| VEDIC
ASTROLOGY: AS OLD AS VEDAS |
| Vedic Astrology
is as old as the Vedas themselves. The Vedas, which are the
sacred Hindu scriptures, embody eternal knowledge. To the
uninitiated, the Vedas might appear as nothing more than ritualistic
oblations to air, water and thunder, etc.
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In order to decipher
what lies concealed in the Vedas, a study of certain subjects is
considered a prerequisite. These subjects are called the ‘Vedangas’
or the body organs of the Vedas. There are six such Vedangas. They
are: |
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i. Shiksha,
which deals with an understanding of the Vedic ‘Vernas’,
‘Swaras’ and ‘Matras’, and thus with the
technique of correct pronunciation. |
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ii.
Chhanda, dealing with the appropriate lyrical utterance
of the Vedic ‘Suktas’. |
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iii.
Vyakarana, expouding the grammatical aspects of the
language. |
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iv.
Nirukta, which explains the difficult words, ‘padas’
and ‘mantras’. |
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v. Kalpa,
dealing with the understanding of Sutras and the use of Mantras,
hence concerned with the ritualistic aspect of the Vedas. |
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vi. Jyotisha
or Vedic astrology. |
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Of the body
called the Vedas, astrology represents the ‘eyes’, with
its capacity to ‘see’ the past, the present and the
future. Vedic Astrology is considered as the most important of the
above Vedangas. |
Vedic Astrology is an analysis and forecasting
system, based on astronomical data, that allows its practitioners
to carefully assess and understand behaviour, to measure the effects
of the past, the influence of the present and the tendency of events
to unfold in the future.
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| Vedic Astrology
appeared in Sanskrit. Later day authors came up with the name –
“Vedic Astrology”. The word “Vedic” means
“pertaining to Vedas.” Vedas are the sacred scriptures
of, what is known today as Hinduism and they are supposed to contain
knowledge of all subjects. Moreover, astrology in particular is supposed
to be a “Vedaanga” (which means a limb of Vedas). |
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Vedic
Astrology is becoming popular these days. We also suggest
using “Vedic Astrology” or “Jyotish” (meaning
“science of light”). Jyotishi is a practitioner of Jyotish,
i.e. a Vedic astrologer. |
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Vedic
Astrology is thought to be as old as this creation is.
Thanks to the yeoman service rendered by Dr. B.V. Raman and the
efforts of other Indian astrologers to follow him, today we have
a fair amount of Jyotish literature in Vedic Astrology.
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