I do have a horoscope." And that's no surprise, given that of any country in the world, astrology is perhaps the most popular in India, which holds the number-one spot for astrology-related Google searches.Well, almost everyone wants to know about the future. It is the belief and curiosity about ‘what next’ that drives them to the many Astro-Gurus. Hindu Astrology is one of the most ancient subjects of study.
Today, the topic is most debated amongst the believers and non-believers. Whatever be the scenario, several Indian universities and colleges have already been teaching Astrology as a subject. Various courses are offered to the students who pursue their career in the same.
A baby is born, they would consult an astrologer or Pandit to know if the baby has gold feet, silver feet, iron feet or bronze feet as this judges about what providence has that little soul brought along, for the family.
The expert would study the planetary positions Nakshatras at the time of the child’s birth and then would make his Janam-Patri or Janam Kundli (Horoscope or birth-chart).
The janam-patri declares the first letter of the child’s name. Earlier people used to stick to these names but now-a-days, they just make sure that the name starts with the letter mentioned in the chart.
The muhurat or favorable time for marriages, greh pravesh, buying a property or a vehicle, starting a new business or transferring to a new city is consulted through these birth charts only. The janam-kundalis of boy and girl are matched before every Hindu marriage.
This is done to find out any dosha in any of the kundalis. In case doshas are found, marriage does not happen between the two as it might bring grave consequences to either of the partners or even the both.
The compatibility between them is judged by means of 36 gunas that ought to match. The more they match, the better are prospects for marriage.
Ridiculously in some extreme cases, the medical advancements are subjected to follow the faith, when even the ‘most favorable’ date for a c-section is consulted from a Panditji. Really one should say, “Why read the lines when you can create them?”
vaasaamsi jiirnaani yathaa vihaaya, navaani grihnaati naro aparaani
tathaa shariiraani vihaaya jiirnaanyanyaani samyaati navaani dehii
This means that just like a person takes off his worn out clothes and puts on new ones, the soul also sheds away the tired bodies and gets into fresh one.
According to Jyotish Shastra, the stars, planetary positions influence the earthly life. These influences are based on the person’s Karma or deeds in the last birth, which judge the entire life. It is strongly believed that a person has to pay for his sins and reap for his holy deeds or punya, all of it is the game of Karma.
Indian astrology, the longest existing science has been followed from generations to generations. Its foundations were laid ever since the Vedic period and it is based on Vedas or ancient scriptures. While journeying through various eras, it is known to have got impacted by many theories.
According to Michio Yano, a professor of cultural studies –
“Indian astrology is about the Sanskritization of Greek astronomy.”
These influences of other theories led to a variety of prediction methods like palm reading, crystal ball, Naadi predictions and many more that you cannot even imagine. Palm reading is the most common form of astrology.
