Navaratna
group of nine gems
Navaratna (Sanskrit: नवरत्न) is a Sanskrit compound word meaning "nine gems" or "ratnas". Jewellery created in this style has important cultural significance in many southern, and south-eastern Asian cultures as a symbol of wealth, and status, and is claimed to yield talismanic benefits towards health and well-being. The setting of the stones is believed to hold mystical powers tied to the astrology and mythology of Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism. The historic origin of the navaratna is tied to the astrological concept of "Navagrahas", or "nine celestial gods" (planets).
The stones are often set within gold or silver jewelry, with a ruby as the centerpiece representing the Sun. Each additional stone around the ruby then represents another celestial body within the Solar System, or a node, in addition to representing good fortune and the characteristics of various religious figures. For traditional purposes and the purported health benefits, the arrangement of the stones and their position on the body is of particular significance, as is the quality of the gemstones.
Across languages and cultures
In each culture, the Navaratna largely reflects the same core concepts associated with the stones. Their arrangement is considered sacred in southern and southeastern Asia, including India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Singapore, Myanmar, Cambodia, Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, and Malaysia, regardless of religious and cultural differences.
Translation
Navaratnam in Sanskrit and Malayalam
Navaratna in Hindi, Marathi, Sinhalese, Kannada, and Indonesian
Nabaratna in Bengali and Odia
Navaratinam in Tamil
Navaratnalu in Telugu
Nawaratna in Malay and Nepali
Nawarat or Noppharat in Thai
Nawarat in Burmese
Recognition in Thailand
In Thailand, the Navaratna is officially recognised as a national and royal symbol.
The public source identifies “Navaratna” as group of nine gems. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Navaratna, group and nine.
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The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Apr 29, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q2672224.
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This entry incorporates text from “Navaratna” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.