Gotra
A gotra names the rishi a family descends from: Bharadwaj, Kashyap, Vasishtha, Gautam, Atri, Vishwamitra, Jamadagni, Kaushik, Shandilya and many others. It passes from father to children, and a woman traditionally takes her husband’s gotra after marriage.
Many Hindu communities avoid marriage between two people of the same gotra (सगोत्र विवाह). Many North Indian families also check the mother’s family gotra, so they write both, for example भारद्वाज (स्वयं), वशिष्ठ (ननिहाल). In Marathi biodata, the gotra often sits next to the कुलदैवत, the family deity, such as श्री खंडोबा, जेजुरी.
Rashi
Rashi is the sign the moon was in when the person was born. It is read from the kundli, so it depends on the exact birth date, time and place. Here are the 12 rashis with their Hindi and Marathi names:
| Rashi | Hindi | Marathi | Western name |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mesh | मेष | मेष | Aries |
| Vrishabh | वृषभ | वृषभ | Taurus |
| Mithun | मिथुन | मिथुन | Gemini |
| Kark | कर्क | कर्क | Cancer |
| Simha | सिंह | सिंह | Leo |
| Kanya | कन्या | कन्या | Virgo |
| Tula | तुला | तूळ | Libra |
| Vrishchik | वृश्चिक | वृश्चिक | Scorpio |
| Dhanu | धनु | धनु | Sagittarius |
| Makar | मकर | मकर | Capricorn |
| Kumbh | कुंभ | कुंभ | Aquarius |
| Meen | मीन | मीन | Pisces |
The Western names describe the same 12 signs, but Indian and Western astrology calculate positions differently, and the newspaper sign is the sun sign, not the moon sign. So a person who is “Leo” in a magazine is often not Simha rashi. Always copy the rashi from the kundli.
Nakshatra
Nakshatra is the lunar star the moon was in at birth. There are 27, and each is split into four charan (pada). Write the charan too if your kundli gives it, for example अश्विनी (चरण ३).
The 27 nakshatras, in order: Ashwini, Bharani, Krittika, Rohini, Mrigashira, Ardra, Punarvasu, Pushya, Ashlesha, Magha, Purva Phalguni, Uttara Phalguni, Hasta, Chitra, Swati, Vishakha, Anuradha, Jyeshtha, Mula, Purva Ashadha, Uttara Ashadha, Shravana, Dhanishta, Shatabhisha, Purva Bhadrapada, Uttara Bhadrapada, Revati.
Each nakshatra lies within one rashi, or spans two, so the two must agree. Ashwini, for example, is always in Mesh. If your biodata shows a pair that does not fit, check the kundli again.
How to write them on the biodata
- Put them together in one horoscope section, after personal details.
- Copy spellings from the kundli, and use the same language as the rest of the biodata.
- Add manglik status next to them; families check all of these together.
- Families who match kundli in detail may also want gan and nadi. See the biodata format with horoscope details.