What is Vedic Astrology all about ?
Vedic Astrology [VA] is a spiritually profound & quantitative system of predictive-knowledge governing both the 'timing of occurrence' as well as the 'intensity' of all the significantly happy, as well as the significantly tragic events of our human life. Such 'Significant Life-Events' in this discipline are understood to arise, in accordance with cosmic laws which govern the changing patterns of our 'destiny'. Using the mathematical model of astronomy, involving the movement of the nine planets; VA portrays what 'destiny' is in store for us in the womb of time. And whenever such a 'destiny' threatens to take the malefic-form of a 'conspiracy or obstruction' leading to suffering at certain times in our life; it lays down individual-specific Spiritual Remedial Measures for modifying & overcoming the same.
Put differently, it may be taken to be 'Kaala Vidya', or a system of Vedic-knowledge on the nature of 'Time', in so far as its benefic & malefic impact on our 'destiny' is concerned. Alternatively, it may also be considered to be 'Jyotir Vidya', the composite-name for astronomy & astrology in that ancient Vedic-civilization. Here we should not miss out on the etymological meaning of Jyotir Vidya: It is a spiritual system of knowledge, which enables us to 'See or illuminate, that which we are looking at in the field of our destiny or life'. For this very reason, the Vedic Rishis [Sages] had defined Jyotir Vidya as ' The eye of wisdom '.
* The term 'modern civilization' will acquire deeper and well-defined meanings as we go along. [See Sec. 3 of Part I below, as also Sec. 2 of Part II].
Does our High-Tech Modern World need the Wisdom of the Ancient Vedic Sages ?
"When psychologists have investigated precisely what we resolve, it appears we are terribly self-centered, primarily preoccupied with our health and looks." - Dr. Raj Persaud [Ref 1,Pg 56-in the context of the 'kind of resolutions', we moderns make].
It is inherently difficult for people of one civilization to be able to swing into the perceptions of people of another, especially when the two civilizations are poles apart, as in the present circumstances in which we find ourselves. As moderns, who have a strong sense of pride in our marvellous scientific & technological achievements, as also a concomitant feeling of 'self-sufficiency' arising there from; the basic question of whether we really need all this wisdom of the Vedic Sages for bringing light into our supposedly 'disconsolate' lives, must certainly have troubled our conscience at some time or the other. It is therefore natural for us to address ourselves first of all to this touchy question - which seems to remain ever in the background.
As our world-wide 'modern civilization'* has addressed itself primarily only to the challenge of bringing happiness & fulfilment to man's physical and mental appetites; and falls silent - whenever it has to either grapple with our sufferings & misfortunes or lead us to Divinity & peace in our inner-life - we may safely conclude that it has really nothing much to offer, in these subtler spheres of life. We must realize in the first instance that it has not been 'designed' to deal in a purposeful way with either our spiritual appetites or with the deeper philosophical questions of our human existence - concerning the nature of 'Divinity', death & the ending of our physical & psychological suffering.
By the time we come to recognize its spiritual inadequacy & bankruptcy, half of our life is actually over and done with. It is at this stage that we may 'wake-up' to become serious seekers and start looking for various means to bring about inner peace and contentment- since this has been the one thing, which has been constantly elusive in our lives-in spite of the apparent fulfilment of our physical & mental appetites!
Having arrived at this impasse, if we would have knocked on the doors of Vedic astrology of India; then, it is at this point that the wisdom of the ancient Vedic Sages, would have begun to reveal itself to us - in the form of the Remedial Measures. Not that Vedic astrology is the only source of wisdom and blessings from the ancients. Everyone should have heard of Yoga & Ayurveda; in addition to a whole host of other ancient-therapies & remedies - both Eastern, as well as Western - for bringing fulfilment for the deeper yearnings of man's soul. In the light of this self-critical introspection into our modern civilization, we will now turn to our real objective.
* The term 'modern civilization' will acquire deeper and well-defined meanings as we go along. [See Sec. 3 of Part I below, as also Sec. 2 of Part II].
The Modern World-View vis-à-vis The Ancients'
Our contemporary world-wide modern civilization, which has essentially come to be set in a Western technological and secular mould- in contrast to the ancient civilizations- is anything but spiritual, as it is avowedly not 'God-centered' at all, in so far as its comprehensive vision of life is concerned. In fact, rather than being 'God-centered', it is either purely centered on the pursuit of technological-knowledge, leading eventually to wealth & professional success[all for the glorification & fulfilment of an ephemeral ego]; or worse still; it is often centered entirely only on the pursuit of pleasures & comforts, to the exclusion of every other higher humanitarian and spiritual value in life. In such a modern world-view then; the spiritual realities of the soul, God & the unity of all life- are more or less reckoned to be uncalled for 'hindrances', in the way of our headlong pursuit of individual success & the sensory gratifications in life.
It is this radical divergence of our world-view from that of the ancients, which puts us at a definite disadvantage; when it comes to our grasping, the significance and utility of Vedic astrology, within the context of our dramatic, but troubled lives.
VA does not imply a Fatalistic Vision of Life
Interestingly, contrary to our possible misconception of Vedic astrology implying some fatalistic vision of life, in which man is ever at the mercy of his irrevocable 'destiny'; it offers us a series of intelligent Remedial Measures in the form of daily charities, prayers, worship of certain prescribed Devatas[Deities], and the uninterrupted wearing of sacred objects on our bodies, such as 'Kavachs' or 'Yantras', as the means & mechanism of surmounting all the varied 'karmic-obstacles', which may be part of our 'destiny'.
This seemingly 'inconceivable' but nonetheless very desirable goal is achieved by modifying the 'karmic-effects' of the cosmic forces that are shaping our 'destiny', through the reciprocal-impact on our 'destiny' of these Spiritual Remedial Measures. In this way, the resultant 'karmic-effects' of the cosmic forces are made more favourable for the fulfilment of our endeavours in every sphere of our life. This in a nutshell is what Vedic astrology all about.
Its origins lie in the insights and spiritual-illuminations that its wise progenitors -the Vedic Rishis [Sages] had, at a time when their spiritual-culture was in its heyday, some five to nine thousands years ago [2, 3]. Thus it may be traced back to its source, the Vedas, the oldest corpus of spiritual and mystical-literature of the world [2, 3, 4]. For the present, by 'Vedic', we may understand 'spiritual-knowing' or 'spiritual-learning', such as what must have transpired in the 'pure-consciousness' of the Vedic Rishis.
When we examine VA, with eyes sensitive to 'duality' we will find that it gives us a profound 'karmic-understanding', of both- the malefic-patterns of 'persistent conspiracy of fate', as well as the benefic-patterns of 'consistent good-fortune'- that we might have observed many a time, in the field of our mysterious human lives.
It also gives a detailed picture of which spheres of our life have the blessings of Isvara ['God'] and which suffer from an inherent denial of His grace. Thus, it throws a flood of spiritual and karmic-light on how we may decipher and assimilate our misfortunes & sufferings and thereby even opens the door to spiritual-awakening, which may well come our way, as a result of our deep understanding & assimilation of these unexpected 'conspiracies & blows of fate'. Great though these blessings are in themselves, yet we must not be under the naive impression that these are the only blessings, that Vedic astrology has got to offer to us.
[See Sec 2 of Part IV, for the relevant verdict of Edgar Cayce ]
Vedic Astrology is a Vidya & not a Science
By a Vidya is meant, a subtle system of spiritual-knowledge, discovered by the Vedic Rishis and having as its essential hall-mark, its recurrent focal-theme of the presence of Divinity [Isvara or Parabrahma]- at the very heart of every aspect of nature, as well as in the very bosom of man's consciousness. In this sense, all Hindu Vidyas are manifestly 'Isvara [Divinity]-centred' or 'centered around the Devatas [Deities]', rather than being in the nature of the 'Sciences'-such as we know them in our own day -with their characteristic aloofness from the 'spiritual' and the 'consciousness' aspects of our human life. This fundamental distinction between the Sciences, on the one hand and the Hindu Vidyas on the other, will have to be constantly borne in mind, if we are to reap a more bountiful harvest as a result of our turning to Vedic astrology and its powerful Remedial Measures.
The natural Vedic self-consistency between the existence of numerous Vedic Devatas [Deities] on the one hand and a unique Godhead [Parabrahma] on the other, may be seen in the following passage of a modern Vedic Rishi, who has had a substantial role to play in creating an intense awareness of the paramount importance of the Vedas, which he held to be the original well-spring of India's timeless spiritual culture:
"It is a marked, an essential feature of the Vedic hymns that although the Vedic cult was not monotheistic in the modern sense of the word, yet they continually recognize, sometimes quite openly and simply, sometimes in a complex and difficult fashion, always as an underlying thought, that the many godheads whom they invoke are really one Godhead,-One with many names, revealed in many aspects, approaching man in the mask of many divine personalities."
- Sri. Aurobindo [5]
Even renowned Jyotish Acharyas[authoritative learned teachers of Jyotisha or Vedic astrology, according to a certain definitive school of learning]are often seen referring to Vedic astrology as a 'Science' [6, 7]. Although one can advance three sound reasons in support of such a perception; yet when we look at this whole question from more fundamental considerations, the 'scientific' nature of Vedic astrology is seen to be only of very limited validity.
On the grounds that Vedic astrology is 'quantitative' like Mathematics, Statistics, Engineering or Theoretical Physics, and is also highly 'systematic' like the modern Sciences; this perception of the Jyotish Acharyas does indeed have a certain validity. Moreover, Vedic astrology also has that other hall-mark of the modern 'Sciences'- namely, the development of this system of knowledge occurring always only as a result of the constant mutual-interaction between empirical data from human lives on the one hand and the theoretical formulation of the astrological sutras on the other. This is exactly like the constant interchange in the Sciences between theory and experiment. Thus some similarities do exist between the methods of Vedic astrology and the modern methods of the Sciences.
However, in spite of these similarities, when we look into the Vedic-origin and the philosophical & inherently spiritual-orientation of Vedic astrology, we see that it will be more consistent to classify it as a Vedic or Hindu Vidya, and set it apart from the modern Sciences, since these two systems of knowledge, in so far as their philosophical foundations are concerned, are actually poles apart.
We had emphasized that Vedic astrology is 'quantitative' and also a subtle system of knowledge. Now, there are many quantitative and subtle systems of knowledge, in our modern civilization as well, like the examples we have cited above. However all these differ from the Vedic systems, only because, they are part of a larger modern materialistic world-view, which does not recognize the existence of the 'spiritual' dimension of life nor of the underlying Divine presence, permeating the whole of man's world as well as the world of nature. This sharp contrast between the systems of modern knowledge, called the 'Sciences' and the ancient Vedic spiritual-systems of knowledge, called the Vidyas, makes it abundantly clear in which sense Vedic astrology may be deemed to be a 'Science' and in which sense, it may be deemed to be an 'esoteric species of knowledge', a Vedic Vidya- but never a 'Science'.
Vedic Astrology is a profoundly Philosophical & Quantitative Study of 'The Movement of Life', in the field of our Individual Human Experience
While Vedic / Hindu astrology employs planetary positions to understand the dynamics of 'the movement of life'; it has nothing to do with planetary motions per se, and certainly, it would be completely erroneous to hold that 'the planets rule our lives', when Isvara alone has dominion over them.
While Vedic / Hindu astronomy studied the motions of the celestial bodies, Vedic / Hindu astrology had nothing to do with the motions of the physical planets per se. From the point of view of Vedic/ Hindu astrology then, the object of its study is rather the 'mysterious movement of life', in the lives of individuals. As the Vedic society had a through and through spiritual out-look, this was naturally inherited by their astrology as well, which became one of the intellectual and spiritual pursuits in that ancient society.
According to those highly perceptive founding fathers, who were the Rishis [Sages]; throughout nature 'all movement', wherever it was observed in nature, had to only reflect the rhythms or 'the moods of Isvara'.
Thus for them, both the orderly movement of the planets as observed from this Earth station, as well as the rhythm of 'the mysterious movement of life' itself, on planet Earth - both had to be governed by the self-same changing 'moods of Isvara'. One movement was found to be predictable, namely the movement of the planets, whereas the other movement of life, say in an individual's life, seemed to be 'mysterious' and unpredictable.
Vedic astrology is an Isvara-centered system of learning [Jyotir Vidya], in which the foundational principle is that every life-event in the life of any individual, has to have a one to one mapping or correspondence with planetary positions on the natural zodiac. By calibrating the various life-events in a given individual's life with the changing planetary positions on the zodiac, one begins to see, 'the significance of the planetary positions', within the context of a human life. Both movements are the same in the highest sense; in that they are reflective of the changing 'moods' or the rhythms of Isvara. This is the most important principle of ancient astrology, whether it belonged to China, Mesopotamia, Arabia, Egypt or to the Vedic civilization.
Three Fruits of Vedic Astrology
[1] Predictions of coming life-events.
[2] Insights & wisdom into human life.
[3] Averting a 'bad-fate' through Remedial Measures.
Astronomy studies the motions of the planets and other celestial objects moving on the zodiacal belt, whereas astrology with its passion for philosophical profundity and the resolution of the enigmas and paradoxes in human life; studies the structure of human destiny, and sees it arising from the structure of time itself.
We are usually under the strong impression that the best fruits of Vedic astrology are the predictions: when disease may strike, when losses may come to us, when we may go abroad, when a marriage may be made or broken, when we may be honoured and when we may possibly die, or suffer some humiliation, or lose in a litigation, etc.
However, predictions are not the only desirable fruits of Vedic astrology. Even more valuable than the predictions are the philosophical fruits, such as insights into life and wisdom; for the Vedic astrologer can determine in a given life, when hard times come and when the time is fertile for a certain kind of activity. When a certain action may meet with success and when it may result only in failure and on the basis of such insights and judgements, Vedic astrologers will be able to tell us, whether it will be prudent to act at a certain time, whether it will be propitious, to commence the construction of a house, or whether some big suffering is in store for us, etc. Thus Vedic astrology has always been well-known for predictive knowledge undergoing a metamorphosis into insights, wisdom and a deeper understanding of life. Nor, are these insights & wisdom, all that there is to Vedic astrology.
[See also Sec.10 of Part II, pertaining to the Blessings from Vedic astrology.]
The Third Fruit: Astrological Remedial Measures & their Power
There are the very potent Remedial Measures of Vedic astrology, which are in almost all cases, fully capable of, alleviating the miseries to the extent of 80 to 90% [Ref.7, Pg 16]. Thus this Hindu Vidya, does not make a doomsday prediction and leave us in the lurch, completely vulnerable to the onslaughts of a 'bad-fate'. No! On the other hand, it teaches you how to raise 'the low energies' of the planets in your natal horoscope, either through special kinds of worship of the Hindu Devatas [Deities] corresponding to the Navagrahas; or through a special empowerment of planetary energies [Kavach];or even through Pariharas [Remedial Measures] for gradually nullifying the afflictions in a horoscope, etc. Or it suggests some methods to overcome a bad-affliction in the chart well in advance and in this way, teaches the individual how to get more out of life, through the intensifying of his intelligent effort in accordance with the detailed prescriptions of the Remedial Measures given to us by the Vedic Rishis.
Thus we may say, Vedic astrology not only gives predictions and warns us about coming events; it also helps us to greatly soften 'the blows of fate' and to overcome 'karmic-obstacles' in life through intelligent effort, centred round the Hindu Devatas, either on the physical plane or on the higher devotional and astral planes. A doctor prescribes medicines, which are expected to change the ill-health of the body, while a Vedic astrologer will ask us to enter into an intelligent effort on a daily basis, which may be in the nature of a small but heartfelt charity or which may be in the form of a devotional worship of a certain Devata which stands for the energy of one of the weak Navagrahas [9 planets] in our horoscope.
What is our Present Objective?
It is to receive 'the blessings of Isvara [God]'- through the powerful Remedial Measures of Vedic astrology [VA] & the Systems Approach to Vedic astrology [SA] - for one or all of the following three ends. (1) For understanding & surmounting our 'karmic-obstructions' in life; (2) For the alleviation of our 'karmic-sufferings' & (3) For securing an enduring inner peace and contentment, through the calming and soothing of our troubled consciousness!
In accomplishing the above objectives, it has also been my mission to raise the level of 'Hindu Consciousness' and the 'awareness of Vedic and Hindu astrology' world-wide, especially at a time when the Hindu civilization is seen to suffer from its inability to assert itself, through a genuine rediscovery of what its soul has stood for in times past.
Birth-Details are sufficient for creating the Horoscope
Usually people go to an astrologer only as a last resort, when every other door appears to be shut and no solution seems in sight. Some years ago, I had the good fortune to come face to face with one of the greatest contemporary astrologers of our times. He then told me, a strange truth, which immediately permeated into my consciousness, as swiftly as rain water would disappear into some sandy tract!:
"In times of adversity, help from all quarters will be cut-off, even the Deity in the temple will not answer our prayers. At such times, God speaks through the astrologer."
- Prof. Vinod Kumar Choudhry
In such times of trouble, all we have to do is make available our birth-details to the Vedic astrologer. This is our Time of Birth [TOB], Place of Birth [POB], Date of Birth [DOB] and the Year of Birth. Using this basic information, the astrologer, will be able to make our horoscope in a matter of a minute or so. In symbolic terms, this horoscope is the story of our life, our 'karmic-credit and debit account' or 'the mood of Isvara at the time of our birth'. It holds the key to how we may continue the journey of life, in the face of these 'blows of fate'; and what we may now undertake to do by way of Remedial Measures, so that we may recover from the present condition of a 'karmic- impasse', etc.
What Basic Astrological Info should We Know?
Content of the following Parts: Those who wish to consult astrologers will have to have some idea about important astrological variables present in their horoscope. In the Parts which follow we will have an occasion to go more deeply into various aspects of VA. After dispelling our ignorance and prejudice against VA in Part II, we shall familiarise ourselves with the four goals of traditional Hindu society in Part III. In Part IV we become familiar with the new 'global avatar' of VA. In Part V, we meet with the very precise and powerful Systems Approach to Vedic Astrology [SA]. In the following Part(VI) we realise that votaries of astrology actually fall into four different levels of energy & there is consequently the important challenge before astrologers of raising 'the level of consciousness' of these votaries.
In Part VII, we meet with the powerful Remedial Measure of the Kavach, for the Functional Benefics [FBs] in a horoscope and come to understand how it actually helps us to obtain the grace of Isvara, for bringing our karmic- obstacles & karmic-sufferings to an end. In the penultimate Part VIII, we familiarise ourselves with the Remedial Measures, in the form of Propitiatory Charities for the 'afflicting' FMs in a horoscope and come to understand how these Propitiatory Charities nullify the 'afflictions' in the chart-'afflictions', which point to the various misfortunes & 'bad-times' in our lives.
In Part IX, we present a number of typical case studies, illustrating how Vedic astrological guidance may be sought, in the face of daunting problems in life and how the powerful Remedial Measures set forth in Parts VII & VIII, actually help us to surmount karmic-obstacles & thereby bring in healing, protection & success in the face of these karmic-odds. In Part X, we briefly discuss three charts, pertaining to the spheres of Dharma & Moksha. In Part XI, we mention all our varied Vedic astrological services, intended for the 'fulfilment of the world' [Lokakalyana]. In the last & concluding Part XII, we furnish some relevant reference materials.
Basic Astrological Info We should Know:
- "We should know our Asdt sign-whether this is Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius or Pisces.
- We should know the Most Effective Point [MEP] of our horoscope as this characterises our individuality & destiny.
- We should know the Nakshatra in which the natal Mo is placed in our horoscope.
- We should know which are the strong Functional Benefic planets [FBs] and likewise which are the strong Functional Malefic planets [FMs] in the Systems Approach [SA].
- We should know which Hs are strong and which weak, by the SA criteria of the strengths of planets.
- We should know which planets are weak and which 'afflicted' and thus also 'weak' in another sense[SA].
- We should know which main period [dasa] and which sub-period [bhukti] are running at the time we come to an astrologer for consultation.
- We should also know which main periods & sub-periods will bring our 'karmic-obstacles' & 'karmic-sufferings' to the fore, in the respective sub-periods.
- Most importantly we should know from (iv), (v), (vi) what are the Remedial Measures, that may alleviate our sufferings coming from the 'blows of fate', to a good 80 to 90%.
Knowledge of these nine pieces of astrological data will give us immense clarity & confidence, as we set about seeking Vedic astrological guidance. We need not be disheartened, if we cannot hold the above nine pieces of data in our heads. By & by, they will get automatically committed to memory. In traditional Vedic / Hindu societies the votaries of astrology who sought astrological guidance had the above astrological data at their fingertips.