The Predicament of the Votaries of Vedic Astrology
Everyday, thousands of votaries of Vedic astrology are surely surfing the net in the hope of coming upon some astrological solution or the other, for the alleviation of their baffling 'karmic-sufferings' in life. Sadly enough, the majority of these votaries, appear to be browsing the astrological websites only surreptitiously- for fear of incurring the ridicule & wrath of their rationalist-friends! For their part, the rationalists, are ever-ready to belittle their 'gullible' friends- holding that it is only the 'weak-minded' who have a need to turn to Vedic astrologers-who are 'no better than charlatans and quacks, taking refuge under the respectable cover of the Vedas'!
Under these circumstances -of our times being inimical to the votaries of astrology, as well as to the practitioners of this ancient Vedic discipline- we are faced with the following challenging question. Should we not be empowering the votaries of Vedic astrology, so that they may not only be able to draw vaster benefits from this Vedic discipline- as a result of their astrological awareness being raised- but may also be better equipped to lay at rest the 'demons' of doubt and confusion, unleashed by the rationalists?
'Raising the Level of Astrological Awareness'
Thus, in this Part, we attempt 'to raise the level of astrological awareness' of the votaries of Vedic astrology, with a view to empower them with the blessings of a new 'irreversible conviction' and a profound understanding of the real significance & problem-solving-power of SA . To achieve this end, we do not have to polarize at this stage, the striking differences between VA, as it is currently practiced, and the SA, which has made a bold departure from the age-old sutras of the VA. We achieve this rather uncommon goal by providing fundamental and clear answers to a number of pertinent questions- concerning not only the philosophical foundations of this ancient system of knowledge; but also governing the modus operandi of the powerful Remedial Measures of VA & the SA.
Four Levels of Qualification of the Votaries of Vedic Astrology
The majority of the votaries of Vedic astrology may only be impelled by 'the forces of fear & desire' and this may be the 'low-energy route' by which they could have come to Vedic astrology. These lowest stepping stones to astrology mark what we may consider to be the first rudimentary level, which may be some kind of a minimum qualification for turning to Vedic astrology. At this level, as this has been the votaries' first exposure to astrology, they may not have devoted any thought to astrology per se. No learning takes place at this level and their appetite is not kindled, unless some crisis deepens in life and well meaning friends insist that Vedic astrology holds the key for the resolution of that crisis.
Thus this first level is even below that of the 'believer' in astrology, for the believer already has gathered some credible information about astrology, which must have paved the way for his unquestioning belief. Beyond this second level of belief, a votary of Vedic astrology may come to acquire that additional qualification, called 'faith'; which on account of its greater creative-power, will certainly enable the votary to reap a more bountiful harvest of Divine grace; whenever he 'sows the seeds' of his labours and application, in the field of the astrological Remedial Measures.
These astrological endeavours may take the form of daily disciplined charities, made to the helpless creatures of Isvara [called 'Propitiatory Charities'], or they may also be in the form of some regular Poojas performed for a certain Hindu Devata [Deity], standing for one of the Navagrahas, which is a FM, in the individual's horoscope. Here we are talking of the benefits from the Remedial Measures of Vedic astrology.
Beyond the second level of 'belief' and the more advanced third level of 'faith', there lies, what we may consider to be even greater bona fides- to turn to astrology-and this is the 'understanding of Vedic astrology through its very discovery itself. Not surprisingly, this fourth level of qualification will bring to us, the greater blessings of an 'unshakable conviction' and a profound understanding of the spiritual-foundations and scope of Vedic astrology. As things stand in Hindu society, we may expect only a handful of people to have graduated to this highest & fourth level, while the number of votaries in the lower three levels must definitely increase, as we go down the levels.
A Sutra on the proportionality between 'The Fruits from the Remedial Measures' & 'The Depth of our Astrological Faith, Understanding & Conviction'
As we may reasonably expect, the magnitude of Isvara's grace we receive in the form of the alleviation of our 'karmic-sufferings' & as a fruit of Vedic astrology's Remedial Measures, is always only in proportion to the depth of our faith, understanding & conviction -as to what Vedic astrology is all about. Such a sutra while seeming to reward us for our 'sincere labours' and simultaneously alerting us to the risk of being self-satisfied with 'smaller returns' from the Remedial Measures; might also do something else-for which we may not exactly be prepared! It can also completely dispel our widely-held misconception that Vedic astrology has all along only been an 'external source of grace', having nothing at all to do with our own 'little-self' and our own 'little faith'.
This is a sutra we will have to constantly bear in mind, because it is a reminder to us that, unlike as in the external world, the fruits of our labours from the astrological Remedial Measures are dependent, to a substantial degree, on the depth of our own clarity and conviction-as to what Vedic astrology is all about. As this may be one of the first unexpected instances, when we meet the 'self' as a significant variable, determining the outcome of our own exertions, we may well be taken aback, in this first encounter with the 'self'.
If we ponder a little further and apply this sutra even to our scientific labours, we will certainly also find it to be true in that domain as well, even though in that case, it would pertain more to the 'external observable world'. Have we not often found scientists with varying degrees of commitment or even faith in their own endeavours? And have we not discovered that even in this so-called 'external sphere of our life' that the fruits of our labours, have always depended upon the extent to which we have internalized that discipline in which we are labouring?
The substantial irreducible role of the human observer, in himself being responsible for shaping the observed phenomena in the microscopic atomic world is seen to be attested by one of the Grand Masters of modern Theoretical Physics:
"This state of affairs is very satisfactory from a philosophical point of view, as implying an increasing recognition of the part played by the observer in himself introducing the regularities that appear in his observations, and the lack of arbitrariness in the ways of nature,…"
- P.A.M. Dirac[18]
The more our faith, understanding & conviction, the more our blessings and boons. Have we not discovered this eternal law? Thus this sutra on the proportionality between the fruits of our astrological labours on the one hand and our own inner conviction & depth of understanding, on the other, may be taken to have universal validity, covering widely different domains. And this being the case, will any diligent Vedic astrologer, refrain from exerting himself, so as to 'raise the level of astrological awareness' of the people who have come to him to find solutions for their baffling 'karmic-sufferings' in life? For this reason, we have introduced the Chitta-Shuddhi Shakti [purity of consciousness] of the seeker of the Remedial Measures of Vedic astrology as an important contributory factor in building up the power of the Kavach as a sacred object. [See Part VII, Sec.6.(ii), for details]
The ascent of the Votaries of Vedic Astrology through The Four Levels
Though mere 'belief' of the second level is certainly much better than the 'unbelief & ignorance' of the first level; yet it is still not 'good enough' and will accordingly not bring to us, 'those vaster benefits and blessings' we certainly aspire for, through our daily dedicated performance of the astrological Remedial Measures. It is for this reason that votaries of Vedic astrology will always be desirous of raising their level of awareness to its very summit. It is human nature to aspire for the ultimate and the highest-simply because humans are spiritually, of infinite magnitude, though on the material plane, they may be quite diminutive in their physical stature.
Therefore, far-sighted votaries of astrology, will not hesitate to raise their level of awareness, from the rudimentary stage of a mere 'unbelief & ignorance' to the second level of 'belief' and then they may even see the worthwhile ness of raising it to even the higher level of 'profound faith'. This level can be reached only if one takes the pains to apply some thought and learn a few things, as to what astrology is all about and what it is not. The fourth level, of 'understanding, insight & discovery' is of course the most desirable & the most blessed of them all.
In this way, it is hoped that the votaries of Vedic astrology will come to receive the blessings of an abiding conviction, as also a new clarity & a profound understanding- in the light of which, it will become all the easier for them to accept Vedic astrological solutions for the baffling 'karmic-problems' in their lives.
Moreover, in the process of unveiling the intelligent face of Vedic astrology for the benefit of her numberless votaries, we are achieving another important goal; in that, 'the demons of derision and disdain' let loose by the rationalists are once and for all laid to rest, for these 'demons' are shown to arise only from an illusory misconception on the part of the rationalists as to what Vedic astrology is all about. As a result of this, cleansing of our perceptions- as to what Vedic astrology is and what it is not-the votaries of astrology become qualified for the highest level, from which, the seeking of Isvara's grace through Vedic astrological knowledge & through the Remedial Measures becomes all the more easier as well as fruitful.
The Misperceptions of The Rationalists
"There are no longer any gods whom we can invoke to help us. The great religions of the world suffer from increasing anemia,… …. Our present lives are dominated by the goddess Reason, who is our greatest and most tragic illusion. By the aid of reason, so we assure ourselves, we have "conquered nature."
-C.G.Jung[15]
In the wake of the Bharatiya Janata Party [BJP] coming to power in India, in the early part of 2001, there raged an almost one-sided debate between the Indian scientists on the one hand and the community of savants of Hindu learning and Vedic astrologers on the other. This was in many ways a one-sided battle, for the wisdom of the Indian Vedic astrologers, did not prompt them to enter into a warfare of words with people on the other side, whose minds were closed to the truth of Vedic astrology, from the very beginning.
Coming to think of it, the rationalists' attack on Vedic astrology is itself irrational to an extreme degree! Before rejecting any discipline of knowledge as unsound, one has to first of all undertake a laborious study of the same, in order to ascertain for oneself, what its various merits and demerits are. Moreover, as astrology has millions of votaries world-wide and has survived the rise and fall of many an ancient civilization; a humanity, which is intuitively spiritually-oriented will certainly not accept that astrology deserves to be banished from this Earth! Yet, this is the irrational dream of the 'rationalists'! It is only on the basis of such a fundamental enquiry that one may accept or reject any given discipline of learning.
It is irrational and absurd to offer 'reasons' for the rejection of a discipline, when one has not even taken the pains and devoted the necessary time, in order to thoroughly acquaint oneself with all the subtler tenets of that discipline. Yet, this is exactly where the 'rationalists' have erred. They have rejected Vedic astrology, without ever having studied and examined the same….., but have advanced a number of 'reasons', why it is unworthy of their scientific admiration! [See also Sec.2 of Part VII, which is an allied section.]
Vidyas vis-à-vis Sciences-Revisited
As Vedic astrology is not interested in staking any claim to being a 'Science', its true men of learning, the Hindu astrologers, will never be displeased, if rationalists do not look up to their astrology with their 'scientific' admiration. Vedic and Hindu astrology, far from being a 'Science', is quite satisfied to be only a Vedic Vidya [Jyotir Vidya -system of spiritual-learning]. A Vidya can never be a Science, nor can a Science be a Vidya, since the two are entirely different 'species of knowledge'; one being avowedly 'Divinity-centered' [Vidya], while the other being avowedly blind to 'Divinity' and the spiritual world [Science].
If we were to probe into the whole question of the identity of these 'rationalists', we shall find to our consternation that they are by and large the English-educated Hindus, who have suffered a 'cultural-conversion' to a Western intellectual approach to life. This is all the more tragic, if we take into account the fact that even 'rationalists' of Europe or America have been more understanding of the spiritual value and ethos of Sanatana Dharma and the Vedas, than Hindu rationalists have been on their very home ground. Through such a 'cultural-conversion', the rationalists have turned into die-hard adherents of a Western world-view- although they are quite unconscious of the exact nature of the 'cultural-conversion', which they have suffered.
The Apotheosis of Science and Technology
"I stress this point because, in our time, there are millions of people who have lost faith in any kind of religion. Such people do not understand their religion any longer. While life runs smoothly without religion, the loss remains as good as unnoticed. But when suffering comes, it is another matter. That is when people begin to seek a way out and to reflect about the meaning of life and its bewildering and painful experiences." [emphasis mine]
- C.G. Jung [19]
Unfortunately, this new Western approach to life, which that avatar of history, Arnold J. Toynbee, has befittingly called 'the apotheosis of science and technology'; has entailed a turning of one's back completely on the humanistic spheres of religion and the spiritual-flowering of man. Thus, the 'misperception' of the rationalists has taken the form of a spiritual-impoverishment and blindness to the religious & spiritual dimensions of human life. As Vedic astrology is set in the spiritual-framework of the Vedas, it should not come as a surprise to us that such a system of astrology is not only unintelligible to the rationalists; it could also be highly provocative for this very reason-since the intellect, which can never accept spiritual-reality, is the only instrument of investigation, at the disposal of the rationalists.
If our votaries of Vedic astrology had more clarity, as to what Vedic astrology is all about, then they would have proudly and ably defended their system of astrology and educated the rationalists in the process. This brings up before us the very important question of educating the votaries of Vedic astrology in the first place. Once this is done, the education of the rationalists would follow as a matter of course, for this challenge would be automatically taken up by the votaries of astrology themselves.
The votaries of Vedic astrology, when they come to knock on the doors of the astrological websites, have a choice. If we are honest at all, we must admit that the majority of these votaries, must necessarily suffer from a lack of conviction and abiding faith, in so far as the problem-solving-power of Vedic astrology is concerned. We do not say, their half-knowledge and their lack of clarity is due to their own intellectual & spiritual inadequacy. No! Rather, we maintain that, as in the present epoch of the Hindu civilization, as Hindu society continues to be debilitated and still very much under the cultural onslaughts of the continuing process of world-wide Westernization; especially, the English-educated Hindus necessarily suffer from an alienation from their own Sanatana Dharma and its various systems of subtle spiritual-knowledge. [See also Sec.2. of Part II]
This unhappy situation can, however be remedied, as soon as individual Hindus and seekers alike turn their spiritual attention inwards, into their own consciousness and thereby recover the long-lost connection with their soul or Atma. Once this most important milestone in their inner spiritual-journey into self-knowing and being comes to pass, then it is only a matter of some more time, before the English-educated Hindus & seekers become awakened to the priceless spiritual treasures of humanity's spiritual ancestors- the Vedic Rishis [2,3,4,5,6].