Indian Astrology : A Science Or Something Beyond?

The history of Indian Astrology can be traced back to the origin of Vedas and Puranas and what lies beyond that has now been lost in antiquity. Modern scholars, however, look down upon Pauranic wealth of knowledge as mere imagination or guesswork.

Puranas contain invaluable information on a host of subjects like history, astrology, ayurveda, politics, religion and spirituality. Usually, scholars adhering to Pauranic knowledge systems have been severely restricted in their explorations due to their command on one or two subjects at the most. In fact, only a scholar with complete command on each of the classical knowledge systems can be considered eligible to study, explore and apply the science of Indian astrology effectively.

Puranas calculated time with the help of divisions like shaka and samvat. Based on the calculations of such time divisions numerous calendars and panchangas have also been developed which goes to show that history of the post-Mahabharata era can be recorded in a systematic chronological order without any ambiguities.

The ancient texts of Jyotish also give descriptions of Brahmanda (universe) : -

Kotighna naravnand shatk narav bhubhrid bhubhujangendubhih

Jyotih shastra vido vadanti nabhasah kaksha mimam yojanaih

(Siddhanta Shiromani)

This excerpt can be translated thus: -

The rays of the Sun reach a maximum distance of 187120692000000000 Yojanas( a classical measuring unit) which is known as diameter of the circumference of Brahmanda paridhi (universe) or Akash Kaksha.

Within this circumference of Brahmanda primary prakash pindas (illumined celestial bodies) are situated in their heavenly orbits.

Earth has been described in Siddhanta Shiromani thus: -

Akrishya shaktishcha mahi tayaayat swasthe gurum swami mukham swaktayaa

Akrishyate yatyat teev bhati same samantat ripat twiyamrave

The excerpt can be translated thus: -

Earth is endowed with the power of gravitational force which helps in attracting any object moving in an upward direction.

According to the ancient texts of Jyotish it would be wrong to calculate the beginning of the day from midnight because in the calculation of horoscopes if the moment of birth is even a second before sunrise the day and panchanga calculations of the previous day are taken into consideration. For calculation of Ishtkala as well, the moment of sunrise is of prime import.

Dinam Dineshasya yatoava darshane, tami tamo hanturdarshane sati

(Excerpt taken from Siddhanta Shiromani)

This excerpt can be translated thus: -

The presence and absence of Sun in the skies is considered as day and night respectively.

Another important point to be noted is that, contrary to popular perception, Jyotish cannot be equated with the term of astrology which is defined as the study of planetary movements in its relation to human affairs because Jyotish is an incomparably expansive field which comprises of not only astronomy and astrology but several other related branches of study as well.

This has been made amply clear with the help of three principal divisions of Jyotish namely, Siddhanta which deals with laws of planetary motion and their calculations, Samhita dealing with the correlation of celestial phenomena with terrestrial phenomena on macro as well as microcosmic plane and Hora dealing with personal astrology encompassing muhurta, jataka, prasna, varshphal and other branches of study.

This magnanimous science of Jyotish has its origin as one of the six Vedangas which include Nirukta, Nighantu, Vyakarana, Shiksha, Kalpa, Chand and Jyotish. It is considered that a complete command of each of the six vedangas is required before one can become eligible to begin with the study of Vedas themselves.

In the development of the tree of astrological knowledge Jyotish Shastra consists of the trunk or central portion with its roots originating from the Vedas, Upanishads, Puranas and Tantra as they provide complete knowledge of the basic elements of the science of astrology. There is a great need to enhance this classical knowledge resource by taking ahead the tradition of research developed by Rishis and Munis of yore who made astounding observations on the nature of universe thousands of years ago.

The branches of this tree of astrological knowledge can be classified as Siddhanta, Samhita and Hora which provide information on different branches of Indian astrology. The leaves on the branch of Siddhanta Jyotish can be classified as various branches of mathematical calculations including algebra, geometry, trigonometry and spherical astronomy. In Samhita, the leaves can be classified as various studies including study of various omens like falling of lizard, dream interpretations, natural disasters, Samudrika Shastra (study of the natural formation and markings on body parts including palmistry), various positive and negative results of planetary movements and Vastu Shastra (the science of directions). In Hora, the leaves can be classified as various branches of astrology including individual horoscopy, horary astrology, Muhurtas (electional astrology), Tajik study (annual horoscopy or varshphala) and the study of calculation of panchangas.

The fruit of this tree of astrological knowledge can be defined as predictive astrology which provides information on everyone?s past, present and future. Nowadays, with rapid advancement of technology in modern times, astrologers have become dependent on computers for their calculations and predictions instead of which they should rely on this tree of astrological knowledge.

The knowledge of our Rishis and Munis in the science of Indian astrology from this statement: -

Our Rishis made a detailed investigation of the nature of planets and celestial bodies and it has been stated about eclipses that: -

Whenever Sun, Moon and earth form a linear alignment due to their heavenly motion it causes eclipses. A solar eclipse is caused when Rahu or Ketu come at a distance of 14 degrees or less from the Sun only in the day falling in the cusp of Pratipada and Amavasya tithis. On the other hand, lunar eclipse takes place only in the night falling in the cusp of Purnima and Pratipada tithis. Each eclipse repeats itself in the same position after 6585 days and 8 hours or 18 years 10 days and 8 hours. In this duration of 18 years 10 days and 8 hours a total of 71 eclipses occur comprising of 42 solar and 29 lunar eclipses. There are a total of 28 total solar eclipses out of these but it is visible at the same place after long periods of time.

The science of Indian astrology is based on such accurate scientific observations that if fully explored it has greater possibilities than even that of a complete scientific discipline. With such incredible potential, the other end of the science of Indian astrology would always elude serious researcher in his explorations because as a branch of knowledge it is not constricted by any preconceived notions of modern science.

Pt. Sunil Sharma was serving as assistant director from 1990 till 2002 and as director of Astrological Research Centre since then which was established in 1952 by late Pt. Raja Ram Shastri. This organization has made outstanding contributions in the field of research and personal predictions. A postgraduate in Political Science and Sanskrit, he has been involved in original research work on astrology for past 15 years. He also launched the website (http://www.astrocent.com/) of this august institution on 24th December, 2004 which makes accessible to all original research work, criticism and a host of other concepts associated with astrology in the form of research and criticism articles which are nowhere else to be found on the world wide web. Another special feature of this website is manual horoscope which is a completely novel concept on the web. He does not believes in computerized astrological predictions as well as calculations and has also given the reasons in his research articles on the website.

Astrology and Numerology; Why You Need Both

In critical applications in science and industry, backup systems are a must. Weather it's loss of availability of your ATM or Television, of Loss of Life due to equipment failure in a hospital, having a backup is just good common sense. And in analyzing your life and your opportunities; having more than one chart, one way of looking at things is equally as important. After all, it's your life we're looking at.

Redundancy - Tell me Three Times

One of the best ways to insure that information gets from one point to another is to send multiple copies. "Tell me Three times" is a simple method of correcting messages that may have been damaged in transit. The idea is that with (3) copies, at least two of them will have the correct data at any one point in the message.

This is true weather we're talking about text, music, or video. This sampling and correcting process is built into the machines that read our CD's and DVD's. It's why even slightly damaged disk can still be read and played - the process filters out the errors and gives us true information.

This idea can be taken to our Astrology and Numerology charts. By getting both charts and comparing them, we're literally getting a second opinion on our life. And who doesn't want a second opinion on something that important.

Astronumerology - Over 100 Life Combinations

When astrologer Jordan Simon, and numerologist Pamela Hobs Bell got together in 1998 and devised Astronumerology, they were building on this idea of using both tools to produce a quick personality reference which could be easily used by anyone. The combination of (12) Sun signs and (9) Life Paths gives you 108 different personality slots to describe people's general tendencies; a much wider selection than either of the two sciences on their own.

However, the Sun Sign and Life Path values are only the most general traits in a person's chart. They give you a broad category, a thumbnail sketch as it were, of a person's chart. The depth and detail that someone needs to know their inner self is missing here.

Conclusion

By getting both a good Astrology chart and a Numerology reading, your giving yourself far more insight into your life than either of these ancient sciences can give you on it's own. Just as two critics will give you different insights into a movie, two different reports will give you different insights into your life.

Keith Abbott is the developer and owner of 'Numerology 4 You' where you can order your own Numerology reading, including your personal Lucky Numbers. Visit him on the web today at http://www.numerology4you.com/

Astrology and Children

Childhood, is a period of development when we are still very open to inner changes; a very fertile time when everything is a surprise. The seed of life is in the beginning of its development. The inner side of a child, is like a garden, to be cared for and responds to whatever is put into it!

The Astrologer is like the gardener, carefully following the growth of the flowers as well as invasive weeds. Astrology is an instrument, a scientific tool, to measure the psychological state of children, its diagnosis is most accurate, in the individual's dynamics. Children are too young to understand and express logically their feelings and thoughts. Astrology applied to children is of a great help to the parents, because it lets them understand the inner patterns of their loved ones.

Throwing light on conflict is a big step to solving the problem, whether the problem is internal, or between individuals. The healing process, involving parent-child relationships, can then occur.

Having the astrological key, can give the parents the opportunity to help the child to work out difficulties in the energy patterns, by changing their own attitude towards the child, in a most positive way. Remember that in astrology, old habit patterns, especially those of an emotional colour, are the most difficult to deal with in adulthood. Astrology, gently helps the parent to be in touch with the future adult. We say: "the adult in becoming."

Problems, if taken and faced early in life are still small, but in adulthood, they might become serious difficulties. Astrology helps the individual to learn about who he, or she is, without judgement, simply by being objective. The most crucial period in the psychological development for a child, runs from twelve months to the fourth year.

It is significant to point out that this is the period when the parents are in charge. When you draw an astrological chart of a child, you have the psychological and spiritual blue print of the developing adult. You can see the temperament, how he perceives his parents, the way he perceives his relationship with his parents, and the relationship with the rest of the family. The parents then, can be in touch with the type of atmosphere required, for the child to be at ease, and all the dynamics of interaction that go with it. Children have the same needs as adults; the chart of the child is indeed the casting of the future adult.

The psychological dynamics of the child are not different from the one of an adult. They are just more flexible. The soul of a child might be old or young just like the one of an adult. His spiritual development takes place, and develops in the years to come. The more we understand this process the more we can make life joyful, and rewarding for our children; eventually in the process, we, if we are lucky, grow with them.

Every child has a chart totally different from the others; and it is up to the astrologer, to unveil the hidden parts and to bring them to the surface: this is part of the healing process.

Astrology is one of the beautiful tools to help the individual. Talking about elements for instance, we can find a child who shows a lot of emphasis on fire: This is an indication of an explosive temperament. Suppressing this type of energy can cause frustration and lack of creativity. If we go to the opposite extreme, we can find the child with too much emphasis on water. In this case, more sensitivity must be expressed from the parents because the child needs more self trust if he is to become more outgoing.

In each chart, the problems are clear and within the same chart the solutions are shown! Parents will be helped by the information, and often they recognize themselves in the pattern.

Everybody has the right to have a chart cast (drawn). Please take the most exact time of birth, of your loved one. It can be of great help for the person during both childhood, and through into adulthood.

Leni Sibilio
leni@astrominds.com
URL: http://astrominds.com

What's New with Astrology?

Ive been a bit confused and maybe somebody who knows astrology can help me out on this: Now that the International Astronomical Association has been debating what's a planet and what's not, how does that affect the practice of astrology?

Not so long ago, I was looking up my daily horoscope on Yahoo. Whoever their astrologer is, he really sucks. He gets real technical about which planet is going into which house and really obscure stuff like that and I don't think anybody cares. People just want to know if it's a good day to buy Pizza, or whatever your concern is. Anyways, this guy mentioned that the asteroid Vespa was doing something or other and I thought about that.

The ancients who invented astrology for sure did not know that there was a big hunk of rock out there named Vespa. Neither did they know about Pluto or Neptune of any of the other bodies out there that figure into modern day astrology. Were their astrological readings horribly off because they weren't correctly accounting for these unknown bodies?

The astronomy association is split on what should or should not be a planet. Right now it looks like if it's round, it orbits the sun, and it's not somebody else's moon it's going to be a planet. The problem is that they've since discovered other bodies that fit that definition and we could end up having as many as twelve or more planets. So, what it looks like they're going to do is come up with a category of second class planets which Pluto would be demoted to.

The new class of second class planets would be called Dwarf planets or perhaps planetoids. The term 'Pluton' has already been thrown around, but no astronomer much liked the idea except for the one who came up with it.

One of the new possible planets would be called Xena and is located out in the Oort Cloud and is larger than Pluto and it's moon Charon. There may, in fact, be many such types of bodies out there and who knows? There might be ones as big as the Earth or bigger. Why shouldn't there be?

Do astrologers have some similar association as the astronomical association? And how do they affect each other? The astronomers don't believe that astrologers exist even though the astrologers were the orginal astronomers. I think the astronomers want to disassociate themselves from their roots on this one. But quite clearly the astrologers do asknowledge the astronomers as witnessed by my yahoo astrologer. I think they want to cover themselves as much as possible with the stink of science, if they can.

It's always been a sore point between the two how exactly the planets or planetoids or dwarf planets or asteroids effect our daily lives. It's not gravity or magnetism or anything that's measurable, but nonetheless whether we like it or not, they still might. Just think about centrifugal force. Doesn't that exist because there is something far away and scientists are at a loss to explain that one. In the meantime, I'm going to continue to check my daily horoscope. But not at Yahoo, because that guy sucks.

Steve Sommers is the author of: Evil Super-Villains need Love, Too. http://www.lulu.com/abeautifulcow