Word origin · etymology
Sanskrit kṛttikā, grouped with the cutting root kṛt.
Monier-Williams places kṛttikā under the kṛt family for cutting and identifies the Kṛttikās as the Pleiades. “Cutters” is a concise interpretive rendering of that connection; the historical name also denotes the mythic group, not merely an adjective.
Monier-Williams (1899): kṛt (cut) / kṛttikā — University of Hyderabad digital edition ↗
How we know · epistemology
Lexical attestation, ritual tradition and a stated coordinate convention
The dictionary attests the Pleiades name and flame or blade representations; the hymn pairs the mansion with Agni. These are historical associations. They do not make every person or interval in this sector destructive or purifying.
Monier-Williams (1899): kṛt (cut) / kṛttikā — University of Hyderabad digital edition ↗Taittiriya Nakshatra Sukta — Sanskrit text, Rajagopal Iyer transcription ↗
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