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1. An Introduction to Vedic Astrology
How I got into Vedic Astrology
How to approach a Vedic chart
Approaching a Vedic chart
Bridge of Skies (This is a good introduction to Vedic Astrology
even though it is
oriented towards using Vedic methods in Western charts.)
A Beautiful Nakshatra Table Completely Revised August 2007
A Table of Nakshatra Attributes
The Importance of Reality in Learning Astrology
The Art of Astrological Prediction
Approaching Jyotish: The Differences between Western & Vedic
Astrology
A Problem with Modern Western Astrological Thinking
What's Unique about a Birth Chart?
The Vedic Signs
The ABCs of Vedic Chart Analysis
Why Astrology can never be systematic
The Applicability of the Signs in Western and Vedic Astrology
New!
2. General Principles of Vedic Astrology
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Learning Vedic Astrology: A Proforma of General Principles
The Houses of the Horoscope
The Modern, Horary, and Vedic Houses
The Strongest Planet Wins
The Nodes
My Lastest Presentation on The Nodes
Understanding Divisional Charts - Part One
Shri Pati Padhati
A Brief Lecture on Nakshatras from James Kelleher
Evaluating Yogas
Types of Yogas
A Yoga Checklist Updated with Legend
Ways to Explore a Vedic Chart
The Lord of the First in Each of the Houses
Finding Synergy: One of the Keys to Chart Interpretation
The Ascendant: The Most Important Point in the Chart
The Lagna and Planetary Significations -- A Detailed Table
Visible Astrology -- The Importance of Observable Phenomena
The Unique Qualities of House Lords for Each Ascendant
Note: In order to preserve the formatting, I uploaded this
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as a PDF file.
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Narcissism, Self-Effacement and Rahu and Ketu
Note: In order to preserve the formatting, I uploaded this
article to my website
as a PDF file.
When you click on the link, your computer will either open it
with Adobe Reader
or save it to your hard disk so that you can do so.
Determining the planet that represents a theme in a chart
The Most Important Significators of Life Themes and their use in
chart
delineation and astrology software.
Who affects Who? Unilateral Aspects in Vedic Astrology.
How to determine the strongest planet(s) in a chart
The Ruler of the Chart: My Published Article in The Mountain
Astrologer
Paramount Considerations in Chart Interpretation New!
3. Vedic Tools of Prediction
Vedic Astrology: A Time-based System
The Profound Teachings of S. Iyer - Part One
An Introduction to Prasna
The Interpretation of Dasas
A Textual Flowchart of the Iyer Method
A Graphic Flowchart of the Iyer Method
A Sequence of Steps in Evaluating a Prasna Chart
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A Graphic Depiction of the Prasna Yogas
The Importance of Timing in Compatibility Assessment
The Art of Astrological Prediction
The Most Important Dasas and Bhuktis
The Fundamentals of Evaluating Dasa Effects
An Introduction to Dasas
Differences Between Analyzing a Vedic Birth Chart and Analyzing
Divisional
Charts
The Meanings of the Relative Distance between Dasa and Bhukti
Lord
Divisional Charts - A Precis of the the Hart de Fouw/Sheshadri
Iyer method
Modern Books
Light on Life (Not only the best Vedic astrology book in
English, but a huge
number of insights and gems for Western astrologers too.)
by Hart de Fouw and Robert Svoboda
Path of Light vol. 1 & 2 (Truly excellent new books by a
brilliant and generous
astrologer who shares his great depth of understanding of
Jyotish. Highly
Recommended!)
by James Kelleher
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New Techniques of Prediction 1 & 2 (For advanced Vedic
astrologers only, the
brilliant predictive methods and understandings of a great
Jyotish master)
by H.R. Seshadri Iyer
Learn Astrology The Easy Way (For beginning to intermediate
students of Vedic
astrology, this provides a very good education in Vedic
astrology.)
by Dr. G.S. Kapoor
A Thousand Suns an excellent new Vedic book that covers a huge
range of Vedic
topics in a very accessible and easy-to-read conversational
style. Highly
Recommended!
by Linda Johnsen
Astro Sutras
Events and Nativities
and Art of Predictions (excellent books by the late excellent
astrologer Bhasin)
by JN Bhasin
How to Read a Bhava (a very small book that condenses divisional
chart analysis
quite well)
by Dr. T. S. Vasan
Varshphal or Annual Horoscope (an excellent book on Vedic Solar
Returns)
by Sumeet Chugh
Predictive Astrology - An Insight (a comprehensive &
excellent analysis of
planets in houses)
by Dinesh S. Mathur
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Practical Vedic Astrology (a fine compendium of 25 years of the
authors notes,
well organized)
by G. S. Agarwal
How to Read Your Horoscope (newly reprinted excellent modern
interpretations of lordships , planets in signs and houses,
etc.)
By James E. Higgins III and Tom Hopke
Vault of the Heavens (a lovely and comprehensive textbook on
Vedic astrology,
complete with modern interpretations of the lordships for each
Lagna, and
more.)
& Core Yogas (a unique, descriptive, and comprehensive
analysis of yogas)
both by Ernst Wilhelm
Navamsa in Astrology (extensive examination of the navamsa and
classical
approaches to it.)
by Chandulal S. Patel
A Course in Indian Astrology (101 lessons in astrology by
knowledgeable
Jyotishis)
by Prof. N.E. Muthuswamy and Prof. K.P. Dharmaraja Iyer
Dr. K.S. Charak has many books, including a two volume Elements
of Vedic
Astrology,Varshaphal (which Hart endorses), and my favorite of
his Yogas in
Astrology
Astrology and Jyotirvidya (a very intelligent and well-thought
out book on many
facets of Jyotish, including Nakshatras, Dasas, Prognosis, and
much more.)
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by Viswanath Deva Sarma
Mansions of the Moon (a wonderful book on Nakshatra myths,
meanings, etc.)
by Kenneth Johnson
Predictive Astrology of the Hindus (extensive and excellent)
by Pandit Gopesh Kumar Ojha
The Astrology of the Seers (a very good book, but it mixes a
little Western
astrology in)
by David Frawley
The Lunar Nodes (some very good insights in this one)
by Komilla Sutton
also her Essentials of Vedic Astrology and her Indian Astrology
coffee table book
have merit.
Ganesha Hora Shastram (An incredibly deep exploration of each
house, its
occupants, and lord.)
by S. Ganesh
Nakshatras (The first Western book on Nakshatras, the product of
a great deal
of research.)
by Dennis Harness
Classical Vedic Texts
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Brihat Parashara Hora Shastra (the "bible" of Vedic
astrology)
Translated by R. Santhanam
Phaladeepika (the second most important "bible" in Vedic
astrology)
Translated by S. S. Sareen
(Do NOT get the translation by Kapoor, it's riddled with
errors)
Uttara Kalamrita (an excellent book showing themes of each house
in depth)
Translated by S. S. Sareen or by Dr. P.S. Sastri
Saravali (two volume classic focuses on planets in houses,
decanates, etc.)
Translated by R. Santhanam
Bhrigu Sutram (a look at each planet in each house, with
reference to 4 Vedic
classics)
Translated by G. S. Kapoor
Brihat Jataka (one volume with extensive and interesting notes
by the translator)
and Sri Sarwathachintamani (two volume set with extensive,
useful commentary
of this major Vedic classic)
both translated by B. Suryanarain Rao
Jataka Parijata (3 Vol) (/w Original Slokas in Sanskrit and
English Trans. My
Vedic teacher, Hart often quotes this important work that is
used as the textbook
in Vedic studies in India )
by Subramanyam Shastri
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Kalaprakasika (I haven't seen this one, but it's recommended by
Hart)
translated by N.P. Subramaria Iyer
Approaching Jyotish A Comparison of Western and Vedic Astrology
by Hank Friedman
A growing number of Western astrologers are becoming curious
about
Vedic astrology (Jyotish) and need help sorting through the
differences between the
two systems. Often, the dissimilarities are not spelled out,
since many Vedic teachers
either have little understanding of Western astrology or simply
don't address the
issues that a Western astrologer might have.
As a practitioner of both systems, I have a great love for
both
Western and Vedic astrology and want to make it easier for
Western astrologers to
approach the field of Jyotish (or Hindu) astrology. That is the
purpose of this
article.
To successfully make the transition to understanding and
practicing Vedic
astrology, Western astrologers must first grasp where Jyotish
departs, both in
technique and in approach, from the methods they use.
Please understand that this article will take time to
assimilate, because it
details a number of the important divergences between the two
astrologies. It is
definitely worth making the effort. Those who do so will find
themselves better
prepared to study Vedic astrology and will eventually know two
excellent
astrological systems that complement each other incredibly
well.
If you are already familiar with Western astrology, you have the
great
advantage of understanding the meanings of the planets, signs,
and houses; most of
these are transferable to your study of Jyotish.
What Is Vedic Astrology?
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Western astrology has had a very fitful journey. Most ancient
texts were
destroyed, and many medieval works were never translated until
very recently.
Western astrology has died and been re-invented many times.
Throughout its
history, it has frequently been maligned and rejected both by
the powers-that-be
and by the masses.
Jyotish, on the other hand, has been a revered continuous
tradition for
thousands of years. It is rich in spiritual practices and was
orally transmitted intact
over millennia, before it was ever written down. With such deep
and powerful roots,
Vedic astrology has guided generation upon generation, and it
continues to be
highly respected in India today. As such, the core principles
and methods of Jyotish
were developed by ancient masters and explicated in great detail
before the rise of
modern civilization. The classical texts of this tradition and
the commentaries by
advanced teachers serve as the ultimate authority to instruct
and guide practitioners
of Jyotish.
Differences in Techniques The Two Zodiacs
Most astrologers know that Western astrology uses the Tropical
zodiac,
where the signs are defined by the Sun's apparent annual
seasonal movement
around the Earth. Thus, Aries is defined as the place in the sky
where the Sun
crosses the equator going northward (which is the first day of
spring in the
Northern Hemisphere).
Vedic astrologers (Jyotishis) use the Sidereal zodiac, where the
signs are
defined by the actual physical constellations, the stars in the
sky. The most
commonly used reference point is the star Spica, which defines
the beginning of the
sign Libra. This is the basis of the Lahiri (aka
Chitrapaksha)ayanamsha. The
word ayanamsha literally means the "falling-back portion" the
difference between the two zodiacs due to the precession of the
equinoxes.
This divergence between the zodiacs is continually growing; in
1900, it was
about 23 degrees, and in 2000, it was about 24 degrees. As an
example, for a person
born in 2000, you can convert a planet at 25 Tropical Cancer to
its Sidereal
position by simply subtracting 24 degrees, resulting in a
Sidereal placement of 1
Cancer. Most astrology software allows you to calculate
planetary positions for both
the Tropical and Sidereal coordinate systems.
It is very confusing to Western astrologers that someone can
have, say, the
Sun in Taurus in Western astrology, but the Sun in Aries in
Vedic astrology. This
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seems to be a sticking point for many people I have talked to.
Once you understand,
however, that the signs are used differently in Vedic astrology
(primarily for
determining the strength of planets and evaluating rulerships),
this discrepancy
becomes less of an issue.
The Houses
House systems: Western astrologers set the beginning of the 1st
house at the
Ascendant and the beginning of the 10th house at either the
Midheaven (for Koch,
Placidus, Campanus, etc., house systems) or the Nonagesimal the
point 90 degrees behind the Ascendant (for the Equal House
system).
For most purposes, Jyotishis use whole-sign houses, where each
house is a
whole sign, and the 1st house is the sign occupied by the
Ascendant. For example, if
a person had a Sidereal Ascendant of 12 Leo, the 1st house would
start at 0 Leo
and end at 30 Leo (i.e., the 1st house would encompass the whole
sign of Leo).
Note: Some Jyotishis use Shri Pati houses in addition to
whole-sign houses.
In this method of house division, the house cusps that Western
astrologers know as
Porphyry become the centers of the houses, and the beginning and
end of each house is determined by averaging adjacent centers.
Since Project Hindsight revealed that ancient Western astrology
used
whole-sign houses, the acceptance of whole-sign houses has
started to grow among
Western astrologers.
The nature of houses: Vedic astrology classifies the houses in
many ways
that are foreign to the modern Western astrologer. The four
angular houses (1st,
4th, 7th, 10th) are called Kendras and are considered the places
of power, i.e.,
planets have full expression in these houses. What we would call
the fire houses (1st,
5th, 9th) are called Trikonas, or Trines, and represent the
places of opportunity and
good fortune.
There are also four houses (3rd, 6th, 8th, 12th) called the
Dusthanas; these
houses represent the areas of life where obstacles and suffering
arise. Three of these
houses (6th, 8th, 12th) are calledTrik houses (Trikastanas); the
planets ruling these
houses, and the occupants therein, can indicate the most
challenging arenas of life.
Also, there are four houses of improvement (3rd, 6th, 10th,
11th)
called Upachayas; malefic planets (the Sun, Mars, Saturn, and
the Moon's nodes) do
well in these houses, and planets occupying these houses
represent themes that
gradually improve during the lifetime.
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Correspondences: Vedic astrologers sometimes give different
meanings and
attributions to the houses than do Western astrologers. For
example, though
Western astrologers see the 6th as a house of discernment,
Jyotishis see
the 5th house as governing that faculty.
Also, the meanings of the houses have been extended
significantly in Vedic
astrology. For example, besides the usual meanings, the 2nd
house represents family
matters and the voice; the 3rd house, courage and effort; the
5th house, wisdom and
good karma; the 8th house, mastery of ancient wisdom; the 11th
house, older
siblings and easily acquired money; and the 12th house, sexual
enjoyment and
foreign residence. (My article, "Bridge of Skies" in the
Oct./Nov. 2001 issue of The
Mountain Astrologer, gives many more Vedic house
correspondences; this article
can be read on my Web site at:
http://www.soulhealing.com/november01astro.htm)
Chart forms: Western astrologers use a circular chart wheel in
their work;
the North and South Indian astrologers use a square chart. The
differences between
these three forms are shown inFigure One.
Traditional Rulerships
Modern Western astrologers view Uranus as the ruler of Aquarius,
Neptune
as the ruler of Pisces, and Pluto as the ruler of Scorpio;
however, for most of
Western astrology's history, traditional rulerships were used.
These are identical to
the rulerships still used by Vedic astrologers: Mars rules Aries
and Scorpio, Jupiter
rules Sagittarius and Pisces, Saturn rules Capricorn and
Aquarius, and Mercury
rules Gemini and Virgo (and is exalted in Virgo).
These traditional rulerships are very valuable to know and
useful to apply,
even in your Western astrological practice. They often reveal
connections (such as
those between houses) that might otherwise be missed. For
example, in the Western
chart (not shown) for Antonio Banderas, with Pisces rising,
Jupiter (the traditional
ruler of the chart) is in its own sign of Sagittarius in the
10th house; this explains his
incredible success, his good looks, and that he is often chosen
to play the hero (all of
these are Jupiter/1st-house themes).
Also, Vedic astrologers do not use what Western astrologers call
signs of
detriment (i.e., the sign opposite the sign a planet rules).
This can be confusing to
Western astrologers trying to learn Vedic astrology, because
English translations of
Vedic texts usually use the term "detriment" as the translation
of the Vedic
word neecha, which is equivalent to the Western term "fall" (the
sign opposite the
exaltation sign). In other words, instead of saying Mars is in
its fall in the sign of
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Cancer, a Vedic text would state that Mars is in its detriment
in Cancer.
(Neecha actually means "fallen.")
It takes surprisingly little time to get used to the Vedic
concept of detriment,
since the signs that Western astrologers designate for "fall"
are exactly the same as
what Vedic astrologers call "detriment": Sun in Libra, Moon in
Scorpio, Mercury
in Pisces, Venus in Virgo, Mars in Cancer, Jupiter in Capricorn,
and Saturn in
Aries. Vedic astrologers see planets in detriment as both weak
and unstable;
however, certain Vedic chart factors can strengthen debilitated
planets.
The Planets
Western astrologers use the ten major planets (the Sun through
Pluto) and
often add points: the comet Chiron, the four major asteroids,
and so on.
Vedic astrologers primarily use nine points: the Sun and Moon,
the planets
Mercury through Saturn, and the Moon's North Node (called Rahu)
and South
Node (called Ketu), which are referred to as shadowy
planets.
The reason that modern Vedic astrologers often give for
continuing to
exclude the outer planets (Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto) is that
the system of
rulership, so essential to Vedic delineation, becomes disrupted
by the addition of
more points. Furthermore, the nodes are significators of the
kinds of modern things
computers, technology, epidemic diseases, etc. that Western
astrologers use Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto to represent. (Still, a
small number of Vedic astrologers
are introducing the outer planets into their practice.)
Also unique to Vedic astrology is the assessment of the Sun as a
cruel or
malefic planet. One can easily imagine that, in a Tropical
country like India, the hot
and intense Sun would be seen as deleterious. Nevertheless, the
Sun also symbolizes,
as it does in Western astrology, the core of the soul (or
Atman).
When Vedic astrologers ask, "What's your sign?" they expect to
be told a
person's Moon sign or mansion, not the Sun sign. That's because
the Moon is
considered to be more important than the Sun in Vedic astrology.
In fact, transits
are reckoned from the Moon, and the central predictive method of
Jyotish is based
upon the lunar mansion occupied by the Moon at birth.
Aspects
How aspects are formed: In Western astrology, the aspects are
determined
primarily by the angle between two planets. To be in aspect, two
planets must be
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within a certain degree range, or orb, of the specified angle.
For example, if the
Moon is at 12 Cancer and Mars is at 16 Pisces, they are said to
be trine each other,
within a 4 orb.
Vedic astrologers generally use whole-sign aspects (which,
incidentally,
were also used by the ancient Greco-Roman astrologers).
Therefore, any planet in
Libra is in aspect to any planet in Aries, no matter what their
degree positions are.
And if Mars is at 2 Libra and the Moon at 28 Pisces, Jyotishis
do not consider
them to be in aspect to each other whereas most Western
astrologers would characterize them as being in opposition. (Many
Vedic astrologers do pay attention
to aspect orbs, but they don't use as tight orbs as do Western
astrologers.)
Unlike Western astrology, where the type of aspect adds meaning
(e.g.,
squares are challenging), Vedic aspects are neutral. What makes
an aspect positive
or negative is not the type of aspect but whether the aspecting
planet is a benefic or a
malefic. The benefic planets are: Jupiter, Venus, and also
Mercury (unless aspected
only by malefics), and the Moon. The malefics are: Rahu and Ketu
(the Moon's
North and South Node, respectively), Saturn, Mars, and the
Sun.
What aspects are used: In Western astrology, the Ptolemaic
aspects
(conjunction, sextile, square, trine, and opposition) are most
frequently used; of
course, many astrologers add other aspects. Every planet is
capable of making each
kind of aspect.
In Vedic astrology, the conjunction is called "association." For
example, a
classical Vedic text may state that the Moon is in association
with Mars, which
means that both are in the same sign.
The only aspect that every planet makes in Jyotish is the
opposition (to all
planets in the opposite sign). Three planets Mars, Jupiter, and
Saturn make additional "special" aspects. These special aspects are
considered unidirectional
(made by one of these planets to another planet and not vice
versa).
Jupiter's special aspect is easy for the Western astrologer to
understand.
Jupiter is the only planet that can trine another planet. Since
we are referring to
whole-sign aspects here, this means that Jupiter in, say, an
earth sign aspects every
planet in the other two earth signs.
Note: When counting aspects and lordships, Vedic astrologers
count
inclusively, i.e., they include the house that a planet is
in.
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Saturn's two special aspects are the forward sextile and the
backward
square. That means that Saturn aspects any planets that are
three signs forward of
it (counting inclusively) and any planets that are four signs
behind it (often called
Saturn's tenth aspect). For example, if Saturn is in Capricorn,
it forward-aspects all
planets in Pisces and backward-aspects all planets in Libra.
Mars has two special aspects, too. It aspects the fourth sign
forward (i.e., the
forward square); for example, if Mars is in Taurus, it aspects
every planet in Leo. It
also aspects the sixth sign backward (the backward quincunx), so
if Mars is in Aries,
it aspects every planet in Scorpio.
Although these Vedic aspects may seem illogical to a Western
astrologer
and a bit hard to learn, they are indeed very worthwhile to look
at, because they
actually work when applied to a Vedic chart.
What is aspected: In modern Western astrology, planets aspect
planets and
other points in the chart, such as the Ascendant and
Midheaven.
In Vedic astrology, as in ancient Western astrology, planets
also aspect
houses, whether these are occupied or not. If Jupiter were in
the 1st house, it would
influence the 1st house by association; it would aspect the 7th
house (since every
planet aspects the opposite house) and also the 5th and 9th
houses (by its special
aspects).
What makes an aspect strong: In Western astrology, the smaller
the orb, the
stronger an aspect. (Some Western astrologers also rate the type
of angle; for
example, a loose conjunction or opposition is often considered
stronger than a tight
semi-sextile or bi-septile.)
As I said, many Vedic astrologers also pay attention to orbs,
but even more
important is the strength of the planet making the aspect. A
planet of middling
strength will make a much less noticeable aspect than that of a
very strong planet.
(Interestingly, the aspect of a very weak malefic is
destabilizing, rather than
negligible.)
Indications of Planetary Strength and Weakness
Both Western and Vedic astrologers consider a planet to be
strong in its
own sign and in the sign of its exaltation. And both systems
characterize a planet as
weak if it is combust (within 6 degrees of the Sun) or in the
sign of its fall (called
detriment in the Vedic system). Vedic astrologers also consider
the Moon weak if it
is dark (within 72 degrees of the Sun) and strong if bright (in
the sign of the Full
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Moon or the sign before or after that). Both the Sun and the
Moon are deemed weak
if an eclipse occurs at the time of birth.
However, because Vedic astrology is much more observationally
based than
Western astrology, retrograde planets are also considered to be
strong. When a
planet is retrograde, it is closest to the Earth and thus
appears larger than at other
times. (When Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn are retrograde, they are
opposite the Sun,
like the Full Moon; as a result, these planets are visibly
larger and shine their
brightest at this time.)
Planets are also considered strong in Vedic astrology if they
have
directional strength (calleddig bala). Jupiter and Mercury have
directional strength
when in the 1st house; Saturn, in the 7th house; Venus and the
Moon, in the 4th
house; and the Sun and Mars, in the 10th house. A nice analogy
for this is that Mars
and the Sun are hot planets who love to shine over others in the
10th; the Moon and
Venus are moist planets who are strongest at home in the 4th
house; the 1st house the clear light of dawn is the best place for
Mercury and Jupiter, the planets of perception; and Saturn rejoices
at the end of the Sun's day, in the 7th house.
Finally, if a true planet (Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, or
Saturn) is
within one degree of another true planet, then the two planets
are said to be in a
planetary war (graha yuddha); this weakens both planets but,
especially, the loser of
the war. Vedic astrologers use various ways to determine the
victor of a war,
including favoring the planet that is brighter(most frequently
used), stronger, or has
the higher zodiacal latitude (or longitude).
Harmonic Charts
Vedic astrologers use harmonic charts as part of their basic
chart analysis.
Harmonic charts (which are called vargas, amshas, or divisional
charts) are
calculated by dividing each sign into a number of sections and
assigning a sign to
each section. In Vedic astrology, the calculation of some of the
harmonic charts
differ from Western methods.
The Vedic use of harmonic charts is unique. Each chart
represents a
different life theme, such as career, parents, spouse. Analysis
of that chart
supplements the information about the life theme given by the
natal chart.
For example, the navamsha divisional chart (identical to the
Western ninth-
harmonic chart) is the sub-chart that indicates marriage. This
chart is evaluated
alongside the natal chart for marital compatibility and timing.
A difficult navamsha
chart might reflect conflicts within the marriage, or divorce,
or the inability to find
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a partner. In the navamsha chart of Arnold Schwarzenegger, it's
clear that he
wouldn't easily find a stable relationship; he married for the
first time at age 38.
The navamsha chart has many other purposes, including assessing
the
second half of life, the strength of planets, and the quality of
a person's self-
expression. Since divisional charts change much more quickly
with shifts in the
birth time than natal charts do, they are also routinely used
for chart rectification,
which many Vedic astrologers perform.
Lunar Mansions
Whereas Western astrology seldom takes lunar mansions into
account,
astrologies based upon lunar calendars (Chinese, Tibetan,
Indian) use them
extensively.
In Vedic astrology, lunar mansions are called nakshatras; for
more than
3,000 years, they have been the centerpiece of Vedic electional
astrology choosing when to get married, go to war, build a house,
etc. The nakshatras are also used in
natal astrology and in several predictive techniques.
The Chinese and Arabic astrologers use 28 lunar mansions, but
modern
Vedic astrologers primarily use 27 lunar mansions. (The Moon
takes 27.3 days to go
around the zodiac, so one can either round up to 28 days or
round down to 27 days.)
Differences in Approach Approaching All Facets of Life
One thing that initially put me off about Vedic astrology was
the blunt and
often harsh assessments of planetary combinations. At the time,
I had picked up a
book that said that people with a particular configuration would
die of leprosy.
Readers should understand that the ancient astrological texts
both in the
East and in the West used extreme examples as points of
emphasis, to make the
concepts stick in the student's memory. These texts were not
meant to be read by
oneself, but only under the tutelage of one's mentor, who could
explain the meanings
of each verse.
That said, Vedic astrology covers every part of life, from the
most ignoble to
the most divine. Even the foremost classical texts contain
verses on genital size and
quality, addiction and incest, how to know whether a child will
die young, the
indicators of specific diseases, the expected length of life,
and much more. They also
reveal combinations for spirituality, asceticism, and
enlightenment.
-
Vedic astrology also shows the fixed karmas in the chart that
is, patterns that are clearly going to be present in a person's
life. For example, every Vedic
astrologer who looked at my chart knew I would never have
children.
Some modern humanistic astrologers have trouble getting
comfortable with
the Vedic willingness to face every condition of life. Yet, in
many ways, this
approach enables us to understand our clients that much
better.
Malefics and Benefics
Although modern Western astrologers tend to shy away from such
concepts
as benefic or malefic, Vedic astrologers do not. They understand
that, to effectively
describe and predict the ups and downs of life, even the extreme
tragedies, one
needs a language and a set of principles that elucidate both the
good and bad facets
of existence.
I initially had a very hard time looking at negative factors in
any chart, be it
Western or Vedic. I didn't want to alarm or discourage anyone,
and I navely
thought that everyone could "create their own reality," that
anything was possible
in anyone's life. Gradually, I have come to realize that Vedic
astrology is neither
pessimistic nor fatalistic; rather, it's just trying to help
people to understand their
lot in life.
One of the first times I experienced the value of a negative
delineation was
when I told a client that it would be very hard for her to pull
together a career in
this life. Her surprising response was: "Thank God!" She said
that hearing this
gave her great relief, since she had in fact never been able to
settle upon a career;
she now knew that it was part of the karmic flow of her life and
she could make
peace with it, instead of endlessly judging herself.
The Lunar Nodes
In 1936, Dane Rudhyar published his seminal book, The Astrology
of
Personality. Since then, most Western astrologers have
interpreted the North Node
as indicating the direction one is meant to move toward in this
life; and the South
Node, as the direction taken in past lives, which one is meant
to move away from.
For more than 3,000 years, Vedic astrologers have treated the
lunar nodes
as planets, and used them for both natal analysis and
prediction. Although the
North Node can indeed represent success, determination, and
drive (especially if it is
associated with or aspected by a strong Jupiter), it can also
represent obsession,
greed, lust, overindulgence, narcissism, extreme materialism,
rebellion, and
-
alienation. And though the South Node can indicate self-undoing
and the places in
our lives where we must learn to let go, it also represents such
positive themes as
achieving spiritual detachment and enlightenment and developing
higher values as well as negative patterns such as self-doubt,
self-sacrifice, inhibition, self-
effacement, paralysis, and feeling overshadowed and
invisible.
Most Western astrologers forget that the core astronomical
meaning of the
nodes is that they are the "eclipsers" the points responsible
for eclipsing the Sun and the Moon. It is this meaning that informs
much of the Vedic usage of the nodes.
In Jyotish, when a planet is associated with one of the nodes,
its expression is usually
amplified, exaggerated, obscured, or distorted in some way.
The Primary Vedic Predictive Method
Most Western astrologers use transits (especially by outer
planets) and
progressions as their principal methods of prediction,
supplemented with solar
returns, directions, etc.
Vedic astrologers employ several predictive methods (including
transits),
but their preferred method is a system called Vimshottari Dasha.
This system,
which is surprisingly similar to Hellenistic astrology's Time
Lords, is actually very
easy to understand. At any given time, a person is under the
primary influence of
one planet.
Everyone is born during a period (dasha) of a specific planet.
To determine
what planet governs the period starting at birth, we look at
what planet rules the
lunar mansion (nakshatra) occupied by the natal Moon. From then
on, the person's
life unfolds under the influence of one planet at a time, in a
fixed sequence. For
example, if you were born under the influence of Jupiter, then
after that period
ended, you would next be under the influence of Saturn, and then
Mercury, etc.
Planet Duration of Dasha
Ketu 7 years
Venus 20 years
Sun 6 years
Moon 10 years
Mars 7 years
Rahu 18 years
Jupiter 16 years
Saturn 19 years
Mercury 17 years
-
Each planetary period has its own fixed length (e.g., the Sun's
period is six
years, Mercury's period is 17 years). The first period, starting
at birth, is usually
less than the full length of the dasha, depending upon how far
into the lunar
mansion the Moon was in the natal chart.
The dasha system allows the astrologer to assess what will
happen during
any period in a person's life by looking at all of the factors
that the particular planet
(called the dasha lord) rules, relates to, and signifies in the
birth chart. For example,
if a person is running a Sun period, and the Sun is in the 7th
house (relationship)
and rules the 9th house (representing travel), and the Sun is
aspected by a strong
Jupiter (bringing good fortune), the astrologer might predict
success in meeting a
spouse through travel or having a wonderful time traveling with
one's spouse
(assuming, of course, that other chart factors corroborate these
interpretations).
Because each planetary period lasts several years, the period is
divided into
subperiods (calledbhuktis or antaras) ruled by each of the
planets in turn. So, a
person may be in the major period of the Sun, for example, and
the subperiod of
Mars. If these two planets (the period planet and the subperiod
planet) have a
relationship to each other in the birth chart, then that
period/subperiod
(dasha/bhukti) in a person's life is particularly noteworthy,
because all of the
meanings of the two planets' relationship to each other are
likely to manifest during
that time. For example, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis lost her
first husband, John F.
Kennedy, during her Moon dasha and Rahu bhukti; in her natal
chart, both planets
were conjunct in her 7th house.
How Vedic Astrologers Approach a Chart
Chart patterns emerge dynamically: Vedic astrology sees the
natal chart
themes as manifesting during specific periods of a person's life
the planetary periods when the planet(s) making up the natal
patterns are the dasha and/or
bhukti lords. If a person never runs the period of a planet, its
potential effects may
never be fully realized. For example, Marilyn Monroe ran the
dashas of only three
planets, Mars, Rahu, and Jupiter, during her life. All three
planets are in Trik
houses (Mars and Jupiter in the 8th, Rahu in the 12th) and
indicate how troubled
her life was, from beginning to end.
The 1st house is preeminent: One of the first things a Vedic
astrologer does
is to assess the 1st house and its lord. This house is
considered to represent the
individuals themselves, their body and appearance, and their
capacity to be effective
in life.
-
If the occupants of the 1st house and the planets aspecting the
1st house are
benefics and if the lord of the 1st house is strong, in a good
house, and associated with or aspected by benefics then such people
are capable of using their talents and of bouncing back from
upsets, and are likely to be popular, grounded, healthy,
and successful. If the opposite is true, these individuals may
find life overwhelming,
feel rejected by others, and struggle to express their
gifts.
Most people aren't at either extreme, of course, but an
evaluation of the 1st
house can show a person's fundamental strengths and
challenges.
Four factors are used to evaluate each area of life: When
Jyotishis wish to
assess a person's experience with children, they will consider
the 5th house and the
5th lord, as Western astrologers do, and also look at the
significator of children
(Jupiter) and the saptamsha chart (the D-7 divisional chart,
roughly equivalent to
the seventh harmonic).
Planetary significators are used much more extensively in
Jyotish than in
Western astrology, and these contribute substantially to the
interpretation of every
life theme.
Yogas show the level of a person's life: Vedic astrologers
assess the degree of
success in a person's chart by looking at planetary combinations
called yogas. The
word yoga simply means "joining or combination" for example, a
planet is in a specific sign and house, or two planets are
connected, or six houses are occupied.
One of the best yogas for success (called a Raja Yoga) occurs
when the lords of the
9th and 10th houses are conjoined.
What distinguishes the charts of highly successful people from
the charts of
average folk is the presence of many auspicious yogas (along
with other factors that
indicate the ability to use the yogas to good effect, of course,
such as having a strong
Ascendant and running the dasha of yoga-forming planets during
adulthood).
Therefore, Vedic astrologers can tell whether someone is likely
to have a very
conspicuous role in society or great success or a more ordinary
life by assessing the number of yogas in a chart and their
strength. A yoga is considered to
be strong if at least one of its planetary components is
strong.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mastering Vedic astrology is quite a large undertaking, but one
can develop
proficiency in stages and learn to apply techniques in very
rewarding ways at each
step of the journey. I hope this introduction will help readers
begin to understand
the Vedic approach to astrology.
-
Chart Data and Sources
Antonio Banderas, August 10, 1960; 9:00 p.m. MET; Mlaga, Spain
(36N43',
04W25'); AA: Frank C. Clifford quotes birth certificate.
Marilyn Monroe, June 1, 1926; 9:30 a.m. PST; Los Angeles, CA
(34N03',
118W14'); AA: birth certificate in hand from Bob Garner; also,
photo of birth
certificate in The Curious Death of Marilyn Monroe.
Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, July 28, 1929; 2:30 p.m. EDT;
Southampton, NY
(40N53', 72W23'); A: Frances McEvoy quotes her, to mutual
friends; data not
released until after her death.
Arnold Schwarzenegger, July 30, 1947; 4:10 a.m. MET; Graz,
Austria (47N05',
15E27'); A: from memory; D. C. Doane quotes a colleague, from
him in 1979.
A Problem with Modern Western Astrological Thinking
by Hank Friedman
If I described something with the following words:
Brown, heavy, cold, wet, and heterogenous
would you think of mud or of chocolate chip ice cream?
If I described something with the following words:
family, face, well-being, mastery of classical subjects,
anorexia, and mathematicians
how many Western astrologers would immediately say:
The Second House.
One great weakness in modern Western astrology is the
-
narrowness of the themes that each planet and each
house and each sign is said to represent. This severely
limits its utility, because too many of life's attributes
cannot be easily placed anywhere.
In other words, modern Western astrology has become
way too impoverished, simplistic and reductionistic.
The third house is restricted to meaning communication
and siblings and neighbors and short journeys, period.
What a great loss of the many other, very rich and
important meanings of the third house, including such
themes as valor and courage, enterprise and one's own
initiative and self-motivation, and every life theme that
requires the use of the hands (art, craft, drafting, trades,
massage, music, etc.).
In its attempt to be thematic, modern Western astrology
has excluded so much, and created too neat, too
compact, and too thematic a set of correspondences.
It is time for modern astrology, as practiced in the West,
to recognize this deficiency, and resolve it by examining
its roots. Certainly Horary and ancient Western astrology,
as well as Vedic astrology, have much to share with it.
That way, the field can again be three-dimensional. We
need to give up the "neatness" of a thematic approach,
and instead explore the unrelated-to-each other
collection of meanings that each house, each sign, and
each planet represents.
We need to recover the fullness of our astrological
-
language.
And thereby revive modern Western astrology.
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN WESTERN ASTROLOGY AND INDIAN ASTROLOGY
The Applicability of the Signs in Western and Vedic
Astrology
by Hank Friedman
The table below gives my assessment of the relative value and
appropriateness of using Western
or Vedic signs (i.e. the Tropical or Sidereal Zodiac) for
specific purposes.
It is the result of my many years of working with both Western
and Vedic astrologies.
theme Western Signs Vedic Signs
Psychological Makeup
The Western Signs are very
well suited for assessing a
person's temperament,
psychodynamics, and general
psychological tone
The Vedic Signs are used to
assess outcomes in a person's
life and objective qualities ,
e.g. wealth, complexion,
stature, etc.
Strength --------
The strength of planets by
dignity (e.g. exaltation,
debilitation, etc.) is most
accurately assessed by using
the Sidereal signs.
Rulership
As pointed out by Rob Hand,
the assignment of Uranus to
Aquarius, Neptune to Pisces,
and Pluto to Scorpio was an
arbitrary act of a 19th
century
astrologer
Rulerships work much better
Sidereally. Sign rulerships are
central to Vedic astrology.
Both house rulership and
dispositorship are core
concepts. In fact, the elaborate
system of Yogas in Vedic
astrology is primarily based
upon rulership
Compatibility Assessment Using Western/Tropical signs
for assessing the interaspects
(between the planets in two
Planetary relationships between
two charts are assessed
counting the number of houses
-
charts) is an incredibly
effective means of chart
comparison
apart the planets are from each
other, i.e. a more indirect use of
signs.
Predictive Methods
While the signs occupied by
transiting planets are not very
important in describing effects
of transits on natal planets, the
signs occupied by natal
planets arevery important in
understanding each transit's
effect.
The Dasha system is based
upon Nakshatras (not signs)
using the Sidereal Zodiac. In
Vedically assessing the effects
of transits, the strength by sign
of the natal planet plays a large
part in the magnitude of the
effects of each transiting
planet, e.g. if Jupiter is strong
natally , its transits are more
positive.
http://www.soulhealing.com/tutorialvedic.htm
http://www.arlenekramer.net/astrology24.asp Advanced
Astrology
USE OF SUNRISE SUNSET IN ASTROLOGY
Geographic details for Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh, India
Latitude = 23 10 59 N (23.18333)
Longitude = 75 46 0 E (75.76667)
Olson Timezone = Asia/Kolkata
Standard Timezone = +05:30
Current Timezone abbreviation = IST
-
Hindu Sunrise and Sunset are not observational and should not be
matched with
those published in various newspapers. Most newspapers publish
Astronomical
value of sunrise and sunset. DrikPanchang shows both values
side-by-side to clear
the difference between Hindu and Astronomical timings of sunrise
and sunset.
Astronomical sunrise is defined as time of first appearance of
the upper limb of the
Sun. The sunset is the moment of disappearance of the upper limb
of the Sun. The
definition of limb is - the edge of the disc of a celestial
object, esp. of the sun and
moon. Hence all daily newspapers give sunrise timings when the
edge of the disk
i.e. upper limb is just visible above eastern horizon.
Similarly, newspapers give
sunset timings when the Sun completely disappears at
horizon.
For Astrological calculations, like DrikPanchng.com
calculations, Astronomical
timings of sunrise and sunset cannot be used. For religious and
astrology purpose
the time when the middle of the Sun's disk rises above eastern
horizon is used for
the sunrise. All festival determinations are done based on
'Madhyalimb Darshan'
when middle of the disk becomes visible at eastern horizon.
Further, for calculating timings of Hindu sunrise and sunset,
the refraction is
ignored. Due to refraction the Sun becomes visible even when it
is below eastern
horizon. Hindu sunrise and sunset are planetary i.e. centre of
the Earth and the Sun
should align to horizon.
Hindu Sunrise = Astronomical Sunrise + Time taken by the Sun to
rise half of its
diameter + Time taken by the Sun to rise further to neutralize
refraction effect
Similarly, Hindu Sunset = Astronomical Sunset - Time taken by
the Sun to set half
of its diameter - Time taken by the Sun to set further to
neutralize refraction effect
Astronomical Sunrise = 05:53:36
Astronomical Sunset = 18:54:39
Hindu Sunrise = 05:57:23
Hindu Sunset = 18:50:51
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Vernal Equinox is also known as March Equinox, Northward
Equinox, Vernal Point and first point of Aries.
In Hindu astrology Vernal Equinox is known as Vasant Vishuva or
Sampat.
Vernal Equinox Date
20th March 2012
(Tuesday)
Summer Solstice is also known as Northern Solstice, June
Solstice, Aestival Solstice and first point of Cancer.
In Hindu astrology Summer Solstice is known as Dakshinayana.
From this day onwards Asurakal starts which is not good to start
auspicious work.
Summer Solstice Date
21st June 2012
(Thursday)
-
Autumnal Equinox is also known as September Equinox, Southward
Equinox and first point of Libra.
In Hindu astrology Autumnal Equinox is known as Sharad Vishuva
or Sampat.
Autumnal Equinox Date
22nd September 2012
(Saturday)
Winter Solstice is also known as Southern Solstice, December
Solstice, Hibernal Solstice and the first point of Capricorn. In
Hindu astrology Winter Solstice is known as Uttarayana. From this
day onwards
Devkal starts which is good to start auspicious work.
Winter Solstice Date
21st December 2012
(Friday)
-
EQUATION FOR SUNRISE/SUNSET TIMES
The sunrise equation as follows can be used to derive the time
of sunrise and sunset for any
solar declination and latitude in terms of local solar time when
sunrise and sunset actually
occur:
cos(o) = -tan()tan()
where o is the hour angle in degrees at either sunrise (when
negative value is taken) or
sunset (when positive value is taken) in degree (); is the
latitude of the Earth in degree;
is the sun declination in degrees.
The Earth rotates at the angular speed of 15/hour and,
therefore, o/15 gives the time of
sunrise as the number of hours before the local noon, or the
time of sunset as the number
of hours after the local noon. Here the term local noon
indicates the local time when the sun
is exactly to the south or north or exactly overhead.
The convention is usually that the value of is positive in
Northern Hemisphere and
negative in Southern Hemisphere. And the value of is positive
during the Northern
Hemisphere summer and negative during the Northern Hemisphere
winter.
Please note that the above equation is applicable only when
indeed there is a sunrise or
sunset when -90+ < < 90- during the Northern Hemisphere
summer, and when -
90- < < 90+ during the Northern Hemisphere winter. Out of
these latitudinal ranges,
it is either 24-hour daytime or 24-hour nighttime.
Also note that the above equation neglects the influence of
atmospheric refraction (which
lifts the solar disc by approximately 0.6 when it is on the
horizon) and the non-zero angle
subtended by the solar disc (about 0.5). The times of the rising
and the setting of the
upper solar limb as given in astronomical almanacs correct for
this by using the more
general equation
cos(o) = (sin(a) - sin()sin())/(cos()cos())
with the altitude (a) of the center of the solar disc set to
about -0.83 (or -50 arcminutes).
-
PANCHANGA IS LIKE LIGHT IN THE HAND
PANCHANG (CALENDAR)
Although it is essential to have the knowledge of arithmetical
calculations to understand
Indian Astrology, but for the benefit of the common people,
astrologers have devised a
calendar (Panchang) with the help of which, and simple
arithmetical calculations, one
can have knowledge about planets, good or bad for him.
It is not necessary for a common man to be an astrologer in
order to understand the
Panchanga. But for a smooth and systematic running of life, one
should know how to
interpret 'Phalita'.
Panchang means five organs to understand the Phalita. These five
things are
1. Tithi (Date) 2. Nakshatra (Group of stars) 3. Yoga (an
auspicious moment) 4. Karan (Half of the part of Tithi) 5. Vaar
(days of the week)
TITHI
Tithi is considered as the first phase or portion (Kala) of the
16 phases of the Moon. The
15 days, commencing from Amavasya (the last day of the dark half
of a lunar month) to
Purnima (Full moon), are called the Tithis of the Shukla-Paksha
(brighter phase) and the
days commencing from Purnima to Amavasya are called Krishna
Paksha (darker phase).
In Indian Astrology, the calculation of the Tithis starts from
Pratipada (The first day in
each half of the lunar month) of the Shukla-Paksha. They
are:
1. Pratipada. 2. Dwitiya. 3. Tritiya. 4. Chaturthi. 5. Panchami.
6. Shashthi. 7. Saptami. 8. Ashtami. 9. Navami. 10. Dashami. 11.
Ekadasi. 12. Dwadashi. 13. Trayodashi. 14. Chaturdashi. 15.
Purnima.
Similarly, in the Krishna-Paksha, starting from Pratipada till
Chaturdashi, all the dates
are same; the only difference being the fifteenth day which is
Amavasya (Moonless
-
night)
These fifteen days have been given five names.
NANDA BHADRA JAYA RIKTA PURNA 1st day 2nd day 3rd day 4th day
5th day 6th day 7th day 8th day 9th day 10th day 11th day 12th day
13th day 14th day 15th-30th Friday Wednesday Tuesday Saturday
Thursday
If the above mentioned days falls on the given Tithis it is
considered as auspicious and
the work taken in hand in successfully accomplished. For example
(if, 1st, 6th 11th falls
on Friday, 2nd, 7th, 12th falls on Wednesday etc.)
INAUSPICIOUS DAYS The following days (Tithis) are considered to
be inauspicious, and there is a fear of hurdles, obstructing the
accomplishment of the work.
The names of these auspicious days have been given as
follows:
1. DAGDHA 2. VISHA 3. HUTASHAN
The dates are considered to be inauspicious if it falls on the
following days
SUN. MON. TUE. WED. THUR. FRI. SAT.
DAGDHA 12th 11th 5th 3rd 6th 8th 9th VISHA 4th 6th 7th 2nd 8th
9th 7th HUTASHAN 12th 6th 7th 8th 9th 10th 11th
If 12th day and 4th day of the months falls on Sunday and 11th
& 6th falls on Monday
and 5th & 7th falls on Tuesday respectively, they are
considered as inauspicious.
NAKSHATRA (CONSTELLATION) A group of stars is called Nakshatra.
Just as the units used for measuring the distance is miles or
kilometers in the same way the
space (Akash Mandal) is measured in terms of Nakshatras (group
of stars). The whole
space has been divided into 27 parts and each part has been
given the name of Nakshatra.
They are as follows
1. ASHWINI. 2. BHARANI. 3. KRITIKA. 4. ROHINI. 5. MRIGASHIRA. 6.
AARDRA. 7. PUNARVASU. 8. PUSHYA. 9. AASLESHA. 10. MAGHA. 11. PURVA
PHALGUNI. 12. UTTARA PHALGUNI. 13. HASTA. 14. CHITRA. 15. SWATI.
16. VISHAKHA.
-
17. ANURADHA. 18. JYESHTHA. 19. MOOLA. 20. POORVAASHADHA. 21.
UTTARAASHADHA. 22. SHRAVANI. 23. DHANISTHA. 24. SHATABHISHA. 25.
PURVA BHADRAPADA. 26. UTTARA BHADRAPADA. 27. REVATI.
The Indian astrologers believe that the combination of the last
15 Ghati of 'Uttarashadha
Nakshatra' and the first 4 Ghati of the Shravani Nakshatra i.e.
19 Ghatis in all, constitute
the 'Abhijeet Nakshatra' and this particular Nakshatra is
considered to be very auspicious
to begin a good work. (One Ghatika is equal to 24 minutes)
PANCHAKA NAKSHATRA: The following group of five Nakshatras are
considered
as having five defects (Panchakadosha). They are Dhanistha,
Shatabhisha,
Purvabhadrapada, Uttarabhadrapada and Revati.
MOOLA NAKSHATRA: A child taking birth in this Nakshatra, which
consists of
Jyestha, Aashlesha, Revati, Mool, Magha and Ashwini Nakshatra
are not considered as
auspicious. Therefore, for the pacification of this 'Moola
Nakshatra', some specific rites
are performed 27th days after the birth when the same Nakshatra
returns. Out of these
six Nakshatras, which constitute Moola Nakshatra, Jyeshtha and
Moola are called
'Gandant Moola' and Aashlesha is called as 'Sarpa Moola'.
ADHOMUKHA NAKSHATRA: As the name of this Nakshatra implies,
works like
digging a well, or lying a foundation is considered as
auspicious. This particular
Nakshatra is itself constituted by Nakshatras. They are: Moola,
Aashlesha, Vishakha,
Kritika, Purvaphalguni, Purvashadha, Purvabhadrapada, Bharani
and Magha
DAGDHA NAKSHATRA: For commencement of any work, this Nakshatra
is
considered as inauspicious. Therefore, commencing any work in
this Nakshatra is
prohibited if the days on which, this Nakshatra falls are as
under-
Sunday - Bharani
Monday - Chitra
Tuesday - Uttarashadha
Wednesday - Dhanishtha
Thursday - Uttaraphalguni
Friday - Jyeshtha
Saturday - Revati
YOGA (COMBINATIONS) There are 27 Yogas in all. They are as
under
1) VISHAKUMBHA, 2) PREETI, 3) AAYUSHMAN, 4) SAUBHAGYA, 5)
SHOBHANA, 6) ATIGANDA, 7) SUKARMA, 8) DHRITI, 9) SHOOLA, 10)
GAND,
11) VRIDDHI, 12) DHRUVA, 13) VYAGHAATA, 14) HARSHANA, 15) VAJRA,
16)
SIDDHI, 17) VYATIPAATA, 18) VARIYAANA, 19) PARIGHA, 20) SHIVA,
21)
SIDDHA, 22) SADDHYA, 23) SHUBHA, 24) SHUKLA, 25) BRAHMA, 26)
INDRA,
27) VAIDHRITI.
-
KARANA Half of the part of a Tithi is called a Karana i.e. There
are two Karanas in a
Tithi. There are 11 Karanas altogether. They are: 1) BALA, 2)
BAALAVA, 3)
KAULAVA, 4) TAITIL, 5) GARA, 6) VANIJA, 7) VISHTI, 8) SHAKUNI,
9)
CHATUSHPADA, 10) NAAGA, 11) KINSTUGHNA The first 7 of these
Karanas are
movable (Chara) i.e. it cannot be predetermined as to on which
dates, these are going to
occur, but the last 4 Karanas are fixed (Sthira), and hence can
be predetermined.
VISHTIKARANA is also called 'Bhadra' and commencing any work
during this time is
prohibited. Bhadra is marked very clearly in every
panchanga.
VAAR (DAYS) There are 7 days i.e. Sunday (Ravivaar), Monday
(Somavaar), Tuesday (Mangalvaar),
Wednesday (Budhvaar), Thursday (Brihaspativaar), Friday
(Shukravaar) and Saturday
(Shanivaar). The counting of days begins from the sunrise of the
first day to the sunrise
of the second day. In astrology, this system is known as
'AHORATRA', which means
day and night taken together. Omitting the first letter 'A' and
the last three letters
'T','R','A', the word 'HORA' is coined from which, the English
word 'HOUR' originated.
There are 24 HORAS in all.
Now the question arises, why is the day coming after Sunday is
named Monday, Why
not other day. To understand this, we will first have to
understand the positions of the
planets, in the space. In astrology, the respective position of
the planets are given as
under
Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Sun, Venus, Mercury and Moon.
Therefore, Saturn is the highest or the farthest planet. Below
the Saturn is Jupiter, below
Jupiter is Mars, below the Mars is Sun, below the Sun is Venus,
below Venus is
Mercury, and below Mercury is Moon. All the planets are
revolving around the Sun in
their respective orbits. Since there are 24 Horas in a day
combined with night, therefore,
each Hora consists of an hour. The Lord of each Hora is a planet
from the nearest lower orbit.
The Lord of the first HORA is the Sun. In the beginning of the
creation, the Sun was
visible first of all and for that very reason, it has been
considered as the lord of the first
Hora and also the first day has been named after it. The next
Hora is named after 'Shukra'
(Venus, which is the lord of the second HORA, and whose orbit is
just below the Sun.
The lord of the third Hora is 'Budha' (Mercury) whose orbit is
just below that of Shukra
(Venus). The lord of the fourth orbit is the Moon (Chandrama),
whose orbit is below that
of Venus and so on. In this way, the lord of the 24th HORA is
again Mercury and the
Moon (Chandrama). The following chart clearly shows the
positions of the planets
(horizontally) in order, and the days of the week (vertically)
in order. From the Hora
chart, it is quite clear that the Moon is the lord of the first
Hora (Hour) of the second
day(Monday), hence the next day after Sunday is called Monday.
Similarly, the lord of
the first Hora of the third day is Mars (Tuesday), the lord of
the first Hora of the fourth
day is Mercury (Wednesday), the lord of the first Hora of the
fifth day is Jupiter
(Thursday), the lord of the first Hora of the sixth day is Venus
(Friday) and the lord of
the first Hora of the Seventh day is Saturn (Saturday).
Therefore, the name of the days in order are Sunday, Monday,
Tuesday, Wednesday,
Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
GENTLE DAYS: Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday are
considered as the
'gentle' days. These days are considered auspicious for
commencing any good work.
CRUEL DAYS: Tuesday, Sunday and Saturday are considered as
'cruel' days. Saturday
is considered an auspicious day for undergoing operation.
Thursday is considered
-
auspicious for starting education. Wednesday is considered
auspicious to start any
business.
USE OF PANCHANGAM
Most of time using the same Panchanga time found in the almanac
or calendar prepared using
the longitude and latitude of the Indian town. They do all the
important functions like graha-
pravesha, marriage, ayushya homam, shraadha tithi, ekadasi and
all major Hindu festivals in
their life observing the almanac of India.
The world is divided in many time zones and the earth is not
flat. The length of day could vary
from one place on earth to another. If you are more towards
north pole and south pole your
days and nights will be longer and sometimes, six months of day
and six months of night. The
Hindu festivals and tithis are observed according to different
parameters such as local sunrise,
sunset and they are different for every city. The festivals and
certain tithis are observed on
when the tithi prevails at certain time or duration of the day.
The other factor will be the time
zone. There are two things: Panchang Elements and local
elements. local elements will depend
on sunrise and hence festivals could change depending on the
local elements with reference to
the panchang elements -- as panchang elements end at the same
instance all over the world,
and hence time difference is applicable there but not to the
local elements ... See Morelike
sunrise, sunset, moonrise, lagna. These local elements govern
60% of the muhurtha and
festivals. Panchang elements help us decides days as they can
span over one or two days. but
local elements helps us to narrow down. Even after subtracting
the timezone difference, the
tithi of the day is usually decided depending on the tithi
prevailing at the sunrise. Hence local
parameter is in place. This tithi of the day is important in
festivals consideration, consideration
for birthdays etc... same goes for nakshatra. The nakshatra and
the day combination governs
-
anandadi yoga, which inturn governs amritha, marana, siddha
yoga. If nakshatra at the time of
sunrise is different we will see Amrutha yoga in india, and
Marana yoga in america. etc....
India is relatively smaller country then United States, The
difference between sunrise and
sunset times from one place to another is minimum hence the
calendar / panchang prepared
for one location in India can be used for the entire India (in
most situations, but subtle
differences in certain situations may arise between panchangam
of Bombay and Kolkata) but
not for outside geographic boundaries of India. This requires us
to prepare the
calendar/almanac for different cities in the world