Vedic Astrology is a profoundly
Philosophical & Quantitative Study of ‘The Movement of Life’, in the field
of our Individual Human Experience:
While Vedic/Hindu astrology employs planetary positions to understand the dynamics
of ‘the movement of life’; it has nothing to do with planetary motions per se, and
certainly, it would be completely erroneous to hold that ‘the planets rule our lives’,
when Isvara alone has dominion over them. While Vedic/Hindu astronomy studied the motions
of the celestial bodies, Vedic/Hindu astrology had nothing to do with the motions of the
physical planets per se. From the point of view of Vedic/Hindu astrology then, the object
of its study is rather the ‘mysterious movement of life’, in the lives of individuals.
As the ,Vedic society had a through and through spiritual outlook, this was naturally
inherited by their astrology as well, which became one of the intellectual and spiritual
pursuits in that ancient society.
According to those highly perceptive founding fathers, who were the Rishis [Sages];
throughout nature ‘all movement’, wherever it was observed in nature, had to only
reflect the rhythms or ‘the moods of Isvara’. Thus for them, both the orderly movement
of the planets as observed from this Earth station, as well as the rhythm of ‘the
mysterious movement of life’ itself, on planet Earth - both had to be governed by
the self-same changing ‘moods of Isvara’. One movement was found to be predictable,
namely the movement of the planets, whereas the other movement of life, say in an
individual’s life, seemed to be ‘mysterious’ and unpredictable.Vedic astrology is
an Isvara-centered system of learning [Jyotir Vidya], in which the foundational
principle is that every life-event in the life of any individual, has to have a
one - to - one mapping or correspondence with planetary positions on the natural
zodiac. By calibrating the various life-events in a given individual’s life with
the changing planetary positions on the zodiac, one begins to see ‘the significance
of the planetary positions’ within the context of a human life. Both movements are
the same in the highest sense; in that they are reflective of the changing ‘moods’
or the rhythms of Isvara. This is the most important principle of ancient astrology,
whether it belonged to China, Mesopotamia, Arabia, Egypt or to the Vedic civilization.
Three Fruits of
Vedic Astrology
[1] Predictions of coming life-events.
[2] Insights & wisdom into human life.
[3] Averting a ‘bad-fate’ through Remedial Measures.
Astronomy studies the motions of the planets and other celestial objects
moving on the zodiacal belt, whereas astrology with its passion for philosophical
profundity and the resolution of the enigmas and paradoxes in human life; studies
the structure of human destiny, and sees it arising from the structure of time itself.
We are usually under the strong impression that the best fruits of Vedic astrology
are the predictions: when disease may strike, when losses may come to us, when we
may go abroad, when a marriage may be made or broken, when we may be honoured and
when we may possibly die, or suffer some humiliation, or lose in a litigation, etc.
However, predictions are not the only desirable fruits of Vedic astrology. Even
more valuable than the predictions are the philosophical fruits, such as insights
into life and wisdom; for the Vedic astrologer can determine in a given life,
when hard times come and when the time is fertile for a certain kind of activity.
When a certain action may meet with success and when it may result only in failure
and on the basis of such insights and judgements, Vedic astrologers will be able to
tell us, whether it will be prudent to act at a certain time, whether it will
be propitious to commence the construction of a house, or whether some big
suffering is in store for us, etc. Thus Vedic astrology has always been well known
for predictive knowledge undergoing a metamorphosis into insights, wisdom and a
deeper understanding of life. Nor are these insights & wisdom, all that there
is to Vedic astrology.
The Third Fruit: Astrological Remedial Measures &
their Power:
There
are the very potent Remedial Measures of
Vedic
astrology,
which are in almost all cases, fully capable of alleviating the miseries
to the extent of 80 to 90% [Ref 7, Pg 16]. Thus this Hindu Vidya does not
make a doomsday prediction and leave us in the lurch, completely vulnerable
to the onslaughts of a ‘bad-fate’. No! On the other hand, it teaches you how
to raise ‘the low energies’ of the planets in your natal horoscope, either
through special kinds of worship of the Hindu Devatas [Deities] corresponding to
the Navagrahas; or through a special empowerment of planetary energies [Kavach];
or even through Pariharas [Remedial Measures] for gradually nullifying the
afflictions in a horoscope, etc. Or it suggests some methods to overcome a
bad-affliction in the chart well in advance and in this way, teaches the
individual how to get more out of life, through the intensifying of his
intelligent effort in accordance with the detailed prescriptions of the Remedial
Measures given to us by the Vedic Rishis.
Thus we may say, Vedic astrology not only gives predictions and warns us about
coming events; it also helps us to greatly soften ‘the blows of fate’ and to
overcome ‘karmic-obstacles’ in life through intelligent effort, centred round
the Hindu Devatas, either on the physical plane or on the higher devotional and
astral planes. A doctor prescribes medicines, which are expected to change the
ill-health of the body, while a Vedicastrologer will ask us to enter into an
intelligent effort on a daily basis, which may be in the nature of a small but
heartfelt charity or which may be in the form of a devotional worship of a certain
Devata which stands for the energy of one of the weak Navagrahas [nine
planets] in our horoscope.
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