Vedic Astrology - Historical Perspective & Uses - Part I

An Introduction

Vedic Astrology, the Science of Time, the Eye of Wisdom and

the foremost among the branches of knowledge has come to us

from 18 seers. While Varaha Mihira is hailed as the Father

of Indian Astrology, Parashara is hailed as the Father of

Indian Predictive Astrology. IndianAstro-Physics is divided

into 3 major portions - Siddhanta (Astronomy ), Samhita (

Astro-Philosophy ) & Hora ( Astrology ).

The English word " hour" is derived from the Sanskrit word

Hora.

The Precession of the Equinoxes

While the Western astronomers compute everything from 0

degree Aries which is the beginning of the Tropical Zodiac,

the Indian astronomers compute everything from 0 degrees

Aswathi ( Beta Arietis ) , which is the beginning of the

Sidereal Zodiac. Sidereal is derived from the Latin word

"Sidereus" meaning the constellation of fixed stars. The

Vernal Equinoctial Point was found to precede one degree in

72 years and hence 360*72 = 25920 years was fixed as the

Precession of the Equinoxes or the Precessional Cycle.

Flamsteed anticipated

Long before Flamsteed fixed the beginning of Zodiac at 0

degree Aries, the Indian astronomer Brahmagupta fixed it at

0 degree Aswini ( Beta Arietis ). Another great

astronomer-mathematician Aryabhata wrote treatises on

Spherical Astronomy and Spherical Trignometry in his magnum

opus Aryabhateeyam. It is said that Arabs acquired a

knowledge of maths and astronomy only after Brahmagupta's

Brahmasphutasiddhanta was translated into Arabic ( As Sind

Hind )!

Albert Einstein rightly remarked " We owe a lot to the

Indians who taught us how to count without which no

worthwhile discovery could have been made " ! The

Difference between the Tropical ( Western ) & The Sidereal

( Indian ) Zodiacs is round about 23 degrees this year.

Sidereal Astrology is based on the immovable Zodiac- the

Sidereal Zodiac - and Western Tropical Astrology is based

on the Tropical Zodiac which is movable.

The Philosophic Aspect

As the destructive power is imbedded in the atom, so are the

acts of preservation, creation and destruction invested in

the womb of Almighty Time. Time Eternal alone is the

Creator, Preserver and Destroyer. Past,Present & Future are

imbedded in the womb of Time Eternal and a knower of Time

can get an insight into Past, Present & Future. The Present

is a product of the Past. Future is contained in the

Present inasmuch as it is determined by the Present. The

Lord equates Himself with the cosmic phenomenon of Time. "

I am Time Eternal " declares He in the the Geetha (

"Kalosmi " ). Oppenheimer, the Father of the Atom Bomb

quoted this verse from the Geetha when saw the first atomic

explosion. To him, the destructive power of the atom was a

mere manifestation of the destructive power of Time

Eternal!

Uses of Astrology

The Practical Aspect

The great French mathematician Laplace advocated Probability

as a weapon to cope up with Reality. Astrology is the

application of the Law of Probability in toto, based on

astronomical facts. Our life is hindered by many an obstacle

& we are busy battling the barriers to Success. These

barriers are always there, some known, some unknown. But

via the Wisdom of the Heavens (Astrology ) these barriers

can be known, why it is there and what are the heavenly

causes which generated it. Everything happens by Cause.

Classical Philosophy postulates that natural causes have

corresponding celestial causes and this is known as the Law

of Correspondences. This message is contained in the

aphorism " As above, so Below ". Once the causes are known

to us from a bona fide astrologer, overcoming the barriers

becomes easy.

The scientist manipulates the effect: the diviner or the

poet manipulates the Cause. Astrology and Yoga are sciences

which deal with the Cause. The Divine is the Transcendant

Causeless Cause.Astrology has been described as a Lamp in

Darkness. Without it, life becomes a lightless nightmare and

we roam about groping in the dark. "Forewarned is Forearmed

". It is the negative aspects of the planets which create

all the barriers in our life. Once they are known, by means

of the Great Art we can transcend its negativity. Life

becomes more smooth sailing and success becomes ours.