a few minutes to look at the Moon, or to note its phase on the lunar calendar. Ask yourself what truly nourished you this week: a meeting, a book, a meal, a silence. That is the very question of Mrigashira.

Then slowly savour something you love, doing nothing else at the same time. Soma was a drink prepared with care and tasted with attention: the practice is to give what fulfils you the attention it deserves.